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Sometimes, it also refers to the fluvial action of rainwater flowing in a stream channel, including a flood, known as a pluvial flood, that is the direct result of excessive precipitation. [ 1 ] [ 2 ]
Long-lived river systems can produce a series of terrace surfaces over the course of their geologic lifetime. When rivers flood, sediment deposits in sheets across the floodplain and build up over time. Later, during a time of river erosion, this sediment is cut into, or incised, by the river and flushed downstream. The previous floodplain is ...
Esker – Long, winding ridge of stratified sand and gravel associated with former glaciers; Floodplain – Land adjacent to a water body which is flooded during periods of high water; Fluvial landforms of streams; Fluvial terrace – Elongated terraces that flank the sides of floodplains and river valleys; Canyon – Deep chasm between cliffs ...
In geography and geology, fluvial sediment processes or fluvial sediment transport are associated with rivers and streams and the deposits and landforms created by sediments. It can result in the formation of ripples and dunes , in fractal -shaped patterns of erosion, in complex patterns of natural river systems, and in the development of ...
Fluvial terraces can be used to measure the rate at which either a stream or river is downcutting its valley. Using various dating methods, an age can be determined for the deposition of the terrace. Using the resulting date and the elevation above its current level, an approximate average rate of downcutting can be determined.
The terms river morphology and its synonym stream morphology are used to describe the shapes of river channels and how they change in shape and direction over time. The morphology of a river channel is a function of a number of processes and environmental conditions, including the composition and erodibility of the bed and banks (e.g., sand, clay, bedrock); erosion comes from the power and ...
There are two primary mechanisms of stream bank erosion: fluvial erosion and mass failure. Fluvial erosion is the direct removal of soil particles by flowing water. The rate of fluvial erosion is determined both by the force of the flowing water (e.g. faster flow equals more force) and the resistance of the bank material to erosion (e.g. clay is generally more resistant to erosion than sand).
Headward erosion is a fluvial process of erosion that lengthens a stream, a valley or a gully at its head and also enlarges its drainage basin. The stream erodes away at the rock and soil at its headwaters in the opposite direction that it flows. Once a stream has begun to cut back, the erosion is sped up by the steep gradient the water is ...