P1 Section C (Coastal Systems and Landscapes) Flashcards
What is a System
A system is a set of interrupted components working together towards some kind of process.
Closed System
a closed system is a system that transfers energy, but not matter, across its boundary to the surroundings like our planet
Open system
an open system it a system that transfers both matter and energy across its boundary to the surroundings like most ecosystems
What is an Input
An input is an addition of matter, energy or information to a system
What is an output
an output is the movement of matter, energy or information out of a system
What is a store
a store is a place where matter, energy or information is stored in a system.
what is a sediment cell (area, transfers)
a sediment cell is an area of shoreline that encompass the intertidal and nearshore movement of sediment, it basically consists of zones of erosion (e.g. shoreline bluffs), transport (e.g. beaches), and deposition (e.g. spit) and is a closed system
what is dynamic equilibrium in sediment cells
dynamic equilibrium in sediment cells refers to the maintenance of balance in sediment, with both outputs and inputs counteracting change to keep balance.
what happens if sediment budget decreases?
when sediment budget decreases, waves will move sediment and cause erosion
what happens if sediment budget increases
when sediment budget increases, deposition will occur as a way to remove excess material.
what type of systems are sediment cells?
sediment cells are usually closed systems as they do not transfer sediment to one another
what are examples of coastal inputs
examples of coastal inputs include waves, tides, sun, pollution and wind speed.
what are examples of coastal outputs
examples of coastal outputs include evaporation, riptides and currents.
what are examples of coastal stores
examples of coastal stores include beaches, sand dunes, caves and arch’s
what are transfers
transfers are the processes that link inputs stores and outputs
examples of transfers
examples of transfers include erosion (abrasion and hydraulic action), transportation (solution and traction) and deposition (flocculation and gravity settling)
what is positive feedback and example in sand dunes
positive feedback is when a system is taken away from dynamic equilibrium such as people walking over sand dunes will damage plants, which makes the dunes more erosive as less stable and they become eroded even further.
what is negative feedback and example
negative feedback is lessening a change that has occurred in the system such as if a cliff is eroded, the material forms a wave cut platform below and prevents further erosion of the cliff.
sources of sediment at the coast
sources of sediment at the coat include rivers (fluvial flow), wind blowing sand (aeolian flow), cliff erosion and longshore drift.
littoral zone
the littoral zone is the area between the cliffs or dunes of a coast and the offshore area that is beyond the influence of waves and so is covered by the sea at some times.
what factors change the littoral zone?
factors that change the littoral zone can be short term like storms and long term factors like changes in sea level.
how do waves form (frictional, small,
waves form by wind passing over water creating frictional drag causing small ripples which produces a orbital movement of particles so waves move horizontally in shallower waters. more horizontally moving of waves causes them to gain height, but when height increases, wavelength and wave velocity decrease causing the wave to break and surge up the beach.
factors affecting the energy of waves
factors affecting the energy of waves include strength of wind, duration of wind (long time means more energy build up) and fetch (fetch is the distance the wind blows over)
characteristics of a constructive wave
characteristics of a constructive wave include formed by weathers in the open ocean, have long wavelength, low frequency, low wave height, strong swash and weak backwash and constructive waves occur on gently sloping coasts
characteristics of destructive wave
characteristics of destructive waves include happen by storms close to the coast, destructive waves have short wavelength, long frequency, higher waveheight and they have weak swash and strong backwash and they occur on steep sided coasts.
what is tidal energy at the coast
tidal energy at the coast is energy caused by gravity of the moon pulling water and causes a high tide and if the earths surface is far from the moon then there is low tide.
what are spring tides
spring tides are times of the year when the gravitational pull from the moon is strongest and gives highest tides
what are neap tides
neap tides are the time of the year when the gravitational pull of the moon is weakest and the tides are at the lowest.
When do longshore currents occur
longshore currents occur when a wave releases a burst of energy parallel to the coastline
how is longshore current energy determined?
longshore current energy is determined by height of wave break and angle of beach slope. So if wave breaks at a tall height at a steep beach angle, then longshore current energy and velocity increases
characteristics of a high energy coastline
characteristics of a high energy coastline include destructive waves, rocky headlands and landforms and faster rate of erosion than deposition.
characteristics of a low energy coastline
low energy coastlines have constructive waves, sandy areas and there are depositional landforms like bars and spits and rate of deposition exceeds rate of erosion
when does wave refraction occur
wave refraction occurs when the coast is discordant so waves move faster and slower due to more and less friction and waves refract away from the headland as they have low energy and diverge into bays
What is attrition
attrition is wave action causing rocks to hit against each other and become small and round
what is corrasion
corrasion is when rocks are picked up by waves and hurled at the cliffs
abrasion
abrasion is when sediment scrapes along the shoreline and worn down
hydraulic action
hydraulic action is when waves crash into a crack in cliff, high pressure causes air to expand and further crack the rocks
corrOsion
CorrOsion is when acidic water can erode alkaline rocks like limestone
What is wave quarrying
wave quarrying is when waves break against cliffs and erode it from shear force
What are factors affecting erosion
factors affecting erosion are waves (strength and velocity), size of littoral zone (can absorb energy), rock type (sedimentary rocks like sandstone are weaker) and rock faults (faults, cracks and joints can weaken rocks before erosion).
What is traction
traction is when large heavy sediment is rolled along the sea bed.
saltation
saltation is when small sediment bounces along the sea bed
What is suspension
suspension is when fine sediments are held up and carried by the flow of the water
What is solution
solution is when dissolved material is carried within the water
what is weathering
weathering is the breakdown of rocks over time leading to the transfer of the material into the littoral zone, where it becomes an input to sediment cells.
what is freeze thaw weathering
freeze thaw is a mechanical weathering is when water goes into cracks, freezes, expands and causes an increase of pressure which erode the rock
what is carbonation weathering
carbonation weathering is a chemical weathering when rain absorbs carbon dioxide from air which forms a weak carbonic acid that then reacts with calcium carbonate in rocks to make it easier to dissolve.
what is plant root weathering
plant root is biological weathering when roots grow into cracks, faults and joints which exerts pressure and eventually splits the rock