Articles | Volume 28, issue 5
https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-28-1173-2024
© Author(s) 2024. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-28-1173-2024
© Author(s) 2024. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
Research article
| 
07 Mar 2024
Research article |
| 07 Mar 2024
| 07 Mar 2024
Check dam impact on sediment loads: example of the Guerbe River in the Swiss Alps – a catchment scale experiment
Ariel Henrique do Prado
CORRESPONDING AUTHOR
Institute of Geological Sciences, University of Bern, Bern, Switzerland
David Mair
Institute of Geological Sciences, University of Bern, Bern, Switzerland
Philippos Garefalakis
Institute of Geological Sciences, University of Bern, Bern, Switzerland
Chantal Schmidt
Institute of Geological Sciences, University of Bern, Bern, Switzerland
Alexander Whittaker
Department of Earth Science and Engineering, Imperial College, London, United Kingdom
Sebastien Castelltort
Department of Earth Sciences, University of Geneva, Geneva, Switzerland
Fritz Schlunegger
Institute of Geological Sciences, University of Bern, Bern, Switzerland
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David Mair, Ariel Henrique Do Prado, Philippos Garefalakis, Alessandro Lechmann, Alexander Whittaker, and Fritz Schlunegger
Earth Surf. Dynam., 10, 953–973, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-10-953-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-10-953-2022, 2022
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Grain size data are important for studying and managing rivers, but they are difficult to obtain in the field. Therefore, methods have been developed that use images from small and remotely piloted aircraft. However, uncertainty in grain size data from such image-based products is understudied. Here we present a new way of uncertainty estimation that includes fully modeled errors. We use this technique to assess the effect of several image acquisition aspects on grain size uncertainty.
Ariel Henrique do Prado, Renato Paes de Almeida, Cristiano Padalino Galeazzi, Victor Sacek, and Fritz Schlunegger
Earth Surf. Dynam., 10, 457–471, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-10-457-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-10-457-2022, 2022
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Our work is focused on describing how and why the terrace levels of central Amazonia were formed during the last 100 000 years. We propose to address this question through a landscape evolution numerical model. Our results show that terrace levels at lower elevation were established in response to dry–wet climate changes and the older terrace levels at higher elevations most likely formed in response to a previously higher elevation of the regional base level.
Hoda Moradi, Gerhard Furrer, Michael Margreth, David Mair, and Christoph Wanner
The Cryosphere, 18, 5153–5171, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-18-5153-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-18-5153-2024, 2024
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Detailed monitoring of a rock glacier spring in the Eastern Alps showed that more than 1 tonne of toxic solutes, such as aluminum, nickel, and manganese, is mobilized each year from a small permafrost area. The strong mobilization is caused by rock weathering and long-term accumulation of toxic solutes in permafrost ice. Today, climate-change-induced permafrost degradation leads to a quick and focused export in summer. This forms an unexpected, novel hazard for alpine and high-latitude areas.
Michael Margreth, Florian Lustenberger, Dorothea Hug Peter, Fritz Schlunegger, and Massimiliano Zappa
Nat. Hazards Earth Syst. Sci. Discuss., https://doi.org/10.5194/nhess-2024-78, https://doi.org/10.5194/nhess-2024-78, 2024
Preprint under review for NHESS
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Recession models (RM) are crucial for observing the low flow behavior of a catchment. We developed two novel RM, which are designed to represent slowly draining catchment conditions. With a newly designed low flow prediction procedure we tested the prediction capability of these two models and three others from literature. One of our novel products delivered the best results, because it best represents the slowly draining catchment conditions.
Fritz Schlunegger, Edi Kissling, Dimitri Tibo Bandou, Guilhem Amin Douillet, David Mair, Urs Marti, Regina Reber, Patrick Fabian Schläfli, and Michael Alfred Schwenk
EGUsphere, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2024-683, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2024-683, 2024
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Overdeepenings are bedrock depressions filled with sediment. We combine the results of a gravity survey with drilling data to explore the morphology of such a depression beneath the city of Bern. We find that the target overdeepening comprises two basins >200 m deep. They are separated by a bedrock riegel that itself is cut by narrow canyons up to 150 m deep. We postulate that these structures formed underneath a glacier, where erosion by subglacial meltwater caused the formation of the canyons.
