Geography Physical > Coasts Notes > Flashcards

Coasts Notes Flashcards

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1
Q

What is a sediment cell

A

A stretch of coastline usually bordered by two prominent headlands where the movement of sediment is mostly contained

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2
Q

Where is offshore

A

Area beyond the point where waves impact the seabed and only deposition occurs

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3
Q

What comes after offshore

A

Nearshore

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4
Q

What is nearshore

A

Zone of shallow water close to shore from deeper offshore waters to the low tide line

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5
Q

What comes after nearshore

A

Foreshore

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6
Q

What is the foreshore

A

Part of the shore that lies between the high tide and low tide line, covered and uncovered by the tide and known also as the intertidal zone

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7
Q

What is the backshore

A

Area of beach lying above the high tide line, usually only affected by v. High tides and storms
Can contain dunes and berms

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8
Q

What is the shore

A

The narrow strip of land that lies between the lower water line and the permanent vegetation or cliffs, includes foreshore and backshore

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9
Q

What is a marine terrace

A

A flat, step-like platform along a coast formed by the uplift of land or a drop in sea level, representing a former shoreline

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10
Q

What is a berm

A

Ridges of sand or gravel deposited by wave action on the backshore of a beach; shows they limit of wave run-up and can form multiple ridges during periods of high tides or storms

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11
Q

What is a breaker

A

Waves that become too steep to support themselves so they break and collapse as they approach shallow water near a coast
Responsible for most erosion and sediment movement on a beach (energy input)

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12
Q

What is a coastal area

A

A broad zone where land meets hte sea including coastal planes, beaches, dunes,, estuaries and wetlands
Can extend inland as far as there is marine influence

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13
Q

What is a coast

A

The general area where land meets the sea including hte shore and adjacent land and sea influenced by coastal processes of waves, tides and sediment movement.

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14
Q

What is wave run-up

A

The maximum vertical distance that a wave reaches as it travels up the shore after breaking, its how far the water from a wave goes up the beach face

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15
Q

What happened during the Quaternary glacial and interglacial periods

A

Sea levels rose and fell several times in response to the global water cycle

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16
Q

What is isostatic uplift/(rebound)

A

Rise of land caused by the weight of ice pressing down on a piece of land is removed

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17
Q

When was storm Eunice

A

February 2022

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18
Q

What happened in storm Eunice

A

Large storm surge
Coastal flooding
High winds > big destructive waves

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19
Q

What caused storm Eunice

A

Low pressure

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20
Q

What happened to the cliff and beach profile in storm Eunice

A

Cliffs collapsed
Chalk and limestone cliffs weathered and eroded (carbon transfer)
Beach profile altered

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21
Q

What is the main driver of waves

A

The wind

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22
Q

Definition of wind

A

The movement of air from one place to another

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23
Q

What causes wind

A

Air moves from high pressure to low pressure
The greater the pressure gradient, the faster the wind travels

