Coastal Landforms Flashcards

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1
Q

Cliffs form as the sea erodes the land. Over time cliffs ________ due to action of waves and ____________

A

Retreat

Weathering

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2
Q

Weathering and wave erosion cause a ______ to form at the _____ water _____. This eventually develops into a c_____.

A

Notch
High
Mark
Cave

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3
Q

Rock above the cave becomes ________ with nothing to support it and it c_______

A

Unstable

Collapses

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4
Q

Wave cut platforms are

A

Flat surfaces left behind when a cliff is eroded

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5
Q

The material eroded at the bottom of the cliff on a wave cut platform

A

Toe

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6
Q

Order of

Stumps 
Arches 
Caves 
Stacks
Lines of weakness
A
Lines of weakness 
Caves 
Arches 
Stacks 
Stumps
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7
Q

Landforms found in cliffs are called

A

Cliff profile features

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8
Q

Stump formation

A
  1. Lines of weakness form due to weathering
  2. Weak areas in rock (eg joints) are eroded to form caves (chambers in headland)
  3. Depth of cave increases until equal to the width of headland = arch
  4. Arch widens and cannot support itself
  5. A stack (iscolated column of rock) remains which is exposed to erosion
  6. Stack is exposed to weathering and further erosion lead to it being a stump
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9
Q

Headlands and bays form when there are bands of…

A

Alternating hard and soft rock at right angles to the shoreline

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10
Q

Concordant coasts

A

Rocks on these coastlines run parallel park to the sea

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10
Q

The soft rock is eroded _______, forming a ____; compared to the harder rock which is eroded ________ forming a _________

A

Quickly
Bay
Slowly
Headland

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12
Q

Discordant coasts

A

Rocks on these coastlines run perpendicular to the sea

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13
Q

Wave cut platforms examples

A

Bullimah Bay, Australia

Glamorgan Bay, Wales

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14
Q

Arch examples

A

Legzira, Morocco

Azure Window, Malta (now collapsed)

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15
Q

Cave examples

A

Blue cave Zakythos, Greece

The Bay of Napoli, Italy

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16
Q

Stack examples

A

Sail Rock, Russia

Ko Tapu, Thailand

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17
Q

Stump examples

A

Proud Guiltar, UK

The Twelve Apostles, Australia

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18
Q

Cliff examples

A

Bonifacio, Corsica

Castellfollit de la Roca, Spain

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19
Q

Almost __% of the worlds coastlines are depositional in nature

A

20

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20
Q

Deposition occurs in environments that…

A

Are of low-energy

Where the effects of waves, tides and storms are reduced

21
Q

Beaches form due to ________ waves which deposit ______ on the shore

A

Constructive

Sediment

22
Q

Beach Gradient - shingle and sandy beaches?

A

Shingle - steep and narrow, larger sediment

Sand - wide and flat, finer sediment

23
Q

What are runnels on the beach?

A

Grooves in the sand running parallel to the shore, formed by backwash draining to the sea

24
Q

Berms are…

A

Ridges of sand and pebbles about 1-2m high found at high tide marks

25
Q

Seasonal changes - summer vs winter?

A

Summer - calm conditions, constructive waves = material pushed up beach over wide area, berms

Winter - storm conditions, destructive waves = flatter beach due to erosional backwash

26
Q

Cusps are …

A

Crescent-shaped indentations that form on beaches of mixed sand and shingle

27
Q

Swash aligned beaches

A

Waves break parallel with the coast, so material is largely up and down the beach

28
Q

Drift aligned beaches

A

Waves approach the coastline at an angle (LSD waves)

29
Q

Spits

A

A spit is a long finger of land that protrudes from the mainland at the end of a drift aligned beach

30
Q

Compound spits

A

Spits with more than 1 hook on their landward side, the hooks being formed due to a secondary most dominant wind which causes deposition.

31
Q

Spit formation

A
  1. LSD transporting material along drift aligned beach
  2. Change in coastline direction, e.g. mouth of river
  3. Swash continues to transport at angle of prevailing wind - material deposited, partial extension
  4. River current and water depth - spit does not develop to mainland
  5. Compound spit - secondary wind direction
  6. Vegetation development behind spit, mudflats and salt marshes
32
Q

Tombolos

A

Spits that connect the mainland to an offshore island via deposition

33
Q

Japanese Tombolo

A

Angle Road of Shodo Island

34
Q

Tombolo Formation

A
  1. LSD
  2. Change in coastline direction
  3. Material continues in swash direction until reaching the island
35
Q

Offshore bars

A

Form when a spit joins 2 headlands together, across a bay or river mouth

36
Q

A _______ forms behind the bar

A

Lagoon

37
Q

Bars partly submerged by the sea are called

A

Offshore bars

38
Q

Barrier Islands/Beaches

A

Long, narrow islands of sand that run parallel to the shore and are detached from it.

39
Q

Barrier beaches tend to form in areas of…

A

A good supply of sediment
A gentle slope offshore
Fairly powerful waves
A small tidal range

40
Q

Barrier island formation

A

NOT CLEAR
Scientists believe they formed after last ice age ended, ice melt caused rapid sea level rise.

Rising waters flooded the land behind beaches and transported sand offshore, where it was deposited in shallow water, forming islands. OR That the islands were originally bars, attached to the coast, which were eroded in sections - breaches in the bar.

41
Q

Behind the barrier beach a _______ often forms

A

Lagoon or marsh

42
Q

Sand dunes

A

Accumulations of sand blown into mounds by the wind (aeolian)

43
Q

Sand dune formation

A
  1. LSD results in sand accumulating on beach
  2. Large inter tidal zone = dry sand
  3. At low tide, dry sand - onshore winds move sand up beach by saltation
  4. Barrier - driftwood, rocks
  5. Trapped sediment
  6. Colonisation of plants and grasses which stabilise the sand and trap more sediment - embryo dune
  7. Over time the dunes migrate inland as newer embryo dune form
44
Q

Fluid threshold velocity

Higher velocity required for…

A

The velocity required to move the sand

Wetter sand

45
Q

Dune require (4) to form:

A

Vast amount of sediment
Apple wind energy
Large tidal range
Flat land

46
Q

Order of dunes

A
Embryo dune
Foredune 
Yellow dune 
Grey dune
Dune slack
Mature dune
47
Q

Hummus layer

A

Dead organisms / cause grey colour is

48
Q

Saltmarshes

A

An area of coastal grassland that is regularly flooded by seawater

49
Q

Mudflat

A

Created by the deposition of fine silts and clays in sheltered, low-energy coastal environments such as estuaries