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Monitoring environmental controls on debris-flow sediment supply, Chalk Cliffs, Colorado, 2011 to 2015

Published by U.S. Geological Survey | Department of the Interior | Metadata Last Checked: January 27, 2026 | Last Modified: 2020-08-21T00:00:00Z
This data release includes time-series data of rock temperature, air temperature, wind speed, and humidity at the Chalk Cliffs debris-flow monitoring site in central Colorado (Latitude: 38.73330, Longitude: -106.18704). The data were collected to help identify the environmental controls on rates of rockfall, which is the primary source of debris-flow material at the site. Data were recorded at 1-minute intervals between November 2011 and August 2015. Data collection was occasionally interrupted during maintenance periods or when there was a problem with the power supply. Two probes measured profiles of rock temperature at depths of 0, 1, 2, 4, 8, 16, 24, 32, and 42 cm below the rock surface. One probe was placed on a south-facing rock slope, the other probe was on a north-facing rock slope. See photo “SensorLocations.jpg” for layout of sensors. Occasional malfunctions in the temperature sensor are identified by “NAN” readings or anomalous low temperatures (<-50 degrees Celsius). Time stamps are in standard Mountain time. Details of this study are described in the journal article: Rengers, F. K., Kean, J. W., Reitman, N. G., Smith, J. B., Coe, J. A.,and McGuire, L. A. ( 2020). The Influence of Frost Weathering on Debris Flow Sediment Supply in an Alpine Basin. Journal of Geophysical Research: Earth Surface, 125, e2019JF005369. https://doi.org/10.1029/2019JF005369

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