Collaborative Research: Linking turbulent flow dynamics to meandering river migration

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Rivers are central conduits for life in the US. They are thoroughfares for shipping, focal points for infrastructure and manufacturing, and oases for recreation and wildlife. Rivers often migrate as a natural process, one which has far-reaching consequences: it poses hazards to bridges and other infrastructure; shifts flooding patterns; and over geologic time, shapes underground resources, including groundwater and hydrocarbons. This project advances the field of Earth-surface science by building new tools to forecast river migration and a new, related curriculum for college science classes. The project will further diversity in the sciences by supporting a team of women and men from the mountain west to the east coast, who together represent two state universities and one Tribal College.A foundation of the research is a new set of state-of-the-art mathematical simulations using higher-performance computing techniques. These simulations will capture interactions between water flow and sediment transport across an unprecedented range of river shapes. Model predictions will be tested and refined using experiments in a scale model of a meandering river, and by comparison to geologic data sets. The research findings will help geologists, engineers, and river scientists to mitigate river hazards, manage wildlife habitat, and identify natural resources spanning the changing landscapes of the nation.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.