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B A B B A G E R I V E R D E L T A A N D L A G O O N : H Y D R O L O G Y A N D . S E D I M E N T O L O G Y O F A N A R C T I C E S T U A R I N E S Y S T E M b y D O N A L D L A W R E N C E F O R B E S M . A . , U n i v e r s i t y o f T o r o n t o , 1 9 7 3 T H E S I S S U B M I T T E D I N P A R T I A L F U L F I L M E N T O F T H E R E Q U I R E M E N T S F O R T H E D E G R E E O F D O C T O R O F P H I L O S O P H Y i n T H E F A C U L T Y O F G R A D U A T E S T U D I E S ( D e p a r t m e n t o f G e o g r a p h y ) We a c c e p t t h i s t h e s i s a s c o n f o r m i n g t o t h e r e q u i r e d s t a n d a r d T H E U N I V E R S I T Y O F B R I T I S H C O L U M B I A A p r i l 1 9 8 1 © D o n a l d L a w r e n c e F o r b e s , 1 9 8 1 In p r e s e n t i n g t h i s t h e s i s i n p a r t i a l f u l f i l m e n t o f the r e q u i r e m e n t s f o r an advanced degree a t the U n i v e r s i t y o f B r i t i s h Columbia, I agree t h a t the L i b r a r y s h a l l make i t f r e e l y a v a i l a b l e f o r r e f e r e n c e and s t u d y . I f u r t h e r agree t h a t p e r m i s s i o n f o r e x t e n s i v e c o p y i n g o f t h i s t h e s i s f o r s c h o l a r l y purposes may be g r a n t e d by the Head o f my Department o r by h i s r e p r e s e n t a t i v e s . I t i s u n d e r s t o o d t h a t c o p y i n g or p u b l i c a t i o n o f t h i s t h e s i s f o r f i n a n c i a l g a i n s h a l l not be a l l o w e d w i t h o u t my w r i t t e n p e r m i s s i o n . Department n f Geography  The U n i v e r s i t y o f B r i t i s h Columbia 2075 Wesbrook P l a c e Vancouver, Canada V6T 1W5 .10 September .1981 i i ABSTRACT I n p u t s , t r a n s f e r p r o c e s s e s , and s t o r a g e c h a r a c t e r i s t i c s of water and sediment have been i n v e s t i g a t e d i n a 40-km 2 e s t u a r i n e system on the c e n t r a l Yukon c o a s t . The s e t t i n g i s t r a n s g r e s s i v e , m i c r o t i d a l , and h i g h - l a t i t u d e (69°N). The Babbage E s t u a r y system can be s u b d i v i d e d i n t o f l u v i a l , t i d a l - d i s t r i b u t a r y , d e l t a - p l a i n , i n t e r t i d a l , l a g o o n , m a r g i n a l - s u p r a t i d a l , and b a r r i e r subsystems, each a s s o c i a t e d w i t h one or more d i s t i n c t i v e d e p o s i t i o n a l environments and c h a r a c t e r i s t i c l i t h o f a c i e s assemblages. The s t r u c t u r e of the system has been examined i n terms of l i n k s between subsystems and o v e r a l l system response t o i n p u t p e r t u r b a t i o n s . A l t h o u g h the p r o p a g a t i o n of t i d e and surge w i t h i n the e s t u a r y may be t r e a t e d as a q u a s i - l i n e a r s t o c h a s t i c p r o c e s s , t r a n s f e r s of f l u v i a l water and sediment t h r o u g h the system a r e h i g h l y n o n - l i n e a r . F u r t h e r m o r e , the parameters of the system change d r a m a t i c a l l y on an annua l c y c l e . I n p u t s and a s s o c i a t e d system responses a r e dominated i n the s h o r t run by s e a s o n a l - and s y n o p t i c - s c a l e v a r i a n c e , the former r e f l e c t i n g major s e a s o n a l a d j u s t m e n t s i n the phase d i s t r i b u t i o n , c i r c u l a t i o n p r o c e s s , i a n d i n p u t regime of the e s t u a r y . The a n n u a l s a l i n i t y c y c l e , w i t h a range of a t l e a s t 60 p p t , e x h i b i t s a s h o r t r e a c t i o n and l o n g r e l a x a t i o n response t o major snowmelt r u n o f f i n p u t s i n May or June, when s a l t water i s f l u s h e d c o m p l e t e l y out of the e s t u a r y . Wind-generated waves ar e e f f e c t i v e l y absent from the system d u r i n g 8-9 months of the y e a r , but p l a y a major r o l e d u r i n g the open-water season. A l t h o u g h d i r e c t t r a n s p o r t of sediment by i c e i s r e l a t i v e l y u n i m p o r t a n t , i c e e f f e c t s a r e p e r v a s i v e ; they i n c l u d e , i n a d d i t i o n t o r e s t r i c t i o n of w i n t e r r u n o f f and s u r f a c e wave g e n e r a t i o n , c r e a t i o n of h y p e r s a l i n e c o n d i t i o n s , c o n t r o l of the s e d i m e n t o l o g i c a l l y i m p o r t a n t f l o o d e v e n t s on d e l t a i c s u p r a t i d a l f l a t s , enhanced r a t e s of c o a s t a l r e c e s s i o n due t o t h e r m a l d e g r a d a t i o n of ground i c e , and p r o d u c t i o n of d i s t i n c t i v e t h e r m o k a r s t morphology on s u p r a t i d a l s u r f a c e s . Water l e v e l , s t o r a g e volume, s a l i n i t y , and suspended sediment s e r i e s d u r i n g the open-water season i n the lagoon a r e dominated by s y n o p t i c - s c a l e wind e f f e c t s . In the d e l t a , the major s y n o p t i c - s c a l e a n o m a l i e s of sediment c o n c e n t r a t i o n a r e r e l a t e d t o storm r u n o f f . F l u v i a l c l a s t i c sediment i n p u t s t o the e s t u a r y exceed 10" kg a - 1 , almost an o r d e r of magnitude g r e a t e r than the e s t i m a t e d l i t t o r a l t r a n s p o r t i n p u t . More than 97% of the f l u v i a l i n p u t may occur i n June; of t h i s , a p p r o x i m a t e l y h a l f may be e x p o r t e d d i r e c t l y from the system. At l o n g time s c a l e s , the e s t u a r i n e system has been dominated by r i s i n g sea l e v e l and c o a s t a l r e c e s s i o n ; Holocene c l i m a t i c f l u c t u a t i o n s may a l s o have been i m p o r t a n t . A t r a n s g r e s s i v e sequence has d e v e l o p e d , i n c l u d i n g v a r i o u s d i s t i n c t i v e f e a t u r e s , n o t a b l y the absence or l i m i t e d development of a e o l i a n , b a c k b a r r i e r - m a r g i n , t i d a l - d e l t a , ' a n d i n t e r t i d a l marsh f a c i e s , a l a r g e l y a f a u n a l i n t e r t i d a l i v component, and d e l t a i c d e p o s i t s w i t h p o o r l y d e v e l o p e d l e v e e s and abundant l a k e b a s i n s . The b a s a l f l u v i a l component i n c l u d e s a s i n u o u s g r a v e l c h a n n e l assemblage of a h i t h e r t o p o o r l y documented t y p e . The Babbage E s t u a r y b a r r i e r sequence i