Nikhil Sharma, Jorge E. Spangenberg, Thierry Adatte, Torsten Vennemann, László Kocsis, Jean Vérité, Luis Valero, and Sébastien Castelltort
Clim. Past, 20, 935–949, https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-20-935-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-20-935-2024, 2024
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The Middle Eocene Climatic Optimum (MECO) is an enigmatic global warming event with scarce terrestrial records. To contribute, this study presents a new comprehensive geochemical record of the MECO in the fluvial Escanilla Formation, Spain. In addition to identifying the regional preservation of the MECO, results demonstrate continental sedimentary successions, as key archives of past climate and stable isotopes, to be a powerful tool in correlating difficult-to-date fluvial successions.
Daniel Bolliger, Fritz Schlunegger, and Brian W. McArdell
Nat. Hazards Earth Syst. Sci., 24, 1035–1049, https://doi.org/10.5194/nhess-24-1035-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/nhess-24-1035-2024, 2024
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We analysed data from the Illgraben debris flow monitoring station, Switzerland, and we modelled these flows with a debris flow runout model. We found that no correlation exists between the grain size distribution, the mineralogical composition of the matrix, and the debris flow properties. The flow properties rather appear to be determined by the flow volume, from which most other parameters can be derived.
Amanda Lily Wild, Jean Braun, Alexander C. Whittaker, and Sebastien Castelltort
EGUsphere, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2024-351, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2024-351, 2024
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Sediments deposited within river channels form the stratigraphic record, which has been used to interpret tectonic events, basin subsidence, and changes in precipitation long after ancient mountain chains have eroded away. Our work combines methods for estimating gravel fining with a landscape evolution model in order to analyze the grain size preserved within the stratigraphic record with greater complexity (e.g. considering topography and channel dynamics) than past approaches.
Renas Koshnaw, Jonas Kley, and Fritz Schlunegger
EGUsphere, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2023-3123, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2023-3123, 2024
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This study investigates how Earth's geodynamic processes shaped the NW Zagros in the Middle East. The Neogene foreland basin underwent subsidence due to the load of surface and the subducting slab, and was later influenced by the Neotethys horizontal slab tear propagation in the late Miocene and the northward flow of mantle material.
Sabí Peris Cabré, Luis Valero, Jorge E. Spangenberg, Andreu Vinyoles, Jean Verité, Thierry Adatte, Maxime Tremblin, Stephen Watkins, Nikhil Sharma, Miguel Garcés, Cai Puigdefàbregas, and Sébastien Castelltort
Clim. Past, 19, 533–554, https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-19-533-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-19-533-2023, 2023
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The Middle Eocene Climatic Optimum (MECO) was a global warming event that took place 40 Myr ago and lasted ca. 500 kyr, inducing physical, chemical, and biotic changes on the Earth. We use stable isotopes to identify the MECO in the Eocene deltaic deposits of the Southern Pyrenees. Our findings reveal enhanced deltaic progradation during the MECO, pointing to the important impact of global warming on fluvial sediment transport with implications for the consequences of current climate change.
David Mair, Ariel Henrique Do Prado, Philippos Garefalakis, Alessandro Lechmann, Alexander Whittaker, and Fritz Schlunegger
Earth Surf. Dynam., 10, 953–973, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-10-953-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-10-953-2022, 2022
Short summary
Short summary
Grain size data are important for studying and managing rivers, but they are difficult to obtain in the field. Therefore, methods have been developed that use images from small and remotely piloted aircraft. However, uncertainty in grain size data from such image-based products is understudied. Here we present a new way of uncertainty estimation that includes fully modeled errors. We use this technique to assess the effect of several image acquisition aspects on grain size uncertainty.
Michael A. Schwenk, Laura Stutenbecker, Patrick Schläfli, Dimitri Bandou, and Fritz Schlunegger
E&G Quaternary Sci. J., 71, 163–190, https://doi.org/10.5194/egqsj-71-163-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/egqsj-71-163-2022, 2022
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We investigated the origin of glacial sediments in the Bern area to determine their route of transport either with the Aare Glacier or the Valais Glacier. These two ice streams are known to have joined in the Bern area during the last major glaciation (ca. 20 000 years ago). However, little is known about the ice streams prior to this last glaciation. Here we collected evidence that during a glaciation about 250 000 years ago the Aare Glacier dominated the area as documented in the deposits.
