Erosional Features Flashcards
Headlands and Bays
Headlands and bays, such as Swanage Bay, form on discordant coastlines, where hard and soft rock run in layers at 90˚ to the water. Alternating layers of hard and soft rock allow the sea to erode the soft rock faster, forming a bay but leaving hard rock sticking out, known as a headland
Wave Cut Notches and Platforms
A wave cut notch is simply a small indent at the base of a cliff formed when a cliff is undercut by the sea. When a wave breaks on a cliff, all of the wave’s energy is concentrated on one specific point and this section of the cliff experiences more rapid erosion via corrasion. This eventually leads to the formation of a wave cut notch, when the cliff has been undercut. As the cliff has been undercut, the section of the cliff above the notch (the overhanging rock) no longer has any support and will, eventually, collapse.
Arch
An opening through a headland with rock above and on both sides of it. It was a cave that has been eroded through to the other side
Cave
An area at the bottom of a cliff which has been hollowed out by the waves
Stack
piece of rock surrounded by the sea. It is left standing away from the main coastline after erosion of the headland from the shore by the sea. (Arch collapse)
Blowhole
A blowhole forms in a cave. As a cave moves inland, the roof above it is weakened and as waves crash into the cave, they can be reflected upwards, eroding the roof of the cave. At the same time, weathering on the roof of the cave will help weaken it further and eventually water will be able to break through it, leaving a blowhole.
Fjord
A fjord is a long, deep, narrow body of water that reaches far inland. Fjords are often set in a U-shaped valley with steep walls of rock on either side. Glaciation carves deep valleys which are then flooded to create fjords
Fjard
is an inlet formed by the marine submergence of formerly glaciated valleys and depressions within a rocky glaciated terrain of low relief. Fjards are characterized by a profile that is shorter, shallower, and broader than the profile of a fjord.
