Bedload hysteresis in a glacier-fed mountain river

Auteur(s) et Affiliation(s)

MAO, L.

Dept. of Ecosystems and Environment, Pontifica Univ. Catolica, Santiago, Chili

DELL'AGNESE, A.

Fac. of Science and Technology, Free Univ. of Bozen-Bolzano, Bolzano, Italie

HUINCACHE, C.

Dept. of Ecosystems and Environment, Pontifica Univ. Catolica, Santiago, Chili

PENNA, D.

Fac. of Science and Technology, Free Univ. of Bozen-Bolzano, Bolzano, Italie

Dept. of Land, Environment, Agriculture and Forestry, Univ., Padova, Italie

ENGEL, M.

Fac. of Science and Technology, Free Univ. of Bozen-Bolzano, Bolzano, Italie

Inst. for alpine Environment, EURAC, Bozen-Bolzano, Italie

NIEDRIST, G.

Inst. for alpine Environment, EURAC, Bozen-Bolzano, Italie

COMITI, F.

Fac. of Science and Technology, Free Univ. of Bozen-Bolzano, Bolzano, Italie

Description :
This work focuses on the temporal variability of bedload transport in an alpine catchment (Saldur basin, Italian Alps) where bedload transport was monitored by means of an acoustic pipe sensor which detects the acoustic vibrations induced by particles hitting a 0.5m-long steel pipe. Runoff dynamics are dominated by snowmelt in late spring/early summer, mostly by glacier melt in late summer/early autumn, and by a combination of the snow and glacier melt in mid-summer. The results indicate that hysteretic patterns during daily discharge fluctuations are predominantly clockwise during the snowmelt period, likely due to the ready availability of unpacked sediments within the channel or through bank erosion in the lower part of the basin. On the contrary, counterclockwise hysteresis tend to be more frequent during late glacier melting period. The results indicate that runoff generation processes play a crucial role on sediment supply and temporal availability in mountain streams.

Type de document :
Article de périodique

Source :
Earth surface processes and landforms, issn : 0197-9337, 2014, vol. 39, n°. 7, p. 964-976, nombre de pages : 13, Références bibliographiques : 2 p.

Date :
2014

Editeur :
Pays édition : Royaume-Uni, Chichester, Wiley

Langue :
Anglais