Loading…

Preliminary Quantitative Study of Alpine Subnival Boulder Pavements, Colorado Front Range, U.S.A

Alpine subnival boulder pavements occur as two types: Type I, those associated with a stream; Type II, those with no stream present. Type I may be subdivided into Type Ia, pavements that are approximately rectangular with their long axes roughly orthogonal to snow-delivering winds; and Type Ib, pave...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published in:Arctic and alpine research 1982-11, Vol.14 (4), p.361-367
Main Authors: Hara, Yoshio, Thorn, Colin E.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Citations: Items that this one cites
Online Access:Get full text
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
Description
Summary:Alpine subnival boulder pavements occur as two types: Type I, those associated with a stream; Type II, those with no stream present. Type I may be subdivided into Type Ia, pavements that are approximately rectangular with their long axes roughly orthogonal to snow-delivering winds; and Type Ib, pavements that are fan-like in plan with a centrally located stream. Type Ia pavements have three internal zones: zone 1, occupied by the stream; zone 2, the sheltered margin with deep snowpack accumulation; and zone 3, the downwind margin with only shallow snowpack accumulation. Type Ib pavements have only zones 1 and 2. Using this typology and zonation, together with data from five pavements in the Indian Peaks, Colorado Front Range, three hypotheses were tested statistically. Hypothesis 1, that streams scour fines from beneath a coarse surficial layer, is accepted. Hypothesis 2, that pavement roughness is inversely related to seasonal snowpack mass, remains uncertain. Such a relationship does occur, but is probably secondary to stream scour. Hypothesis 3, that pavements may be either autochthonous or allochthonous, remains indeterminate.
ISSN:0004-0851
2325-5153
DOI:10.1080/00040851.1982.12004318