Coasts EQ1

Question 1

What is the Littoral Zone?

Answer 1

The wider coastal zone, including coastal land areas and shallow parts of the sea offshore

Question 2

Name the subdivisions of the Littoral Zone

Answer 2

Offshore, Nearshore, Foreshore, Backshore

Question 3

What is offshore?

Answer 3

The area beyond the influence of breaking waves

Question 4

What is nearshore?

Answer 4

Intertidal and within the break zone. It is used for fishing, trade and leisure

Question 5

What is foreshore?

Answer 5

The part of the shore between high and low water marks, or between the water and cultivated or developed land

Question 6

What is backshore?

Answer 6

Above high tide and the influence of normal wave patterns. It may have a storm beach further up

Question 7

What are the characteristics of rocky coasts?

Answer 7

Subject to erosion, steep or vertical profile, resistant rocks, weathering and mass movement, high energy environment

Question 8

What are the characteristics of a plain coast?

Answer 8

Deposited landscapes, low and flat often poorly drained, accretion process dominated, coastline advances seaward, often low energy environment

Question 9

What is a primary coastline?

Answer 9

Dominated by land based processes (deposited from rivers or lava flows)

Question 10

What is a secondary coastline?

Answer 10

Dominated by marine erosion and depositional processed

Question 11

What is an emergent coastline?

Answer 11

Where the coast is rising relative to the sea level due to tectonic uplift

Question 12

What is a submergent coastline?

Answer 12

Areas flooded by rising sea levels or subsiding land

Question 13

What is tidal range?

Answer 13

Microtidal - 0-2m
Mesotidal - 2-4m
Macrotidal - 4+m

Question 14

What is a low energy coastline?

Answer 14

Sheltered coasts with limited fetch and low wind speeds with small waves

Question 15

What is a high energy coastline?

Answer 15

Exposed coasts facing prevailing winds with a long fetch and powerful waves

Question 16

What are the elements of rock strata?

Answer 16

Different layers of exposed rock

Question 17

What are the elements of rock deformation?

Answer 17

Degrees of tilting and folding by tectonic activity

Question 18

What are the elements of rock faults?

Answer 18

Factoring that may have moved rocks from their original positions

Question 19

What is a concordant coastline?

Answer 19

When rock strata runs parallel to the coastline

Question 20

What is a discordant coastline?

Answer 20

When different rock strata intersect the coast at an angle so rock type varies along the coastline

Question 21

Give an example of a concordant coastline

Answer 21

Dalmatian Coast in the Adriatic Sea

Question 22

Describe the Dalmatian Coast as a Concordant Coastline

Answer 22

Limestone has been folded by tectonic activity into a series of anticlines and synclines that run parallel to the coastline

Question 23

What has happened to the syncline basins?

Answer 23

They have drowned due to sea level rise

Question 24

What has happened to the anticlines?

Answer 24

They have produced long, off-shore islands

Question 25

Describe discordant coasts

Answer 25

They are dominated by headlands and bays, less-resistant rocks are eroded to form bays, more resistant rocks remain as headlands

Question 26

What is wave refraction?

Answer 26

In deep water, wave crests are parallel. As water shallows towards the coast, waves slow down and wave height increases. In bays, wave crests curve to reflect their shape and wave height decreases

Question 27

What is wave action concentrated on?

Answer 27

Headlands

Question 28

What influences cliff profiles?

Answer 28

Rock type and resistance, the dip of rock strata in relation to the coastline, faulting to expose rocks to erosion, and natural cracks in the rock (joints and fissures)

Question 29

Describe igneous rock

Answer 29

Crystalline, strong and resistant, very slow recession (less than 0.1cm a year)

Question 30

Give an example of igneous rock

Answer 30

Granite

Question 31

Describe metamorphic rock

Answer 31

Generally resistant, some may have crystals oriented in one direction, rocks may be folded or faulted so have weak areas, slow recession (0.1-0.3cm a year)

Question 32

Give an example of metamorphic rock

Answer 32

Slate

Question 33

Describe sedimentary rock

Answer 33

Rocks are clastic (stick together in layers), less-resistant, rocks have natural bedding planes, fast recession (0.4-10cm a year)

Question 34

Give an example of sedimentary rock

Answer 34

Sandstone

Question 35

Describe unconsolidated rock

Answer 35

Very weak material, easily eroded, rapid recession (2-10cm a year)

Question 36

Give an example of unconsolidated rock

Answer 36

Boulder clay

Question 37

What are permeable rocks?

Answer 37

Rocks that allow water to pass through (sandstone and limestone)

Question 38

What are impermeable rocks?

Answer 38

Rocks that don’t allow water to pass through (clay, most igneous and metamorphic rocks)

Question 39

Why is vegetation useful when strengthening coasts?

Answer 39

The roots bind sediments together, when submerged they protect the surface from erosion, they protect sediment from wind and rain due to friction on the leaves

Question 40

Describe how sand dunes are formed

Answer 40

Sand is deposited by the sea under low-energy environments, the wind moves the sand to build sand dunes further up the beach, these become colonised by stabilising plants