Ariel Henrique do Prado, Renato Paes de Almeida, Cristiano Padalino Galeazzi, Victor Sacek, and Fritz Schlunegger
Earth Surf. Dynam., 10, 457–471, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-10-457-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-10-457-2022, 2022
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Our work is focused on describing how and why the terrace levels of central Amazonia were formed during the last 100 000 years. We propose to address this question through a landscape evolution numerical model. Our results show that terrace levels at lower elevation were established in response to dry–wet climate changes and the older terrace levels at higher elevations most likely formed in response to a previously higher elevation of the regional base level.
Alessandro Lechmann, David Mair, Akitaka Ariga, Tomoko Ariga, Antonio Ereditato, Ryuichi Nishiyama, Ciro Pistillo, Paola Scampoli, Mykhailo Vladymyrov, and Fritz Schlunegger
Geosci. Model Dev., 15, 2441–2473, https://doi.org/10.5194/gmd-15-2441-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/gmd-15-2441-2022, 2022
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Muon tomography is a technology that is used often in geoscientific research. The know-how of data analysis is, however, still possessed by physicists who developed this technology. This article aims at providing geoscientists with the necessary tools to perform their own analyses. We hope that a lower threshold to enter the field of muon tomography will allow more geoscientists to engage with muon tomography. SMAUG is set up in a modular way to allow for its own modules to work in between.
Michael A. Schwenk, Patrick Schläfli, Dimitri Bandou, Natacha Gribenski, Guilhem A. Douillet, and Fritz Schlunegger
Sci. Dril., 30, 17–42, https://doi.org/10.5194/sd-30-17-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/sd-30-17-2022, 2022
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A scientific drilling was conducted into a bedrock trough (overdeepening) in Bern-Bümpliz (Switzerland) in an effort to advance the knowledge of the Quaternary prior to 150 000 years ago. We encountered a 208.5 m-thick succession of loose sediments (gravel, sand and mud) in the retrieved core and identified two major sedimentary sequences (A: lower, B: upper). The sedimentary suite records two glacial advances and the subsequent filling of a lake sometime between 300 000 and 200 000 years ago.
Emilija Krsnik, Katharina Methner, Marion Campani, Svetlana Botsyun, Sebastian G. Mutz, Todd A. Ehlers, Oliver Kempf, Jens Fiebig, Fritz Schlunegger, and Andreas Mulch
Solid Earth, 12, 2615–2631, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-12-2615-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-12-2615-2021, 2021
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Here we present new surface elevation constraints for the middle Miocene Central Alps based on stable and clumped isotope geochemical analyses. Our reconstructed paleoelevation estimate is supported by isotope-enabled paleoclimate simulations and indicates that the Miocene Central Alps were characterized by a heterogeneous and spatially transient topography with high elevations locally exceeding 4000 m.
Renas I. Koshnaw, Fritz Schlunegger, and Daniel F. Stockli
Solid Earth, 12, 2479–2501, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-12-2479-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-12-2479-2021, 2021
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As continental plates collide, mountain belts grow. This study investigated the provenance of rocks from the northwestern segment of the Zagros mountain belt to unravel the convergence history of the Arabian and Eurasian plates. Provenance data synthesis and field relationships suggest that the Zagros Mountains developed as a result of the oceanic crust emplacement on the Arabian continental plate, followed by the Arabia–Eurasia collision and later uplift of the broader region.
Louis Honegger, Thierry Adatte, Jorge E. Spangenberg, Miquel Poyatos-Moré, Alexandre Ortiz, Magdalena Curry, Damien Huyghe, Cai Puigdefàbregas, Miguel Garcés, Andreu Vinyoles, Luis Valero, Charlotte Läuchli, Andrés Nowak, Andrea Fildani, Julian D. Clark, and Sébastien Castelltort
Solid Earth Discuss., https://doi.org/10.5194/se-2021-12, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-2021-12, 2021
Publication in SE not foreseen
Owen A. Anfinson, Daniel F. Stockli, Joseph C. Miller, Andreas Möller, and Fritz Schlunegger
Solid Earth, 11, 2197–2220, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-11-2197-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-11-2197-2020, 2020
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We present new U–Pb age data to provide insights into the source of sediment for the Molasse Sedimentary Basin in Switzerland. The paper aims to help shed light on the processes that built the Central Alpine Mountains between ~35 and ~15 Ma. A primary conclusion drawn from the results is that at ~21 Ma there was a significant change in the sediment sources for the basin. We feel this change indicates major tectonic changes within the Central Alps.