s p r i m a r i l y t r a n s g r e s s i v e , but i n c o r p o r a t e s l o c a l i z e d elements of p r o g r a d a t i o n a l and i n l e t - m i g r a t i o n models. Examples of major t r a n s g r e s s i v e , p r o g r a d a t i o n a l , and i n l e t - f i l l b a r r i e r sequences o c c u r i n c l o s e p r o x i m i t y on the c e n t r a l Yukon c o a s t . V TABLE OF CONTENTS ABSTRACT i i LIST OF TABLES v i i i LIST OF FIGURES x i i ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS xxx i i i INTRODUCTION 1 1.1 Preamble 1 1.1.1 D e f i n i t i o n of study 1 1.2 C o n c e p t u a l approach 4 1.2.1 G e o p h y s i c a l systems 4 1.2.2 Environments and f a c i e s 9 1.2.3 E s t u a r i n e systems 11 1.3 The p r e s e n t study 17 1.3.1 Babbage e s t u a r i n e system 17 REGIONAL CONTEXT: NORTHERN YUKON AND BEAUFORT SEA 26 2.1 Geography and palaeogeography 26 2.1.1 Contemporary geography 26 2.1.2 L a t e - Q u a t e r n a r y palaeogeography 38 2.2 Atmospheric environment 45 2.2.1 Contemporary c l i m a t e 45 2.2.2 Low-frequency v a r i a b i l i t y of c l i m a t e 56 2.3 Oceanographic environment 62 2.3.1 Water and c i r c u l a t i o n i n Mackenzie Bay 62 2.3.2 I c e i n the s o u t h e r n B e a u f o r t Sea 69 2.3.3 T i d e s and storm surges 76 2.3.4 Wave c l i m a t e 84 v i HYDROLOGICAL SUBSYSTEM 94 3.1 F r e s h w a t e r i n p u t s t o the e s t u a r y 94 3.1.1 Runoff and p r e c i p i t a t i o n i n p u t s 94 3.2 Marine i n p u t s t o the e s t u a r y 118 3.2.1 Water l e v e l s a t the marine boundary 118 3.3 System response 144 3.3.1 T i d a l p r o p a g a t i o n w i t h i n the e s t u a r y 144 3.3.2 S u p r a t i d a l f l o o d i n g 155 3.3.3 I c e i n the e s t u a r y 170 3.3.4 P r o p e r t i e s of water i n the e s t u a r y 185 3.3.5 The n o n - t i d a l c i r c u l a t i o n 207 3.3.6 Water budget and s t r u c t u r e of the system 230 SEDIMENTOLOGICAL SUBSYSTEM 243 4.1 F l u v i a l sediment i n p u t s t o the e s t u a r y 243 4.1.1 Sediment s o u r c e s and m a t e r i a l s 243 4.1.2 F l u v i a l t r a n s p o r t p r o c e s s e s 252 4.1.3 T o t a l f l u v i a l sediment i n p u t 289 4.2 M a r i n e sediment i n p u t s t o t h e e s t u a r y 296 4.2.1 Sediment s o u r c e s and m a t e r i a l s 296 4.2.2 L i t t o r a l t r a n s p o r t p r o c e s s e s 303 4.2.3 T o t a l marine sediment i n p u t 314 4.3 System response 317 4.3.1 Sediment t r a n s f e r s w i t h i n the e s t u a r y 317 4.3.2 S e d i m e n t a t i o n and e r o s i o n 347 4.3.3 Sediment budget and s t r u c t u r e of the system 367 4.4 Sediment s t o r a g e component 376 4.4.1 G e n e r a l c h a r a c t e r i s t i c s 376 4.4.2 F l u v i a l f a c i e s 392 v i i 4.4.3 D e l t a p l a i n f a c i e s 398 4.4.4 D i s t r i b u t a r y and i n t e r t i d a l f a c i e s 414 4.4.5 Lagoon, b a r r i e r , and m a r g i n a l f a c i e s 422 4.4.6 The t r a n s g r e s s i v e sequence 435 CONCLUSIONS * 447 REFERENCES 457 APPENDICES 495 OF TABLES S c a l e s of v a r i a n c e i n A r c t i c e s t u a r i n e systems Morphometry of lagoons and b a r r i e r s of the Yukon c o a s t M o n t h l y p r e c i p i t a t i o n d a t a , Kay P o i n t S e l e c t e d o b s e r v a t i o n s of s u r f a c e s a l i n i t y i n embayments of the c e n t r a l Yukon c o a s t and i n a d j a c e n t waters of Mackenzie Bay P o t e n t i a l f e t c h w i t h £3/10 i c e , Kay P o i n t , 1975 P o t e n t i a l f e t c h w i t h <3/10 i c e , Kay P o i n t , 1976 P r i n c i p a l t i d a l c o n s t i t u e n t s a t T u k t o y a k t u k and Kay P o i n t Mean sea l e v e l and summer anomaly, T u k t o y a k t u k , 1962-1975 Summary s t a t i s t i c s f o r catchments d r a i n i n g t o Babbage E s t u a r y E s t i m a t e s of annu a l peak d i s c h a r g e , Babbage R i v e r at BI and Deep Creek a t D l , 1974-1977 Major t i d a l c o n s t i t u e n t s a t Kay P o i n t by month 121 Summary of d i s s o l v e d c o n s t i t u e n t s i n water samples from the Babbage E s t u a r y system and P h i l l i p s Bay 189 S t r a t i f i c a t i o n and c i r c u l a t i o n parameters f o r the Babbage E s t u a r y a t s t a t i o n 12 d u r i n g s u c c e s s i v e ten-day i n t e r v a l s i n the summer of 1976. 210 Product-moment c o r r e l a t i o n c o e f f i c i e n t s f o r mean d e n s i t y , t r a n s v e r s e s t r a t i f i c a t i o n , and v e r t i c a l s t r a t i f i c a t i o n i n Babbage E s t u a r y e n t r a n c e ( s t a t i o n s 5-7) 223 Comparison of water t r a n s f e r e s t i m a t e s f o r Babbage E s t u a r y e n t r a n c e s e c t i o n (Ml) as o b t a i n e d from c u r r e n t meter d a t a and by e q u a t i o n 3.3.6-1 233 Water budget f o r Babbage E s t u a r y , January 1976 and June-August 1976 240 Summary of d i s s o l v e d c o n s t i t u e n t s i n water samples from the Babbage R i v e r and Deep Creek d r a i n a g e ba s i n s 248 P e t r o g r a p h i c a n a l y s e s of sand and g r a v e l from Babbage R i v e r c h a n n e l between Tulugaq (Crow) R i v e r c o n f l u e n c e and s e c t i o n B l 250 Sediment t r a n s p o r t summary, Babbage R i v e r below Crow R i v e r 290 S e d i m e n t t r a n s p o r t s u m m a r y , D e e p C r e e k a b o v e B a b b a g e d i s t r i b u t a r y 2 9 1 D i s t r i b u t i o n o f s e d i m e n t t r a n s p o r t b y t y p e , B a b b a g e R i v e r a n d D e e p C r e e k 2 9 4 S u m m a r y o f n e t w a v e - g e n e r a t e d l o n g s h o r e s e d i m e n t t r a n s p o r t f o r p r o x i m a l a n d d i s t a l K a y P o i n t s p i t a n d N i a k o l i k f o r e s h o r e , 1 9 7 5 - 1 9 7 6 3 1 5 S t a t i s t i c s o f S e c c h i e x t i n c t i o n d e p t h f o r s t a t i o n s i n t h e B a b b a g e E s t u a r y , 1 9 7 6 3 4 1 F l u s h i n g t i m e s f o r t h e B a b b a g e E s t u a r y 3 4 3 T h i c k n e s s o f f r e s h l y d e p o s i t e d s e d i m e n t a t s i t e s o n v e g e t a t e d s u p r a t i d a l f l a t s , B a b b a g e D e l t a , 8 J u n e 1 9 7 6 3 4 9 E r o s i o n a n d s e d i m e n t a t i o n o n i n t e r t i d a l s u r f a c e s o f t h e B a b b a g e D e l t a , s u m m e r 1 9 7 6 3 5 5 S e d i m e n t a c c u m u l a t i o n r a t e s i n