Summary
Also known as
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Model type
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Modular
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Model part of larger framework
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Note on status model
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Date note status model
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landscape evolution,
Technical specs
Supported platforms
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Unix, Linux, Mac OS
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Other platform
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Programming language
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C++
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Other program language
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Code optimized
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Multiple processors implemented
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Nr of distributed processors
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Nr of shared processors
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Start year development
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1997
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Does model development still take place?
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Yes
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If above answer is no, provide end year model development
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Code development status
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When did you indicate the 'code development status'?
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Model availability
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As code
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Source code availability (Or provide future intension)
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Through CSDMS repository
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Source web address
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Source csdms web address
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Program license type
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GPL v2
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Program license type other
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Memory requirements
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depends on grid size
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Typical run time
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minutes to days
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In/Output
Describe input parameters
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Topography z(x,y) or parameters describing a topographic surface; rate coefficients; switches for activating options and choosing between alternative transport/erosion formulas. Uses a formatted text file for input of parameters.
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Input format
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ASCII
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Other input format
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Describe output parameters
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Outputs include grids of surface elevation, drainage area, gradient, stratigraphy, drainage direction, Voronoi cell areas, sediment texture; data on mesh configuration; total landscape volume and change in volume at each storm (time step); list of storm durations, timing, and intensities.
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Output format
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ASCII
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Other output format
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Pre-processing software needed?
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No
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Describe pre-processing software
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Post-processing software needed?
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Yes
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Describe post-processing software
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Yes, An extensive library of Matlab scripts provides visualization and post-processing capabilities. A few scripts also exist for IDL, and it is possible to process the output to generate lists of points for input to ArcGIS.
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Visualization software needed?
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Yes
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If above answer is yes
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ESRI, IDL, Matlab
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Other visualization software
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Process
Describe processes represented by the model
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Main processes include runoff generation, fluvial erosion and sediment transport, and sediment transport by soil creep.
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Describe key physical parameters and equations
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Too many to list here -- see Tucker et al. (2001a), the CHILD Users Guide, and other documents listed in the bibliography.
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Describe length scale and resolution constraints
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In principle, the model can address spatial scales ranging from gullies and small (~1km2) catchments to mountain ranges, as long as setup and parameters are chosen appropriately. Resolutions greater than about 10,000 nodes normally require significant computation time.
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Describe time scale and resolution constraints
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The steady flow assumption used by most (not all) hydrology sub-models restricts time scale to periods significantly longer than a single storm. The model has been mostly used to address time scales relevant to significant topographic evolution, though in the case of rapidly changing landscapes (e.g., gully networks) this can be as short as decades.
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Describe any numerical limitations and issues
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The fluvial sediment transport equations are quasi-diffusive and typically have orders of magnitude spatial variations in rate coefficient (reflecting differences in water discharge), which makes the system of equations stiff and difficult to solve efficiently.
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Testing
Describe available calibration data sets
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The model has been benchmarked against analytical solutions for simple cases, such as fluvial slope-area scaling and parabolic to parabolic-planar hillslope form under uniform erosion, materials, and climate. Testing and calibration of some of the individual components (e.g., linear and nonlinear soil creep, stream-power fluvial erosion law, etc.) have been reported in the literature (for a review, see Tucker and Hancock, 2009). Testing of the full coupled model using natural experiments (Tucker, 2009) is ongoing.
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Upload calibration data sets if available:
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Describe available test data sets
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(pending)
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Upload test data sets if available:
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Describe ideal data for testing
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See Tucker, 2009 (in review)
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Other
Do you have current or future plans for collaborating with other researchers?
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Yes, both.
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Is there a manual available?
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Yes
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Upload manual if available:
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Model website if any
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The CSDMS web site (this model section)
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Model forum / discussion board
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Comments
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An updated manual has been posted under the Help section! (May 2010).
