Fluvial Anchor Ice/Sediment Dynamics and Ice Rafting.

摘要

The long-term goals of our research are to understand the interactions between frazil, anchor ice, and sediment, and to determine how these interactions affect sediment dynamics in fluvial, marine, and lacustrine environments. In order to understand how frazil formation and anchor ice formation and release affect sediment dynamics, it is necessary to know when and how the ice forms, how anchor ice is released from the bed, what type and how much sediment is ice rafted, and the distance that sediment is ice rafted. In this project we are working in Rocky Mountain streams and lakes to determine when and where frazil and anchor ice form, and to determine the interactions between ice and sediment. We collect field data in November, December, February, and March at times when anchor ice is most likely to form. We monitor river stage, water temperature, weather conditions, and ice conditions. During periods of frazil and anchor ice production, we make daily trips to map ice distributions, collect samples, collect underwater video, and observe flow conditions.