Line in the sand: the physics of halting a dune on the march

When pushed by the wind, sand dunes can travel across the ground — potentially leading to buried infrastructure. Similarly, ocean currents can shift an underwater dune onto a sea-floor pipeline or cable. Experiments have now shown that the outcome of such encounters depends on the obstacle’s size and shape¹.

doi: https://doi.org/10.1038/d41586-021-03023-2

Subjects

• Fluid dynamics