In this third instalment in this series our journey takes us into the Skeleton Coast. Synonymous with shipwrecks and known as “The Land God Made in Anger” to indigenous Bushmen this coastal desert has been protected as a National Park since 1971. Similar to many of Namibia’s National Parks, the Skeleton Coast does not allow …[Read More]
dust plumes
Dust in the desert: The Kuiseb and Tschaub Rivers – part 2 of 3
The dust in the desert series continues this week as James King shares his experience of fieldwork in Nambia… Our base of operations is located in Swakopmund, a sea-side town of German heritage. This has two benefits: pastries and unrivalled hardware stores. The amount of supplies (hardware, not cake) that this sleepy Namibian town has …[Read More]
Dust in the desert: Measuring it is only half the battle – Part 1 of 3
Fieldwork is vital to understanding all sorts of Earth processes, but that doesn’t make it easy! James King, a researcher from the University of Oxford, describes what it takes to set off on a scientific expedition… Although the classic text on sediment transport by wind by Sir Ralph Bagnold was written way back in 1941, the mechanics …[Read More]