"Where Rivers Jump Course" is the title of a paper co-authored by EAS Professor Doug Edmonds, just published in the journal Science.
Quoting Science: "River avulsions are places where a river abandons its channel, and they are a common feature of geomorphological structures such as deltas."
Why does this matter? There's a compelling companion piece that highlights the importance of this work in sustaining delta environments.
In fact, quoting this article, "This behavior, primarily found in steep sediment-rich deltaic systems in tropical islands and deserts, where flood-driven erosion can extend upstream of the backwater region, will have wide-reaching effects in the future."
The College of Arts