t r a p s d e p l o y e d i n B a b b a g e L a g o o n a n d i n l a k e s o f t h e B a b b a g e D e l t a , 1 9 7 6 3 5 8 A n a l y s i s o f v a r i a n c e t o d e t e r m i n e s i g n i f i c a n c e o f d i f f e r e n c e s i n s e d i m e n t t r a p d a t a b e t w e e n s i t e s , B a b b a g e E s t u a r y , 1 9 7 6 3 5 9 A p p r o x i m a t e s e d i m e n t b u d g e t f o r B a b b a g e E s t u a r y s y s t e m , J a n u a r y , J u n e , J u l y , a n d A u g u s t , 1 9 7 6 3 6 9 XI 30 Lit h o f a c i e s types of lower Babbage River and Babbage Estuary 379 31 Benthic invertebrates in Ekman dredge samples from the Babbage Estuary near station 7a, 24 July 1975 425 32 A: Delaware s u r f i c i a l transgressive sequence (adapted from Kraft, 1971); B: Babbage Lagoon s u r f i c i a l transgressive sequence 437 33 Babbage Delta s u r f i c i a l transgressive sequence 444 x i i L I S T OF FIGURES Map o f t h e Yukon c o a s t , s h o w i n g l o c a t i o n o f B abbage E s t u a r y s y s t e m a n d o t h e r t o p o g r a p h i c f e a t u r e s , i n c l u d i n g m a j o r l a g o o n s and e s t u a r i e s 2 2 Map o f t h e Babbage E s t u a r y s y s t e m , s h o w i n g m a j o r s a m p l i n g s t a t i o n s , l o c a t i o n s o f t i d e a n d s t a g e r e c o r d e r s , h y d r o m e t r i c s e c t i o n s , and l o c a t i o n o f m e t e o r o l o g i c a l s t a t i o n a t Kay P o i n t 3 B a t h y m e t r y o f Babbage E s t u a r y i n 1975; v i e w a c r o s s m a i n e n t r a n c e s e c t i o n t o w a r d Kay P o i n t s p i t , w i t h B abbage L a g o o n t o r i g h t , Kay P o i n t i n d i s t a n c e , a n d N i a k o l i k P o i n t i n f o r e g r o u n d 4 A: v i e w o f t h e Babbage D e l t a , s h o w i n g i n t e r t i d a l a n d s u p r a t i d a l s u r f a c e s ; B: l o w e r Babbage R i v e r , l o o k i n g d o w n s t r e a m t o w a r d s e c t i o n B I 21 5 Babbage D e l t a and s o u t h e r n l a g o o n , s h o w i n g c o o r d i n a t e s y s t e m , i n t e r t i d a l t r a n s e c t s , s i t e s w here t h e t h i c k n e s s o f f r e s h s e d i m e n t was m e a s u r e d on the d e l t a p l a i n a nd on i c e , and l o c a t i o n s o f s e d i m e n t t r a p s , e x c l u d i n g s i t e s i n t h e n o r t h e r n l a g o o n Babbage E s t u a r y s y s t e m , s h o w i n g g r i d n e t w o r k , b o r e h o l e l o c a t i o n s and l o c a t i o n s o f s h o r t c o r e s o r e x p o s u r e s 24 7 W e s t e r n p a r t o f Yukon C o a s t a l P l a i n w i t h B r i t i s h M o u n t a i n s i n b a c k g r o u n d ; A: B a c k h o u s e L a g o o n ; B: F i r t h R i v e r f a n w i t h N u n a l u k L a g o o n i n f o r e g r o u n d XI 1 1 A : h e a d w a t e r s o f B a b b a g e R i v e r w i t h T e r t i a r y p e d i m e n t a n d i c i n g , 2 9 A u g u s t 1 9 7 6 ; B : u p p e r T r a i l R i v e r b a s i n i n B r i t i s h M o u n t a i n s n e a r M o u n t S e d g e w i c k 2 8 9 M a s s i v e g r o u n d i c e i n i c e - t h r u s t s e d i m e n t s e x p o s e d b e t w e e n K a y P o i n t a n d K i n g P o i n t , M a c k e n z i e B a y c o a s t 3 0 1 0 B a r r i e r s a n d l a g o o n s a t S t o k e s P o i n t ( A ) a n d a t K i n g P o i n t ( B ) , c e n t r a l Y u k o n c o a s t 3 3 1 1 H y p s o m e t r i c c u r v e s f o r B a b b a g e R i v e r a n d D e e p C r e e k d r a i n a g e b a s i n s 36 1 2 T e n t a t i v e l a t e - W i s c o n s i n a n a n d 1 8 2 6 p a l a e o g e o g r a p h y b e t w e e n K a y P o i n t a n d H e r s c h e l I s l a n d 3 9 1 3 P r o f i l e a l o n g a x i s o f B a b b a g e V a l l e y a n d H e r s c h e l B a s i n , s h o w i n g h y p o t h e s i z e d l a t e - W i s c o n s i n a n w a t e r l e v e l i n L a k e H e r s c h e l a n d p r e s e n t , v a l l e y - a x i s s l o p e s o f B a b b a g e R i v e r a n d t r i b u t a r i e s 42 1 4 D a t a b a s e a n d t e n t a t i v e h i s t o r y o f l a t e W i s c o n s i n a n a n d H o l o c e n e s e a l e v e l s i n M a c k e n z i e D e l t a a n d o n t h e Y u k o n c o a s t ( a f t e r F o r b e s , 1 9 8 0 ) 4 4 1 5 M o n t h l y t e m p e r a t u r e a n d p r e c i p i t a t i o n d a t a f o r K o m a k u k B e a c h a n d S h i n g l e P o i n t o n t h e Y u k o n c o a s t a n d f o r O l d C r o w ( s o u t h o f t h e m o u n t a i n s ) 4 6 1 6 C u m u l a t i v e p r e c i p i t a t i o n a t s t a t i o n s i n t h e n o r t h e r n Y u k o n T e r r i t o r y , s u m m e r 1 9 7 4 5 1 XIV 17 V a r i a n c e d e n s i t y spectrum of h o u r l y a t m o s p h e r i c p r e s s u r e a t Kay P o i n t , summer 1976 18 R e l a t i v e f r e q u e n c i e s of h o u r l y wind speed (m/s) by d i r e c t i o n , 1975 and 1976 summer r e c o r d s , Kay P o i n t . 19 V a r i a n c e d e n s i t y ^ s p e c t r a f o r n o r t h e a s t e r l y and n o r t h w e s t e r l y components of h o u r l y wind s t r e s s . , Kay P o i n t , 1976 20 R e p r e s e n t a t i v e t emperature and s a l i n i t y p r o f i l e s i n Mackenzie Bay 21 Landsat image 1-1422-20185-5, 18 September 1973, showing Mackenzie R i v e r plume s p r e a d i n g n o r t h and e a s t , w i t h an a b r u p t western boundary i n Mackenzie Bay 22 P o r t i o n of Landsat image 1-1460-20292-6, 26 October 1973, showing open water i n Mackenzie Bay and t h i n i c e i n H e r s c h e l B a s i n , i n P h i l l i p s Bay, west of H e r s c h e l I s l a n d , and i n a l l l a g o o n s 23 P o r t i o n of Landsat image 1-1317-20374-6, 5 June 1973, showing narrow band of l a n d f a s t i c e west of H e r s c h e l I s l a n d , e x t e n s i v e l a n d f a s t i c e i n Mackenzie_Bay, and l e a d i n t h e shear-zone between l a n d f a s t i c e and s e a s o n a l pack 52 53 55 64 66 71 71 24 Frequency d i s t r i b u t i o n of extreme monthly water l e v e l s a t Tuktoyaktuk 81 P l o t s of e s t i m a t e d v e r s u s observed wave p e r i o d and h e i g h t , Kay P o i n t s p i t • 88 R e f r a c t i o n of waves a t T=4.2s a p p r o a c h i n g from the NNW and of waves a t T=4.9s a p p r o a c h i n g from the e a s t ; s i t e s f o r which h i n d c a s t c o m p u t a t i o n s and l o n g s h o r e sediment t r a n s p o r