The Coastal Zone Flashcards Preview

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Flashcards in The Coastal Zone Deck (27)
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1
Q

Littoral Zone

A

The wider coastal zone including adjacent areas and shallow parts of the sea just offshore

2
Q

When is the back shore affected by waves?

A

During exceptionally high tides or major storms

3
Q

What is mainly confined to the foreshore?

A

Wave processes

4
Q

What happens in the nearshore?

A

Intense human activity and forms part of the physical system, transfers sediments by currents close to the shore

5
Q

What are the 2 main types of coast?

A

Rocky and Coastal Plains

6
Q

Rocky Coastline

A

Have cliffs varying in height, formed from rock of varying hardness

7
Q

Coast Plains

A

Land gradually slopes towards the sea, across an area of deposited sediment. Sand dunes and mud flats main examples.

8
Q

Features of a cliffed coast

A

Transition from land to sea is abrupt, low tide reveals a rocky, wave cut platform foreshore.

9
Q

Features of a sandy coastline

A

At high tide, sandy beach inundated, vegetated dunes are not. Vegetation on dunes stabilises coasts and prevents erosion.

10
Q

Features of Estuarine coastlines

A

Mud flats, exposed at high tides, back shore vegetated and forms a salt marsh, gradual transition from land to sea.

11
Q

What classifies as a primary coast?

A

Coasts dominated by land based processes like deposition at the coast or new coastal land formed from lava flows

12
Q

What classifies as a secondary coast?

A

Coasts dominated by marine erosion or deposition processes

13
Q

Emergent Coasts Features

A

Coasts rising relative to sea level, for example by tectonic uplift.

14
Q

Submergent Coast features

A

Coasts flooded by the sea caused by rising sea levels.

15
Q

How can coast classification vary due to tidal range?

A

Microtidal coasts - 0-2m
Mesotidal coasts - 2-4m
Macrotidal coasts - >4m

16
Q

High Energy Coastlines features

A

Exposed coasts, facing prevailing winds, long wave fetches, powerful waves. More erosion than deposition, Headlands, Bays, wave cut platforms.

17
Q

Low energy Coastline Features

A

Sheltered coasts with limited fetch, more depositon than erosion, beaches, spits, low wind speeds, small waves.

18
Q

Cliff profile

A

The height and angle of a cliff, as well as its features, such as wave cut notches or changes in slope angle.

19
Q

Marine erosion dominated cliff features

A

Steep angle cliff face, limited debris at its base as this is quickly eroded and moved away by waves and wave erosion, active undercutting

20
Q

Sub aerial process dominated cliff features

A

curved slope profile, accumulated debris due to lack of erosion

21
Q

Sub aerial processes

A

Processes acting on cliffs other than wave erosion. Likely to be more important when cliffs are made of less resistant rocks such as shale, clay or mud stone

22
Q

Mass movement

A

Sub aerial process, includes landslides, slumps, rock fall, move material down slope under the influence of gravity

23
Q

Weathering

A

Sub aerial process, chemical, biological, mechanical weathering. Breakdown of rock into smaller fragments

24
Q

Surface runoff

A

Sub aerial process, Water, usually during heavy rain, flowing down the cliff face and causing erosion of it

25
Q

How are coastal plains formed?

A

As a result of a fall in sea level, where the sea bed of what was once a continental shelf sea is exposed. Or can form from deposition of sediment from land, which can cause coastal accretion where the coastline gradually moves seaward.

26
Q

Coastal Accretion

A

The deposition of sediment at the coast and the seaward growth of the coastline, creating new land. Involves sediment deposition being stabilised by vegetation.

27
Q

Dynamic Equilibrium

A

The balanced state of a system where inputs and outputs balance over time. By a process of feedback, the system adjusts to change and the equilibrium is regained.