HILLSCAPE Project - Data on moraine soil properties and on overland flow and subsurface flow characteristics
Cite as:
Maier, Fabian; van Meerveld, Ilja (2021): HILLSCAPE Project - Data on moraine soil properties and on overland flow and subsurface flow characteristics. GFZ Data Services. https://doi.org/10.5880/fidgeo.2021.011
Status
I N R E V I E W : Maier, Fabian; van Meerveld, Ilja (2021): HILLSCAPE Project - Data on moraine soil properties and on overland flow and subsurface flow characteristics. GFZ Data Services. https://doi.org/10.5880/fidgeo.2021.011
Abstract
The German-Swiss Hillscape project focuses on the vertical and lateral redistribution of water and matter along hillslopes and how this redistribution is affected by soil, vegetation and landscape development. The overall research question of the project is: How does the hillslope feedback cycle evolve in the first 10,000 years and how is this related to the evolution of hillslope structure? In order to tackle this research question, chronosequences in alpine glacier forelands were selected and artificial rainfall experiments were conducted. These datasets specifically contain data at the interface of sediment transport and hillslope hydrology. Specifically, they contain data about changes in soil surface characteristics (saturated hydraulic conductivity for three soil depths, soil aggregate stability for the surface soil layer), overland and shallow subsurface flow (runoff characteristics as peak flow rates, duration of flow, runoff ratios, event water fractions) and sediment yield values for overland flow along the moraine chronosequence.
We measured the near-surface hydrological characteristics of four moraines with different age on a carbonate glacier foreland (forefield of the Griessfirn, close to the Klausenpass alpine road) and silicate glacier foreland (glacier forefield of the Steingletscher, close to the Sustenpass alpine road). The ages of the four moraines were ~30, ~160, ~3000 and ~10000 years (Sustenpass) and ~80, ~160, 4900 and 13500 years (Klausenpass). We selected 3 plots (dimensions: 4m x 6m) on each moraine, based on the vegetation complexity (low, medium and high), to cover as much of the potential variability within each moraine as possible. The structural vegetation complexity was based on the vegetation cover, number of different species, and functional diversity (based on stem growth form, root type, clonal growth organ, seed mass, Raunkiaer’s life form, leaf dry matter content, nitrogen content and specific leaf area (Garnier et al., 2016).
We measured the near-surface hydrological properties of each plot (the saturated hydraulic conductivity and the soil aggregate stability) because the properties are essential for the runoff response on each plot. The runoff response and its characteristics for each plot was determined for sprinkling experiments of different intensities and during natural rainfall events (only at Klausenpass). We used tracers (Deuteriumoxid and NaCl) that we added to the sprinkling water and took samples of the soil water, then rainfall and the runoff to perform a 3-end-member hydrograph separation, using the method of Gibson et al. (2000). With that, we were able to identify the mixing (e.g. event water fraction), storage and flow pathways of the overland flow and subsurface flow. We filtered the overland flow samples to define the total sediment flux per experiment.
Authors
Maier, Fabian;University of Zurich, Department of Geography, Zurich, Switzerland
van Meerveld, Ilja;University of Zurich, Department of Geography, Zurich, Switzerland
Contact
Maier, Fabian
(PhD)
; University of Zurich, Department of Geography, Zurich, Switzerland;
CharacterString: The German-Swiss Hillscape project focuses on the vertical and lateral redistribution of water and matter along hillslopes and how this redistribution is affected by soil, vegetation and landscape development. The overall research question of the project is: How does the hillslope feedback cycle evolve in the first 10,000 years and how is this related to the evolution of hillslope structure? In order to tackle this research question, chronosequences in alpine glacier forelands were selected and artificial rainfall experiments were conducted. These datasets specifically contain data at the interface of sediment transport and hillslope hydrology. Specifically, they contain data about changes in soil surface characteristics (saturated hydraulic conductivity for three soil depths, soil aggregate stability for the surface soil layer), overland and shallow subsurface flow (runoff characteristics as peak flow rates, duration of flow, runoff ratios, event water fractions) and sediment yield values for overland flow along the moraine chronosequence.
We measured the near-surface hydrological characteristics of four moraines with different age on a carbonate glacier foreland (forefield of the Griessfirn, close to the Klausenpass alpine road) and silicate glacier foreland (glacier forefield of the Steingletscher, close to the Sustenpass alpine road). The ages of the four moraines were ~30, ~160, ~3000 and ~10000 years (Sustenpass) and ~80, ~160, 4900 and 13500 years (Klausenpass). We selected 3 plots (dimensions: 4m x 6m) on each moraine, based on the vegetation complexity (low, medium and high), to cover as much of the potential variability within each moraine as possible. The structural vegetation complexity was based on the vegetation cover, number of different species, and functional diversity (based on stem growth form, root type, clonal growth organ, seed mass, Raunkiaer’s life form, leaf dry matter content, nitrogen content and specific leaf area (Garnier et al., 2016).
We measured the near-surface hydrological properties of each plot (the saturated hydraulic conductivity and the soil aggregate stability) because the properties are essential for the runoff response on each plot. The runoff response and its characteristics for each plot was determined for sprinkling experiments of different intensities and during natural rainfall events (only at Klausenpass). We used tracers (Deuteriumoxid and NaCl) that we added to the sprinkling water and took samples of the soil water, then rainfall and the runoff to perform a 3-end-member hydrograph separation, using the method of Gibson et al. (2000). With that, we were able to identify the mixing (e.g. event water fraction), storage and flow pathways of the overland flow and subsurface flow. We filtered the overland flow samples to define the total sediment flux per experiment.
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CharacterString: Maier, Fabian
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CharacterString: University of Zurich, Department of Geography, Zurich, Switzerland
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Abstract
;University of Zurich, Department of Geography, Zurich, Switzerland
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