Samuel Mock, Christoph von Hagke, Fritz Schlunegger, István Dunkl, and Marco Herwegh
Solid Earth, 11, 1823–1847, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-11-1823-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-11-1823-2020, 2020
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Based on thermochronological data, we infer thrusting along-strike the northern rim of the Central Alps between 12–4 Ma. While the lithology influences the pattern of thrusting at the local scale, we observe that thrusting in the foreland is a long-wavelength feature occurring between Lake Geneva and Salzburg. This coincides with the geometry and dynamics of the attached lithospheric slab at depth. Thus, thrusting in the foreland is at least partly linked to changes in slab dynamics.
Fritz Schlunegger, Romain Delunel, and Philippos Garefalakis
Earth Surf. Dynam., 8, 717–728, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-8-717-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-8-717-2020, 2020
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We calculated the probability of sediment transport in coarse-grained mountainous streams in the Alps and the Andes where data on water discharge is available. We find a positive correlation between the predicted probability of sediment transport and the grain size sorting of the bed material. We suggest that besides sediment discharge, the bedload sorting exerts a significant influence on the mobility of sediment and thus on the stability of gravel bars in mountainous streams.
David Mair, Alessandro Lechmann, Romain Delunel, Serdar Yeşilyurt, Dmitry Tikhomirov, Christof Vockenhuber, Marcus Christl, Naki Akçar, and Fritz Schlunegger
Earth Surf. Dynam., 8, 637–659, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-8-637-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-8-637-2020, 2020
Louis Honegger, Thierry Adatte, Jorge E. Spangenberg, Jeremy K. Caves Rugenstein, Miquel Poyatos-Moré, Cai Puigdefàbregas, Emmanuelle Chanvry, Julian Clark, Andrea Fildani, Eric Verrechia, Kalin Kouzmanov, Matthieu Harlaux, and Sébastien Castelltort
Clim. Past, 16, 227–243, https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-16-227-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-16-227-2020, 2020
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A geochemical study of a continental section reveals a rapid global warming event (hyperthermal U), occurring ca. 50 Myr ago, only described until now in marine sediment cores. Documenting how the Earth system responded to rapid climatic shifts provides fundamental information to constrain climatic models. Our results suggest that continental deposits can be high-resolution recorders of these warmings. They also give an insight on the climatic conditions occurring during at the time.
Philippos Garefalakis and Fritz Schlunegger
Solid Earth, 10, 2045–2072, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-10-2045-2019, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-10-2045-2019, 2019
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The controls on the 20 Myr old Burdigalian transgression in the Swiss Molasse basin have been related to a reduction in sediment flux, a rise in global sea level, or tectonic processes in the adjacent Alps. Here, we readdress this problem and extract stratigraphic signals from the Upper Marine Molasse deposits in Switzerland. In conclusion, we consider rollback tectonics to be the main driving force controlling the transgression, which is related to a deepening and widening of the basin.
François Clapuyt, Veerle Vanacker, Marcus Christl, Kristof Van Oost, and Fritz Schlunegger
Solid Earth, 10, 1489–1503, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-10-1489-2019, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-10-1489-2019, 2019
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Using state-of-the-art geomorphic techniques, we quantified a 2-order of magnitude discrepancy between annual, decadal, and millennial sediment fluxes of a landslide-affected mountainous river catchment in the Swiss Alps. Our results illustrate that the impact of a single sediment pulse is strongly attenuated at larger spatial and temporal scales by sediment transport. The accumulation of multiple sediment pulses has rather a measurable impact on the regional pattern of sediment fluxes.
Samuel Mock, Christoph von Hagke, Fritz Schlunegger, István Dunkl, and Marco Herwegh
Solid Earth Discuss., https://doi.org/10.5194/se-2019-56, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-2019-56, 2019
Revised manuscript not accepted
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Based on own and published age data, we can infer tectonic pulses along-strike the entire northern rim of the Central Alps between 12–4 million years. Although lithologic variations largely influence the local deformation pattern, the tectonic signal is remarkably consistent all the way from Lake Geneva to Salzburg. This might result from a deep-seated tectonic force and marks a change from dominantly vertical to large-scale horizontal tectonics in the late stage of Alpine orogeny.
