Coastal Development and physical processess

Key Terms
1. Prevailing wind
  1. The dominant wind in an area
2. Crest
  1. The top or peak of a wave
3. Swash
  1. Movement of waves up a beach
4. Backwash
  1. Movement of water down the beach
5. Weathering
  1. The breaking down of rocks by the action of the weather, plants or chemical action.
6. Landform
  1. A physical feature that has been shaped by erosion/ weathering
7. Headland
  1. Where the land juts out into the sea
Waves
1. Constructive waves
  1. Long, low waves that spill onto the beach. Strong swash, limited backwash
  2. BIG swash
  3. small backwash
  4. Beach builds up gradually
2. Destructive waves
  1. Short, steep waves that plunge onto the beach with force. Quite strong swash, but much stronger backwash
  2. BIG backwash
  3. small swash
  4. Beach and cliffs are eroded
Erosion Proccesses
1. Abrasion (corrasion)
  1. During storm conditions waves pick up sand and pebbles. As waves break, this material is hurled at the cliff face. This 'sandblasting' effect is the most powerful source of coastal erosion in the UK.
2. Attrition
  1. Sand and pebbles are constantly colliding with each other as they are moved by waves breaking on a beach. This action wears away the beach material, making it increasingly smaller and more rounded.
3. Hydraulic Action
  1. The sheer force of waves breaking against a cliff causes parts of the cliff to break away. Also, as waves hit a cliff face air is compressed into cracks, blasting away fragments of rock.
Weathering Processes
Landforms
Spits, Bars and Tombolos

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Coastal Development and physical processess

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	Created by Corey Meehan over 8 years ago

	Copied by Amber Patel almost 4 years ago