Geography Exam 3
Shoreline
component of the littoral zone refers to the point of contact between land and water
calcium carbonate
coral secretes _______ to form an organic rock home
Wave Regression
have energy focuses around headlands and tend to disperse energy
Flood Tide
high tide is also know as this
jetty
is a long, narrow structure that protects a coastline from the currents and tides
groin
is a rigid hydraulic structure built from an ocean shore (in coastal engineering) or from a bank (in rivers) that interrupts water flow and limits the movement of sediment
coral reefs
large, lithified formations of calcium carbonate formed from both living and skeletal coral colonies; they occupy a very specific ecologic zone; 10-55 meters depth; 2.7-4.0 salinity; between 18 and 29 degrees C; 30North-30South; animals living symbiotically with algae
Ebb tide
low tides is also know as this
Coral
made of animals living symbiotically with simple algae
example of a coastal wetland
mangrove swamp (tropical climate) brackish water and fish nurseries or saltwater marsh (warm to mild climate) functions: great productive natural ecosystem also act as a storm buffer
Barrier Island
poor sites for real estate development because they are unstable and often mobile and they can be overrun by storm surges
Wave Trains
produced by storm centers these are generated in regions far distant from from the shore where they may break
Temperature and salinity
within the mixing zone and thermocline, average ________ and ________ decrease with depth
Breaker
a wave whose height exceeds its vertical stability
what is gravitational attraction of the sun and moon
Cause water of the ocean to raise and lower at different parts of the earth
Barrier reef
Formed in enclosed lagoons
Fringing reef
Platforms for surrounding coral rock
Tombolo
a depositional coastal land form that connect an island or sea stack to the shoreline
Littoral Zone
a general term for the coastal area and shallow offshore environment
Rip Current
a relatively strong, narrow current flowing outward from the beach through the surf zone and presenting a hazard to swimmers
Spring Tide
a tide that occurs when constructive interference between lunar and solar bulges produces a large tidal range
Neap Tide
a tide that occurs when destructive interference between lunar and solar bulges produce a small tidal range
Wave of Transition
a type of wave that approaches the shoreline and enters shallower water, energy and water move forward causing the water to rise and cascade down from the wave crest as breaker
Terrace
an uplifted wave-cut platform
Cliff
another word for wave-cut
Sea Level
calculated based on average tidal levels recorded hourly at a given site over a period of many years
water
can be considered a universal solvent
Coast
extended inland from the high tide level to the first major landform change
Lagoon
shallow saltwater body cut off from the ocean by a bay barrier
Sea
smaller than an ocean and tends to be associated with land masses
Seawater
the chemical composition of _______ is affected by the atmosphere, marine organisms, minerals and ocean sediments
Swell
the name given to rounded waves