Water runoff patterns on Prince Patrick Island (76° N, 120° W, Canadian Arctic)
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.26485/BP/1967/16/10Keywords:
Arctic climate, streamflow, valley morphology, streambed ice coverAbstract
Article in French.
ORIGINAL TITLE: Les modalités de l'écoulement de l'eau sur l'île Prince Patrick (76° lat. N, 120° long. O, Arctique canadien)
The author discusses certain characteristics of streamflow under an Arctic climate, specifically that of Prince Patrick Island, located in the extreme north of Canada. The most important features include: the melting of snow while air temperatures remain below 0°C, the flow of water beneath snow patches, which washes the soil surface underneath, the onset of streamflow in spring while channels are still clogged with snow, and the absence of streambed erosion for a considerable time during peak discharge due to ice covering the streambed. From source to mouth, valleys often exhibit the following sequence of morphological forms: 1) an open cross-section, found in areas where the volume of debris transported downslope by mass movement exceeds the stream’s carrying capacity. 2) a V-shaped profile, which develops when streamflow becomes sufficient to remove the debris deposited from the valley sides. 3) a wide channel, which after the floodwaters from the general thaw have receded is characterized by braided flow.
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