Alessandro Lechmann, David Mair, Akitaka Ariga, Tomoko Ariga, Antonio Ereditato, Ryuichi Nishiyama, Ciro Pistillo, Paola Scampoli, Fritz Schlunegger, and Mykhailo Vladymyrov
Solid Earth, 9, 1517–1533, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-9-1517-2018, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-9-1517-2018, 2018
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Muon tomography is a technology, similar to X-ray tomography, to image the interior of an object, including geologically interesting ones. In this work, we examined the influence of rock composition on the physical measurements, and the possible error that is made by assuming a too-simplistic rock model. We performed numerical simulations for a more realistic rock model and found that beyond 300 m of rock, the composition starts to play a significant role and has to be accounted for.
David Mair, Alessandro Lechmann, Marco Herwegh, Lukas Nibourel, and Fritz Schlunegger
Solid Earth, 9, 1099–1122, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-9-1099-2018, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-9-1099-2018, 2018
Fritz Schlunegger and Philippos Garefalakis
Earth Surf. Dynam., 6, 743–761, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-6-743-2018, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-6-743-2018, 2018
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Clast imbrication, which is a depositional fabric where clasts overlap each other similar to a run of toppled dominoes, is one of the most conspicuous sedimentary structures in coarse-grained fluvial deposits. However, the conditions leading to this fabric have been contested. Here, we calculate the hydrological conditions for various stream gradients. We find that clast imbrication most likely forms where channel gradients exceed a threshold and where upper flow regime conditions prevail.
John J. Armitage, Alexander C. Whittaker, Mustapha Zakari, and Benjamin Campforts
Earth Surf. Dynam., 6, 77–99, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-6-77-2018, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-6-77-2018, 2018
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We explore how two landscape evolution models respond to a change in climate. The two models are developed from a divergent assumption on the efficiency of sediment transport. Despite the different resulting mathematics, both numerical models display a similar functional response to a change in precipitation. However, if we model sediment transport rather than assume it is instantaneously removed, the model responds more rapidly, with a response time similar to that observed in nature.
Anna Costa, Peter Molnar, Laura Stutenbecker, Maarten Bakker, Tiago A. Silva, Fritz Schlunegger, Stuart N. Lane, Jean-Luc Loizeau, and Stéphanie Girardclos
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 22, 509–528, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-22-509-2018, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-22-509-2018, 2018
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We explore the signal of a warmer climate in the suspended-sediment dynamics of a regulated and human-impacted Alpine catchment. We demonstrate that temperature-driven enhanced melting of glaciers, which occurred in the mid-1980s, played a dominant role in suspended sediment concentration rise, through increased runoff from sediment-rich proglacial areas, increased contribution of sediment-rich meltwater, and increased sediment supply in proglacial areas due to glacier recession.
François Clapuyt, Veerle Vanacker, Fritz Schlunegger, and Kristof Van Oost
Earth Surf. Dynam., 5, 791–806, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-5-791-2017, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-5-791-2017, 2017
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This work aims at understanding the behaviour of an earth flow located in the Swiss Alps by reconstructing very accurately its topography over a 2-year period. Aerial photos taken from a drone, which are then processed using a computer vision algorithm, were used to derive the topographic datasets. Combination and careful interpretation of high-resolution topographic analyses reveal the internal mechanisms of the earthflow and its complex rotational structure, which is evolving over time.
Camille Litty, Fritz Schlunegger, and Willem Viveen
Earth Surf. Dynam., 5, 571–583, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-5-571-2017, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-5-571-2017, 2017
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This paper focuses on the analysis of the properties controlling the grain size in the streams of the western Peruvian Andes. Pebble size distributions in these streams have been compared to fluvial processes and basin properties. The resulting trends and differences in sediment properties seem to have been controlled by threshold conditions upon supply and transport.
Laura Stutenbecker, Anna Costa, and Fritz Schlunegger
Earth Surf. Dynam., 4, 253–272, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-4-253-2016, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-4-253-2016, 2016
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This paper considers the influence of lithology on the landscape development in the Central Swiss Alps. In high-alpine settings such as the upper Rhône valley, external forcing by climate, glaciation and uplift affects the geomorphological evolution of the landscape. By careful compilation of published data and geomorphological analysis we found that the rock type and its susceptibility to erosion are the main factors controlling the response time to those perturbations.