t e s t i m a t e s were o b t a i n e d a re a l s o p l o t t e d 90 Frequency d i s t r i b u t i o n s of t a n g e n t i a l and normal components of wave power a t the d i s t a l end of Kay P o i n t s p i t , based on h i n d c a s t wave a n a l y s i s 93 D a i l y r u n o f f (Babbage R i v e r at B l ) and d a i l y p r e c i p i t a t i o n a t Kay P o i n t and S h i n g l e P o i n t , 1974-1976 97 C u m u l a t i v e p r e c i p i t a t i o n a t S h i n g l e P o i n t and c u m u l a t i v e r u n o f f i n Babbage R i v e r ( B l ) and Deep Creek ( D I ) , 1975 and 1976 101 Time of d i u r n a l peak f l o w d u r i n g summer r e c e s s i o n i n Babbage R i v e r a t B l , 1975 and 1976 106 Babbage R i v e r d i s c h a r g e , s e c t i o n B l , 21 June t o 2 J u l y 1976 108 Storm hydrographs, Babbage R i v e r , August 1976, showing n o n - e x p o n e n t i a l c h a r a c t e r of r e c e s s i o n s 110 Frequency d i s t r i b u t i o n s of d a i l y r u n o f f f o r snowmelt and summer seasons 1974-1976, Babbage R i v e r a t B l 113 x v i 34 Variance d e n s i t y spectra of hourly discharge: Babbage River at BI, summer 1975; Deep Creek at D l , summer 1976 115 35 Hourly water l e v e l at marine boundary of Babbage Estuary: summer 1974, summer 1975, and breakup+summer 1976 119 36 Variance d e n s i t y spectrum of hourly water l e v e l at Kay Point s p i t (gauge A, CHS s t a t i o n 6515), 12 J u l y t o 12 September 1975 37 Cumulative normalized variance spectra for hourly water l e v e l at marine boundary, Babbage Estuary 120 124 38 Variance d e n s i t y spectrum of hourly water temperature at s t a t i o n 5, Babbage Estuary, during 20 days of record in August 1975 128 39 Wind, atmospheric pressure, and water l e v e l at Kay Point during 1975, i l l u s t r a t i n g phase correspondence between low-pass water l e v e l and northwesterly wind speed but v a r i a b l e amplitude of surge response 131 40 Wind, atmospheric pressure, and water l e v e l at Kay Point during 1976, i l l u s t r a t i n g phase correspondence between low-pass water l e v e l and northwesterly wind speed 132 41 P a r t i a l coherence between water l e v e l and northwesterly wind s t r e s s 135 x v i i 42 Frequency d i s t r i b u t i o n s of daily-maximum h o u r l y water l e v e l f o r the l a t e June t o e a r l y September season i n t h r e e d i f f e r e n t y e a r s , Kay P o i n t s p i t d a t a 138 43 H i g h - f r e q u e n c y and t r a n s i e n t response of water l e v e l t o wind a s s o c i a t e d w i t h c o l d - f r o n t passage, 30 J u l y 1976 140 44 Minor surge w i t h a b r u p t shock f r o n t and h i g h - f r e q u e n c y l o w - a m p l i t u d e v a r i a n c e superimposed on N i a k o l i k P o i n t (gauge-B) t i d a l r e c o r d f o r 6 August 1976 141 45 Water l e v e l s a t gauges A and E, 19-25 August 1975 146 46 Water l e v e l sequence a t gauge C, d i s t a l Babbage D e l t a , l a t e J u l y 1976 146 47 P a r t i a l c o herence: (A) between gauge-A and gauge-E water l e v e l s ; (B) between B l and gauge-E water l e v e l s 148 48 Comparison between v a r i a n c e d e n s i t y s p e c t r a of ?E'(t) and of 5 E ( t ) , showing c l o s e agreement a t f<10" 1 c h " 1 151 49 G a i n f u n c t i o n f o r Babbage E s t u a r y c o o s c i l l a t i n g t i d a l system 152 50 Lag f u n c t i o n f o r Babbage E s t u a r y c o o s c i l l a t i n g t i d a l system 154 x v i i i 51 Complete d u r a t i o n sequences f o r h o u r l y water l e v e l , Babbage E s t u a r y marine boundary, summer 1975 and spring-summer 1976 156 52 D r i f t w o o d d e p o s i t s marking the p r e s e n t t r a n s g r e s s i v e l i m i t near Kay P o i n t and near gauge E i n the v a l l e y 158 53 D i s t r i b u t i o n of major d r i f t w o o d d e p o s i t s i n the Babbage E s t u a r y system, 22 August 1944 and 20 August 1970 159 54 Record of storm-surge e v e n t , 27 August 1975: water l e v e l s a t gauges A and E 162 55 Water l e v e l f u n c t i o n of summer 1976 a t N i a k o l i k P o i n t (gauge B) as a Babbage R i v e r d i s c h a r g e , s p r i n g and 164 56 Babbage R i v e r d i s c h a r g e , gauge-B water l e v e l , and b o t t o m f a s t i c e t h i c k n e s s a t a s i t e i n the Babbage E s t u a r y near gauge B, 1-30 June 1976 57 S u p r a t i d a l f l o o d i n g of Babbage D e l t a w i t h b o t t o m f a s t i c e i n the l a g o o n , 9 t h and 1 0 t h of June 1974 166 167 58 Schematic p l o t of monthly i c e t h i c k n e s s ( a f t e r S c h e l l , 1974) and p r o p o r t i o n s of e s t u a r i n e s t o r a g e volume i n s o l i d and l i q u i d phases 171 59 I c e i n the n o r t h e r n Babbage Lagoon and i n the p r o x i m a l Babbage D e l t a , l a t e May 1974 17.2 x i x 60 61 C h r o n o l o g y of breakup i n the Babbage E s t u a r y , 1974-1976 A: S p r i n g R i v e r , showing snowmelt r u n o f f c o n t a i n e d and d e f l e c t e d by the S p r i n g R i v e r b a r r i e r ; o v e r f l o w of Babbage R i v e r water onto i c e o u t s i d e Babbage E s t u a r y i s v i s i b l e i n the background, 30 May 1974; B: i c e f l o a t i n g i n main d i s t r i b u t a r y c h a n n e l of Babbage E s t u a r y between d i s t a l d e l t a and N i a k o l i k P o i n t , 9 June 1974 177 178 62 D r a i n a g e h o l e s through i c e o u t s i d e main e n t r a n c e s e c t i o n and g e n e r a l view of c e n t r a l l a g o o n , showing l i m i t e d e x t e n t of f l o o d i n g o v e r - i c e and open water i n e n t r a n c e c h a n n e l 30 May 1974 182 63 Schematic p l o t of monthly water temperature and s a l i n i t y i n the Babbage E s t u a r y , based on 1976 o b s e r v a t i o n s f o r the summer months and 1974 d a t a ( a f t e r S t e i g e n b e r g e r e t a l . , 1975) f o r A p r i l , w i t h o t h e r v a l u e s i n t e r p o l a t e d 191 64 D a i l y sequence of water t e m p e r a t u r e , s, d e n s i t y , p , and v i s c o s i t y , n , E s t u a r y e n t r a n c e , June-September 1976 65 D a i l y sequence of water t e m p e r a t u r e , s, d e n s i t y , P , and v i s c o s i t y , n , a t Babbage D e l t a , June-September 1976 , s a l i n i t y , i n Babbage 9 , s a l i n i t y , s t a t