New modeling approach reexamines two key assumptions about flooding.
River channels
Posted inResearch Spotlights
What Controls the Shape of Steep Mountain Streams?
The shape of steep river streams changes systematically with channel slope, but field data and theoretical analysis reveal that slope is not the sole factor in setting a channel’s form.
Posted inResearch Spotlights
How Do Rivers Flow over Bedrock?
A study questions whether the hydraulics of rivers that lack loose sediments along their bottoms can be accurately depicted by standard equations for flow over sediment.
Posted inResearch Spotlights
Lab Tests Probe the Secrets of Steep and Rocky Mountain Streams
Researchers built a glass-encased test environment that helps them assess streamflow without the confounding factors introduced by bed forms.
Posted inResearch Spotlights
Stream Network Geometry Correlates with Climate
A "big data" analysis of nearly 1 million river junctions in the contiguous United States shows that branching angles in dendritic drainages vary systematically between humid and arid regions.
Posted inResearch Spotlights
How Do Tropical Forests Slow Knickpoints in Rivers?
Using Puerto Rico's Luquillo Mountains as a case study, scientists use the region's geological history to study how knickpoints—areas where there's a sharp change in the river's slope—move over time.
Posted inResearch Spotlights
The Mathematics of Braided Rivers
River researchers find a mathematical relationship that predicts the average shape of a riverbed over a defined distance, opening the door to new ideas about modeling braided rivers.
Posted inResearch Spotlights
Shape of Stream Channels Gives Clues to Sediment Size
The shape can also reveal information on the force required to carve sediment from its bank.
Posted inResearch Spotlights
Hillslopes Regulate Sediment Supply to River Channels
New study rethinks dynamics of runoff-driven erosion in response to rainstorms.
Posted inResearch Spotlights
Where Does the Bed of a River Change from Gravel to Sand?
Analysis of the Fraser River suggests that riverbed sediments shift abruptly depending on river slope changes and water speed.