Abstract
Field measurements of the processes of dispersion of concentrated suspended silts over the active delta front of the Yellow River (China) show that cross-isobath sediment dispersal into the shallow Bohai Gulf is dominated by gravity-driven underflows. These underflows descend the rapidly programing delta front as hyperpyc-nal plumes 1–4 m thick. The widespread, dilute plumes observed during the summer flood season deposited most of their sediment and experienced extinction between the 5-m and 10-m depth con-tours. High-frequency internal waves on the upper interface of the underflows may have contributed to the rapid deceleration. Muds resuspended by an intense autumn storm caused denser, but short-lived, plumes which extended downslope to depths of over 13 m.
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Wright, L., Wiseman, W., Bornhold, B. et al. Marine dispersal and deposition of Yellow River silts by gravity-driven underflows. Nature 332, 629–632 (1988). https://doi.org/10.1038/332629a0
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/332629a0
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