The Experts below are selected from a list of 84843 Experts worldwide ranked by ideXlab platform
Paolo Tarolli - One of the best experts on this subject based on the ideXlab platform.
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high resolution topography for understanding Earth Surface processes opportunities and challenges
Geomorphology, 2014Co-Authors: Paolo TarolliAbstract:Abstract In the last decade, a range of new remote-sensing techniques has led to a dramatic increase in terrain information, providing new opportunities for a better understanding of Earth Surface processes based on geomorphic signatures. Technologies such as airborne and terrestrial lidar (Light Detection and Ranging) to obtain high-resolution topography have opened avenues for the analysis of landslides, hillslope and channellization processes, river morphology, active tectonics, volcanic landforms and anthropogenic signatures on topography. This review provides an overview of the recent flourishing literature on high-resolution topographic analyses, underlining their opportunities and critical issues such as their limitations. The goal is to provide answers to questions such as what kind of processes can be analyzed through high-resolution topographic data and how to do it. The review focuses on two different environments: natural and engineered landscapes. In both contexts, high-resolution topography offers opportunities to better understand geomorphic processes from topographic signatures. Particular attention is given to engineered landscapes in which the direct anthropic alteration of processes is significant. The last part of the review discusses future challenges.
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High-resolution topography for understanding Earth Surface processes: Opportunities and challenges
Geomorphology, 2014Co-Authors: Paolo TarolliAbstract:In the last decade, a range of new remote-sensing techniques has led to a dramatic increase in terrain information, providing new opportunities for a better understanding of Earth Surface processes based on geomorphic signatures. Technologies such as airborne and terrestrial lidar (Light Detection and Ranging) to obtain high-resolution topography have opened avenues for the analysis of landslides, hillslope and channellization processes, river morphology, active tectonics, volcanic landforms and anthropogenic signatures on topography. This review provides an overview of the recent flourishing literature on high-resolution topographic analyses, underlining their opportunities and critical issues such as their limitations. The goal is to provide answers to questions such as what kind of processes can be analyzed through high-resolution topographic data and how to do it. The review focuses on two different environments: natural and engineered landscapes. In both contexts, high-resolution topography offers opportunities to better understand geomorphic processes from topographic signatures. Particular attention is given to engineered landscapes in which the direct anthropic alteration of processes is significant. The last part of the review discusses future challenges. © 2014 Elsevier B.V.
Dov Corenblit - One of the best experts on this subject based on the ideXlab platform.
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The emergence of an 'evolutionary geomorphology'?
Central European Journal of Geosciences, 2012Co-Authors: Johannes Steiger, Dov CorenblitAbstract:Earth Surface processes and landforms are modified through the actions of many microorganisms, plants and animals. As organism-driven landform modifications are sometimes to the advantage of the organism, some of these landform features have become adaptive functional components of ecosystems, concurrently affecting and responding to ecological and evolutionary processes. These recent eco-evolutionary insights, focused on feedback among geomorphologic, ecological and evolutionary processes, are currently leading to the emergence of what has been called an ‘evolutionary geomorphology’, with explicit consideration of feedbacks among the evolution of organisms, ecosystem structure and function and landform organization at the Earth Surface. Here we provide an overview in the form of a commentary of this emerging sub-discipline in geosciences and ask whether the use of the term ‘evolutionary geomorphology’ is appropriate or rather misleading.
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feedbacks between geomorphology and biota controlling Earth Surface processes and landforms a review of foundation concepts and current understandings
Earth-Science Reviews, 2011Co-Authors: Frédéric Julien, Angela M Gurnell, Sebastien Delmotte, J Darrozes, Dov Corenblit, Andreas C W Baas, Robert A. Francis, Gudrun Bornette, Robert J NaimanAbstract:Abstract This review article presents recent advances in the field of biogeomorphology related to the reciprocal coupling between Earth Surface processes and landforms, and ecological and evolutionary processes. The aim is to present to the Earth Science community ecological and evolutionary concepts and associated recent conceptual developments for linking geomorphology and biota. The novelty of the proposed perspective is that (1) in the presence of geomorphologic-engineer species, which modify sediment and landform dynamics, natural selection operating at the scale of organisms may have consequences for the physical components of ecosystems, and particularly Earth Surface processes and landforms; and (2) in return, these modifications of geomorphologic processes and landforms often feed back to the ecological characteristics of the ecosystem (structure and function) and thus to biological characteristics of engineer species and/or other species (adaptation and speciation). The main foundation concepts from ecology and evolutionary biology which have led only recently to an improved conception of landform dynamics in geomorphology are reviewed and discussed. The biogeomorphologic macroevolutionary insights proposed explicitly integrate geomorphologic niche-dimensions and processes within an ecosystem framework and reflect current theories of eco-evolutionary and ecological processes. Collectively, these lead to the definition of an integrated model describing the overall functioning of biogeomorphologic systems over ecological and evolutionary timescales.
