Braided rivers fan into shifting gravel channels below melting ice
Glacier melt and heavy sediment loads overwhelm a single channel, so the river splits into many shallow strands that weave across a gravel floodplain — a braided river.
Bars appear and vanish with each flood pulse; channels hop sideways overnight. From the air the pattern looks like tangled silver threads spilling from the ice.
Mountain hydrology is restless. Braided rivers show how glacial meltwater and rock debris constantly redesign valley floors.
Comments
0 comments