Magnitude-frequency distributions of boundary shear stress along a rapidly eroding bedrock river

Details Magnitude-frequency distributions of boundary shear stress along a rapidly eroding bedrock river Magnitude-frequency distributions of boundary shear stress along a rapidly eroding bedrock river

Feb 2009

adsabs.harvard.edu/cgi-bin/nph-data_query?bibcode=2009georl..3604401b&link_type=abstract

Geophysical Research Letters, Volume 36, Issue 4, CiteID L04401

Physics

1

Hydrology: Geomorphology: Fluvial (1625), Hydrology: River Channels (0483, 0744), Hydrology: Remote Sensing (1640)

Scientific paper

The magnitude-frequency distribution of boundary shear stress frames erosion rates in bedrock rivers, but empirical constraints are rare, particularly for extreme floods. Here we present measurements of mean stress τ b and its frequency distribution along a fast-eroding river in Taiwan. We construct rating functions of discharge and hydraulic geometry using high-resolution satellite images of flood patterns, river stage time-series, topographic profiles, and post-flood field surveys. The method allows us to assess the spatiotemporal variation in τ b along the channel. The boundary shear stress PDF p(τ b ) has a steep power-law tail, and includes semiannual floods generating τ b ~ 100-200 Pa and 50-year, 3000 m3 s-1 events driving τ b >= 300 Pa. All such floods contribute to modification of the coarse alluvial cover and erosion of the bedrock bed. Given the steep tail decay in p(τ b ), the rapid channel incision probably owes more to the exceptional frequency of moderate shear stresses than to the magnitude of the extremes.

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