Backwater and river plume controls on scour upstream of river mouths: Implications for fluvio-deltaic morphodynamics

Journal of Geophysical Research: Earth Surface

Volumn 117, Issue 1, 2012, Pages

  Lamb, Michael P ^a   Nittrouer, Jeffrey A ^b   Mohrig, David ^c   Shaw, John ^c  

^a CALIFORNIA INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY   (United States)

^b UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS AT URBANA CHAMPAIGN   (United States)

^c UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS AT AUSTIN   (United States)

Author keywords

[No Author keywords available]

Indexed keywords

BACKWATER; CONTINENTAL MARGIN; DELTAIC DEPOSIT; FLOW MODELING; FLUVIAL DEPOSIT; MORPHODYNAMICS; POINT SOURCE; PROVENANCE; RIVER FLOW; RIVER PLUME; SCOUR; SEDIMENT TRANSPORT; SEDIMENTATION;

MISSISSIPPI RIVER; UNITED STATES;

EID: 84855682144     PISSN: None     EISSN: 21699011     Source Type: Journal    
DOI: 10.1029/2011JF002079     Document Type: Article

References (88)

1. Allen, J. R. L. (1971), Transverse erosional marks of mud and rock: Their physical basis and geological significance, Sediment. Geol., 5(3-4), 167-385, doi:10.1016/0037-0738(71)90001-7.
2. Anderson, J. B., and A. B. Rodriguez (Eds.) (2008), Response of Upper Gulf Coast Estuaries to Holocene Climate Change and Sea-Level Rise, 146 pp., Geol. Soc. of Am., Boulder, Colo.
3. Barry, J. M. (1997), Rising Tide, 574 pp., Simon and Schuster, New York.
4. Bates, C. C. (1953), Rational theory of delta formation, Am. Assoc. Pet. Geol. Bull., 37(9), 2119-2162.
5. Biedenharn, D. S., and C. R. Thorne (1994), Magnitude frequency-analysis of sediment transport in the lower Mississippi River, Reg. Rivers Res. Manage., 9(4), 237-251, doi:10.1002/rrr.3450090405. (Pubitemid 293026)
6. Blum, M. D., and T. E. Törnqvist (2000), Fluvial responses to climate and sea-level change: A review and look forward, Sedimentology, 47, 2-48, doi:10.1046/j.1365-3091.2000.00008.x. (Pubitemid 30309231)
7. Bresse, J. A. C. (1860), Cours de Mecanique Appliquee, Hydraulique, 2nd ed., Mallet-Bachelier, Paris.
8. Carey, W. C., and M. D. Keller (1957), Systematic changes in the beds of alluvial rivers, Proc. Am. Soc. Civ. Eng., 83(1331), 1-24.
9. Chang, H. H. (1982), Fluvial hydraulics of deltas and alluvial fans, J. Hydraul. Div. Am. Soc. Civ. Eng., 108(11), 1282-1295.
10. Chatanantavet, P., M. P. Lamb, and J. A. Nittrouer (2012), Backwater controls on avulsion location on deltas, Geophys. Res. Lett., doi:10.1029/ 2011GL050197, in press.
11. Chow, V. T. (1959), Open-Channel Hydraulics, 680 pp., McGraw-Hill, New York.
12. Davis, W. M. (1902), Baselevel, grade and peneplain, J. Geol., 10, 77-111, doi:10.1086/620982.
13. Day, G., W. E. Dietrich, J. C. Rowland, and A. Marshall (2008), The depositional web on the floodplain of the Fly River, Papua New Guinea, J. Geophys. Res., 113, F01S02, doi:10.1029/2006JF000622.
14. Edmonds, D. A., and R. L. Slingerland (2007), Mechanics of river mouth bar formation: Implications for the morphodynamics of delta distributary networks, J. Geophys. Res., 112, F02034, doi:10.1029/2006JF000574. (Pubitemid 47342576)
15. Edmonds, D. A., and R. L. Slingerland (2008), Stability of delta distributary networks and their bifurcations, Water Resour. Res., 44, W09426, doi:10.1029/2008WR006992.
16. Edmonds, D. A., J. B. Shaw, and D. Mohrig (2011), Topset-dominated deltas: A new model for river delta stratigraphy, Geology, 39(12), 1175-1178, doi:10.1130/G32358.1.
17. Engelund, F., and E. Hansen (1967), A Monograph on Sediment Transport in Alluvial Streams, Teknisk Forlag, Copenhagen.