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Feedbacks between geomorphology and biota controlling Earth Surface processes and landforms: A review of foundation concepts and current understandings
Earth-Science Reviews, 2011Co-Authors: Dov Corenblit, Frédéric Julien, Angela M Gurnell, Sebastien Delmotte, J Darrozes, Andreas C W Baas, Robert A. Francis, Gudrun Bornette, Robert J Naiman, Johannes SteigerAbstract:This review article presents recent advances in the field of biogeomorphology related to the reciprocal coupling between Earth Surface processes and landforms, and ecological and evolutionary processes. The aim is to present to the Earth Science community ecological and evolutionary concepts and associated recent conceptual developments for linking geomorphology and biota. The novelty of the proposed perspective is that (1) in the presence of geomorphologic-engineer species, which modify sediment and landform dynamics, natural selection operating at the scale of organisms may have consequences for the physical components of ecosystems, and particularly Earth Surface processes and landforms; and (2) in return, these modifications of geomorphologic processes and landforms often feed back to the ecological characteristics of the ecosystem (structure and function) and thus to biological characteristics of engineer species and/or other species (adaptation and speciation). The main foundation concepts from ecology and evolutionary biology which have led only recently to an improved conception of landform dynamics in geomorphology are reviewed and discussed. The biogeomorphologic macroevolutionary insights proposed explicitly integrate geomorphologic niche-dimensions and processes within an ecosystem framework and reflect current theories of eco-evolutionary and ecological processes. Collectively, these lead to the definition of an integrated model describing the overall functioning of biogeomorphologic systems over ecological and evolutionary timescales. © 2011 Elsevier B.V.
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Reciprocal adjustments between landforms and living organisms: Extended geomorphic evolutionary insights
CATENA, 2008Co-Authors: Dov Corenblit, Johannes Steiger, A.m. Gurnell, E. TabacchiAbstract:Whilst biological organisms adapt to the environment, Earth Surface processes and landforms evolve as a result of physicochemical processes, and as the result of the activity of certain living organisms defined as ‘ecosystem engineers'. The importance of long- and short-term impacts on geomorphic structures and processes by ecosystem engineers appears to be underestimated. Recent recognition of complex abiotic-biotic feedbacks in nature has resulted in a convergence of approaches in ecology and geomorphology. Present biogeomorphic knowledge supports the hypothesis that abiotic-biotic feedbacks create characteristic modulated patterns of Earth Surface landforms, adjusting according to biological evolution in the long term and to ecological succession in the short term. In this context, natural selection of organisms and ecological successions are considered to have the potential, in some cases, for extension to the physical world, including Earth Surface landforms. This perspective aims to contribute to the disruption of the ‘classical' dichotomy between abiotic-biotic compartments because it emphasizes reciprocal adjustments (i.e., feedback mechanisms) between living organisms and abiotic environment dynamics. The extended evolutionary perspective, that is intended to feed back to ecology and evolutionary biology, indicates the potential for change in our deep understanding of geomorphology to reflect evolutionary and ecological succession theories.
Jane K. Willenbring - One of the best experts on this subject based on the ideXlab platform.
