How long does precipitation inhibit wind erosion in the Sahel?

Abstract Simultaneous measurements of saltation, wind speed, and rainfall performed in Niger before, during, and after 18 rain events are used to investigate how rain events affect wind erosion in the Sahel. The results show that the inhibition of saltation is rapid but progressive after the beginni...

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Main Authors: G. Bergametti, J. L. Rajot, C. Pierre, C. Bouet, B. Marticorena
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Wiley 2016-06-01
Series:Geophysical Research Letters
Subjects:
Online Access:https://doi.org/10.1002/2016GL069324
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author G. Bergametti
J. L. Rajot
C. Pierre
C. Bouet
B. Marticorena
author_facet G. Bergametti
J. L. Rajot
C. Pierre
C. Bouet
B. Marticorena
author_sort G. Bergametti
collection DOAJ
description Abstract Simultaneous measurements of saltation, wind speed, and rainfall performed in Niger before, during, and after 18 rain events are used to investigate how rain events affect wind erosion in the Sahel. The results show that the inhibition of saltation is rapid but progressive after the beginning of a rain event. The decrease of sand transport during the rain event is better linked to the time elapsed from the beginning of the rain event rather than to the cumulative rainfall. In the Sahel, after a rain event, less than 12 h is necessary to almost fully restore the sand transport potential. Our results suggest that assuming that no sand transport and dust emission occur during the 12 h following the end of a rain event could be a reasonable alternative to existing parameterizations of the influence of soil moisture on the wind erosion threshold, at least for the Sahelian conditions.
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institution OA Journals
issn 0094-8276
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publishDate 2016-06-01
publisher Wiley
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series Geophysical Research Letters
spelling doaj-art-8d5036766b0d415bbffbbf0542fd3c352025-08-20T01:50:59ZengWileyGeophysical Research Letters0094-82761944-80072016-06-0143126643664910.1002/2016GL069324How long does precipitation inhibit wind erosion in the Sahel?G. Bergametti0J. L. Rajot1C. Pierre2C. Bouet3B. Marticorena4Laboratoire Interuniversitaire des Systèmes Atmosphériques, UMR CNRS 7583 Université Paris‐Est Créteil and Université Paris Diderot, IPSL Paris FranceLaboratoire Interuniversitaire des Systèmes Atmosphériques, UMR CNRS 7583 Université Paris‐Est Créteil and Université Paris Diderot, IPSL Paris FranceLaboratoire Interuniversitaire des Systèmes Atmosphériques, UMR CNRS 7583 Université Paris‐Est Créteil and Université Paris Diderot, IPSL Paris FranceLaboratoire Interuniversitaire des Systèmes Atmosphériques, UMR CNRS 7583 Université Paris‐Est Créteil and Université Paris Diderot, IPSL Paris FranceLaboratoire Interuniversitaire des Systèmes Atmosphériques, UMR CNRS 7583 Université Paris‐Est Créteil and Université Paris Diderot, IPSL Paris FranceAbstract Simultaneous measurements of saltation, wind speed, and rainfall performed in Niger before, during, and after 18 rain events are used to investigate how rain events affect wind erosion in the Sahel. The results show that the inhibition of saltation is rapid but progressive after the beginning of a rain event. The decrease of sand transport during the rain event is better linked to the time elapsed from the beginning of the rain event rather than to the cumulative rainfall. In the Sahel, after a rain event, less than 12 h is necessary to almost fully restore the sand transport potential. Our results suggest that assuming that no sand transport and dust emission occur during the 12 h following the end of a rain event could be a reasonable alternative to existing parameterizations of the influence of soil moisture on the wind erosion threshold, at least for the Sahelian conditions.https://doi.org/10.1002/2016GL069324wind erosionrainSaheldust emission
spellingShingle G. Bergametti
J. L. Rajot
C. Pierre
C. Bouet
B. Marticorena
How long does precipitation inhibit wind erosion in the Sahel?
Geophysical Research Letters
wind erosion
rain
Sahel
dust emission
title How long does precipitation inhibit wind erosion in the Sahel?
title_full How long does precipitation inhibit wind erosion in the Sahel?
title_fullStr How long does precipitation inhibit wind erosion in the Sahel?
title_full_unstemmed How long does precipitation inhibit wind erosion in the Sahel?
title_short How long does precipitation inhibit wind erosion in the Sahel?
title_sort how long does precipitation inhibit wind erosion in the sahel
topic wind erosion
rain
Sahel
dust emission
url https://doi.org/10.1002/2016GL069324
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