i o n 12, 194 195 66 D a i l y t e m p e r a t u r e , s a l i n i t y , d e n s i t y , and v i s c o s i t y i n Babbage E s t u a r y , 24 J u l y t o 5 August 1977 197 67 E s t i m a t e s of the v a r i a n c e of water d e n s i t y f o r s e t s of d a t a a t v a r i o u s s a m p l i n g i n t e r v a l s , A t 199 XX 68 Time sequence i n c l u d i n g the storm surge event of 27 August 1975: 12h maximum, minimum, and i n s t a n t a n e o u s a i r t e m p e r a t u r e ; h a l f - h o u r l y water t e m p e r a t u r e ; wind speed and d i r e c t i o n a t Kay P o i n t ; water l e v e l a t gauge A; and Babbage R i v e r d i s c h a r g e a t BI 202 69 S u r f a c e s a l i n i t y i n the Babbage E s t u a r y f o l l o w i n g the storm of 27 August 1975 204 70 Examples of s a l i n i t y s t r a t i f i c a t i o n i n main d i s t r i b u t a r y c h a n n e l and e n t r a n c e s e c t i o n of Babbage E s t u a r y , 1 September 1976 and 31 J u l y 1975 213 71 Change i n p a t t e r n of s a l i n i t y s t r a t i f i c a t i o n i n main d i s t r i b u t a r y and e n t r a n c e s e c t i o n of Babbage E s t u a r y over a 3-4h p e r i o d of ebb f l o w , 30 J u l y 1975 214 72 Changes i n the p a t t e r n of s a l i n i t y s t r a t i f i c a t i o n over n i n e - h o u r i n t e r v a l , 31 J u l y t o 1 August 1975 215 73 S u r f a c e Babbage 1976 v e l o c i t y d i s t r i b u t i o n i n Ml s e c t i o n , E s t u a r y , d u r i n g ebb 1423-1603h 10 August 74 S u r f a c e and near-bottom v e l o c i t i e s i n Ml s e c t i o n , Babbage E s t u a r y e n t r a n c e , d u r i n g f l o o d 1200-1330h 3 August 1976, showing c o n t i n u e d ebb f l o w a t a l l depths over the c e n t r a l s h o a l , w i t h water e n t e r i n g a t d e p th v i a c h a n n e l s near s t a t i o n s 5 and 7 218 220 75 Time sequence of s u r f a c e and bottom s a l i n i t y a t s t a t i o n s 2, 5, and 7 i n Babbage E s t u a r y , of gauge-A water l e v e l , and of wind speed and d i r e c t i o n a t Kay P o i n t , showing response of v e r t i c a l s a l i n i t y d i s t r i b u t i o n s t o w i n d - i n d u c e d m i x i n g ; wave h e i g h t s a r e superimposed on t h e s a l i n i t y sequence 221 x x i 76 L o n g i t u d i n a l and t r a n s v e r s e components of v e l o c i t y a t s t a t i o n 5, low-pass and h i g h - p a s s f i l t e r e d components, and water l e v e l a t gauge A, Babbage E s t u a r y , 12-31 August 1975 225 77 C a p a c i t y of the Babbage E s t u a r y as a f u n c t i o n of water l e v e l 231 78 Net exchange f l o w t h r o u g h Ml s e c t i o n , gauge-B water l e v e l , and Babbage R i v e r d i s c h a r g e t h r o u g h BI s e c t i o n , June 1976 234 79 H o u r l y s t o r a g e volume i n the Babbage E s t u a r y d u r i n g summer 1975 235 80 V a r i a n c e d e n s i t y spectrum of h o u r l y s t o r a g e volume i n the Babbage E s t u a r y d u r i n g summer 1975 237 81 P a r t i a l coherence between Babbage R i v e r d i s c h a r g e , Q f ( t ) , and Ml net output sequence, Q n ( t ) , showing extreme n o n - l i n e a r i t y of r u n o f f t r a n s f e r s t h r ough the e s t u a r y , p a r t i c u l a r l y i n the s y n o p t i c f r e q u e n c y band i n which most of the v a r i a n c e of r u n o f f r e s i d e s 238 82 S i m p l i f i e d c a n o n i c a l s t r u c t u r e of the h y d r o l o g i c a l subsystem d u r i n g l a t e - w i n t e r , snowmelt, and summer seasons, showing d r a m a t i c changes i n the number and c h a r a c t e r of i n t e r n a l and e x t e r n a l l i n k s 242 83 I n c i s e d m i d d l e c o u r s e of Babbage R i v e r : (A) major exposure of C r e t a c e o u s or e a r l i e r sediments a d j a c e n t t o the c h a n n e l ; (B) T e r t i a r y g r a v e l over o l d e r sediments i n a spur above the r i v e r 244 A: s t e e p b r a i d e d c h a n n e l s d r a i n i n g u n v e g e t a t e d r i d g e s i n Barn M o u n t a i n s , e a s t e r n p a r t of Babbage R i v e r b a s i n , August 1976; B: b l o c k slumping due t o t h e r m o - e r o s i o n a l n i c h e development, lower Babbage R i v e r , l a t e J u l y 1976 245 R e p r e s e n t a t i v e p a r t i c l e - s i z e d i s t r i b u t i o n s f o r source m a t e r i a l s and f o r sediments s t o r e d i n the c h a n n e l system, Babbage R i v e r b a s i n 250 A: i n c o m b u s t i b l e suspended sediment and t o t a l d i s s o l v e d s o l i d s c o n c e n t r a t i o n s (mg/L) i n Babbage R i v e r a t B l , 1975; B: i n c o m b u s t i b l e suspended sediment and t o t a l d i s s o l v e d s o l i d s t r a n s p o r t (kg/s) 254 A: t o t a l suspended sediment and t o t a l d i s s o l v e d s o l i d s c o n c e n t r a t i o n s (mg/L) i n Babbage R i v e r a t B l , 1976; B: t o t a l suspended and t o t a l d i s s o l v e d s o l i d s t r a n s p o r t (kg/s) 255 A: t o t a l suspended sediment and t o t a l d i s s o l v e d s o l i d s c o n c e n t r a t i o n s (mg/L) i n Deep Creek a t DI, 1976; B: t o t a l suspended and t o t a l d i s s o l v e d s o l i d s t r a n s p o r t (kg/s) 256 D i s s o l v e d , suspended, and b e d l o a d r a t i n g s , Babbage R i v e r a t B l , 1976 258 D i s s o l v e d , suspended, and b e d l o a d r a t i n g s , Deep Creek a t DI, 1976 259 T o t a l d i s s o l v e d s o l i d s c o n c e n t r a t i o n as a f u n c t i o n of d i s c h a r g e , Babbage R i v e r a t B l , 1976 262 T o t a l d i s s o l v e d s o l i d s c o n c e n t r a t i o n as a f u n c t i o n of d i s c h a r g e D e e p Creek a t DI, 1976 263 Water d i s c h a r g e and t o t a l d i s s o l v e d s o l i d s c o n c e n t r a t i o n ( e s t i m a t e d "from s p e c i f i c c o n d u c t i v i t y c o r r e c t e d f o r 0 W ), showing two t r a n s i e n t s of h i g h TDS c o n c e n t r a t i o n d u r i n g .breakup and snowmelt f l o o d of June 1975, Babbage R i v e r 266 Phase r e l a t i o n s between i n c o m b u s t i b l e suspended sediment c o n c e n t r a t i o n (mg/L) and d i s c h a r g e ( m 3 s _ 1 ) , Babbage R i v e r a t B l , 1975 and 1976 269 Phase r e l a t i o n s between i n c o m b u s t i b l e suspended sediment c o n c e n t r a t i o n (mg/L) and d i s c h