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Geological Society, London, Special Publications; 1993; v. 75; p. 113-118;
DOI: 10.1144/GSL.SP.1993.075.01.06
© 1993 Geological Society of London

Braided-channel pattern and palaeohydrology using an index of total sinuosity

M. S. E. Robertson-Rintoul1 & K. S. Richards2

1 ECOS Ltd, 26 Cameron Street, Stonehaven, Kincardineshire AB3 2HS, UK
2 Department of Geography, University of Cambridge, Cambridge CB2 3EN, UK

Channel patterns are commonly represented as discrete types (e.g. straight, meandering, braided) separated by threshold values of slope and discharge. However, for gravel-bed river patterns, an index of total sinuosity ({sum}P) can be defined which varies continuously with both stream power per unit channel-belt length (represented as the product of mean annual flood and valley gradient) and median bed material diameter. An empirical relationship between {sum}P and these controlling variables can be used to provide palaeo-hydrological reconstructions for braided stream traces on terrace fragments, as an alternative to methods based on bed material sizes and criteria for the threshold of grain motion.