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Drainage Basins revision

Produced July 2011

very good source of information on river discharge

"Hydraulic radius = cross sectional area / wetted perimeter. Hydraulic radius is a measure of the efficiency of the the river channel. The higher the hydraulic radius, the more efficient the river channel is. The more efficient the river is, the more energy the water will have to move downstream (so as hydraulic radius increases, velocity increases) carry load (so as hydraulic radius increases, the river's competence and capacity increases) increase the rate of erosion (in the upper course, as hydraulic radius increases, there is a higher rate of vertical erosion, so gradient increases; further downstream where the river is closer to base level, as hydraulic radius increases, there is a higher rate of lateral erosion)."