A5065682098- Geological formations and processes
- Geology and Paleoclimatology Research
- Methane Hydrates and Related Phenomena
- Coastal wetland ecosystem dynamics
- Hydrology and Sediment Transport Processes
- earthquake and tectonic studies
- Landslides and related hazards
- Coastal and Marine Dynamics
- Underwater Acoustics Research
- Geological Modeling and Analysis
- Geological Studies and Exploration
- Seismic Waves and Analysis
- Seismology and Earthquake Studies
- Cryospheric studies and observations
- Climate change and permafrost
- Marine and environmental studies
- Marine Biology and Ecology Research
- Oil and Gas Production Techniques
- Underwater Vehicles and Communication Systems
- Maritime and Coastal Archaeology
- Arctic and Antarctic ice dynamics
- Marine and Offshore Engineering Studies
- Marine and coastal ecosystems
- Soil and Unsaturated Flow
- Seismic Imaging and Inversion Techniques
Natural Resources Canada
2014-2024
Geological Survey of Canada
2013-2024
Island Institute
2023
University of Victoria
2023
Fisheries and Oceans Canada
2007-2023
Durham University
2021
University of West Florida
2006
University of Oxford
2002
Science Oxford
2002
Bangor University
1999
Submarine channels have been important throughout geologic time for feeding globally significant volumes of sediment from land to the deep sea. Modern observations show that submarine can be sculpted by supercritical turbidity currents (seafloor flows) generate upstream-migrating bedforms with a crescentic planform. In order accurately interpret flows and depositional environments in record, it is able recognize signature bedforms. Field geologists commonly link scour fills containing...
Rivers (on land) and turbidity currents (in the ocean) are most important sediment transport processes on Earth. Yet how rivers generate as they enter coastal ocean remains poorly understood. The current paradigm, based laboratory experiments, is that triggered when river plumes exceed a threshold concentration of ~1 kg/m3. Here we present direct observations an exceptionally dilute plume, with concentrations 1 order magnitude below this (0.07 kg/m3), which generated fast (1.5 m/s), erosive,...
Abstract Burial of terrestrial biospheric particulate organic carbon in marine sediments removes CO2 from the atmosphere, regulating climate over geologic time scales. Rivers deliver to sea, while turbidity currents transport river sediment further offshore. Previous studies have suggested that most resides muddy sediment. However, can carry a significant component coarser sediment, which is commonly assumed be poor. Here, using data Canadian fjord, we show young woody debris rapidly buried...
Turbidity currents are powerful flows of sediment that pose a hazard to critical seafloor infrastructure and transport globally important amounts the deep sea. Due challenges direct monitoring, we typically rely on their deposits reconstruct past turbidity currents. Understanding these is complicated because successive can rework or erase previous deposits. Hence, depositional environments dominated by currents, such as submarine channels, only partially record But precisely how incomplete...
Submarine channels are the primary conduits for terrestrial sediment, organic carbon, and pollutant transport to deep sea. far more difficult monitor than rivers, thus less well understood. Here we present 9 years of time-lapse mapping an active submarine channel along its full length in Bute Inlet, Canada. Past studies suggested that meander-bend migration, levee-deposition, or migration (supercritical-flow) bedforms controls evolution channels. We show first time how rapid (100-450 m/year)...
Until recently, despite being one of the most important sediment transport phenomena on Earth, few direct measurements turbidity currents existed. Consequently, their structure and evolution were poorly understood, particularly whether they are dense or dilute. Here, we analyze largest number monitored to date from source sink. We show internal flow characteristic as runout. Observed frontal regions (heads) fast (>1.5 m/s), thin (<10 m), (depth averaged concentrations up 38%vol), strongly...
Abstract Turbidity currents are one of the main sediment transport processes on Earth, yet notoriously difficult to monitor directly. This article presents first direct and high bandwidth observation a turbidity current using cabled sea floor observatory. On 5 June 2012, platform Ocean Networks Canada, located in 107 m water Fraser River delta slope, was displaced downslope severed from its data cable. The weighed ca 1000 kg water. event took place during river discharge, tides rapid...