a r g e ( m 3 s - 1 ) , Deep Creek a t DI, 1975 and 1976, showing h y s t e r e s i s d u r i n g a n n u a l snowmelt f l o o d s 270 H y s t e r e s i s i n s u s p e n d e d - s e d i m e n t / d i s c h a r g e r e l a t i o n d u r i n g Babbage R i v e r f l o o d of 8 June 1974, showing peaks i n TSS c o n c e n t r a t i o n both b e f o r e and a f t e r peak stage and c o u n t e r - c l o c k w i s e h y s t e r e s i s l o o p f o r the f l o o d as a whole 272 Sample d a t a and t h e o r e t i c a l r a t i n g s f o r b e d l o a d t r a n s p o r t , Babbage R i v e r a t B l , 1976 277 P a r t i c l e - s i z e d i s t r i b u t i o n s f o r v a r i o u s samples of sediment i n c h a n n e l d e p o s i t s or moving as b e d l o a d , Babbage R i v e r a t B l 281 Three s e t s of e m p i r i c a l r e s u l t s f o r the h i d i n g f a c t o r ^ as a f u n c t i o n of D/D 5 Q i n rough t u r b u l e n t f l o w 282 Channel bed p r o f i l e s a t s e c t i o n BI (Babbage R i v e r ) between 28 May and 8 June 1975, showing d e g r a d a t i o n of b o t t o m f a s t i c e 286 Channel bed p r o f i l e s a t s e c t i o n BI (Babbage R i v e r ) ; A, 1975: scour d u r i n g r i s i n g l i m b of an n u a l snowmelt h y d r o g r a p h , showing development of s c o u r - h o l e a g a i n s t bank i n t h a l w e g ; B, 1976: p r o f i l e s s h o r t l y a f t e r peak f l o w on 6 June and 26 June, net f i l l 10-15 June, and net scour 15-19 June 288 C u m u l a t i v e p e r c e n t of t o t a l sediment t r a n s p o r t i n Babbage R i v e r a t BI i n 1975 and 1976 293 A: c o a s t a l segment 1 near Kay P o i n t , showing u n d e r c u t t i n g and f a i l u r e of p o l y g o n a l b l o c k s formed by ice-wedge thaw or f r a c t u r e , J u l y 1976; B: c o a s t a l segment 2, showing major impact of r e t r o g r e s s i v e - t h a w and a s s o c i a t e d mudflow t r a n s p o r t of f i n e sediment a c r o s s the beach, August 1977 298 T u r b i d Mackenzie R i v e r water o f f c e n t r a l Yukon c o a s t ; A: p a r t of Landsat image 1-1089-20020-5, 17 J u l y 1975, showing a d v e c t i o n of suspended sediment p a s t Kay P o i n t ; B: l e a d i n g edge of Mackenzie R i v e r plume o f f Kay P o i n t , 28 J u l y 1976 301 V e r t i c a l photograph of Kay P o i n t and Babbage E s t u a r y , showing l o n g s h o r e t r a n s p o r t of suspended sediment westward p a s t Kay P o i n t and wide shore-normal d i s p e r s i o n i n P h i l l i p s Bay; p a r t of NAPL photograph A22975-56, 4 August 1972 304 D a i l y l o n g s h o r e sediment t r a n s p o r t a t d i s t a l end of Kay P o i n t s p i t , p o s i t i v e toward t h e main e n t r a n c e s e c t i o n ( M l ) , computed from h i n d c a s t wave d a t a u s i n g e q u a t i o n 4.2.2-6 310 P r o x i m a l end of Kay P o i n t s p i t , showing temporary (M3) i n l e t ; p a r t of NAPL photograph A21830-2, 18 August 1970 312 V i s c o s i t y , S t o k e s s e t t l i n g v e l o c i t y f o r D=l ym, and t o t a l suspended s o l i d s c o n c e n t r a t i o n a t s t a t i o n 7, Babbage E s t u a r y , 1976 319 Scanning e l e c t r o n m i c r o g r a p h s of sediment from the Babbage E s t u a r y ( s i t e 021125), showing s i l t - and c l a y - s i z e m i n e r a l p a r t i c l e s and v a r i o u s composite p a r t i c l e s of s i l t s i z e 322 Scanning e l e c t r o n m i c r o g r a p h s of sediment from the Babbage E s t u a r y ( s i t e 010140), showing both p e l l e t i z e d and a n g u l a r forms of a g g l o m e r a t i o n 323 P a r t i c l e - s i z e d i s t r i b u t i o n s f o r bottom sediment and f o r suspended sediment c o l l e c t e d i n t r a p s a t s i t e 010140, Babbage Lagoon, showing e f f e c t s of v a r i o u s t r e a t m e n t s 325 L o n g i t u d i n a l t h a l weg p r o f i l e s i n the main d i s t r i b u t a r y c h a n n e l of the Babbage D e l t a , showing (A) predominance of e b b - d i r e c t e d t r a n s p o r t and (B) r a r e o c c u r r e n c e of f l o o d - d i r e c t e d bedforms downstream from s t a t i o n 10 329 H o r i z o n t a l r e f l e c t o r s i n c r o s s - s e c t i o n s of lower Deep Creek c h a n n e l , s u g g e s t i n g presence of f l u i d - m u d 331 Time sequence of t o t a l suspended s o l i d s c o n c e n t r a t i o n a t s t a t i o n 12, Babbage D e l t a , w i t h wind speed and d i r e c t i o n a t Kay P o i n t and Babbage R i v e r d i s c h a r g e , s p r i n g and summer 1976 333 x x v i 115 D i s t r i b u t i o n of C T ( 0 ) i n the Babbage E s t u a r y d u r i n g the storm-surge of 27 August 1975 (A) and on 14 August 1976 ( B ) , when a plume of t u r b i d water f i l l e d P h i l l i p s Bay as f a r n o r t h e a s t as Kay P o i n t 116 Water l e v e l and l o n g i t u d i n a l v e l o c i t y ( s t a t i o n 5; h-z=0.9 m), second h a l f of August 1975; uppermost r e c o r d i s time sequence c u r r e n t speed, showing d i s t r i b u t i o n of v a l u e s e x c e e d i n g an approximate e n t r a i n m e n t t h r e s h o l d of 0.15 m/s 117 E s t i m a t e d c o n c e n t r a t i o n of t o t a l suspended sediment, based on h o u r l y S e c c h i e x t i n c t i o n d a t a a t s t a t i o n s 5, 6, and 7 i n the e n t r a n c e s e c t i o n and s t a t i o n 12 i n the d e l t a d u r i n g a 48-h p e r i o d i n J u l y 1976 118 119 120 337 338 340 I c e r a f t i n g of sediment p l a i n , June 1976 onto s u p r a t i d a l d e l t a 346 I c e i n Babbage D e l t a l a k e s a f t e r s p r i n g f l o o d i n g , showing b a s i n s w i t h and w i t h o u t sediment on i c e ; (A) 15 June 1974; (B) 18 June 1976 Sediment on i c e , f o r m e r l y b o t t o m f a s t ; (A) i n lagoon near the d i s t a l end of the s p i t (015080), a p p a r e n t l y r a f t e d from a l o c a t i o n c l o s e r t o the d e l t a ; and (B) i n P h i l l i p s Bay near s e c t i o n Ml ( s i t e 000050) 351 353 121 Sediment t r a p l o c a t i o n s and d i s t r i b u t i o n of a c c u m u l a t i o n r a t e s (kg m " 2 d a y _ 1 ) f o r the i n t e r v a l 24 June t o 16 J u l y i n 1976 357 Rates of sediment a c c u m u l a t i o n (kg m _ 2 d a y " 1 ) i n t r a p s d e p l o y e d a t l a g o o n - and l a k