Modelling Landscape Evolution - Environmental Modelling: Finding Simplicity in Complexity - page 314

Two avenues appear promising in order to increase the
reliability and general applicability of landscape-evolution
models (e.g. Merrits et al ., 2010). First, studies of 'natural
laboratories' or 'natural benchmarks', i.e. applying the
models to predict topographic evolution in regions where
(we think) it is well constrained, permit the definition
of essential components of the models, to find reason-
able ranges of parameter values and to compare models
and algorithms between each other (Tucker, 2009). Sev-
eral sites that record landscape evolution through time
with sufficient resolution have already been investigated
(see Section 19.4); many more probably exist. Defining
a series of such 'natural benchmarks' that represent pro-
cesses in different tectonic/geomorphic settings and on
different space- and time-scales will prove of great use in
better constraining landscape-evolution models.
Second, coupling of landscape-evolution models with
models designed to predict or simulate other parts of the
Earth system will permit to lessen the influence of overly
simplified or constraining boundary conditions and, at
the same time, to study the couplings and interactions
that are inherent to the system. Some progress has been
made in the last years in coupling landscape-evolution
models describing the tectonic and thermal evolution of
the crust and lithosphere (see Section 19.6). Coupling
of landscape-evolution models with climate models con-
stitutes a new research agenda, required to develop a
quantitative understanding of the potentially major cli-
matic controls on surface processes and of the interaction
between climate and landscape evolution.

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