Staff Profile

Professor Rob Ferguson, MA, PhD (Cantab.)

Contact Professor Rob Ferguson (email at r.i.ferguson@durham.ac.uk)

Biography

Professor of Physical Geography 2004-09, now Emeritus. Previously at Hull (1971-77), Stirling (1977-89), and Sheffield (1989-2004). Past Chair of the British Society for Geomorphology and recipient of its Linton Award for outstanding long-term contribution to the discipline.

Research Interests

I'm a mathematically-minded physical geographer known mainly for work on river channel form and process, though also for papers on sediment yield, meltwater hydrology, and the estimation of river loads. My research combines theoretically-informed analysis of field measurements with empirically-tested mathematical or numerical modelling at a range of scales. Current interests include flow resistance and entrainment in shallow streams, processes in mixed alluvial/bedrock channels, modelling gravel transfers in Fraser River (Canada), and methodological issues in geomorphological modelling.

Selected Publications

Journal papers: academic

• Ferguson, R I River channel slope, flow resistance, and gravel entrainment thresholds. Water Resources Research. 2012;48:W05517.
• Raven, E.K., Ferguson, R.I. & Lane, S.N. A coupled sediment routing and lateral migration model for gravel-bed rivers. Hydrological Processes. 2011;25:1887-1898.
• Ferguson, R.I., Bloomer, D.J. & Church, M. Evolution of an advancing gravel front: observations from Vedder Canal, British Columbia. Earth Surface Processes & Landforms. 2011;36:1172-1182.
• Verhaar, P.M., Biron, P.M., Ferguson, R.I. & Hoey, T.B. Implications of climate change in the twenty-first century for simulated magnitude and frequency of bed-material transport in tributaries of the Saint-Lawrence River. Hydrological Processes. 2011;25:1558-1573.
• Verhaar, P.M., Biron, P.M., Ferguson, R.I. & Hoey, T.B. Numerical modelling of climate change impacts on Saint-Lawrence River tributaries. Earth Surface Processes & Landforms. 2010;35:1184-1198.
• Ferguson, R. Time to abandon the Manning equation?. Earth Surface Processes & Landforms. 2010;35:1873-1876.
• Ferguson, R. & Church, M. A critical perspective on 1-D modeling of river processes: Gravel load and aggradation in lower Fraser River. Water Resources Research. 2009;45:W11424.
• Raven, E.K., Lane, S.N., Ferguson, R.I. & Bracken, L.J. The spatial and temporal patterns of aggradation in a temperate upland gravel-bed river. Earth Surface Processes & Landforms. 2009;34:1181-1197.
• Verhaar, P.M., Biron, P.M., Ferguson, R.I. & Hoey, T.B. A modified morphodynamic model for investigating the response of rivers to short-term climate change. Geomorphology. 2008;101:674-682.
• Hardy, R.J., Lane, S.N., Ferguson, R.I. & Parsons, D. Emergence of coherent flow structures over a gravel surface: A numerical experiment. Water Resources Research. 2007;43:1-14.
• Sime, L.C., Ferguson, R.I. & Church, M. Estimating shear stress from moving boat acoustic Doppler velocity measurements in a large gravel bed river. Water Resources Research. 2007;43:1-12.
• Ferguson, R.I. Flow resistance equations for gravel-and boulder-bed streams. Water Resources Research. 2007;43:W05427.
• Ferguson, R.I., Cudden, J.R., Hoey, T.B. & Rice, S.P. River system discontinuities due to lateral inputs: generic styles and controls. Earth Surface Processes and Landforms. 2006;31:1149-1166.
• Rice, S.P., Ferguson, R.I. & Hoey, T.B. Tributary control of physical heterogeneity and biological diversity at river confluences. Canadian Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Science. 2006;63:2553-2566.
• Ferguson, R.I. Estimating critical stream power for bedload transport calculations in gravel-bed rivers. Geomorphology. 2005;70:33-41.
• Ferguson, R.I. & Church, M. A simple universal equation for grain settling velocity. Journal of Sedimentary Research. 2004;74:933-937.
• Ferguson, R.I. Emergence of abrupt gravel to sand transitions along rivers through sorting processes. Geology. 2003;31:159-162.
• Ferguson, R.I., Parsons, D.R., Lane, S.N. & Hardy, R.J. Flow in meander bends with recirculation at the inner bank. Water Resources Research. 2003;39:1322.
• Ferguson, R.I. The missing dimension: effects of lateral variation on 1-D calculations of fluvial bedload transport. Geomorphology. 2003;56:1-14.
• Ferguson, R.I., Bloomer, D.J., Hoey, T.B. & Werritty, A. Mobility of river tracer pebbles over different timescales. Water Resources Research. 2002;38:1045.
• Lee, A.J. & Ferguson, R.I. Velocity and flow resistance in step-pool streams. Geomorphology. 2002;46:59-71.

Books: edited

• Bates, P.D., Lane, S.N. & Ferguson, R.I. Computational Fluid Dynamics: Applications in Environmental Hydraulics. John Wiley & Sons Ltd; 2005.

Books: sections

• Ferguson, R Reach-scale flow resistance. In: Shroder J F (Editor-in-chief) & Wohl, E (Volume Editor) Treatise on Geomorphology. Academic Press; 2013:50-68.
• Ferguson, R. & Hoey, T. Effects of tributaries on main-channel geomorphology. In: Rice, S.P., Roy, A.G. & Rhoads, B.L. River Confluences, Tributaries and the Fluvial Network. Chichester: John Wiley & Sons, Ltd; 2008:183-208.
• Ferguson, R. Gravel-bed rivers at the reach scale. In: Habersack, H., Piegay, H. & Rinaldi, M. Gravel-Bed Rivers VI: From Process Understanding to River Restoration. Amsterdam.: Elsevier; 2008:33-53.

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