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Predicting the shape of river deltas


July 22, 2015

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Now researchers from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution have devised a simple way to predict a river delta's shape, given two competing factors: its river's force in depositing sediment into the ocean, and ocean waves' strength in pushing that sediment back along the coast. Depending on the balance of the two, the coastline of a river delta may take on a smooth "cuspate" shape, or a more pointed "crenulated" outline resembling a bird's footFull Story

Source
Massachusetts Institute of Technology

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