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Download statistics
<pbars ytitle=Downloads Title='Monthly Downloads child' xlabels=true size=900x200 ymax=70 grid=true box=true cubic=true plots=open xformat=number connected=true angle=90 legend>
,Total downloads: 1499
2008 - Jan,0
Feb,0
Mar,0
Apr,0
May,0
Jun,0
Jul,0
Aug,0
Sep,0
Oct,0
Nov,0
Dec,0
2009 - Jan,3
Feb,18
Mar,19
Apr,16
May,15
Jun,18
Jul,15
Aug,12
Sep,13
Oct,21
Nov,24
Dec,13
2010 - Jan,22
Feb,13
Mar,15
Apr,14
May,30
Jun,21
Jul,25
Aug,18
Sep,17
Oct,25
Nov,16
Dec,60
2011 - Jan,14
Feb,15
Mar,25
Apr,33
May,24
Jun,25
Jul,13
Aug,27
Sep,11
Oct,25
Nov,30
Dec,8
2012 - Jan,26
Feb,35
Mar,18
Apr,13
May,12
Jun,11
Jul,43
Aug,48
Sep,24
Oct,44
Nov,19
Dec,14
2013 - Jan,15
Feb,23
Mar,17
Apr,23
May,23
Jun,12
Jul,19
Aug,13
Sep,23
Oct,10
Nov,20
Dec,7
2014 - Jan,19
Feb,15
Mar,22
Apr,7
May,13
Jun,23
Jul,34
Aug,15
Sep,33
Oct,12
Nov,16
Dec,12
2015 - Jan,37
Feb,16
Mar,0
Apr,0
May,0
Jun,0
Jul,0
</pbars>
Channel-Hillslope Integrated Landscape Development (CHILD) Model
CHILD was originally developed in 1997 by Nicole Gasparini, Stephen Lancaster, and Greg Tucker, in a research group directed by Rafael Bras at the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering at MIT. Development and use of CHILD continues, with contributions by (among others) Mikael Attal (Edinburgh), Patrick Bogaart (Wageningen), Quintijn Clevis (Oxford), Daniel Collins (Wisconsin), Arnaud Desitter (Oxford), Homero Flores (MIT), Erkan Istanbulluoglu (Nebraska), Scott Miller (Syracuse), Vanessa Teles (IFP), and the original developers.
Example Simulations
Fault block uplift and subsidence
<localvideo type="video/msvideo" caption="Fault block uplift and subsidence" image="Child_Fault_Basin_4m.png" height="150" width="200">
Child_Fault_Basin_4m.avi
</localvideo>
Simulation of a pair of normal-fault blocks separated by a vertical fault. The lower left edge is fixed through time, and represents a shallow shelf just below sea level. The inner block of the landscape rises at a steady rate, while the outer block subsides. Initially, the relief and erosion rate are small, and the subsiding basin is underfilled. Notice the progradation of a fan-delta complex. As relief and sediment flux increase, the fan deltas reach the shallow shelf and the basin becomes filled (or "over-filled" as they say, meaning that there is more than enough sediment to keep filling the basin as it continues to subside).
Evolution of river valley landscape, stratigraphy, and geoarchaeology
Scenario 1: Steady Aggradation
<localvideo caption="Floodplain Evolution" image="Child_Floodplain_Evolution_1.png" height="150" width="200">
Child_Floodplain_Evolution_1.gif
</localvideo>
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<localvideo caption="Channel Sands (Transverse Section)" image="Child_Chan_sandsA_1.png" height="150" width="200">
Child_Chan_sandsA_1.gif
</localvideo>
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Scenario 2: Pomme de Terre River incision/aggradation history
<localvideo caption="Floodplain Evolution" image="Child_Floodplain_Evolution_2.png" height="150" width="200">
Child_Floodplain_Evolution_2.gif
</localvideo>
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<localvideo caption="Sediment age distribution in subsurface" image="Child_SedAge_2.png" height="150" width="200">
Child_SedAge_2.gif
</localvideo>
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Scenario 3: incision/aggradation history based on oxygen isotope curve
<localvideo caption="Floodplain Evolution" image="Child_Floodplain_Evolution_3.png" height="150" width="200">
Child_Floodplain_Evolution_3.gif
</localvideo>
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<localvideo caption="Sediment age distribution in subsurface" image="Child_SedAge_3.png" height="150" width="200">
Child_SedAge_3.gif
</localvideo>
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References
Overview and General
- Tucker, G.E., Lancaster, S.T., Gasparini, N.M., and Bras, R.L. (2001a) The Channel-Hillslope Integrated Landscape Development (CHILD) Model, in Landscape Erosion and Evolution Modeling, edited by R.S. Harmon and W.W. Doe III, Kluwer Academic/Plenum Publishers, pp. 349-388.
- Tucker, G.E., Lancaster, S.T., Gasparini, N.M., Bras, R.L., and Rybarczyk, S.M. (2001b) An Object-Oriented Framework for Hydrologic and Geomorphic Modeling Using Triangulated Irregular Networks, Computers and Geosciences, 27(8), pp. 959-973.
