Coasts: Key Terms

Question 1

abrasion

Answer 1

a process of erosion in which waves chip away at the rock by hurling sand and pebbles at the base of the cliff when they break

Question 2

arch

Answer 2

when two. aves are eroded on either side of a headland or a single cave is eroded through a headland, an arch is formed

Question 3

attrition

Answer 3

a process of erosion in which angular rock fragments are smoothed and reduced in size forming pebbles, shingle and sand due to friction

Question 4

barrier beach / bar

Answer 4

a long, narrow ridge of sediment extending across a bay to join two headlands together, forming a lagoon behind it.

Question 5

barrier island

Answer 5

a berried beach that has been separated from the mainland to form an / a series of islands.

Question 6

berm

Answer 6

a ridge or plateau on a beach marking a high tide line, formed by the deposition of beach material from constructive waves

Question 7

cave

Answer 7

A cliff profile feature formed when hydraulic action exploits a weakness in the cliff and enlarges and undercuts it.

Question 8

Coastal morphology

Answer 8

the origin and evolution of a coast

Question 9

compound spit

Answer 9

a long, narrow ridge of deposited sediment which is joined to the mainland at one end and sticks out into the sea across an estuary or bay. They have a series of minor spits or recurred ridges along their landward edge, showing their former position.

Question 10

constructive wave

Answer 10

waves that build up the beaches. they are low in height and frequency and long in wavelength. they have a large swash.

Question 11

destructive wave

Answer 11

waves that remove the beach material along the shoreline. they are steep in height, short in frequency and high in energy. They have a short lived swash and a forceful backwash.

Question 12

cusp

Answer 12

crescent-shaped beach formation with graded sediment on the edge of the lowest berm.

Question 13

corrasion

Answer 13

a process of erosion where as waves advance, they pick up sand and pebbles from the seabed. When they break and the foot of a cliff, the transported material is hurled at the base of the cliff, chipping away at the rock.

Question 14

high-energy environments

Answer 14

a costal environment that experiences strong waves and winds and has a long fetch. the rate of erosion is larger than the rate of deposition and there is a net transfer of material from coast to sea.

Question 15

hydraulic action

Answer 15

a process of erosion in which waves break against a rock face and compressed air into the cracks, creating pressure within. As the water pulls back there is an explosive effect of the air under pressure being released.

Question 16

landform

Answer 16

individual components of a landscape e.g cliffs, beaches, arches

Question 17

landscape

Answer 17

landscapes are made up of a number of landforms which give them their key characteristics.

Question 18

low-energy environments

Answer 18

a coastal environment with less powerful waves and weak onshore winds. the rate of deposition is greater than the rate of erosion.

Question 19

mass movement

Answer 19

the movement of martial downhill under gravity, often assisted by rainfall.

Question 20

recurred tip

Answer 20

where the end of a spit curved round towards the land as wave refraction carries the material round into the more sheltered water behind the spit.

Question 21

rip currents

Answer 21

strong localised underwater currents that occur in some beaches and move water away from the shoreline

Question 22

runnels

Answer 22

the dips in the foreshore area of a beach between ridges. they are drained down by the beach by to channels that break the ridges.

Question 23

saltation

Answer 23

a method of transportation where small stones bounce along the seabed and beach. this process is associated with high energy conditions. as the particles land the may dislodge others.

Question 24

sediment budget

Answer 24

the balance between sediment added to and removed from the coastal system.

Question 25

sediment cell

Answer 25

a stretch of coastline within which sediment is largely recycled, maintaining a state of relative balance.

Question 26

solifluction

Answer 26

a method of transportation where dissolves materials are transported within the mass of moving water. this form of transportation plays an important role in the carbon cycle, transferring and depositing carbon in the oceans.

Question 27

solution (corrosion)

Answer 27

a process of erosion in which some calcium-based rock e.g chalk and limestone is readily soluble and dissolved minerals can then be removed in solution.

Question 28

spit

Answer 28

a long, narrow ridge of deposited sediment which is joined to the mainland at one end and sticks into the sea or across and estuary or bay. A simple spit is either straight or recurred but doesn’t have minor spits or recurred ridges.

Question 29

suspension

Answer 29

a method of transportation where very small particles of sand and silt are carried along by the moving water within the flow. suspension is most likely to occur where flow is turbulent.

Question 30

tidal range

Answer 30

the relative difference in height between high and low tides

Question 31

tides

Answer 31

changes in the water levels of seas and oceans caused by the gravitational pull of the moon and (to a lesser extent) the sun.

Question 32

tombolo

Answer 32

ridge of beach material formed between the island and the mainland

Question 33

traction

Answer 33

a method of transportation where large stones and boulders are rolled along the seabed and beach by moving seawater. they are too heavy to be picked up and carried and with only move if energy levels are high enough.

Question 34

wave refraction

Answer 34

when waves bend as they approach a coastline that is indented, becoming increasingly parallel to the coastline.

Question 35

isostatic sea level change

Answer 35

a change in the level of the land relative to the sea as a result of the changing level of the land.

Question 36

eustatic sea level change

Answer 36

a rise or fall in the sea level as a result of a change in the actual level of water in the oceans.

Question 37

biological weathering

Answer 37

the breakdown of rocks by organic activity, including vegetation and coastal organisms

Question 38

drift-aligned beach

Answer 38

a beach formed where the waves approach the coast at an angle.

Question 39

eustatic change

Answer 39

when the sea level itself rises or falls

Question 40

isostatic change

Answer 40

when the land rises or falls relative to the sea.

Question 41

isostatic recovery

Answer 41

when the ice beginning to melt at the end of a glacial period, causes the land to readjust and rise due to the reduced weight of the ice

Question 42

isostatic subsidence

Answer 42

when the enormous weight of ice sheets makes the land sink during glacial periods

Question 43

offshore bars

Answer 43

submerged ridges of sand or coarse sediment created by waves offshore from the coast

Question 44

pioneer species

Answer 44

the first colonising plants in a vegetation succession

Question 45

fjord

Answer 45

A submergence coastal landform formed when a rise in sea level floods a deep glacial trough

Question 46

raised beach

Answer 46

an emergent coastal landforms which is the results of isostatic recovery which raises beaches above the present sea level

Question 47

ria

Answer 47

a submergence costal landform composed of shelter winding inlets with irregular shorelines formed from flooded river inlets

Question 48

Dalmatian coast

Answer 48

a submergence landscape of ridges and valleys running parallel to the coast

Question 49

saltmarsh

Answer 49

coastal ecosystem formed on mudflats largely comprising salt-tolerant plants

Question 50

swash-aligned beach

Answer 50

a beach formed in a low-energy environment by waves roughly parallel to the shore

Question 51

rockfall

Answer 51

sudden mass movement where fragments of rock break away from a cliff face as a weakness becomes unsupportable, associated with steep cliffs in well-jointed, resistant rock.

Question 52

landslide

Answer 52

blocks of rock slide downhill, occurring on cliffs made from softer rocks running parallel to the slide plane

Question 53

mudflow

Answer 53

sudden mass movement where fine particles of mud flow down a slope, saturated by persistent rainfall

Question 54

slumping

Answer 54

whole sections of cliff face moving downward along a concave slide plane, producing a rotational movement

Question 55

soil creep

Answer 55

the gradual movement downhill of individual soil particles, resulting in terracettes on slopes

Question 56

longshore drift

Answer 56

a process of littoral movement where the wind causes the swash to carry sediment up the beach at an angle, and the brackish pulls material back down perpendicular to the shore, causing a zigzag movement of sediment up and down the beach.