While in the field this past Saturday, we had the opportunity to observe how sediment is dispersed along the Connecticut coast and talk about the origin of the sediment. From glacial lake Hitchcock, several subaqueous fans (deltas) were created. As the glacier retreated, the delta morphosequences were deposited further and further north. These deposits are […]

While canoeing down the Hockanum River, my dad and I got to navigate the Beacon Falls rapids. These rapids are formed due to lithologic knickpoints. Most likely these knickpoints are migrating due a combination of glacial rebound and erosion.  Below is a picture of my Dad and I during the Hockanum River Race.

https://earthengine.google.com/timelapse/ Google Earth Engine Time Lapse: Gargathy Bay, Wallops Island, VA, United States Zoom to this location and look at the changes of the northern barrier island as it progrades to the southwest. The barrier island has grown by a substantial amount. This is due to wave defraction eroding sediment from the barrier island and displacing it […]

Engineered levees are preventing deposition of sediment on the Mississippi Delta marshes and floodplain. This is leading to subsidence and land loss as sediment is no longer escaping the Mississippi River. Here is a link that looks at projects which will aid in preventing land loss: http://mississippiriverdelta.org/restoration-solutions/

Google Earth timelapse shows amazing imagery of what happened before and after several landslides in Oso, WA. The river experiences a large build up of sediment upstream while downstream the river does not get as sediment choked. The landslide dams the river causing an increase in slope upstream, increasing basal shear stress, causing more sediment […]

Have you ever wondered what happens to sediment once dams are removed? Scientists from Boston College and Franklin and Marshall are studying the effects. They’ve discovered that sediment once ponded by a dam in Lancaster County, PA traveled all the way to the Chesapeake Bay! This sediment transport effects nutrient availability and river morphology. Links […]

The area around the Oroville Dam is still flooded and more rain is predicted per the latest weather forecast. The reservoir is lower than in previous days. However, the dam still remains a threat. The interactive model in the link below shows what the height difference looks like between the dam and the town below. […]

Shoveling has been a reoccurring theme for the previous week with two winter storm systems coming through. Snow/ice is classified as a mineral meaning that we have the ability to classify it! Take out your hand lens and grain size chart and determine what size particles you are shoveling, skiing, or sledding in! Bonus-the snowflakes […]

Downhill skiing can be an analogy for sediment transport in fluvial systems. Skiers that stay on their feet can be thought of as suspended particles. Skiers that end up summersaulting can be thought of as incipiently suspended load. Skiers that fall flat on their face can be thought of as bedload where the critical shear […]

The Feather River is is the outlet for the Oroville Dam. Floodplain deposits besides this river would tell us the shear velocity during certain floods and what particle sizes would comprise the suspended, incipiently suspended, and bedload. If the sediments behind the dam were cored, we could figure out what shear velocity is necessary for […]