- Tucker, G.E., Gasparini, N.M, Bras, R.L., and Lancaster, S.L. (1999) A 3D Computer Simulation Model of Drainage Basin and Floodplain Evolution: Theory and Applications, Technical report prepared for U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Construction Engineering Research Laboratory.
Applications
- Tucker, G.E., and Bras, R.L. (2000) A Stochastic Approach to Modeling the Role of Rainfall Variability in Drainage Basin Evolution, Water Resources Research, 36(7), pp. 1953-1964.
- Lancaster, S.T., S.K. Hayes, and G.E. Grant (2001) Modeling sediment and wood storage and dynamics in small mountainous watersheds, in Geomorphic Processes and Riverine Habitat, J.M. Dorava, D.R. Montgomery, B.B. Palcsak, and F.A. Fitzpatrick (eds.), pp. 85-102, American Geophysical Union, Washington. Reprint
- Bogaart, P.W., Tucker, G.E., and de Vries, J.J. (2003) Channel network morphology and sediment dynamics under alternating periglacial and temperate regimes: A numerical simulation study: Geomorphology, vol. 54, no. 3/4, p. 257-277.
- Bras, R.L., Tucker, G.E., and Teles, V.T. (2003) Six myths about mathematical modeling in geomorphology: in Prediction in Geomorphology, edited by P. Wilcock and R. Iverson, American Geophysical Union, pp. 63-79.
- Lancaster, S.T., S.K. Hayes, and G.E. Grant, 2003. Effects of wood on debris flow runout in small mountain watersheds, Water Resources Research, 39(6), 1168, doi:10.1029/2001WR001227.
- Collins, D., Bras, R., and Tucker, G.E. (2004) Modeling the effects of vegetation-erosion coupling on landscape evolution: Journal of Geophysical Research - Earth Surface, v. 109, no. F3, F03004, doi:10.1029/2003JF000028.
- Gasparini, N.M., Tucker, G.E., and Bras, R.L. (2004) Network-scale dynamics of grain-size sorting: Implications for downstream fining, stream-profile concavity, and drainage basin morphology: Earth Surface Processes and Landforms, 29(4), 401-422.
- Solyom, P., and Tucker, G.E. (2004) The effect of limited storm duration on landscape evolution, drainage basin geometry and hydrograph shapes: Journal of Geophysical Research - Earth Surface, v. 109, F03012, doi:10.1029/2003JF00032.
- Tucker, G.E. (2004) Drainage basin sensitivity to tectonic and climatic forcing: implications of a stochastic model for the role of entrainment and erosion thresholds. Earth Surface Processes and Landforms, 29, 185-205.
- Istanbulluoglu, E., Bras, R.L., Flores-Cervantes, H., and Tucker, G.E. (2005) Implications of bank failures and fluvial erosion for gully development: Field observations and modeling. Journal of Geophysical Research - Earth Surface, v. 110, no. F1, F01014, doi:10.1029/2004JF000145.
- Clevis, Q., Tucker, G.E., Lock, G., Lancaster, S.T., Gasparini, N.M., and Desitter, A. (2006) A simple algorithm for the mapping of TIN data onto a static grid: applied to the stratigraphic simulation of river meander deposits Computers and Geosciences, v. 32, p. 749-766.
- Clevis, Q., Tucker, G.E., Lock, G., Lancaster, S.T., Gasparini, N.M., Desitter, A., and Bras, R.L. (2006) Geoarchaeological simulation of meandering river deposits and settlement distributions; a three-dimensional approach. Geoarchaeology, v. 21, no. 8, p. 843-874 (doi: 10.1002/gea.20142).
- Flores-Cervantes, J.H., Istanbulluoglu, E., and R.L. Bras (2006) Development of gullies on the landscape: A model of headcut retreat resulting from plunge pool erosion, Journal of Geophysical Research - Earth Surface.
- Gasparini, N.M., Bras, R.L., and Whipple, K.X. (2006) Numerical modeling of non-steady-state river profile evolution using a sediment-flux-dependent incision model, in Tectonics, climate and landscape evolution, S. Willett, N. Hovius, M. Brandon & D. Fisher, eds., GSA Special Paper 398, Penrose Conference Series, Geological Society of America, pp 127-141.