K. P. Norton, F. Schlunegger, and C. Litty
Earth Surf. Dynam., 4, 147–157, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-4-147-2016, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-4-147-2016, 2016
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Cut-fill terraces are common landforms throughout the world. Their distribution both in space and time is not clear-cut, as they can arise from numerous processes. We apply a climate-dependent regolith production algorithm to determine potential sediment loads during climate shifts. When combined with transport capacity, our results suggest that the cut-fill terraces of western Peru can result from transient stripping of hillslope sediment but not steady-state hillslope erosion.
Related subject area
Subject: Water Resources Management | Techniques and Approaches: Stochastic approaches
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Spatiotemporal responses of the crop water footprint and its associated benchmarks under different irrigation regimes to climate change scenarios in China
Bridging the scale gap: obtaining high-resolution stochastic simulations of gridded daily precipitation in a future climate
3D multiple-point geostatistical simulation of joint subsurface redox and geological architectures
News media coverage of conflict and cooperation dynamics of water events in the Lancang–Mekong River basin
Analysis of the effects of biases in ensemble streamflow prediction (ESP) forecasts on electricity production in hydropower reservoir management
Using paleoclimate reconstructions to analyse hydrological epochs associated with Pacific decadal variability
Bias correction of simulated historical daily streamflow at ungauged locations by using independently estimated flow duration curves
Season-ahead forecasting of water storage and irrigation requirements – an application to the southwest monsoon in India
Hydrostratigraphic modeling using multiple-point statistics and airborne transient electromagnetic methods
A risk assessment methodology to evaluate the risk failure of managed aquifer recharge in the Mediterranean Basin
A coupled stochastic rainfall–evapotranspiration model for hydrological impact analysis
Real-time updating of the flood frequency distribution through data assimilation
Estimating drought risk across Europe from reported drought impacts, drought indices, and vulnerability factors
The cost of ending groundwater overdraft on the North China Plain
Definition of efficient scarcity-based water pricing policies through stochastic programming
A dual-inexact fuzzy stochastic model for water resources management and non-point source pollution mitigation under multiple uncertainties
Just two moments! A cautionary note against use of high-order moments in multifractal models in hydrology
Determining spatial variability of dry spells: a Markov-based method, applied to the Makanya catchment, Tanzania
Streamflow droughts in the Iberian Peninsula between 1945 and 2005: spatial and temporal patterns
Estimating the flood frequency distribution at seasonal and annual time scales
Domestic wells have high probability of pumping septic tank leachate
Record extension for short-gauged water quality parameters using a newly proposed robust version of the Line of Organic Correlation technique
Calibration of the modified Bartlett-Lewis model using global optimization techniques and alternative objective functions
Trend analysis of extreme precipitation in the Northwestern Highlands of Ethiopia with a case study of Debre Markos
Zach Perzan, Gordon Osterman, and Kate Maher
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 27, 969–990, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-27-969-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-27-969-2023, 2023
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In this study, we simulate flood managed aquifer recharge – the process of intentionally inundating land to replenish depleted aquifers – at a site imaged with geophysical equipment. Results show that layers of clay and silt trap recharge water above the water table, where it is inaccessible to both plants and groundwater wells. Sensitivity analyses also identify the main sources of uncertainty when simulating managed aquifer recharge, helping to improve future forecasts of site performance.
Zhiwei Yue, Xiangxiang Ji, La Zhuo, Wei Wang, Zhibin Li, and Pute Wu
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 26, 4637–4656, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-26-4637-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-26-4637-2022, 2022
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Facing the increasing challenge of sustainable crop supply with limited water resources due to climate change, large-scale responses in the water footprint (WF) and WF benchmarks of crop production remain unclear. Here, we quantify the effects of future climate change scenarios on the WF and WF benchmarks of maize and wheat in time and space in China. Differences in crop growth between rain-fed and irrigated farms and among furrow-, sprinkler-, and micro-irrigated regimes are identified.
Qifen Yuan, Thordis L. Thorarinsdottir, Stein Beldring, Wai Kwok Wong, and Chong-Yu Xu
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 25, 5259–5275, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-25-5259-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-25-5259-2021, 2021
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Localized impacts of changing precipitation patterns on surface hydrology are often assessed at a high spatial resolution. Here we introduce a stochastic method that efficiently generates gridded daily precipitation in a future climate. The method works out a stochastic model that can describe a high-resolution data product in a reference period and form a realistic precipitation generator under a projected future climate. A case study of nine catchments in Norway shows that it works well.