e - b o t t o m s i t e s i n the Babbage E s t u a r y system, June-September 1976 360 D i s t r i b u t i o n of sediment a c c u m u l a t i o n (kg m " 2 d a y _ 1 ) i n t r a p s i n the Babbage E s t u a r y , 8/9-14/15 August 1976 362 Area of s u p r a t i d a l f l a t l o s t t o bank e r o s i o n a l o n g west e r n and main d i s t r i b u t a r y c h a n n e l s of the Babbage D e l t a , August 1944 t o August 1970, de t e r m i n e d from a i r p h o t o g r a p h s ; e x t e n t of e r o s i o n i n d i c a t e d by s h a d i n g 365 D e g r a d a t i o n of v e g e t a t e d s u p r a t i d a l f l a t s , d i s t a l Babbage D e l t a , August 1975 366 T o t a l suspended sediment c o n c e n t r a t i o n a t s e c t i o n B l , Babbage R i v e r , and e s t i m a t e d t o t a l suspended sediment c o n c e n t r a t i o n , based on S e c c h i e x t i n c t i o n d e p t h , a t s t a t i o n s 5, 6, 7, and 7a i n the e s t u a r y d u r i n g June 1976 371 P a r t of NAPL photograph A13383-151, 1952, showing c o n f i g u r a t i o n of d i s t r i b u t a r y c h a n n e l s seaward of the d i s t a l d e l t a margin v e r y d i f f e r e n t from the 1972 morphology ( c f . F i g u r e 105) 373 C a n o n i c a l s t r u c t u r e of the sedi m e n t a r y component of the Babbage E s t u a r y system, showing s e a s o n a l changes i n the l i n k a g e network 374 Map of Babbage E s t u a r y system showing d i s t r i b u t i o n of major d e p o s i t i o n a l environments and r e p r e s e n t a t i v e l i t h o f a c i e s t y p e s 378 x x v i i i 130 Sediment s a m p l i n g l o c a t i o n s i n the Babbage E s t u a r y , c l a s s i f i e d a c c o r d i n g t o d e p o s i t i o n a l e n v i ronment 381 131 T e r n a r y diagrams showing p r o p o r t i o n s of sand p l u s g r a v e l , s i l t , and c l a y , f o r v a r i o u s components of the Babbage E s t u a r y system 132 T e r n a r y diagram showing p r o p o r t i o n s of g r a v e l , sand, and mud i n sediments of the Babbage R i v e r and E s t u a r y 382 386 133 R e l a t i o n between g r a p h i c s t a n d a r d d e v i a t i o n s and g r a p h i c mean D f o r s u r f a c e sediments of the Babbage D e l t a and E s t u a r y 134 B o r e h o l e d a t a , Babbage E s t u a r y and D e l t a 388 390 135 D i s t r i b u t i o n of Holocene c h a n n e l d e p o s i t s i n the lower v a l l e y , as i n t e r p r e t e d from s u r f a c e morphology and l i m i t e d e x p o s u r e s , showing major impact of Tulugaq r i v e r f a n on s e d i m e n t a t i o n i n t h i s p a r t of the v a l l e y 393 136 Lower Babbage R i v e r between T r a i l R i v e r and f u r t h e s t - s e a w a r d g r a v e l r i f f l e , i n 1954 ( l e f t ) and 1976 ( r i g h t ) ; p a r t s of NAPL photographs A14406-48 and A24502-170 394 137 D i s t r i b u t i o n of l i t h o f a c i e s t y p e s a t the s u r f a c e , Babbage R i v e r and d i s t r i b u t a r y c h a n n e l i m m e d i a t e l y downstream from s e c t i o n B I ; p a r t of NAPL photograph A21826-87, August 1970 395 x x i x 138 A i r and ground views of Babbage D e l t a , showing d i s t r i b u t a r y , l a c u s t r i n e , and s u p r a t i d a l components of the sediment system 139 Topographic p r o f i l e of c e n t r a l Babbage D e l t a a l o n g g r i d l i n e yyy=040 (see F i g u r e 5 ) ; p r o x i m a l d e l t a a t l e f t , d i s t a l margin w i t h anomalous e l e v a t e d s u r f a c e a t r i g h t 3 9 9 400 140 Frequency d i s t r i b u t i o n s of s u r f a c e a r e a f o r v a r i o u s s u b s e t s of the pond and l a k e p o p u l a t i o n on the Babbage D e l t a ; a l s o p l o t t e d a r e d i s t r i b u t i o n s f o r an a r e a of lagoon-margin s u p r a t i d a l f l a t s , f o r anomalous s u r f a c e w i t h rugged m i c r o r e l i e f on d i s t a l d e l t a , and f o r a r e p r e s e n t a t i v e a r e a i n the lower v a l l e y 402 141 Long p r o f i l e of t i d a l c h a n n e l and c r o s s - p r o f i l e s of t h r e e l a k e s i n the c e n t r a l Babbage D e l t a 403 142 Levees i n the Babbage D e l t a ; A: prominent l e v e e b e s i d e minor d i s t r i b u t a r y c h a n n e l , n o r t h e r n d i s t a l margin of d e l t a p l a i n ; B: bank w i t h n e g l i g i b l e l e v e e development, more t y p i c a l of t h e d i s t a l d e l t a , r i g h t bank of main d i s t r i b u t a r y c h a n n e l between s t a t i o n s 10 and 12 405 143 P r o x i m a l d e l t a p l a i n ; (A) l o o k i n g u p v a l l e y , showing v e g e t a t e d s u p r a t i d a l s u r f a c e w i t h l a k e s a t l e f t and f l o o d - s p l a y u n i t a t bottom r i g h t ; note abandonned Babbage R i v e r c h a n n e l i n m i d d l e d i s t a n c e ; (B) s p a r s e l y v e g e t a t e d s u p r a t i d a l f l o o d - s p l a y s u r f a c e 406 144 F l o o d - s p l a y s e d i m e n t a t i o n s u r f a c e a d j a c e n t t o main d i s t r i b u t a r y c h a n n e l , c e n t r a l Babbage D e l t a ; p a r t of NAPL photograph A21826-81, August 1970 407 XXX 145 A: spruce l o g s ( d r i f t w o o d ) i n s u p r a t i d a l sediments of the Babbage D e l t a ; B: s t r a t i f i e d o r g a n i c s i l t s of the s u p r a t i d a l d e l t a p l a i n , p a r t of s e c t i o n 405 i n the c e n t r a l d e l t a 146 Anomalous r a i s e d s u r f a c e of rugged m i c r o r e l i e f a t d i s t a l margin of c e n t r a l d e l t a p l a i n , June 1976 147 M a r g i n a l s u p r a t i d a l f l a t s of Babbage D e l t a , showing t h e r m o k a r s t morphology a r i s i n g i n p a r t , a t l e a s t , from d e g r a d a t i o n of ice-wedge p o l y g o n n e t s 409 411 412 148 A: 7-kHz r e c o r d from main d i s t r i b u t a r y c h a n n e l , p r o x i m a l d e l t a ; B: i n t e r p r e t a t i o n of 7-kHz r e c o r d from main d i s t r i b u a r y , d i s t a l d e l t a near s t a t i o n 10 415 149 A: f l o o d - d i r e c t e d dune- and r i p p l e - s c a l e bedforms on d i s t r i b u t a r y - m a r g i n s u r f a c e near t r a n s e c t 4, p r o x i m a l Babbage D e l t a ; B: i c e - r a f t e d g r a v e l on d i s t r i b u t a r y - m a r g i n i n t e r t i d a l - s u r f a c e , c e n t r a l d e l t a 416 150 Channel-margin and lagoon-margin i n t e r t i d a l s u r f a c e s i n the Babbage D e l t a , August 1974 418 151 A: i n t e r t i d a l f l a t s near t r a n s e c t 8, d i s t a l Babbage D e l t a , showing t i d a l c h a n n e l network, w i t h p a t c h e s of c o l o n i z i n g P u c c i n e l l i a on l e v e e s , and e r o s i o n of s u p r a t i d a l s u r f a c e , September 1976; B: d e s s i c a t i o n c r a c k s , a s s o c i a t e d s m a l l - s c a l e s c o u r , and d r a i n a g e v e n t s on low i n t e r t i d a l s u r f a c e . 