Amsterdam's Angle of Repose EarthCache
Amsterdam's Angle of Repose
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The angle of repose is the steepest angle at which material remains stable. Loose, undistributed particles assume a stable slope. Depending on the size and shape of the particles, the angle varies from 25 to 40 degrees. Larger, angular particles maintain the steepest slopes. People often create oversteepened and unstable slopes by building roads and buildings at the top of the angle. This can then become prime sites for mass wasting, the downslope movement of rock and soil under the direct influence of gravity. The result is a landslide or a slump (materials moving as a unit along a curved surface). People try to fix the problem they created by changing the materials to rocks, gravel, or even rip rap.
The IP will get you in the general area of one of these angles of repose that have been compensated by people building at the top. Drive up the hill at Broadway and look over the bank. To earn credit for this earthcache, you must do the following (emailing me the answers):
1. Guess what you think the degrees of the angle is right now.
2. Measure the street (Broadway) including the shoulders, or make your best guess.
3. Calculate how long it will take for the street and the shoulders to be at the bottom of the hill if the hillside recedes 2.5 centimeters each year. This is of course if all variables stay the same.
4. How have people tried to stop the slipping and sliding from accuring? What materials were used?
Please watch for traffic. Parking might be diffcult.
Note- I got this idea because the college dorm where I lived on campus was perched on the top of a similar slope. Every year my geology professor measured the distance from the buidling to the end of the slope. Every year the distance got smaller.
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