Rasmus Bødker Madsen, Hyojin Kim, Anders Juhl Kallesøe, Peter B. E. Sandersen, Troels Norvin Vilhelmsen, Thomas Mejer Hansen, Anders Vest Christiansen, Ingelise Møller, and Birgitte Hansen
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 25, 2759–2787, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-25-2759-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-25-2759-2021, 2021
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The protection of subsurface aquifers from contamination is an ongoing environmental challenge. Some areas of the underground have a natural capacity for reducing contaminants. In this research these areas are mapped in 3D along with information about, e.g., sand and clay, which indicates whether contaminated water from the surface will travel through these areas. This mapping technique will be fundamental for more reliable risk assessment in water quality protection.
Jing Wei, Yongping Wei, Fuqiang Tian, Natalie Nott, Claire de Wit, Liying Guo, and You Lu
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 25, 1603–1615, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-25-1603-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-25-1603-2021, 2021
Richard Arsenault and Pascal Côté
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 23, 2735–2750, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-23-2735-2019, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-23-2735-2019, 2019
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Hydrological forecasting allows hydropower system operators to make the most efficient use of the available water as possible. Accordingly, hydrologists have been aiming at improving the quality of these forecasts. This work looks at the impacts of improving systematic errors in a forecasting scheme on the hydropower generation using a few decision-aiding tools that are used operationally by hydropower utilities. We find that the impacts differ according to the hydropower system characteristics.
Lanying Zhang, George Kuczera, Anthony S. Kiem, and Garry Willgoose
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 22, 6399–6414, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-22-6399-2018, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-22-6399-2018, 2018
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Analyses of run lengths of Pacific decadal variability (PDV) suggest that there is no significant difference between run lengths in positive and negative phases of PDV and that it is more likely than not that the PDV run length has been non-stationary in the past millennium. This raises concerns about whether variability seen in the instrumental record (the last ~100 years), or even in the shorter 300–400 year paleoclimate reconstructions, is representative of the full range of variability.
William H. Farmer, Thomas M. Over, and Julie E. Kiang
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 22, 5741–5758, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-22-5741-2018, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-22-5741-2018, 2018
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This work observes that the result of streamflow simulation is often biased, especially with regards to extreme events, and proposes a novel technique to reduce this bias. By using parallel simulations of relative streamflow timing (sequencing) and the distribution of streamflow (magnitude), severe biases can be mitigated. Reducing this bias allows for improved utility of streamflow simulation for water resources management.
Arun Ravindranath, Naresh Devineni, Upmanu Lall, and Paulina Concha Larrauri
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 22, 5125–5141, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-22-5125-2018, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-22-5125-2018, 2018
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We present a framework for forecasting water storage requirements in the agricultural sector and an application of this framework to water risk assessment in India. Our framework involves defining a crop-specific water stress index and applying a particular statistical forecasting model to predict seasonal water stress for the crop of interest. The application focused on forecasting crop water stress for potatoes grown during the monsoon season in the Satara district of Maharashtra.
Adrian A. S. Barfod, Ingelise Møller, Anders V. Christiansen, Anne-Sophie Høyer, Júlio Hoffimann, Julien Straubhaar, and Jef Caers
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 22, 3351–3373, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-22-3351-2018, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-22-3351-2018, 2018
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Three-dimensional geological models are important to securing and managing groundwater. Such models describe the geological architecture, which is used for modeling the flow of groundwater. Common geological modeling approaches result in one model, which does not quantify the architectural uncertainty of the geology.
We present a comparison of three different state-of-the-art stochastic multiple-point statistical methods for quantifying the geological uncertainty using real-world datasets.
Paula Rodríguez-Escales, Arnau Canelles, Xavier Sanchez-Vila, Albert Folch, Daniel Kurtzman, Rudy Rossetto, Enrique Fernández-Escalante, João-Paulo Lobo-Ferreira, Manuel Sapiano, Jon San-Sebastián, and Christoph Schüth
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 22, 3213–3227, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-22-3213-2018, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-22-3213-2018, 2018
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In this work, we have developed a methodology to evaluate the failure risk of managed aquifer recharge, and we have applied it to six different facilities located in the Mediterranean Basin. The methodology was based on the development of a probabilistic risk assessment based on fault trees. We evaluated both technical and non-technical issues, the latter being more responsible for failure risk.
