Global rates and patterns of channel migration in river deltas

Jarriel, Teresa; Swartz, J. M.; Passalacqua, Paola

doi:10.1073/pnas.2103178118

Cited by 34 publications

(32 citation statements)

References 64 publications

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“…Our finding that connectivity is controlled primarily by channel kinematics indicates that future research should focus on quantifying and predicting kinematics (e.g. Chadwick et al, 2021; Jarriel et al, 2021) to better understand the key control on subsurface architecture and connection.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 85%

Reconstructing subsurface sandbody connectivity from temporal evolution of surface networks

et al. 2022

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Characterization of groundwater aquifers and hydrocarbon reservoirs requires an understanding of the distribution and connectivity of subsurface sandbodies. In deltaic environments, distributary channel networks serve as the primary conduits for water and sediment. Once these networks are buried and translated into the subsurface, the coarse-grained channel fills serve as primary conduits for subsurface fluids such as water, oil or gas. The temporal evolution of channels on the surface therefore plays a first-order role in the 3D permeability and connectivity of subsurface networks. Land surface imagery is more broadly available than topographic or subsurface data, and time-series imagery of river networks can hold useful information for constraining the shallow subsurface.However, these reconstructions require an understanding of the degree to which channel bathymetry and river kinematics affect connectivity of subsurface sandbodies. Here, we present a novel method for building synthetic cross sections using overhead images of an experimental delta. We use principal components analysis to extract river networks from surface imagery, then couple this with an inverse-CDF method to estimate channel bathymetry, to generate a time-series of synthetic delta topography. This synthetic topography is then transformed, accounting for deposition and subsidence, to produce synthetic stratigraphy that differentiates coarse-grained channel fill from overbank and offshore deposition. We find that large-scale subsurface architecture is relatively insensitive to details of channel bathymetry, but instead is primarily controlled by channel location and kinematics. We analyse the connectivity of sand bodies and the geometries of barriers to flow and find that periods of rapid sea-level rise have more variability in sand body connectivity. We also find that barrier width decreases downstream during all sea-level phases. Our method generates synthetic stratigraphy that closely resembles the large-scale architecture and 2-dimensional connectivity of the real stratigraphy built during the experiment it was based

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 85%

Reconstructing subsurface sandbody connectivity from temporal evolution of surface networks

et al. 2022

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“…Originally used to track moving particles in a fluid, PIV has also been adapted to riverine settings, for example, to measure the trajectory of sediment particles across a dune (Tsubaki et al, 2018) and secondary-flow characteristics during floods (Muste et al, 2008). In a recent study of global satellite imagery, Jarriel et al (2021) demonstrated that PIV can be used to track the migration of channel centerlines. The full potential of PIV for measuring channel migration has yet to be explored; it remains unclear how PIV-derived measurements compare to those from existing approaches, and the extent to which PIV differentiates between channel migration and avulsion.…”

Section: Chadwick Et Almentioning

confidence: 99%

“…We implemented PIV using PIVlab, an open-source MATLAB package (Thielicke & Stamhuis, 2014) that has been successfully applied to track the motion of tracer particles in a fluid flow (Pirbodaghi et al, 2015;Torres et al, 2017;Viola et al, 2019;Zheng et al, 2018). Comparable software has been adapted to riverine settings (Jarriel et al, 2021;Muste et al, 2008;Tsubaki et al, 2018). Here, we applied PIVlab software to track channel networks moving on the delta surface of XES10.…”

Section: Implementation Of Particle Image Velocimetrymentioning

confidence: 99%

“…For such systems, PIV offers an alternative to manual mapping that is both efficient and easily reproducible with large data sets. Jarriel et al (2021) recently demonstrated the power of applying PIV-based techniques to river networks in Landsat imagery, showing that centerline migration rates on major deltas are sensitive to global variations in sediment supply, flood frequency, and offshore processes.…”

Section: Implications For the Application Of Piv To Natural River Networkmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Channel Migration in Experimental River Networks Mapped by Particle Image Velocimetry

et al. 2021

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Deltaic river networks naturally reorganize as interconnected channels move to redistribute water, sediment, and nutrients across the delta plain. Network change is documented in decades of satellite imagery and laboratory experiments, but our ability to measure and understand channel movements is limited: existing methods are difficult to employ efficiently and struggle to distinguish between gradual movements (channel migration) and abrupt shifts in river course (channel avulsions). Here, we present a method to extract channel migration from plan‐view imagery using particle image velocimetry (PIV). Although originally designed to track particles moving in a fluid, PIV can be adapted to track channels moving on the delta surface, based on input estimates of channel width, migration timescale, and maps of the wet‐dry interface. Results for a delta experiment show that PIV‐derived vector fields accurately capture channel‐bank movements, as compared to manually drawn maps and an independent image‐registration technique. Unlike other methods, PIV targets the process of channel migration, excluding changes associated with channel avulsions and overbank flow. PIV‐derived migration rates from the experiment span an order of magnitude and are reduced under lower sediment supply and during sea‐level rise, supporting recent models. Together, results indicate that PIV offers a fast and reliable way to measure channel migration in river networks, that channel migration rates under non‐cohesive conditions can displace channels a distance comparable to their width in the time needed to aggrade ∼10% of the channel depth, and that migration direction is ∼60% orthogonal to mean flow direction and ∼40% flow‐parallel overall.

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“…Coastal channel networks, which are the primary structural element of both river deltas and tidal estuaries, have sustained humans since the dawn of civilization (Bianchi, 2016) and remain vital to growing populations today (Edmonds et al., 2020; Tessler et al., 2015). These networks can evolve—sometimes rapidly—due to altered water and sediment balances, human modification, and natural instabilities (Dunn et al., 2019; Jarriel et al., 2021; Schuerch et al., 2018; Syvitski et al., 2009; Wilson et al., 2017). However, their complex topology obscures the key drivers sculpting these networks and emergent stable states they can assume (Passalacqua, 2017).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Interplay of River and Tidal Forcings Promotes Loops in Coastal Channel Networks

Konkol

Schwenk

Katifori

et al. 2022

Geophysical Research Letters

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The dense populations that inhabit global coastlines have an uncertain future due to increased flooding, storms, and human modification. The channel networks of deltas and marshes that plumb these coastlines present diverse architectures, including well‐studied dendritic topologies. However, the quasi‐stable loops that exist in nearly all coastal networks have not yet been explained. We present a model for self‐organizing networks inspired by vascular biophysics to show that loops emerge when the relative forcings between rivers and tides are comparable, resulting in interplay between hydrodynamic forcings at short time scales relative to network evolution. Using field data and satellite imaging, we confirm this control on 21 field networks. Our comparison provides compelling evidence that hydrodynamic fluctuations are capable of stabilizing loops in geophysical systems.

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Global rates and patterns of channel migration in river deltas

Cited by 34 publications

References 64 publications

Reconstructing subsurface sandbody connectivity from temporal evolution of surface networks

Reconstructing subsurface sandbody connectivity from temporal evolution of surface networks

Channel Migration in Experimental River Networks Mapped by Particle Image Velocimetry

Interplay of River and Tidal Forcings Promotes Loops in Coastal Channel Networks

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