Historical dune pattern dynamics : white sands dune field, New Mexico

Auteur(s) et Affiliation(s)

RACHAL, D.M.

Dep. of Geography, New Mexico State Univ., Las Cruces, Etats-Unis

DUGAS, D.P.

Dep. of Geography, New Mexico State Univ., Las Cruces, Etats-Unis

Description :
Historical repeat aerial photography was used to quantify temporal changes in the crescentic dune pattern at the White Sands Dune Field. A Geographic Information System (GIS) was used to digitize 14,000 dune crests from the combined photoset. Crest length, sinuosity, spacing, orientation, transport vector, and defect density were calculated from these measurements and statistically analyzed. The pattern analysis revealed that crest length, sinuosity, and defect density were highly variable pattern elements over a 60-year period. Defect density calculations revealed that the dune field is trending to a possible state of disorganization. This trend was temporarily interrupted in 1985 by a massive period of organization. The temporal variations in these pattern elements and the episodic organizational event in 1985 were likely climatically induced.

Type de document :
Article de périodique

Source :
Physical geography, issn : 0272-3646, 2009, vol. 30, n°. 1, p. 64-78, nombre de pages : 15, Références bibliographiques : 2 p.

Date :
2009

Editeur :
Pays édition : Royaume-Uni, Abingdon, Taylor and Francis

Langue :
Anglais