decomposition landscapes Flashcards
What are coastal landscapes?
Areas where land meets the sea, shaped by processes like erosion and deposition.
What are depositional landforms?
Formed by the accumulation of materials, creating features like beaches, spits, and bars.
How are beaches formed?
Deposition: materials deposited by waves.
Erosion: shaping by wave action.
Transportation: materials moved along the coast.
What types of beaches exist?
Sandy (soft) or pebble/shingle (hard).
Curved beaches form in bays due to wave action refracting.
What are spits?
Narrow landforms of sand or shingle:
Attached to the mainland at one end.
Extend into the bay/estuary, formed by longshore drift.
What factors influence spit formation?
Wind direction and wave power contribute to material being deposited.
What is a bar?
A landform similar to a spit but connects two landmasses across a bay:
Formed by longshore drift.
Creates a lagoon behind it as it cuts off water.
What are the impacts of coastal recession?
Wildlife habitats destroyed.
Loss of homes due to erosion.
How does urbanization affect coastal landscapes?
Increased weight from buildings can lead to:
Vulnerable cliffs.
Changes in drainage, increasing soil saturation.
Why is understanding deposition important?
Helps predict changes in coastal landscapes and how human activities impact them.
Explain how a bar is formed.
A bar forms through:
Longshore drift depositing material across a bay.
Continued accumulation until a long ridge develops across the bay.
Cuts off water to form a lagoon.
Explain how beaches are formed.
Types of materials (sand/shingle).
Role of erosion, transportation, and deposition in the formation process.
