Event detection and conditional averaging in unsteady aeolian systems Original Research Article

Traditional models of sediment flux ignore wind unsteadiness, and there are sound empirical and theoretical arguments that implicate this deficiency as being fundamental to explaining their limited predictive abilities. Drawing on concepts and theories from the fluid mechanics literature on turbulent boundary layers, and with the implementation of fast-response instrumentation (hot-film anemometers and continuously-weighing sand traps) this study begins to address a series of inter-related questions regarding the character of wind and transport events. Foremost among these is whether an event-based analysis of wind speed time series bears close resemblance to sediment flux events.