- Crosby, B.T., Whipple, K.X., Gasparini, N.M., and Wobus, C.W. (2007) Formation of Fluvial Hanging Valleys: Theory and Simulation, J. Geophys. Res., 112, doi:10.1029/2006JF000566.
- Gasparini, N. M., K. X. Whipple, and R. L. Bras (2007), Predictions of steady state and transient landscape morphology using sediment-flux-dependent river incision models, J. Geophys. Res., 112, doi:10.1029/2006JF000567.
- Attal, M., Tucker, G.E., Whittaker, A.C., Cowie, P.A., and Roberts, G.P. (2008) Modeling fluvial incision and transient landscape evolution: Influence of dynamic channel adjustment. Journal of Geophysical Research - Earth Surface, v. 113, F03013, doi:10.1029/2007JF000893.
- Fleurant, C., Tucker, G.E., and Viles, H.A. (2008) Modelling cockpit karst landforms. In: Gallagher, K., Jones, S.J., and Wainwright, J., eds., Landscape Evolution: Denudation, Climate and Tectonics over Different Time and Space Scales. Geological Society of London Special Publication 296.
- Gasparini, N.M., Bras, R.L., and Tucker, G.E. (2008) Numerical predictions of the sensitivity of grain size and channel slope to an increase in precipitation. In: Rice, S.P., Roy, A.G., and Rhoads, B.L., eds., River Confluences, Tributaries and the Fluvial Network, John Wiley & Sons.
A Sampling of Related Theory and Data
- Snyder, N.P., Whipple, K.X., Tucker, G.E., and Merritts, D.J. (2003) The importance of a stochastic distribution of floods and erosion thresholds in the bedrock river incision problem: Journal of Geophysical Research, vol. 108, no. B2, doi:10.1029/2001JB001655.
- Baldwin, J.A., Whipple, K.X., and Tucker, G.E. (2003) Implications of the shear-stress river incision model for the timescale of post-orogenic decay of topography: Journal of Geophysical Research. Vol. 108, No. B3, doi: 10.1029/2001JB000550.
- Tucker, G.E., and Whipple, K.X. (2002) Topographic outcomes predicted by stream erosion models: Sensitivity analysis and intermodel comparison, Journal of Geophysical Research, v. 107, no. B9, 2179, doi:10.1029/2001JB000162.
- Whipple, K.X., and Tucker, G.E. (2002) Implications of sediment-flux dependent river incision models for landscape evolution: Journal of Geophysical Research, v. 107, no. B2, DOI 10.1029/2000JB000044.
- Gasparini, N.M., Tucker, G.E., and Bras, R.L. (1999) Downstream Fining through Selective Particle Sorting in an Equilibrium Drainage Network: Geology, vol. 27, p. 1079-1082.
- Whipple, K.X., and Tucker, G.E. (1999) Dynamics of the Stream Power River Incision Model: Implications for Height Limits of Mountain Ranges, Landscape Response Timescales and Research Needs: Journal of Geophysical Research, v. 104, p. 17,661-17,674.
- Lancaster ST and Bras RL, (2002) A simple model of river meandering and its comparison to natural channels, Hydrological Processes, 16, 1-26.
Issues and Announcements
July 6, 2010
Version R10.7 has been released! Included with this version is a set of hands-on, tutorial-style exercises that were "beta tested" at the "Summer School and Workshop on Modelling Surface Processes on Geological Timescales" in Davos, Switzerland, in June 2010. Space-time varying uplift fields can now be specified -- see the Users Guide for details.
January 29, 2009
Philippe Steer reports:
I am Philippe Steer, PhD student at Geosciences Montpellier in France.
I have encountered an error when trying to compile child:
"INT_MAX" was not declared in this scope /Code/tMesh/tMesh.cpp
Solution to this problem:
add "#include <limits.h>" at the begining of tMesh.cpp
Configuration:
OS: linux- Opensuse11
Computer: Dell Precision T 7400, Intel Xeon, 64 bits
compiling with gcc 4.3
I hope it will help other newbies (as I am!) in C,
Philippe
Help
A new manual is now available.
Child User Guide
Child Code Structure
Input Files
Output Files
A small utility to convert CHILD outputs to VTK format: File:Child2vtk.tar (Vincent Godard, CEREGE, Aix-Marseille University). VTK files can be visualized with softwares such as [Paraview].
Download
Template:Download Model
Source
Template:Source Model
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