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Geography > Coastal Environments in the UK > Flashcards

Coastal Environments in the UK Flashcards

1
Q

What factors affect wave size

A

Wind strength
Fetch
Time Wind has blown for

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2
Q

What is prevailing wind

A

The most prominent wind direction at a specific time

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3
Q

What is the prevailing wind in the UK

A

SW

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4
Q

How does wind strength affect wave size

A

The stronger the wind, the greater the friction on the sea, the bigger the wave

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5
Q

How does wind duration affect wave size

A

The longer the wind has been blowing, the more energy is transferred to the surface of the sea, the bigger the wave

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6
Q

Why do waves break

A

Friction slows the base of waves whilst the top maintains its speed

This causes the top of the wave to topple over the base

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7
Q

What is swash

A

The movement of the wave up the beach

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8
Q

What is backwash

A

Gravity moving the wave down the beach

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9
Q

What are constructive waves like

A

Shallow
Low energy
Strong swash, weak backwash

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10
Q

What do constructive waves do

A

Build up the beach by depositing material in the swash

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11
Q

What are destructive waves like

A

Steep
High energy
Weak swash, strong backwash

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12
Q

What do destructive waves do

A

Erode the beach by dragging material in the backwash

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13
Q

What is coastal erosion

A

The loss of land and/or the removal of material along the coastline as a result of destructive waves and other hydrological processes

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14
Q

How does hydraulic action work

A

Waves force water into cracks in rocks, this compresses the air inside

This explosive action of trapped air in a rock is called cavitation

Cavitation leads to loose sediment entering the ocean.

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15
Q

How does attrition work

A

Kinetic energy transferred to rocks by waves causes the rocks to swash into each other

These rocks get broken up and worn down and eventually end up on the shore

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16
Q

How does solution work

A

Seawater is slightly acidic and can dissolve material from the coastline

This is particularly apparent in limestone and chalk as they contain calcium carbonate which is easily dissolved

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17
Q

How does abrasion work

A

Waves smash rocks into the coastline

This causes the coastline to be worn away and chipped

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18
Q

What is coastal transport

A

The movement of sediment, eroded from the coastline, by waves

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19
Q

What determines how sediment is transported

A

The size of the sediment

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20
Q

How does solution transport material

A

Dissolved material is carried along the coastline by waves

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21
Q

How does saltation transport material

A

Small pebbles moving along the seas floor by hitting each other

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22
Q

How does suspension transport materials

A

Fine sediment is suspended in the water and moved with the direction of the waves

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23
Q

How does traction move material

A

Larger pebbles and cobbles roll along the seafloor

24
Q

What is the direction of coastal transport in the SW

A

NE

25
Q

What is weathering

A

When rock is broken down by physical, biological and chemical means

26
Q

What is weathering mostly caused by

A

Meteorological and climatic factors

27
Q

How can physical processes weather rock

A

When water freezes it expands and makes cracks in rocks bigger

When the ice thaws, water seeps deeper into the rock

This process repeats and causes fragments of rock to break off and fall to the base fo the cliff (scree)

28
Q

What types of rocks are more vulnerable to weathering by physical processes

A

Permeable and porous rocks (as water can seep deeper into them)

29
Q

How can chemical processes weather rock

A

Rainwater absorb CO2 from the atmosphere and become slightly acidic

Calcium carbonate in rocks can be dissolved by carbonic acid in rainwater

30
Q

How can biological processes weather rock

A

Plants and animals break up and crack rocks

Burrowing animals may break up or destabilise rocks

Plants can break up rocks as their roots grow

31
Q

What is mass movement

A

The downwards movement of materials due to gravitational pull

32
Q

What is a rockfall

A

The free-fall of rocks from a cliff face

This is worsened by freeze-thaw action

This forms a scree slope at the base of the cliff

33
Q

What is a mudflow

A

A rapid movement following rainfall

This occurs when there is not enough vegetation to hold topsoil in place

This occurs on slopes >10°

34
Q

What is a rotational slip

A

A rapid movement of earth or rock sliding along a concave plane

This occurs after periods of heavy rain

35
Q

What is a landslide

A

Earth, pebbles, rocks and boulders sliding down a slope

36
Q

What is a landform

A

A feature of the landscape that has been formed by erosion, transportation or deposition

37
Q

What is a headland

A

A piece of land jutting out into the sea, made from more resistant rock

38
Q

What is a bay

A

A part of the coast where the land curves in so that the sea is surrounded by land on three sides

39
Q

By which erosional processes are most coastal landforms made

A

Abrasion and hydraulic action

40
Q

What is a discordant coastline

A

A coastline made up of alternating bands of hard and soft rock

This results in the formation of headlands and bays

41
Q

Why do discordant coastline result in the formation of headlands and bays

A

Soft rock erodes faster, leaving an indent, m while hard rock sticks out into the sea to form a headland

42
Q

What is a wave-cut platform

A

A flat area the sea has eroded at the bottom of a cliff

This is caused by the cliff collapsing at high-tide level due to wave-cut notches

43
Q

What is a wave-cut notch

A

A dent at the base of a cliff that the sea has eroded

This gets bigger and an overhang forms

The weight of the overhang eventually causes the cliff to collapse; the cliff retreats and leaves a wave-cut platform at its base

44
Q

What is long-shore drift

A

The transportation and deposition of eroded material along the coastline

45
Q

How does LSD work

A

Waves approach the beach at an angle

The backwash carries the sediment down the beach due to gravity

This repeats, moving sediment across the beach laterally

46
Q

When does water deposit sediment

A

When the water no longer has the energy to carry the sediment

47
Q

What is wave refraction

A

Shallow water results in friction that slows down the wave

This causes other parts of the wave to curve around the area of shallow water, sheltering the regions beside it

48
Q

What is a spit

A

A stretch of sand of shingle jutting out into the sea from the land

49
Q

How do spits form

A

LSD carries sediment

When the shape of the coastline changes, deposition occurs, forming a spit

50
Q

When do hooks form on spits

A

When there is a change in wind direction

51
Q

How to marshes and mudflats form behind spits

A

Waves cannot get past the spit, sheltering the water behind it

Silts are deposited here to form marshes and flats

52
Q

What is a bar

A

A spit that has grown across a bay, connecting two headlands

53
Q

How does a lagoon form

A

A bar traps a body of water behind it

54
Q

What is a tombolo

A

A spit that has grown from the shoreline to an island

55
Q

How do sand dunes form

A

Embryo dunes are formed around deposited objects

These develop and become stabilised by vegetation

Vegetation rots and adds organic material to the dune, making it more fertile

More plants colonise the dune

56
Q

What does Marram grass do in the formation of sand dunes

A

Marram grass is adapted to windy conditions and has long roots to find water

These roots help to bind and stabilise the dune

Geography (10 decks)

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