Sticky sediments are an important component of many rivers and coasts. Stickiness depends on many factors including the presence of micro-organisms, also known as biofilms. We performed a laboratory study to better understand the role of biofilms in controlling sediment transport and dynamics. We find that sand with biofilms requires significantly higher flow velocities to be mobilized compared to uncolonised sand. This will help improve predictions of sediment in response to currents and waves. Hide

The Ebro and Duero basins share a very common geological history. However, since the Late Miocene, the Ebro basin records important unfilling and excavation, whereas the Duero basin records only limited incision and is considered as still almost endorheic. Such a morphologic contrast led to important drainage reorganization and divide migration toward the Duero basin. Drainage area loss results in the lowering of the incision capacity of the Duero river increasing this contrast. Hide

For many applications in Earth Sciences it is important to know where river and ocean sediments have originated. In this study we used geochemical and mineralogical tracers to characterise sediments from Svalbard. We find that the sediments are formed from two sources: old rocks in Greenland and younger rocks in Siberia. Glaciation influences how much of each end-member is present in the river sediments today, implying that the sediment composition can change through time as the climate changes. Hide

This paper analyzes the capabilities of morphodynamic modelling for resolving the evolution of a gravelly ephemeral river channel during moderate- and low-magnitude discharge events. We also analyze when and to what extent the channel changes occur during these events. The spatially varying grain size data and transport equations were the most important factors for the simulations. The channel changes can be in total greater during the long-lasting receding phase than during the rising phase. Hide

The role of mountain uplift in the global climate over geological times is controversial. Previous soil column models suggest that weathering decreases at high denudation rate. We present the results of a 3D model that couples erosion and weathering, a CO₂ consumer during mountain uplift. Our model suggests that the weathering of temporarily stocked colluvium may contribute significantly to the mountain weathering at high denudation rates. Hide

We use a climate model and statistics to provide an overview of regional climates from different times in the Late Cenozoic. We focus on mountain ranges in particular and identify potential hotspots for erosion. Our results highlight significant changes in climates throughout the Late Cenozoic, which should be taken into consideration when interpreting erosion rates. We also document regions with the highest potential for future observational studies of the impact of climate change on erosion. Hide

River profiles derived from digital elevation models are affected by errors. Here we present two new algorithms – quantile carving and the CRS algorithm – to hydrologically correct river profiles. Both algorithms preserve the downstream decreasing shape of river profiles while CRS additionally smooths profiles to avoid artificial steps. Our algorithms are able to cope with the problems of overestimation and asymmetric error distributions. Hide

Global climate warming causes permafrost to warm and thaw, and, consequently, to release the carbon into the atmosphere. Terrestrial laser scanning is evaluated and current methods are extended in the context of monitoring subsidence in Arctic permafrost regions. The extracted information is important to gain a deeper understanding of permafrost-related subsidence processes and provides highly accurate ground-truth data which is necessary for further developing area-wide monitoring methods. Hide

Bedrock channels are a key component of mountaineous landscapes. Here, a new model of the steady state morphology, including channel width, slope and sinuosity, is derived from process physics considerations. The model compares favourably to observed scaling relations. Hide