Eroding Australia: slowly.

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dc.contributor.authorHeimsath, AMen_AU
dc.contributor.authorChappell, Jen_AU
dc.contributor.authorHancock, GRen_AU
dc.contributor.authorFink, Den_AU
dc.contributor.authorFifield, LKen_AU
dc.date.accessioned2009-08-13en_AU
dc.date.accessioned2010-04-30T04:56:55Zen_AU
dc.date.available2009-08-13en_AU
dc.date.available2010-04-30T04:56:55Zen_AU
dc.date.issued2008-07en_AU
dc.date.statistics2008-07en_AU
dc.description.abstractWe use in situ produced 10Be and 26Al to quantify erosion rates across a wide variety of field settings in Australia. Here we present the full suite of data from our diverse studies to provide an overview of how Austalia is eroding, as well as showing how robust this methodology is. Field sites range from several soil-mantled landscapes spanning the passive margin escarpment of southeastern Australia, to rocky, bedrock dominated landscapes in the Flinders Ranges and the Central Australia Outback. Also, in the far north, we examine an undisturbed catchment in the rugged topography of Arnhem Land: Tin Camp Creek. We sample detrital sands draining the landscape in a nested fashion at each of our field sites: from small to large catchments. We also sample across the slopes to quantify point-specific rates of soil production and bedrock erosion. Soil production rates and mechanisms across the escarpment have been presented in previous publications and will be used here to compare with a new, ‘humped’ soil prodction function from the Arnhem Land field site. In the rocky landscapes of the Flinders Ranges and MacDonnell Ranges, we sample the blocky slopes as well as catchment sands to constrain a block failure model for slope retreat. Point specific rates are also compared with detrital rates for Kings Canyon and the Todd River drainage to examine the potential for long-term landscape equilibrium. To conclude we show the first, unequivocal example of a regolith mantled landscape eroding in dynamic equilibrium from the western MacDonnell Range. Rates span an order of magnitude, from about 4 to 40 m/Ma across the escarpment in southeastern Australia. The ‘humped’ soil production function peaks at just over 20 m/Ma under about 30 cm of soil and decreases to less than 5 m/Ma under 70 cm of soil. Rates in the Outback are extremely slow, from less than 1 in places to the distance evidence for equilbrium in the Western MacDonnells, at about 7 m/Ma. These results raise many provocative questions and suggest new directions for quantifying how landscapes evolve. Copyright © 2008 Published by Elsevier Ltd.en_AU
dc.description.sponsorshipGeochemical Society; European Association of Geochemistry.en_AU
dc.identifier.citationHeimsath, A., Chappell, J., Hancock, G., Fink, D., & Fifield, K. (2008). Eroding Australia: slowly. Presentation to the 18th Annual V.M. Goldschmidt Conference (Goldschmidt 2008) - "from Sea to Sky", 13th - 18th July 2008. Vancouver, Canada: University of British Columbia. In Geochimica et Cosmochimica Acta, 72(12), A363. doi:10.1016/j.gca.2008.05.011en_AU
dc.identifier.conferenceenddate18 July 2008en_AU
dc.identifier.conferencename18th Annual V.M. Goldschmidt Conference (Goldschmidt 2008) - 'from Sea to Sky'en_AU
dc.identifier.conferenceplaceVancouver, Canadaen_AU
dc.identifier.conferencestartdate13 July 2008en_AU
dc.identifier.govdoc1030en_AU
dc.identifier.issn0016-7037en_AU
dc.identifier.issue12en_AU
dc.identifier.journaltitleGeochimica et Cosmochimica Actaen_AU
dc.identifier.paginationA363en_AU
dc.identifier.urihttp://apo.ansto.gov.au/dspace/handle/10238/1611en_AU
dc.identifier.urihttp://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.gca.2008.05.011en_AU
dc.identifier.volume72en_AU
dc.language.isoenen_AU
dc.publisherElsevieren_AU
dc.subjectAustraliaen_AU
dc.subjectErosionen_AU
dc.subjectSoilsen_AU
dc.subjectSanden_AU
dc.subjectBerylliumen_AU
dc.subjectAluminiumen_AU
dc.titleEroding Australia: slowly.en_AU
dc.typeConference Abstracten_AU
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