Turbidity Currents

Turbidity Currents
Turbidity Current Movie from Gary Parker, St. Anthony Falls Hydraulic Laboratory, University of Minnesota.

Series of turbidity currents, dyed red, white and green. The configuration of the basin is of a fill and spill geometry, where the turbidity current runs into a silled basin beyond which it overflows down into a lower basin floor. Only a few clips are shown.

0:00 – 0:36 – Far out in the basin a white turbidity flow has already taken place and some dilute suspension from that event is still settling. A second flow, dyed red, is just moving into view. In real time you can see the flow head billow up as it moves.

0:36 – 1:19 – A third flow, dyed white, is added to the tank. As it flows into the basin it displaces the turbid red water and a wave of thickened flow moves across the basin. As the flow approaches the sill, it punches through the red cloud of suspended material and crosses the sill (at 1:05). After topping the sill, the flow picks up inertia as it flows down the steeper slope. The flow head billows up as it entrains water during acceleration.

A fourth flow is added, dyed red, but not shown in the movie.

1:20 – 1:54 – A fifth flow, dyed dark green, enters the tank. It moves much like flow #3, however you can more clearly see it mix with the red turbid water of the preceding flow.

1:54 – 2:10 – A view farther down the basin as flow #5 moves across the frame.

File 31382 is a 14MB MP4 Video
Uploaded: Jan20 12
Last Modified: 2018-04-24 11:14:26
https://serc.carleton.edu/download/files/31382/turbidity_currents.mp4

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Gary Parker, St. Anthony Falls Hydraulic Laboratory, University of Minnesota
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