The degree of meandering of the channel of a river, stream, or other watercourse is measured by its sinuosity. Over time, meanders migrate downstream, sometimes in such a short time as to create civil engineering challenges for local municipalities attempting to maintain stable roads and bridges. It typically ranges from 15 to 18 times the width of the channel. The zone within which a meandering stream periodically shifts its channel is known as a meander belt. The result of this coupled erosion and sedimentation is the formation of a sinuous course as the channel migrates back and forth across the axis of a floodplain. It is produced as a watercourse erodes the sediments of an outer, concave bank ( cut bank or river cliff) and deposits sediments on an inner, convex bank which is typically a point bar. Meanders of the Rio Cauto at Guamo Embarcadero, Cuba The Jordan River, near the Dead Sea, 1937Ī meander is one of a series of regular sinuous curves in the channel of a river or other watercourse. Meanders develop, which lengthen the course of the stream, decreasing the gradient. The maximum gradient is along the down-valley axis represented by a hypothetical straight coast channel. ![]()
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