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24
Q

Why does the UK get a prevailing wind

A

The UK gets prevailing westerlies from across the Atlantic

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25
What is fetch
Distance of open water that the wind blow
26
What are the 3 factors that affect size and strength of waves
Fetch Duration of wind Strength of wind
27
How does duration of wind affect wave size
Longer the wind blows, the more energy is transferred
28
How does strength of wind affect wave size
Higher Pressure gradient means energy is transferred faster
29
What is a tidal current
A current strongest near the shore and estuaries along the coast due to the tide
30
How does wind drive currents?
It drives localised currents and can result in coastal upwelling It drives surface currents in the open ocean and circulates water in ocean basins
31
What is thermohaline circulation
Movement of water due to heat and salinity of water that affects density
32
What is coastal upwelling
Oceanographic process where cold water rises to surface at coasts due to winds blowing parallel to the coast pushing warm waters away
33
What is the ocean conveyor belt
Combination of currents where 4/5 oceans transfer water
34
How does temperature affect density
Increased temp > lower density > cold sinks and hot rises
35
How does salinity affect density
Increased salt > higher density > sinks below less salty water
36
How long is the Gulf Stream
10,000km
37
How fast does the Gulf Stream move
2m/s
38
How much water does the Gulf Stream Move
100 million m^3 / s to Europe
39
What does the south east trade winds drive
Warm surface water to the Gulf of Mexico
40
What directs the Gulf Stream to Europe
Coriolis effect and wind direction
41
What do scientists worry that will happen to the Gulf Stream
Standstill due to climate change; the urrent wouldn’t be dense enough so would stop
42
How will the gulf stream stopping affect the distribution of heat
Europe would decrease in avg. temperature by 5-10 degrees C
43
What are the 7 sources of sediment
Rivers Cliff erosion Longshore drift Wind Glaciers Offshore Volcanoes
44
How many sediment cells in England and Wales
11
45
What are larger cells divided into
Sub-cells
46
What is a sediment cell
Area of a coastline where movement of sand, sediment and shingle is largely contained
47
What is weathering
Rocks broken down by mechanical and chemical processes in situ caused by weather
48
What is mass-movement
Rocks loosened by weathering move down a slope under the influence of gravity
49
What is frost shattering
Freeze thaw where water goes into cracks, freezes expands then breaks the rocks down
50
What is salt crystallisation
Geomorphic process where soluble salts pour into the fissures of rocks and they crystallise when the water evaporates, putting pressure on the rock, causing it to break down
51
What is wetting and drying
Water enters pores in rock, causing them to expand, water then dries out of the pores causing them to contract This cycle repeats, eventually causing them to break down the rock
52
What is biological weathering
Break down of rock by the action of vegetation and coastal organisms in situ
53
2 Example of biological weathering
The Piddock, a shellfish, drills into rock Seaweed attaches itself to rock, causing it to pry away loose rocks
54
What is chemical weathering
Rock exposed to air and moisture leads to chemical processes that break down the rock in situ
55
What is carbonation
CO2 dissolved in rainwater causes acid rain which breaks down rock like chalk or limestone
56
What is oxidation
Oxygen races with minerals on rock, causing a chemical reaction that leads weak products
57
What is solution
Acid rain dissolves rock such as limestone, altering the geology and weakening left over rock
58
What is a sub-aerial process
Natural process that occurs at the grounds surface e.g. weathering and erosion
59
What type of process is mass movement
A geomorphic process that is a result of too gravity impacting on an eroded and weathered area
60
What is slope failure
Where slope gradient results in instantaneous impacts
61
How does mass movement occur
Typically on a small continual scale
62
What is liquefaction
Loose saturated material loses its structure and temporarily acts like a liquid
63
What is the angle of repose
The angle which a granular material can reach before it collapses under its own weight
64
What is the difference between a flow and slide
A flow sees material mixed together and is wet A slide sees material left intact and does not have to be wet
65
What is the difference between a landslide and a land slip?
Landslips occur in areas of weak geology and have a curved slide area landslides have a flat slide area and tend to be in areas of more resistant geology.
66
What is the difference between soil creep and solifluction
Solifluciton is like soil creep but occurs in periglacial environments
67
What is the difference between rockfalls and slumping
Rockfalls are associated with resistant rock Slumps are linked to area of weak geology
68
What process widens cracks in a headland cliff face
Hydraulic action
69
What process enlarges the headland crack into a cave
Weathering like salt crystallisation
70
What causes the headland cliff fissure to increase in size and eventually form an arch
Abrasion and more hydraulic action
71
What weakens the arch so that it collapses to for a stack
Freeze thaw (it is not subjected to the sea at the top of the cliff)
72
What is the distant coastal erosion case study
The Twelve Apostles
73
Where is the Twelve Apostles
SW coast Victoria, Australia
74
What is the Twelve Apostles
Nine limestone sea stacks
75
When were the Twelve Apostles formed
10-20 million years ago
76
When did the most recent stack of the Twelve Apostles fall
September 2009 (beginning of spring)
77
What is the erosion rate of the Twelve Apostles
2cm a year
78
What is a wave cut platform
A gently sloping rock ledge that extends flora the high tide level at the cliff base to below the low tide level
79
Where are wave cut platforms usually located
On the shoreline at the cliffs base extending into the sea
80
How do wave cut platforms form
Wave cut notches cause the cliff to collapse
81
What is a wave cut notch
A wave-cut notch is a small indentation or hollow at the base of a coastal cliff, formed by the erosive action of waves
82
83
What is the local case study for a wave cut platform
Flamborough head
84
When is the wave cut platform visible at flamborough head
At high tide
85
What is a swash aligned beach
Perpendicular to the coast Sediment is built up by swash Parallel to incoming waves Minimal LSD
86
What is a drift aligned beach
LSD has considerable effects Parallel to LSD (often prevailing wind) No restrictions on sediment movement Extends out folrm coastline
87
What is a compound spit
similar to a simple spit Mini spits + recurved ridges to make a previous position of termination
88
What is a simple spitre
Straight or recurved Does not have minor spits or recurved ridges
89
What is a tombolo
A spit that forms up until it reaches an island so the island becomes connected to the mainland
90
What is my example of a tombolo
To the Cob noirmoutier
91
What is a bar
A spit that forms between 2 headlands leaving a bar and a lagoon behind that was a bay
92
What is a barrier island/beach?
elongated bank of deposited sand or shingle running parallel to the coastline and not submerged by incoming tides with coastal marshes, lagoons or mangroves on their landward side
93
How are barrier islands different to bars
They can be formed by converging currents where an estuary meets the sea’s waves
94
How do salt marshes form step1
A spit develops and protects an area form from high energy waves
95
How do salt marshes form step 2
Gentle conditions combined with the plentiful supply of sediment encourages deposition behind the spit
96
How do salt marshes form step 3
Sediment accumulates and elevates the tidal flat reducing flooding duration so plants can grow
97
How do salt marshes form step 4
Pioneer plants aid coastal accretion, stabilising further the marsh
98
How do salt marshes form step 5
As more plants grow and are introduced, coastal accretion rate increases
99
How is sand dunce formation affected by low wind and wave energy
Less saltation More deposition Less erosion
100
How is sand dunce formation affected by large sediment input
More material for formation
101
How is sand dunce formation affected by shallow tidal depth
Waves lose energy faster so weaker smash and more deposition More frequent obstacles for dunes to form around
102
What is accretion
Accumulation of sediment
103
What is a sere
A stage of ecological succession
104
What is a halosere
Salt water
105
What is the hydrosere
Fresh water
106
What is the psammosere
Sand
107
What is the lithosere
Rock
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