Coastal processes

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  • Created by: Bisma
  • Created on: 05-04-18 18:32

Marine processes caused by sea erosion (erosion, transportation and deposition)

Subaerial processes that aren't directly caused by sea e.g. weathering, runoff and mass movement

Six ways waves erode the coastline:

1) Corrasion/abrasion - bits of rock and sediment transported by waves smash and grind against rocks and cliffs, breaking bits and smoothing surfaces

2) Hydraulic action - air in cracks in cliffs compress when waves crash in, causing the pressure to be exerted and breaks off rock pieces.

3) Cavilation - as waves recede, compressed air expands, exerting pressure on the rock, causing pieces to break off 

4) Wave quarrying - energy of a wave as it breaks against the cliff is enough to detach bits of rock 

5) Solution/corrasion - soluble rocks (limestone/chalk) gradually dissolve by seawater

6) Attrition - Bits of rock in water smash against each other, breaking into smaller bits 

Transportation - eroded material being moved:

Four main processes:

1) Solution - Dissolvable substances carried along in the water particles are whipped up by turbulence and carried along in the water. 

3) Saltation - Large particles such as pebbles/gravel are too heavy to be carried in suspension, instead the force of water causes them to bounce along the seabed

4) Traction - large particles e.g. boulders are pushed along the sea by the force of the water 

Longshore Drift - these processes can transport sediment along the shore

- Swash carries sediment up the beach parallel to the prevailing wind

- Backwash carries sediment down the beach at a right angle to the shoreline 

- Sediment is moved along the…

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