18. Fagherazzi, S., A. D. Howard, and P. L. Wiberg (2004), Modeling fluvial erosion and deposition on continental shelves during sea level cycles, J. Geophys. Res., 109, F03010, doi:10.1029/2003JF000091.
19. Falcini, F., and D. J. Jerolmack (2010), A potential vorticity theory for the formation of elongate channels in river deltas and lakes, J. Geophys. Res., 115, F04038, doi:10.1029/2010JF001802.
20. Flemings, P. B., and T. E. Jordan (1989), A synthetic stratigraphic model of foreland basin development, J. Geophys. Res., 94, 3851-3866, doi:10.1029/JB094iB04p03851.
21. Fong, D. A., and W. R. Geyer (2002), The alongshore transport of freshwater in a surface-trapped river plume, J. Phys. Oceanogr., 32(3), 957-972, doi:10.1175/1520-0485(2002)0322.0.CO;2. (Pubitemid 34476036)
22. Galler, J. J., T. S. Bianchi, M. A. Allison, L. A. Wysocki, and R. Campanella (2003), Biogeochemical implications of levee confinement in the lowermost Mississippi River, Eos Trans. AGU, 84(44), 469, doi:10.1029/ 2003EO440001.
23. Galloway, W. E. (1989), Genetic stratigraphic sequences in basin analysis I: Architecture and genesis of flooding-surface bounded depositional units, AAPG Bull., 73(2), 125-142.
24. Geyer, W. R., P. S. Hill, and G. C. Kineke (2004), The transport, transformation and dispersal of sediment by buoyant coastal flows, Cont. Shelf Res., 24(7-8), 927-949, doi:10.1016/j.csr.2004.02.006. (Pubitemid 38630280)
25. Harmar, O. P., and N. J. Clifford (2006), Planform dynamics of the lower Mississippi River, Earth Surf. Processes Landforms, 31(7), 825-843, doi:10.1002/esp.1294. (Pubitemid 43985019)
26. Harmar, O. P., and N. J. Clifford (2007), Geomorphological explanation of the long profile of the lower Mississippi River, Geomorphology, 84(3-4), 222-240, doi:10.1016/j.geomorph.2006.01.045. (Pubitemid 46179096)
27. Harmar, O. P., N. J. Clifford, C. R. Thorne, and D. S. Biedenharn (2005), Morphological changes of the lower Mississippi River: Geomorphological response to engineering intervention, River Res. Appl., 21(10), 1107-1131, doi:10.1002/rra.887. (Pubitemid 43025565)
28. Horner-Devine, A. R. (2009), The bulge circulation in the Columbia River plume, Cont. Shelf Res., 29(1), 234-251, doi:10.1016/j.csr.2007.12.012.
29. Horner-Devine, A. R., D. A. Fong, S. G. Monismith, and T. Maxworthy (2006), Laboratory experiments simulating a coastal river inflow, J. Fluid Mech., 555, 203-232, doi:10.1017/S0022112006008937. (Pubitemid 44508869)
30. Hotchkiss, R. H., and G. Parker (1991), Shock fitting of aggradational profiles due to backwater, J. Hydraul. Eng., 117(9), 1129-1144, doi:10.1061/(ASCE)0733-9429(1991)117:9(1129). (Pubitemid 21678678)
31. Hoyal, D. C. J. D., and B. A. Sheets (2009), Morphodynamic evolution of experimental cohesive deltas, J. Geophys. Res., 114, F02009, doi:10.1029/2007JF000882.
32. Hudson, P. F., and R. H. Kesel (2000), Channel migration and meanderbend curvature in the lower Mississippi River prior to major human modification, Geology, 28, 531-534, doi:10.1130/0091-7613(2000) 282.0.CO;2. (Pubitemid 32836036)
33. Ikeda, S., G. Parker, and K. Sawai (1981), Bend theory of river meanders. Part 1. Linear development, J. Fluid Mech., 112, 363-377, doi:10.1017/ S0022112081000451.
34. Jerolmack, D. J. (2009), Conceptual framework for assessing the response of delta channel networks to Holocene sea level rise, Quat. Sci. Rev., 28(17-18), 1786-1800, doi:10.1016/j.quascirev.2009.02.015.
35. Jerolmack, D. J., and D. Mohrig (2007), Conditions for branching in depositional rivers, Geology, 35, 463-466, doi:10.1130/G23308A.1. (Pubitemid 46746413)