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cosmogenic nuclides dates and rates of Earth Surface change
Elements, 2014Co-Authors: Friedhelm Von Blanckenburg, Jane K. WillenbringAbstract:Cosmogenic nuclides are very rare isotopes that are produced when particles generated in supernovas in our galaxy hit the atmosphere and then the Earth's Surface. When the rocks and soils in this thin, ever-changing Surface layer are bombarded by such cosmic radiation, the nuclide clock begins to tick, thus providing dates and rates of Earth-Surface processes. The measurement of cosmogenic nuclides tells us when Earthquakes created topography at faults, when changing climate led to the growth of glaciers, how fast rivers grind mountains down, and how fast rocks weather to soil and withdraw atmospheric CO2. The use of cosmogenic nuclides is currently revolutionizing our understanding of Earth-Surface processes and has significant implications for many Earth science disciplines. * Accelerator mass spectrometer (AMS) : Detection system that first accelerates ions to MeV-level energy and then separates them by mass. The technique measures the extremely small number of rare cosmogenic nuclides relative to a stable reference nuclide present in known amounts. Cosmic ray attenuation mean free path and attenuation depth scale : The depth, Λ, at which the intensity of cosmic rays is reduced by a factor of 1/e by interaction with material (units: g cm-2). 150 g cm-2 corresponds to an attenuation depth, z* = Λ/ρ, of 600 mm in silicate rock whose density (ρ) is 2.6 g cm-3. Cosmic rays, primary : High-energy (0.1 to 1020 GeV) galactic particles that are composed primarily of protons (83%), α-particles (13%), and heavier nuclei (1%) Cosmic rays, secondary : Nucleons (neutrons, protons) and muons of 0.1 to 500 MeV energy that are produced by interactions between primary cosmic rays and molecules in the Earth's atmosphere. Secondary cosmic rays form a cascade of particles whose flux decreases with increasing atmospheric pressure. Cosmogenic nuclides, in situ : Nuclides that are produced by interaction of secondary cosmic rays with solids (spallation, negative muon capture) at the Earth's Surface. Other acronyms frequently used are TCN (terrestrial cosmogenic nuclides) and CRN (cosmogenic radioactive nuclides). Cosmogenic nuclides, meteoric : Cosmogenic nuclides that are produced in the atmosphere, the flux of some of which (e.g. meteoric 10Be) is ca 103 times greater than the production rate of in situ cosmogenic nuclides. Cosmogenic nuclides, radioactive : Cosmogenic nuclides that decay, and are therefore usually absent in eroding Earth materials prior to exposure (e.g. 10Be, 14C, 26Al, 36Cl) Cosmogenic nuclides, stable : Cosmogenic nuclides that are stable, and therefore might be present in eroding Surface material from previous exposure episodes. These cosmogenic nuclides are the rare gases (e.g. 3He, 21Ne, 22Ne). Denudation rate : The total rate of removal of mass from the Earth's Surface. It is the combined effect of physical (erosion rate) and chemical (weathering rate) processes. Electron volt (eV) : Energy of the charge of a single electron moved across an electric potential difference of one volt. MeV = mega–electron volt, one million eV. Erosion rate : The rate of removal of material from the Earth's Surface by mechanical processes Fault : A planar fracture or discontinuity in a volume of rock, across which there has been significant displacement as a result of Earth movement Geomagnetic latitude : Analogous to geographic latitude, except that bearing is with respect to the magnetic pole, which changes through time, as opposed to the geographic pole Moraine : Debris that forms at the margins of a glacier Muon : A low-mass particle from cosmic radiation that is able to penetrate deeper into the Earth's Surface than neutrons due to the low probability that it will interact with target atoms Nucleons : the particles that make up atomic nuclei: neutrons and protons Production rate : The rate at which in situ cosmogenic nuclides are produced in a given mass of chemically defined target material in a given time [units: atoms g-1 (mineral) y-1]. For meteoric cosmogenic nuclides a flux is used [units: atoms cm-2 y-1]. Regolith : The mantle of weathered material overlying bedrock Soil : A mixture of regolith and weathered material from below with organic matter, dust, and chemical precipitates from above Spallation : The ejection of nucleons due to impact causing production of a different nuclide without fission of the product Weathering rate : Partial dissolution of bedrock by surficial fluids, and removal of soluble ions in solution
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Cosmogenic nuclides: Dates and rates of Earth-Surface change
Elements, 2014Co-Authors: Friedhelm Von Blanckenburg, Jane K. WillenbringAbstract:Cosmogenic nuclides are very rare isotopes that are produced when particles generated in supernovas in our galaxy hit the atmosphere and then the Earth's Surface. When the rocks and soils in this thin, ever-changing Surface layer are bombarded by such cosmic radiation, the nuclide clock begins to tick, thus providing dates and rates of Earth-Surface processes. The measurement of cosmogenic nuclides tells us when Earthquakes created topography at faults, when changing climate led to the growth of glaciers, how fast rivers grind mountains down, and how fast rocks weather to soil and withdraw atmospheric CO2. The use of cosmogenic nuclides is currently revolutionizing our understanding of Earth-Surface processes and has significant implications for many Earth science disciplines.
