Download Description of Data Sets The three data sets presented here are

Description of Data Sets
The three data sets presented here are taken from field experiments which are described in
refereed journal articles. They are provided in Excel files and can be used for class exercises in a
variety of ways. The background for each of the data sets is provided below and additional
material is given within the files themselves.
Current meter and OBS data
The data were collected during a field experiment at Skallingen, Denmark in October and
November, 2000. Details of the experiment and instrument deployment are given in:
Houser, C. and Greenwood, B., and Aagaard, T. 2006. Divergent response of an intertidal swash
bar, Earth Surface Processes and Landforms, 31, 1775-1791.
The data here are from a Marsh McBirney OEM 523 electromagnetic current meter co-located at
a height of 5 cm above the bed with an OBS-1P optical backscaterrance sensor used to measure
suspended sediment concentration. The current meter is aligned so that positive X values indicate
onshore flows and positive Y values indicate flows alongshore towards the northwest (to the left
when viewed looking onshore). The data were collected at 8 Hz and stored on a computer data
logger. Data from three runs on different days at the end of October and beginning of November
are provided: 10/30/2000 3:50:00 PM; 11/8/2000 1:25:00 PM; 11/3/2000 8:45:00 PM.
Current meter speeds are in ms-1 and suspended sediment concentration in Kg m-3.
Background information is provided in the textbook in Box 6.1 and in sections of Chapters 6, 7
and 8.
Anemometer and Safire data
The data were collected at Greenwich Dunes, Prince Edward Island, Canada during a field
experiment in October, 2004. Details of the experiment are given in:
Davidson-Arnott, R.G.D. and Bauer, B.O., 2009. Aeolian sediment transport on a beach:
Thresholds, intermittency and high frequency variability. Geomorphology, 105, 117-126; and
Bauer B.O., Davidson-Arnott R.G.D., Hesp P.A., Namikas S.L., Ollerhead J. and Walker I.J.
2009. Aeolian sediment transport conditions on a beach: Surface moisture, wind fetch, and mean
transport rate. Geomorphology, 105, 106-116.
The data here are from R.M Young cup anemometers deployed at a height of 0.3 m above the
beach surface and Sabatech Safire saltation probes with the sensing area placed at 2-3 cm above
the bed. Data were collected at 1 Hz and stored on a computer data logger. Sensors 8 were at a
station on the lower beach while sensors 7 were at a station at the top of the beach just in front of
the embryo dune. The fetch distance (distance to the swash limit) varied during the morning as a
function of the swash excursion and the angle of the wind to shore normal. Anemometer wind
speeds are in ms-1 and saltation intensity is measured in counts (impacts) per second. Calibration
of mean saltation intensity measured by the Safires against mean transport measured by
integrating sand traps during the experiment permits a rough estimate of the transport rate.
q = 0.873 + 0.0134C
where q is the transport rate (g cm-1 s-1) and C is the number of counts (s-1).
Background information is provided in the textbook in Section 9.45
(1)
Wind Profile Data
The data were collected at Greenwich Dunes, Prince Edward Island, Canada during a field
experiment in October, 2004. Details of the experiment are given in:
Davidson-Arnott, R.G.D. and Bauer, B.O., 2009. Aeolian sediment transport on a beach:
Thresholds, intermittency and high frequency variability. Geomorphology, 105, 117-126; and
Bauer B.O., Davidson-Arnott R.G.D., Hesp P.A., Namikas S.L., Ollerhead J. and Walker I.J.
2009. Aeolian sediment transport conditions on a beach: Surface moisture, wind fetch, and mean
transport rate. Geomorphology, 105, 106-116.
The data here are from R.M Young cup anemometers deployed on a mast on the mid-beach at 5
heights above the bed (0.37, 0.72, 1.22, 2.02 and 3.12 m) . A 2-D sonic anemometer was
mounted at the top of the mast at a height of 4.12 m to provide information on the incident wind
speed and direction. Wind speed is measured in m s-1 and the direction in degrees from North.
Shore perpendicular at the site is approximately due north. Data were collected at 1 Hz and
stored on a computer data logger.
Background information is provided in the textbook in Section 9.4.