36. Karadogan, E., C. S. Willson, and C. R. Berger (2009), Numerical modeling of the lower Mississippi River-Influence of forcings on flow distribution and impact of sea level rise on the system, in OCEANS, Marine Technology for Our Future: Global and Local Challenges, pp. 1-7, Mar. Technol. Soc., Biloxi, Miss.
37. Kesel, R. H., K. C. Dunne, R. C. McDonald, K. R. Allison, and B. E. Spicer (1974), Lateral erosion and overbank deposition on the Mississippi River in Louisiana caused by 1973 flooding, Geology, 2, 461-464, doi:10.1130/ 0091-7613(1974)22.0.CO;2.
38. Kim, W., A. Dai, T. Muto, and G. Parker (2009), Delta progradation driven by an advancing sediment source: Coupled theory and experiment describing the evolution of elongated deltas, Water Resour. Res., 45, W06428, doi:10.1029/2008WR007382.
39. Kourafalou, V. H., L.-Y. Oey, J. D. Wang, and T. N. Lee (1996), The fate of river discharge on the continental shelf: 1. Modeling the river plume and the inner shelf coastal current, J. Geophys. Res., 101, 3415-3434, doi:10.1029/95JC03024. (Pubitemid 26470333)
40. Lague, D., N. Hovius, and P. Davy (2005), Discharge, discharge variability, and the bedrock channel profile, J. Geophys. Res., 110, F04006, doi:10.1029/2004JF000259.
41. Lamb, M. P., and D. Mohrig (2009), Do hyperpycnal-plume deposits record river-flood dynamics?, Geology, 37, 1067-1070, doi:10.1130/ G30286A.1.
42. Lamb, M. P., P. M. Myrow, C. Lukens, K. Houck, and J. Strauss (2008), Deposits from wave-influenced turbidity currents: Pennsylvanian Minturn Formation, Colorado, U.S.A., J. Sediment. Res., 78(7), 480-498, doi:10.2110/jsr.2008.052.
43. Lamb, M. P., B. McElroy, B. Kopriva, J. Shaw, and D. Mohrig (2010), Linking river-flood dynamics to hyperpycnal-plume deposits: Experiments, theory, and geological implications, Geol. Soc. Am. Bull., 122(9-10), 1389-1400, doi:10.1130/B30125.1.
44. Lane, E. W. (1957), A Study of the Shape of Channels Formed by Natural Streams Flowing in Erodible Material, U.S. Army Corps of Eng., Mo. River Div., Omaha, Nebr.
45. Mattheus, C. R., A. B. Rodriguez, D. L. Greene Jr., A. R. Simms, and J. B. Anderson (2007), Control of upstream variables on incised-valley dimension, J. Sediment. Res., 77(3), 213-224, doi:10.2110/jsr.2007.022. (Pubitemid 47049466)
46. McCabe, R. M., P. MacCready, and B. M. Hickey (2009), Ebb-tide dynamics and spreading of a large river plume, J. Phys. Oceanogr., 39(11), 2839-2856, doi:10.1175/2009JPO4061.1.
47. Mertes, L. A. K. (1997), Documentation and significance of the perirheic zone on inundated floodplains, Water Resour. Res., 33, 1749-1762, doi:10.1029/97WR00658. (Pubitemid 27295415)
48. Mulder, T., and J. P. M. Syvitski (1995), Turbidity currents generated at river mouths during exceptional discharges to the world oceans, J. Geol., 103, 285-299, doi:10.1086/629747.
49. Muto, T. (2001), Shoreline autoretreat substantiated in flume experiments, J. Sediment. Res., 71(2), 246-254, doi:10.1306/091400710246.
50. Muto, T., and J. B. Swenson (2006), Autogenic attainment of large-scale alluvial grade with steady sea-level fall: An analog tank-flume experiment, Geology, 34, 161-164, doi:10.1130/G21923.1.
51. Nittrouer, C. A. (1999), STRATAFORM: Overview of its design and synthesis of its results, Mar. Geol., 154(1-4), 3-12, doi:10.1016/S0025-3227 (98)00128-5. (Pubitemid 29054176)
52. Nittrouer, J. A., D. Mohrig, M. A. Allison, and A. B. Peyret (2011a), The lowermost Mississippi River: A mixed bedrock-alluvial, Sedimentology, doi:10.1111/j.1365-3091.2011.01245.x, in press.
53. Nittrouer, J. A., D. Mohrig, and M. A. Allison (2011b), Punctuated sand transport in the lowermost Mississippi River, J. Geophys. Res., 116, F04025, doi:10.1029/2011JF002026.
