Quantifying the migration rate of drainage divides from high-resolution topographic data
<p>The lateral movement of drainage divides is co-influenced by tectonics, lithology, and climate and therefore archives a wealth of geologic and climatic information. It also has wide-ranging implications for topography, the sedimentary record, and biological evolution and thus has drawn much...
| Main Authors: | , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Copernicus Publications
2024-03-01
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| Series: | Earth Surface Dynamics |
| Online Access: | https://esurf.copernicus.org/articles/12/433/2024/esurf-12-433-2024.pdf |
| _version_ | 1827324600523948032 |
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| author | C. Zhou X. Tan Y. Liu F. Shi F. Shi |
| author_facet | C. Zhou X. Tan Y. Liu F. Shi F. Shi |
| author_sort | C. Zhou |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | <p>The lateral movement of drainage divides is co-influenced by tectonics, lithology, and climate and therefore archives a wealth of geologic and climatic information. It also has wide-ranging implications for topography, the sedimentary record, and biological evolution and thus has drawn much attention in recent years. Several methods have been proposed to determine drainage divides' migration state (direction and rate), including geochronological approaches (e.g., <span class="inline-formula"><sup>10</sup></span>Be) and topography-based approaches (e.g., <span class="inline-formula"><i>χ</i></span> plots or Gilbert metrics). A key object in these methods is the channel head, which separates the hillslope and channel. However, due to the limited resolution of topography data, the required channel-head parameters in the calculation often cannot be determined accurately, and empirical values are used in the calculation, which may induce uncertainties. Here, we propose two methods to calculate the migration rate of drainage divides based on the relatively accurate channel-head parameters derived from high-resolution topographic data. We then apply the methods to an active rift shoulder (Wutai Shan) in the Shanxi Rift and a tectonically stable area (Yingwang Shan) in the Loess Plateau, to illustrate how to calculate drainage-divide migration rates. Our results show that the Wutai Shan drainage divide is migrating northwestward at a rate between 0.21 and 0.27 mm yr<span class="inline-formula"><sup>−1</sup></span>, whereas the migration rates at the Yingwang Shan are approximately zero. This study indicates that the drainage-divide stability can be determined more accurately using high-resolution topographic data. Furthermore, this study takes the cross-divide differences in the uplift rate of channel heads into account in the measurement of drainage-divide migration rate for the first time.</p> |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-07T13:58:38Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-ec482a193d974d5ab6f35f29334b27da |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2196-6311 2196-632X |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-07T13:58:38Z |
| publishDate | 2024-03-01 |
| publisher | Copernicus Publications |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Earth Surface Dynamics |
| spelling | doaj.art-ec482a193d974d5ab6f35f29334b27da2024-03-07T08:21:12ZengCopernicus PublicationsEarth Surface Dynamics2196-63112196-632X2024-03-011243344810.5194/esurf-12-433-2024Quantifying the migration rate of drainage divides from high-resolution topographic dataC. Zhou0X. Tan1Y. Liu2F. Shi3F. Shi4State Key Laboratory of Earthquake Dynamics, Institute of Geology, China Earthquake Administration, Beijing 100029, ChinaKey Laboratory of Mountain Hazards and Surface Processes, Institute of Mountain Hazards and Environment, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Chengdu 610299, ChinaKey Laboratory of Mountain Hazards and Surface Processes, Institute of Mountain Hazards and Environment, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Chengdu 610299, ChinaState Key Laboratory of Earthquake Dynamics, Institute of Geology, China Earthquake Administration, Beijing 100029, ChinaShanxi Taiyuan Continental Rift Dynamics National Observation and Research Station, Beijing 100029, China<p>The lateral movement of drainage divides is co-influenced by tectonics, lithology, and climate and therefore archives a wealth of geologic and climatic information. It also has wide-ranging implications for topography, the sedimentary record, and biological evolution and thus has drawn much attention in recent years. Several methods have been proposed to determine drainage divides' migration state (direction and rate), including geochronological approaches (e.g., <span class="inline-formula"><sup>10</sup></span>Be) and topography-based approaches (e.g., <span class="inline-formula"><i>χ</i></span> plots or Gilbert metrics). A key object in these methods is the channel head, which separates the hillslope and channel. However, due to the limited resolution of topography data, the required channel-head parameters in the calculation often cannot be determined accurately, and empirical values are used in the calculation, which may induce uncertainties. Here, we propose two methods to calculate the migration rate of drainage divides based on the relatively accurate channel-head parameters derived from high-resolution topographic data. We then apply the methods to an active rift shoulder (Wutai Shan) in the Shanxi Rift and a tectonically stable area (Yingwang Shan) in the Loess Plateau, to illustrate how to calculate drainage-divide migration rates. Our results show that the Wutai Shan drainage divide is migrating northwestward at a rate between 0.21 and 0.27 mm yr<span class="inline-formula"><sup>−1</sup></span>, whereas the migration rates at the Yingwang Shan are approximately zero. This study indicates that the drainage-divide stability can be determined more accurately using high-resolution topographic data. Furthermore, this study takes the cross-divide differences in the uplift rate of channel heads into account in the measurement of drainage-divide migration rate for the first time.</p>https://esurf.copernicus.org/articles/12/433/2024/esurf-12-433-2024.pdf |
| spellingShingle | C. Zhou X. Tan Y. Liu F. Shi F. Shi Quantifying the migration rate of drainage divides from high-resolution topographic data Earth Surface Dynamics |
| title | Quantifying the migration rate of drainage divides from high-resolution topographic data |
| title_full | Quantifying the migration rate of drainage divides from high-resolution topographic data |
| title_fullStr | Quantifying the migration rate of drainage divides from high-resolution topographic data |
| title_full_unstemmed | Quantifying the migration rate of drainage divides from high-resolution topographic data |
| title_short | Quantifying the migration rate of drainage divides from high-resolution topographic data |
| title_sort | quantifying the migration rate of drainage divides from high resolution topographic data |
| url | https://esurf.copernicus.org/articles/12/433/2024/esurf-12-433-2024.pdf |
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