During the summer of 1998, an international team from the United States and Scotland are taking an expedition to the Cloud Peak Wilderness area in upstate Wyoming. The focus of this study will concentrate on the stream morphology of Oliver Creek. The behavior of this stream as a distribution of energy within the valley depends on the unique geometry and dynamic character of Oliver Creek. The factors being investigated include volume, velocity, flow regime, slope, shape, cross-sectional area, depth, and channel bed properties.
Stream flow and depositional processes are mutually inclusive and self-stabilizing. The research model for this relationship indicates that the products of sediment load and size are proportional to stream slope and stream discharge. The latter are directly influenced by diurnal weather patterns and climatic conditions. This in turn influences the internal flow structure. Additional areas of concern are fluvial transmission of a precipitation event, which includes infiltration and interception. This data will be compiled, analyzed, and interpreted in conjunction with other studies: meteorology, radiation studies, vegetation, and water chemistry.