54. Nittrouer, J. A., J. Shaw, M. P. Lamb, and D. Mohrig (2012), Spatial and temporal trends for water-flow velocity and bed-material transport in the lower Mississippi River, Geol. Soc. Am. Bull., doi:10.1130/B30497.1, in press.
55. Paola, C. (2000), Quantitative models of sedimentary basin filling, Sedimentology, 47, 121-178, doi:10.1046/j.1365-3091.2000.00006.x. (Pubitemid 30309235)
56. Paola, C., P. L. Heller, and C. L. Angevine (1992), The large scale dynamics of grain-size variation in alluvial basins, 1: Theory, Basin Res., 4, 73-90, doi:10.1111/j.1365-2117.1992.tb00145.x.
57. Paola, C., R. R. Twilley, D. A. Edmonds, W. Kim, D. Mohrig, G. Parker, E. Viparelli, and V. R. Voller (2011), Natural processes in delta restoration: Application to the Mississippi Delta, Annu. Rev. Mater. Sci., 3, 67-91, doi:10.1146/annurev-marine-120709-142856.
58. Parker, G., P. R. Wilcock, C. Paola, W. E. Dietrich, and J. Pitlick (2007), Physical basis for quasi-universal relations describing bankfull hydraulic geometry of single-thread gravel bed rivers, J. Geophys. Res., 112, F04005, doi:10.1029/2006JF000549.
59. Parker, G., T. Muto, Y. Akamatsu, W. E. Dietrich, and J. W. Lauer (2008a), Unravelling the conundrum of river response to rising sea-level from laboratory to field. Part II: The Fly-Strickland River system, Papua New Guinea, Sedimentology, 55, 1657-1686, doi:10.1111/j.1365-3091. 2008.00962.x.
60. Parker, G., T. Muto, Y. Akamatsu, W. E. Dietrich, and J. W. Lauer (2008b), Unravelling the conundrum of river response to rising sea-level from laboratory to field. Part I: Laboratory experiments, Sedimentology, 55, 1643-1655, doi:10.1111/j.1365-3091.2008.00961.x.
61. Parker, G., J. A. Nittrouer, D. C. Mohrig, M. A. Allison, W. E. Dietrich, and V. R. Voller (2009), Modeling the morphodynamics of the lower Mississippi River as a quasi-bedrock river, Eos Trans. AGU, 90(52), Fall Meet. Suppl., Abstract EP32A-01.
62. Parker, G., Y. Shimizu, G. V. Wilkerson, E. C. Eke, J. D. Abad, J. W. Lauer, C. Paola, W. E. Dietrich, and V. R. Voller (2011), A new framework for modeling the migration of meandering rivers, Earth Surf. Processes Landforms, 36(1), 70-86, doi:10.1002/esp.2113.
63. Posamentier, H. W., G. P. Allen, D. P. James, and M. Tesson (1992), Forced regressions in a sequence stratigraphic framework-Concepts, examples, and exploration significance, AAPG Bull., 76(11), 1687-1709. (Pubitemid 23387334)
64. Rajaratnam, N. (1976), Turbulent Jets, 302 pp., Elsevier, New York.
65. Roberts, H. H., R. D. Adams, and R. H. W. Cunningham (1980), Evolution of sand-dominant subaerial phase, Atchafalaya delta, Louisiana, AAPG Bull., 64(2), 264-279. (Pubitemid 10450972)
66. Rowland, J. C., M. T. Stacey, and W. E. Dietrich (2009), Turbulent characteristics of a shallow wall-bounded plane jet: Experimental implications for river mouth hydrodynamics, J. Fluid Mech., 627, 423-449, doi:10.1017/S0022112009006107.
67. Rowland, J. C., W. E. Dietrich, and M. T. Stacey (2010), Morphodynamics of subaqueous levee formation: Insights into river mouth morphologies arising from experiments, J. Geophys. Res., 115, F04007, doi:10.1029/ 2010JF001684.
68. Schiller, R. V., and V. H. Kourafalou (2010), Modeling river plume dynamics with the Hybrid Coordinate Ocean Model, Ocean Modell., 33(1-2), 101-117, doi:10.1016/j.ocemod.2009.12.005.
69. Schiller, R. V., V. H. Kourafalou, P. Hogan, and N. D. Walker (2011), The dynamics of the Mississippi River plume: Impact of topography, wind and offshore forcing on the fate of plume waters, J. Geophys. Res., 116, C06029, doi:10.1029/2010JC006883.
70. Shaw, J. B., and D. C. Mohrig (2009), Incised bifurcations and uneven radial distribution of channel incision in the Wax Lake Delta, USA, Eos. Trans. AGU, 90(52), Fall Meet. Suppl., Abstract EP41A-0593.