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meteoric cosmogenic beryllium 10 adsorbed to river sediment and soil applications for Earth Surface dynamics
Earth-Science Reviews, 2010Co-Authors: Jane K. Willenbring, Friedhelm Von BlanckenburgAbstract:Abstract Rainfall scavenges meteoric cosmogenic 10Be from the atmosphere. 10Be falls to the Earth's Surface, where it binds tightly to sediment particles in non-acidic soils over the life-span of those soils. As such, meteoric 10Be has the potential to be an excellent geochemical tracer of erosion and stability of Surfaces in a diverse range of natural settings. Meteoric 10Be has great potential as a recorder of first-order erosion rates and soil residence times. Even though this tracer was first developed in the late 1980s and showed great promise as a geomorphic tool, it was sidelined in the past two decades with the rise of the “sister nuclide”, in situ 10Be, which is produced at a known rate inside quartz minerals. Since these early days, substantial progress has been made in several areas that now shed new light on the applicability of the meteoric variety of this cosmogenic nuclide. Here, we revisit the potential of this tracer and we summarize the progress: (1) the atmospheric production and fallout is now described by numeric models, and agrees with present-day measurements and paleo-archives such as from rain and ice cores; (2) short-term fluctuations in solar modulation of cosmic rays or in the delivery of 10Be are averaged out over the time scale soils accumulate; (3) in many cases, the delivery of 10Be is not dependent on the amount of precipitation; (4) we explore where 10Be is retained in soils and sediment; (5) we suggest a law to account for the strong grain-size dependence that controls adsorption and the measured nuclide concentrations; and (6) we present a set of algebraic expressions that allows calculation of both soil or sediment ages and erosion rates from the inventory of meteoric 10Be distributed through a vertical soil column. The mathematical description is greatly simplified if the accumulation of 10Be is at a steady state with its export through erosion. In this case, a Surface sample allows for the calculation of an erosion rate. Explored further, this approach allows calculation of catchment-wide erosion rates from river sediment, similar to the approach using 10Be produced in situ. In contrast to the in situ 10Be approach, however, these analyses can be performed on any sample of fine-grained material, even where no quartz minerals are present. Therefore, this technique may serve as a tool to date sediment where no other chronometer is available, to track particle sources and to measure Earth-Surface process rates in soil, suspended river sediment, and fine-grained sedimentary deposits.
Robert J Naiman - One of the best experts on this subject based on the ideXlab platform.
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feedbacks between geomorphology and biota controlling Earth Surface processes and landforms a review of foundation concepts and current understandings
Earth-Science Reviews, 2011Co-Authors: Frédéric Julien, Angela M Gurnell, Sebastien Delmotte, J Darrozes, Dov Corenblit, Andreas C W Baas, Robert A. Francis, Gudrun Bornette, Robert J NaimanAbstract:Abstract This review article presents recent advances in the field of biogeomorphology related to the reciprocal coupling between Earth Surface processes and landforms, and ecological and evolutionary processes. The aim is to present to the Earth Science community ecological and evolutionary concepts and associated recent conceptual developments for linking geomorphology and biota. The novelty of the proposed perspective is that (1) in the presence of geomorphologic-engineer species, which modify sediment and landform dynamics, natural selection operating at the scale of organisms may have consequences for the physical components of ecosystems, and particularly Earth Surface processes and landforms; and (2) in return, these modifications of geomorphologic processes and landforms often feed back to the ecological characteristics of the ecosystem (structure and function) and thus to biological characteristics of engineer species and/or other species (adaptation and speciation). The main foundation concepts from ecology and evolutionary biology which have led only recently to an improved conception of landform dynamics in geomorphology are reviewed and discussed. The biogeomorphologic macroevolutionary insights proposed explicitly integrate geomorphologic niche-dimensions and processes within an ecosystem framework and reflect current theories of eco-evolutionary and ecological processes. Collectively, these lead to the definition of an integrated model describing the overall functioning of biogeomorphologic systems over ecological and evolutionary timescales.