Minh Tu Pham, Hilde Vernieuwe, Bernard De Baets, and Niko E. C. Verhoest
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 22, 1263–1283, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-22-1263-2018, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-22-1263-2018, 2018
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In this paper, stochastically generated rainfall and corresponding evapotranspiration time series, generated by means of vine copulas, are used to force a simple conceptual hydrological model. The results obtained are comparable to the modelled discharge using observed forcing data. Yet, uncertainties in the modelled discharge increase with an increasing number of stochastically generated time series used. Still, the developed model has great potential for hydrological impact analysis.
Cristina Aguilar, Alberto Montanari, and María-José Polo
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 21, 3687–3700, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-21-3687-2017, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-21-3687-2017, 2017
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Assuming that floods are driven by both short- (meteorological forcing) and long-term perturbations (higher-than-usual moisture), we propose a technique for updating a season in advance the flood frequency distribution. Its application in the Po and Danube rivers helped to reduce the uncertainty in the estimation of floods and thus constitutes a promising tool for real-time management of flood risk mitigation. This study is the result of the stay of the first author at the University of Bologna.
Veit Blauhut, Kerstin Stahl, James Howard Stagge, Lena M. Tallaksen, Lucia De Stefano, and Jürgen Vogt
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 20, 2779–2800, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-20-2779-2016, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-20-2779-2016, 2016
Claus Davidsen, Suxia Liu, Xingguo Mo, Dan Rosbjerg, and Peter Bauer-Gottwein
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 20, 771–785, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-20-771-2016, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-20-771-2016, 2016
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In northern China, rivers run dry and groundwater tables drop, causing economic losses for all water use sectors. We present a groundwater-surface water allocation decision support tool for cost-effective long-term recovery of an overpumped aquifer. The tool is demonstrated for a part of the North China Plain and can support the implementation of the recent China No. 1 Document in a rational and economically efficient way.
H. Macian-Sorribes, M. Pulido-Velazquez, and A. Tilmant
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 19, 3925–3935, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-19-3925-2015, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-19-3925-2015, 2015
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One of the most promising alternatives to improve the efficiency in water usage is the implementation of scarcity-based pricing policies based on the opportunity cost of water at the basin scale. Time series of the marginal value of water at selected locations (reservoirs) are obtained using a stochastic hydro-economic model and then post-processed to define step water pricing policies.
C. Dong, Q. Tan, G.-H. Huang, and Y.-P. Cai
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 18, 1793–1803, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-18-1793-2014, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-18-1793-2014, 2014
F. Lombardo, E. Volpi, D. Koutsoyiannis, and S. M. Papalexiou
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 18, 243–255, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-18-243-2014, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-18-243-2014, 2014
B. M. C. Fischer, M. L. Mul, and H. H. G. Savenije
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 17, 2161–2170, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-17-2161-2013, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-17-2161-2013, 2013
J. Lorenzo-Lacruz, E. Morán-Tejeda, S. M. Vicente-Serrano, and J. I. López-Moreno
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 17, 119–134, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-17-119-2013, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-17-119-2013, 2013
E. Baratti, A. Montanari, A. Castellarin, J. L. Salinas, A. Viglione, and A. Bezzi
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 16, 4651–4660, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-16-4651-2012, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-16-4651-2012, 2012
J. E. Bremer and T. Harter
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 16, 2453–2467, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-16-2453-2012, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-16-2453-2012, 2012
B. Khalil and J. Adamowski
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 16, 2253–2266, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-16-2253-2012, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-16-2253-2012, 2012
W. J. Vanhaute, S. Vandenberghe, K. Scheerlinck, B. De Baets, and N. E. C. Verhoest
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 16, 873–891, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-16-873-2012, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-16-873-2012, 2012
H. Shang, J. Yan, M. Gebremichael, and S. M. Ayalew
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 15, 1937–1944, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-15-1937-2011, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-15-1937-2011, 2011
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Short summary
Engineering structures known as check dams are built with the intention of managing streams. The effectiveness of such structures can be expressed by quantifying the reduction of the sediment flux after their implementation. In this contribution, we estimate and compare the volumes of sediment transported in a mountain stream for engineered and non-engineered conditions. We found that without check dams the mean sediment flux would be ca. 10 times larger in comparison with the current situation.
Engineering structures known as check dams are built with the intention of managing streams. The...