71. Sheets, B. A., T. A. Hickson, and C. Paola (2002), Assembling the stratigraphic record: Depositional patterns and time-scales in an experimental alluvial basin, Basin Res., 14, 287-301, doi:10.1046/j.1365-2117.2002. 00185.x.
72. Slingerland, R., J. W. Harbaugh, and K. Furlong (1994), Simulating Clastic Sedimentary Basins, Prentice Hall, Englewood Cliffs, N.J.
73. Snow, R. S., and R. L. Slingerland (1987), Mathematical modeling of graded river profiles, J. Geol., 95, 15-33, doi:10.1086/629104.
74. Swenson, J. B., and T. Muto (2007), Response of coastal plain rivers to falling relative sea-level: Allogenic controls on the aggradational phase, Sedimentology, 54, 207-221, doi:10.1111/j.1365-3091.2006.00830.x. (Pubitemid 46111690)
75. Swenson, J. B., C. Paola, L. Pratson, V. R. Voller, and A. B. Murray (2005), Fluvial and marine controls on combined subaerial and subaqueous delta progradation: Morphodynamic modeling of compoundclinoform development, J. Geophys. Res., 110, F02013, doi:10.1029/ 2004JF000265.
76. Sylvia, D. A., and W. E. Galloway (2006), Morphology and stratigraphy of the late Quaternary lower Brazos valley: Implications for paleo-climate, discharge and sediment delivery, Sediment. Geol., 190(1-4), 159-175, doi:10.1016/j.sedgeo.2006.05.023. (Pubitemid 44089210)
77. Syvitski, J. P. M., and Y. Saito (2007), Morphodynamics of deltas under the influence of humans, Global Planet. Change, 57(3-4), 261-282, doi:10.1016/j.gloplacha.2006.12.001. (Pubitemid 46756201)
78. Syvitski, J. P. M., et al. (2009), Sinking deltas due to human activities, Nat. Geosci., 2(10), 681-686, doi:10.1038/ngeo629. Törnqvist, T. E., S. R. Wortman, Z. R. P. Mateo, G. A. Milne, and J.B.
79. Tucker, G. E. (2004), Drainage basin sensitivity to tectonic and climatic forcing: Implications of a stochastic model for the role of entrainment and erosion thresholds, Earth Surf. Processes Landforms, 29(2), 185-205, doi:10.1002/esp.1020. (Pubitemid 38342159)
80. Tucker, G. E., and R. Slingerland (1997), Drainage basin responses to climate change, Water Resour. Res., 33, 2031-2047, doi:10.1029/ 97WR00409. (Pubitemid 27335797)
81. United States Army Corps of Engineers (1935), Studies of river bed materials and their movements, with special reference to the lower Mississippi River, report, 161 pp., U.S. Waterw. Exp. Stn., Vicksburg, Miss.
82. Wang, F. C. (1984), The dynamics of a river-bay-delta system, J. Geophys. Res., 89, 8054-8060, doi:10.1029/JC089iC05p08054.
83. Whipple, K. X., G. S. Hancock, and R. S. Anderson (2000), River incision into bedrock: Mechanics and relative efficacy of plucking, abrasion, and cavitation, Geol. Soc. Am. Bull., 112(3), 490-503, doi:10.1130/0016- 7606(2000)1122.0.CO;2. (Pubitemid 32882276)
84. Williams, G. P. (1978), Bankfull discharge of rivers, Water Resour. Res., 14, 1141-1154, doi:10.1029/WR014i006p01141.
85. Wolman, M. G., and J. P. Miller (1960), Magnitude and frequency of forces in geomorphic processes, J. Geol., 68, 54-74, doi:10.1086/626637.
86. Wright, L. D. (1977), Sediment transport and deposition at river mouths- Synthesis, Geol. Soc. Am. Bull., 88(6), 857-868, doi:10.1130/0016-7606 (1977)882.0.CO;2.
87. Wright, L. D., and J. M. Coleman (1971), Effluent expansion and interfacial mixing in the presence of a salt wedge, Mississippi River Delta, J. Geophys. Res., 76, 8649-8661, doi:10.1029/JC076i036p08649.
88. Wright, S., and G. Parker (2004), Flow resistance and suspended load in sand-bed rivers: Simplified stratification model, J. Hydraul. Eng., 130(8), 796-805, doi:10.1061/(ASCE)0733-9429(2004)130:8(796). (Pubitemid 39102754)