Submarine channels are the primary conduits for land-derived material, including organic carbon, pollutants, and nutrients, into deep-sea. The flows (turbidity currents) that traverse these systems can pose hazards to seafloor infrastructure such as cables pipelines. Here we use a novel combination of repeat surveys turbidity current monitoring along 50 km-long submarine channel in Bute Inlet, British Columbia, discharge measurements from main feeding river. These source-to-sink observations...
Abstract The delivery and burial of terrestrial particulate organic carbon (OC) in marine sediments is important to quantify, because this OC a food resource for benthic communities, if buried it may lower the concentrations atmospheric CO 2 over geologic timescales. Analysis sediment cores has previously shown that fjords are hotspots burial. Fjords can contain complex networks submarine channels formed by seafloor flows, called turbidity currents. However, efficiency distribution currents...
Quantification of the controls on turbidity current recurrence is required to better constrain land sea fluxes sediment, carbon and pollutants, design resilient infrastructure that vulnerable such flows. This particularly important offshore from river deltas, where sediment supply high. Numerous mechanisms can trigger currents, even at a single mouth. However quantitative analysis triggers has been limited an individual for each due low number precisely timed (via direct monitoring) We are...
Abstract River deltas and associated turbidity current systems produce some of the largest most rapid sediment accumulations on our planet. These bury globally significant volumes organic carbon determine runout distance potentially hazardous flows shape their deposits. Here we seek to understand main factors that morphology linked in fjords, why locations have well developed submarine channels while others do not. Deltas are analysed initially five fjord from British Columbia Canada, then...
Abstract Submarine turbidity currents are one of the most important processes for moving sediment across our planet; they hazardous to offshore infrastructure, deposit petroleum reservoirs worldwide, and may record tsunamigenic landslides. However, there few studies that have monitored these submarine flows in action, even fewer combined direct monitoring with longer‐term records from core seismic data deposits. This article provides complete yet a current system. The aim here is understand...
Abstract Turbidity currents transport globally significant volumes of sediment and organic carbon into the deep-sea pose a hazard to critical infrastructure. Despite advances in technology, their powerful nature often damages expensive instruments placed path. These challenges mean that turbidity have only been measured few locations worldwide, relatively shallow water depths (<<2 km). Here, we share lessons from recent field deployments about how design platforms on which are...
Abstract Deep‐water deposits are important archives of Earth’s history including the occurrence powerful flow events and transfer large volumes terrestrial detritus into world’s oceans. However interpretation depositional processes palaeoflow conditions from deep‐water sedimentary record has been limited due to a lack direct observations modern systems. Recent seafloor studies have resulted in novel findings, presence upslope‐migrating bedforms such as cyclic steps formed by supercritical...
Boundary Bay is an intertidal embayment on the eastern coast of Salish Sea in British Columbia, Canada. Topographically steered winds result focusing storm surges and wind-driven surface waves into this bay, across mud flats, tidal channels salt marshes. The bay rimmed by a network coastal dykes, which provide some flood protection to communities, infrastructure, agricultural land. However, rapidly changing climate driving rising sea groundwater levels erosion. Without intervention, these...
Abstract Submarine channels deliver globally important volumes of sediments, nutrients, contaminants and organic carbon into the deep sea. Knickpoints are significant topographic features found within numerous submarine channels, which most likely play an role in channel evolution behaviour sediment‐laden flows (turbidity currents) that traverse them. Although prior research has linked supercritical turbidity currents to formation both knickpoints smaller crescentic bedforms, relationship...
Abstract This paper examines particle settling dynamics in a tidally‐influenced delta, including observations of convective settling, strongly modulated by seasonal discharge and tidal cycles. Long time series Acoustic Doppler Current Profiler backscatter, proxy for suspended sediment concentration the water column, current accumulation measurements from slope Fraser River delta show variability sedimentary processes over timescales semi‐diurnal to annual. backscatter shows lagged response...