Channel Morphology and Bedrock River Incision: Theory, Experiments, and Application to the Eastern Himalaya
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Channel morphology and bedrock river incision: Theory, experiments, and application to the eastern Himalaya Noah J. Finnegan A dissertation submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy University of Washington 2007 Program Authorized to Offer Degree: Department of Earth and Space Sciences University of Washington Graduate School This is to certify that I have examined this copy of a doctoral dissertation by Noah J. Finnegan and have found that it is complete and satisfactory in all respects, and that any and all revisions required by the final examining committee have been made. Co-Chairs of the Supervisory Committee: ___________________________________________________________ Bernard Hallet ___________________________________________________________ David R. Montgomery Reading Committee: ____________________________________________________________ Bernard Hallet ____________________________________________________________ David R. Montgomery ____________________________________________________________ Gerard Roe Date:________________________ In presenting this dissertation in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the doctoral degree at the University of Washington, I agree that the Library shall make its copies freely available for inspection. I further agree that extensive copying of the dissertation is allowable only for scholarly purposes, consistent with “fair use” as prescribed in the U.S. Copyright Law. Requests for copying or reproduction of this dissertation may be referred to ProQuest Information and Learning, 300 North Zeeb Road, Ann Arbor, MI 48106-1346, 1-800-521-0600, or to the author. Signature __________________________________ Date ______________________________________ University of Washington Abstract Channel morphology and bedrock river incision: Theory, experiments, and application to the eastern Himalaya Noah J. Finnegan Co-Chairs of the Supervisory Committee: Professor Bernard Hallet Professor David R. Montgomery Department of Earth and Space Sciences The dynamics of incising bedrock rivers are a central focus of geomorphology and geodynamics because of the primary importance of river incision in the coupling of surface and tectonic processes, and because of the capacity of river morphology to reveal information about tectonics. Bedrock channel morphology also remains a challenging fluid dynamical problem. The components of channel morphology: width, shape, slope, depth, roughness, and bed cover are central to channel incision because they collectively determine the magnitude and variation of fluid stresses on the bed, and the ability of fluid stresses and transported sediment particles to erode the bed. Here, I take two approaches, one experimental and one theoretical, to investigate the controls on the morphology of incising bedrock channels. I then apply the results of this work to the problem of estimating the spatial variation of river incision rates throughout the eastern Himalayan syntaxis. I show that if the process of river incision is assumed to be scale-invariant, channel width can be cast explicitly in terms of both river slope and discharge. This scaling relationship is validated for three rivers, two in California and one in Tibet, and suggests that river incision models can be significantly improved by accounting for the fact that rivers must occupy smaller channels where they flow faster, in order to conserve mass. For an experimental river eroding due to bedload abrasion, I show that the width of active incision can be cast as a function of sediment supply, grain size and boundary shear stress, suggesting that natural channels may adjust width to accommodate fluctuations in sediment supply. Additionally, I show that channel roughness development due to vertical incision retards sediment transport and incision, and encourages deposition of alluvial cover. The presence of alluvial cover, in turn, forces incision over the lateral and higher regions of the bed. Drawing on my analysis of river morphology, I show that tight spatial co-location of patterns in inferred detachment-limited incision potential, saltation- abrasion potential, topographic relief and mineral cooling ages provide strong evidence for close coupling between river incision and rock uplift in the eastern Himalayan syntaxis. TABLE OF CONTENTS Page List of Figures................................................................................................................ii List of Tables................................................................................................................iii Chapter 1: Introduction..................................................................................................1 Chapter 2: Controls on the channel width of rivers: implications for modeling fluvial incision of bedrock...........................................................................................11 Chapter 3: Interplay of sediment supply, river incision, and channel morphology revealed by the transient evolution of an experimental bedrock channel ...................27 Chapter 4: Coupling of rock uplift and river incision in the Namche Barwa-Gyala Peri massif, Tibet.........................................................................................................88 Chapter 5: Erosion Rate Patterns and Sediment Provenance within the Yarlung Tsangpo-Brahmaputra River Basin from Cosmogenic 10Be .....................................130 Chapter 6: Conclusion ...............................................................................................152 References .................................................................................................................157 i LIST OF FIGURES Figure Number Page 1. Plot of α for different dominant channel substrates ................................................24 2. Channel width for Kinsey Creek and Oat Creek .....................................................25 3. Channel width and river power for the Yarlung Tsangpo.......................................26 4. Initial and final conditions of the experimental channel .........................................69 5. Channel slope ..........................................................................................................70 6. Channel incision rate ...............................................................................................71 7. Alluvial cover ..........................................................................................................72 8. Example roughness histogram.................................................................................73 9. Bed roughness .........................................................................................................74 10. Spatial patterns of bed incision at different sediment supply rates .......................75 11. Longitudinal patterns of incision rate, slot width and slope..................................76 12. Spatial patterns of bed incision with and without bed cover.................................77 13. Cross-sectional incision rate patterns ....................................................................78 14. Slot-averaged incision rate versus bed slope.........................................................79 15. Bedload supply rate, roughness, and cover deposition..........................................80 16. Roughness and incision rate ..................................................................................81 17. Bedload supply rate and incision rate....................................................................82 18. Slot width...............................................................................................................83 19. Comparison of experimental channel to Watkins Glen, NY.................................84 20. Channel aspect ratio versus channel slope, Watkins Glen, NY ............................85 21. Geologic setting of the eastern Himalayan syntaxis ..........................................117 22. (U-Th)/He thermochronometry ...........................................................................118 23. 40Ar/39Ar thermochronometry ............................................................................119 24. Topographic relief and erosion rates ...................................................................120 25. Precipitation patterns...........................................................................................121 26. River power .........................................................................................................122 27. Sediment storage .................................................................................................123 28. Example of a cover limited channel ....................................................................124 29. Example of a tools limited channel .....................................................................125 30. Data synthesis......................................................................................................126 31. Coupling of river incision and rock uplift ...........................................................127 32. Recently aggraded channels with young cooling ages........................................128 33. Precipitation and exhumation..............................................................................129 34. Geologic setting...................................................................................................146 35. The transition