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Feedbacks between geomorphology and biota controlling Earth Surface processes and landforms: A review of foundation concepts and current understandings
Earth-Science Reviews, 2011Co-Authors: Dov Corenblit, Frédéric Julien, Angela M Gurnell, Sebastien Delmotte, J Darrozes, Andreas C W Baas, Robert A. Francis, Gudrun Bornette, Robert J Naiman, Johannes SteigerAbstract:This review article presents recent advances in the field of biogeomorphology related to the reciprocal coupling between Earth Surface processes and landforms, and ecological and evolutionary processes. The aim is to present to the Earth Science community ecological and evolutionary concepts and associated recent conceptual developments for linking geomorphology and biota. The novelty of the proposed perspective is that (1) in the presence of geomorphologic-engineer species, which modify sediment and landform dynamics, natural selection operating at the scale of organisms may have consequences for the physical components of ecosystems, and particularly Earth Surface processes and landforms; and (2) in return, these modifications of geomorphologic processes and landforms often feed back to the ecological characteristics of the ecosystem (structure and function) and thus to biological characteristics of engineer species and/or other species (adaptation and speciation). The main foundation concepts from ecology and evolutionary biology which have led only recently to an improved conception of landform dynamics in geomorphology are reviewed and discussed. The biogeomorphologic macroevolutionary insights proposed explicitly integrate geomorphologic niche-dimensions and processes within an ecosystem framework and reflect current theories of eco-evolutionary and ecological processes. Collectively, these lead to the definition of an integrated model describing the overall functioning of biogeomorphologic systems over ecological and evolutionary timescales. © 2011 Elsevier B.V.
Friedhelm Von Blanckenburg - One of the best experts on this subject based on the ideXlab platform.
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HELGES: Helmholtz Laboratory for the Geochemistry of the Earth Surface
Journal of large-scale research facilities JLSRF, 2016Co-Authors: Friedhelm Von Blanckenburg, Hella Wittmann, Jan A. SchuesslerAbstract:New developments in Geochemistry during the last two decades have revolutionized our understanding of the processes that shape Earth's Surface. Here, complex interactions occur between the tectonic forces acting from within the Earth and the exogenic forces like climate that are strongly modulated by biota and, increasingly today, by human activity. Within the Helmholtz Laboratory for the Geochemistry of the Earth Surface (HELGES) of the Helmholtz Centre Potsdam GFZ German Research Centre for Geosciences, it is our goal to quantify the rates and fluxes of these processes in detail and to develop new techniques to fingerprint them over various temporal and spatial scales. We use mass spectrometry facilities to analyze metal stable isotopes, element concentrations and cosmogenic nuclides to fingerprint and quantify geomorphological changes driven by erosion and weathering processes. We use these novel geochemical tools, to quantify, for example, the recycling of metals in plants after their release during weathering of rocks and soils, soil formation and its erosion rates, and mechanisms and speed of sediment transport through drainage basins. Our research is thus dedicated towards understanding material turnover rates at the Earth's Surface by using geochemical fingerprints.
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cosmogenic nuclides dates and rates of Earth Surface change
Elements, 2014Co-Authors: Friedhelm Von Blanckenburg, Jane K. WillenbringAbstract:Cosmogenic nuclides are very rare isotopes that are produced when particles generated in supernovas in our galaxy hit the atmosphere and then the Earth's Surface. When the rocks and soils in this thin, ever-changing Surface layer are bombarded by such cosmic radiation, the nuclide clock begins to tick, thus providing dates and rates of Earth-Surface processes. The measurement of cosmogenic nuclides tells us when Earthquakes created topography at faults, when changing climate led to the growth of glaciers, how fast rivers grind mountains down, and how fast rocks weather to soil and withdraw atmospheric CO2. The use of cosmogenic nuclides is currently revolutionizing our understanding of Earth-Surface processes and has significant implications for many Earth science disciplines. * Accelerator mass spectrometer (AMS) : Detection system that first accelerates ions to MeV-level energy and then separates them by mass. The technique measures the extremely small number of rare cosmogenic nuclides relative to a stable reference nuclide present in known amounts. Cosmic ray attenuation mean free path and attenuation depth scale : The depth, Λ, at which the intensity of cosmic rays is reduced by a factor of 1/e by interaction with material (units: g cm-2). 