419 152 Core s e c t i o n s from h i g h i n t e r t i d a l s u r f a c e i n s h a l l o w b a s i n , d i s t a l d e l t a p l a i n ( s i t e 406, F i g u r e 6) 420 P r o f i l e of Ml (main e n t r a n c e ) s e c t i o n , Babbage E s t u a r y marine boundary 423 G r a v e l f o r m i n g low i n t e r t i d a l s h o a l i n Babbage Lagoon ( s i t e 032080), showing l i n e a r grooves a t t r i b u t e d t o i c e scour 425 A: Kay P o i n t b a r r i e r , w i t h P h i l l i p s Bay a t r i g h t and Babbage Lagoon a t l e f t , showing wide backshore s u r f a c e l a r g e l y snow-free, May 1976; B: S h i n g l e P o i n t s p i t , showing e x t e n s i v e and complex b a c k b a r r i e r d e p o s i t s 427 A: D i s t a l Kay P o i n t s p i t , 27 August 1975, f o l l o w i n g a severe storm and moderate s u r g e , showing l i m i t e d e x t e n t of washover d e p o s i t s , a e o l i a n sand a c c u m u l a t i o n near l a r g e l o g s on berm, and i c e i n c o r p o r a t e d i n f o r e s h o r e s e d i m e n t s ; (B) d i s t a l end of s p i t , 2 August 1974, showing s u b t i d a l b a c k b a r r i e r p l a t f o r m and post-1972 e x t e n s i o n of the s p i t 428 Schematic s e c t i o n t h r o u g h Kay P o i n t s p i t , showing d i s t r i b u t i o n of upper b a r r i e r l i t h o f a c i e s 429 A: lagoon-margin s u p r a t i d a l f l a t s a t n o r t h end of Babbage Lagoon, showing numerous l a k e s and ponds, l o c a l rugged m i c r o r e l i e f , and m a r g i n a l beach and washover f a c i e s ; B: C a r e x - P u c c i n e l l i a and Elymus communities and the landward l i m i t of m a r g i n a l washover sand 432 P a r t s of c o r e taken i n ephemeral pond near edge of s u p r a t i d a l f l a t s , showing ( a t l e f t ) n e a r - s u r f a c e i n t e r l a m i n a t e d a l g a l mud, p e a t , and sand, and (at r i g h t ) p e b b l y sand washover u n i t a t a depth of 400 mm 433 x x x i i 160 S e c t i o n t h r ough Babbage Lagoon, Kay P o i n t s p i t , and P h i l l i p s Bay, showing the d i s t r i b u t i o n of sand and g r a v e l l y - s a n d l i t h o f a c i e s and the t r a n s g r e s s i v e c h a r a c t e r of the b a r r i e r sequence 438 161 Changes i n the K i n g P o i n t b a r r i e r , 1954-1972, showing development of an i n l e t - f i l l sequence by d i s t a l e x t e n s i o n of the s p i t ; p a r t s of NAPL photographs A14363-54 (1954) and A22879-105 (1972) 440 162 A: l o w - l e v e l o b l i q u e photograph of s u r f a c e morphology on the K i n g P o i n t b a r r i e r b a c k s h o r e , August 1975; B: Running R i v e r d e l t a near S h i n g l e P o i n t , showing beach and washover f a c i e s a t the seaward margin of d e l t a i c s u p r a t i d a l f l a t s 441 163 S p r i n g R i v e r b a r r i e r i n 1952 ( p a r t of NAPL photograph A13383-155) and changes o c c u r r i n g between 1952 and 1970 442 164 Schematic diagram showing h y p o t h e t i c a l d i s t r i b u t i o n of l i t h o f a c i e s f o r m i n g t r a n s g r e s s i v e sequence beneath the Babbage D e l t a 445 x x x i i i ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I t i s a p l e a s u r e t o acknowledge the h e l p of many i n d i v i d u a l s and o r g a n i z a t i o n s d u r i n g the cour s e of t h i s s t u d y . The p r o j e c t was s u p p o r t e d by the G e o l o g i c a l Survey of Canada, T e r r a i n S c i e n c e s D i v i s i o n . M a jor c o n t r i b u t i o n s were a l s o r e c e i v e d from the N a t i o n a l R e s e a r c h C o u n c i l of Canada (now NSERC) t h r o u g h g r a n t s t o Dr M. Church and from the U n i v e r s i t y of B r i t i s h C olumbia. P e r s o n a l s u p p o r t was p r o v i d e d by the G e o l o g i c a l Survey, by a N a t i o n a l R esearch C o u n c i l P o s t g r a d u a t e S c h o l a r s h i p , and by a M a c M i l l a n F a m i l y F e l l o w s h i p . L o g i s t i c a l s u p p ort was p r o v i d e d by T e c h n i c a l F i e l d Support S e r v i c e s , by the P o l a r C o n t i n e n t a l S h e l f P r o j e c t , and by the I n u v i k R e s e a r c h L a b o r a t o r y (now ISRC). I w i s h t o e x p r e s s p a r t i c u l a r a p p r e c i a t i o n t o two i n d i v i d u a l s f o r t h e i r w i d e - r a n g i n g support and g e n e r a l encouragement over the y e a r s . I am g r a t e f u l t o M. Church, who a c t e d as r e s e a r c h s u p e r v i s o r , f o r h i s c o n c e r n , h e l p f u l c r i t i c i s m , and p e r s i s t e n t c o n f i d e n c e ; and t o C P . L e w i s , f o r h i s p a r t i n i n i t i a t i n g t he s t u d y , f o r i n v a l u a b l e a d m i n i s t r a t i v e and t e c h n i c a l . s u p p o r t , and f o r h e l p and c o l l a b o r a t i o n i n the f i e l d . I thank F. Stephenson, I n s t i t u t e of Ocean S c i e n c e s , P a t r i c i a Bay, f o r p r o v i s i o n of water l e v e l r e c o r d e r s and c u r r e n t meters and f o r a s s i s t a n c e i n the f i e l d ; Dr J.W. Murray, x x x i v U n i v e r s i t y of B r i t i s h C olumbia, f o r l e n d i n g c o r i n g equipment; L. V e t o , U n i v e r s i t y of B r i t i s h Columbia, f o r SEM imagery; H. Wood, Water Survey of Canada, I n u v i k , f o r l e n d i n g h y d r o m e t r i c equipment; and Dr W. B l a k e , J r , G e o l o g i c a l Survey of Canada, f o r r a d i o c a r b o n a n a l y s e s . For major a s s i s t a n c e i n the f i e l d , under c o n d i t i o n s t h a t were a t times v e r y d i f f i c u l t and a t t i m e s i d y l l i c , I am e s p e c i a l l y g r a t e f u l t o B i l l B a r r i e , L i n d a F o r