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GEO 347 CLIMATIC GEOMORPHOLOGY
Due: Monday, April 13, 2020, 2:00pm
Instructions: Answer FOUR (4) questions for full credit. Each question is worth 10 points for a
total of 40 points. Answers must be typed, diagrams properly labeled, and any equations and
their terms defined. Hand written text answers will not be graded. Hand drawn figures and
equations are acceptable, provided they are scanned and inserted into your document.
So that your answers are concise and you don’t spend an inappropriate amount of time on this
assignment, each typed answer must fit within the confines of two (2) pages (8 ½ x 11 inches,
one-inch margins, single-spaced text, Times-Roman 12 point), including equations, diagrams,
and references cited (see below). A completed work will be at most eight (8) pages in
length. Diagrams are to be numbered with an explanatory caption and cited in the body of your
text.
Please upload your completed work in PDF format.
Aids allowed: It should be possible to answer all questions using the lecture notes and course
text. You are welcome to use other sources if they are published and can be cited. In any case
you must provide your own, unique answers in your own words. There is to be no direct
quoting of any amount of text from any source. Cite all references you use besides than the
lecture notes and the textbook. You don’t have to cite our lecture notes or textbook.
Questions (10 points each for a total of 40 points):
1) Two major mechanisms of surface runoff are infiltration excess overland flow (Horton type)
and saturation excess overland flow (Dunne type). Describe with the aid of diagrams the processes
involved in the generation of runoff from each mechanism. Suggest how one might predict which
mechanism is most important in a given location. Explain how it can be difficult to reconstruct the
mechanism that was dominant during the formation of a now fully developed and stabilized
channel network.
2) The sedimentary record in rocks and surface deposits of unconsolidated materials can provide
clues about past fluvial environments in which the materials were carried and deposited. Describe
the sorts of clues one would look for and what these clues would indicate in terms of the climate
in which the materials were deposited. Use diagrams where appropriate.
3) The interactions between forest or woodland ecosystems and fluvial processes are important in
both humid and semi-arid climates. Discuss, with reference to examples that we have used in class,
how these interactions are expressed both in terms of immediate and long-term response to flood
events. Give at least one example both humid and semi-arid climates.
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4) Planners for Raccoon City have asked you to provide expert knowledge on alluvial fans. The
City has been expanding rapidly onto its adjacent alluvial fan, and the planners would like to know
the advantages and disadvantages of continuing this trend. Prepare your briefing using case studies
of other cities that have grown on their respective alluvial fans. Include descriptions of typical
morphological and hydraulic properties of alluvial fans. Your report should be scientific in nature,
build logically from facts, and contain no editorial commentary (i.e., no opinion).
5) Humans have populated regions in which the fluvial geomorphic settings pose hazards for
construction and engineering projects. Discuss the extent to which the potential hazards are due to
intrinsic versus extrinsic thresholds. Build your discussion around case studies spanning (1) humid
and (2) semi-arid fluvial landscapes and processes. Compare and contrast the different systems
you have identified.
6) What are “megafloods” and how do they compare hydraulically to “normal” channel
development processes? Explain how these events proceed using diagrams and/or equations as
deemed appropriate. How do such events compare to modern sporadic events such as dam breaches
or Jökulhlaups?
à Did you remember to label diagrams and formulae?