Coastal Geomorphology Overview

The bending of a wave crest as different parts of the wave move at different speeds, often due to variations in water depth.

A current that runs parallel to the shoreline, transporting sediment along the coast.

A tsunami initially has a small wave height but a very long wavelength, causing a noticeable pull of water away from the shore.

A coastline primarily composed of sand, often characterized by beaches and dunes.

A coastline dominated by rocky cliffs, boulders, and headlands.

A coastline characterized by fine-grained sediments like silt and clay, often forming tidal flats.

A coastline shaped primarily by terrestrial processes, with minimal modification by marine processes.

A coastline significantly shaped by marine processes, such as wave erosion, deposition, and currents.

The ongoing increase in global sea levels primarily driven by the melting of glaciers and ice sheets due to climate change.

The process of wearing away and transporting soil and rock by natural forces like wind, water, and ice.

The area of land between the high and low tide marks, directly influenced by the changing tides.

The balance between the amount of sediment being added to and removed from a shoreline.

Structures built to protect shorelines from erosion, such as seawalls, groins, and breakwaters.

Methods that mimic natural processes to prevent erosion, such as beach nourishment and dune restoration.

The frozen parts of the Earth, including glaciers, ice sheets, sea ice, and permafrost.

The balance between the amount of energy the Earth receives from the sun and the amount it radiates back into space.

A ridge of sand that connects an island or a rock to the mainland, formed by longshore currents and wave action.

Long, narrow islands of sand that run parallel to the mainland but are separated from them by a shallow body of water.

A landward migration of a barrier island due to sea level rise.

A deposit of sand created when waves overtop a barrier island and deposit sediment on the landward side.

Barrier Islands can form through two main processes: Drown in Place and Spit Extension.

A slow-growing, underwater ecosystem formed by colonies of coral polyps.

A large system of circulating ocean currents in a specific region.

Coral reefs develop in distinct stages around volcanic islands: Fringing Reef, Barrier Reef, and Atoll.

The slow, conical wobble of Earth's axis, causing a gradual shift in the timing of seasons over thousands of years.

Cycles of colder (glacial) and warmer (interglacial) periods driven by factors like Earth's precession and Milankovitch cycles.

The elevation above which snow persists year-round. It plays a key role in glacier formation.

The difference between snow accumulation (input) and ice melt (output). Positive budget leads to glacier advance.

When meltwater freezes around rock fragments, pulling them out as the glacier moves.

The grinding and scraping of rock fragments embedded in the glacier against the bedrock, leaving grooves and scratches.

A bowl-shaped depression carved by a glacier, often containing a tarn (lake) at its base.

A ridge of sediment deposited by a glacier as it retreats, marking a point where the glacier was stable for a period of time.

A ridge of sediment deposited along the sides of a glacier, formed by rock and debris falling from the glacier's walls.

A ridge of sediment formed when two lateral moraines merge together as glaciers join.

A large piece of rock that was transported by a glacier and deposited in a location far from its original source.

A long, winding ridge of sand and gravel deposited by a meltwater stream flowing beneath a glacier.

A depression in the ground, often filled with water, created when a block of ice melts after a glacier retreats.

The uppermost layer of soil in permafrost that thaws in the summer and freezes in the winter.