150 g cm-2 corresponds to an attenuation depth, z* = Λ/ρ, of 600 mm in silicate rock whose density (ρ) is 2.6 g cm-3. Cosmic rays, primary : High-energy (0.1 to 1020 GeV) galactic particles that are composed primarily of protons (83%), α-particles (13%), and heavier nuclei (1%) Cosmic rays, secondary : Nucleons (neutrons, protons) and muons of 0.1 to 500 MeV energy that are produced by interactions between primary cosmic rays and molecules in the Earth's atmosphere. Secondary cosmic rays form a cascade of particles whose flux decreases with increasing atmospheric pressure. Cosmogenic nuclides, in situ : Nuclides that are produced by interaction of secondary cosmic rays with solids (spallation, negative muon capture) at the Earth's Surface. Other acronyms frequently used are TCN (terrestrial cosmogenic nuclides) and CRN (cosmogenic radioactive nuclides). Cosmogenic nuclides, meteoric : Cosmogenic nuclides that are produced in the atmosphere, the flux of some of which (e.g. meteoric 10Be) is ca 103 times greater than the production rate of in situ cosmogenic nuclides. Cosmogenic nuclides, radioactive : Cosmogenic nuclides that decay, and are therefore usually absent in eroding Earth materials prior to exposure (e.g. 10Be, 14C, 26Al, 36Cl) Cosmogenic nuclides, stable : Cosmogenic nuclides that are stable, and therefore might be present in eroding Surface material from previous exposure episodes. These cosmogenic nuclides are the rare gases (e.g. 3He, 21Ne, 22Ne). Denudation rate : The total rate of removal of mass from the Earth's Surface. It is the combined effect of physical (erosion rate) and chemical (weathering rate) processes. Electron volt (eV) : Energy of the charge of a single electron moved across an electric potential difference of one volt. MeV = mega–electron volt, one million eV. Erosion rate : The rate of removal of material from the Earth's Surface by mechanical processes Fault : A planar fracture or discontinuity in a volume of rock, across which there has been significant displacement as a result of Earth movement Geomagnetic latitude : Analogous to geographic latitude, except that bearing is with respect to the magnetic pole, which changes through time, as opposed to the geographic pole Moraine : Debris that forms at the margins of a glacier Muon : A low-mass particle from cosmic radiation that is able to penetrate deeper into the Earth's Surface than neutrons due to the low probability that it will interact with target atoms Nucleons : the particles that make up atomic nuclei: neutrons and protons Production rate : The rate at which in situ cosmogenic nuclides are produced in a given mass of chemically defined target material in a given time [units: atoms g-1 (mineral) y-1]. For meteoric cosmogenic nuclides a flux is used [units: atoms cm-2 y-1]. Regolith : The mantle of weathered material overlying bedrock Soil : A mixture of regolith and weathered material from below with organic matter, dust, and chemical precipitates from above Spallation : The ejection of nucleons due to impact causing production of a different nuclide without fission of the product Weathering rate : Partial dissolution of bedrock by surficial fluids, and removal of soluble ions in solution
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meteoric cosmogenic beryllium 10 adsorbed to river sediment and soil applications for Earth Surface dynamics
Earth-Science Reviews, 2010Co-Authors: Jane K. Willenbring, Friedhelm Von BlanckenburgAbstract:Abstract Rainfall scavenges meteoric cosmogenic 10Be from the atmosphere. 10Be falls to the Earth's Surface, where it binds tightly to sediment particles in non-acidic soils over the life-span of those soils. As such, meteoric 10Be has the potential to be an excellent geochemical tracer of erosion and stability of Surfaces in a diverse range of natural settings. Meteoric 10Be has great potential as a recorder of first-order erosion rates and soil residence times. Even though this tracer was first developed in the late 1980s and showed great promise as a geomorphic tool, it was sidelined in the past two decades with the rise of the “sister nuclide”, in situ 10Be, which is produced at a known rate inside quartz minerals. Since these early days, substantial progress has been made in several areas that now shed new light on the applicability of the meteoric variety of this cosmogenic nuclide. Here, we revisit the potential of this tracer and we summarize the progress: (1) the atmospheric production and fallout is now described by numeric models, and agrees with present-day measurements and paleo-archives such as from rain and ice cores; (2) short-term fluctuations in solar modulation of cosmic rays or in the delivery of 10Be are averaged out over the time scale soils accumulate; (3) in many cases, the delivery of 10Be is not dependent on the amount of precipitation; (4) we explore where 10Be is retained in soils and sediment; (5) we suggest a law to account for the strong grain-size dependence that controls adsorption and the measured nuclide concentrations; and (6) we present a set of algebraic expressions that allows calculation of both soil or sediment ages and erosion rates from the inventory of meteoric 10Be distributed through a vertical soil column. The mathematical description is greatly simplified if the accumulation of 10Be is at a steady state with its export through erosion. In this case, a Surface sample allows for the calculation of an erosion rate. Explored further, this approach allows calculation of catchment-wide erosion rates from river sediment, similar to the approach using 10Be produced in situ. In contrast to the in situ 10Be approach, however, these analyses can be performed on any sample of fine-grained material, even where no quartz minerals are present. Therefore, this technique may serve as a tool to date sediment where no other chronometer is available, to track particle sources and to measure Earth-Surface process rates in soil, suspended river sediment, and fine-grained sedimentary deposits.
