Chapter 15: Shorelines/The Dynamic Ocean

The energy that drives surface ocean currents such as the Gulf Stream comes from ________.

prevailing winds

Thermohaline circulation is ________.

deep circulation of water driven by a combination of cold temperature and high density related to high salinity from formation of sea ice, producing descending high density waters that flow southward to equatorial regions

Rocks and sand on beaches become rounded rapidly because ________.

The swash action of waves rolls loose material up and down the beach, where it is abraded rapidly to produce rounded grains

Sand transport parallel to the shoreline is common on beaches and is called longshore transport.

true

The movement of water within the surf zone that parallels the shore is termed ________.

longshore current

A sandbar that completely crosses a bay, sealing it off from the open ocean, is a ________.

tombolo

sea stack

coastal barrier

none of these

The presence of which one of the following would indicate that the land had been uplifted or that sea level had fallen?

elevated marine terrace

Which one of the following is a landform created by wave erosion?

sea arch

Groins are constructed for the purpose of maintaining or widening beaches that are losing sand.

true

Seawalls stabilize beaches producing renewed deposition on the beach.

false

Elevated wave-cut platforms in Southern California are evidence that this coastal area is emergent.

true

When sea ice forms in high latitudes, the sea ice has ________.

lower salinity than the ocean waters it forms from

A poleward-moving ocean current is considered a warm current.

true

The black sand beaches in Hawaii are comprised of ________.

fragments of basaltic volcanic rock

Waves begin to "feel bottom" when the depth of water is ________.

equal to wavelength

A flat, bench-like surface cut in rock along a coast is a ________.

wave-cut platform

A sand ridge connecting an island to the mainland or to another island is a ________.

tombolo

A baymouth bar is a manmade feature designed to control wave erosion.

false

Large estuaries are more common on a(n) ________ coastline.

Submergent

The largest daily tidal range occurs in association with spring tides.

true

As the tide rises, water flows in toward the shore as the ebb tide.

false

Deep-ocean circulation currents are referred to as ____________ circulation

thermohaline

Surface ocean currents are directed by _________

the Coriolis effect

the distribution of landmasses

wind patterns

All of the choices are correct

The time it takes for one full wave to pass a fixed position is called _____________.

wave period

In the open sea, the movement of water particles in a wave becomes negligible at a depth equal to about ____________ the distance from wave crest to wave crest

one-half

The bending of wave is called what?

Refraction

The movement of particles of sediment in a zigzag pattern along a beach is known as _________.

beach drift

Choose the answer that demonstrates the development of a sea stack over time by placing the related terms in order from first to form to last to form

Headlands; sea caves; sea arch; and sea stack

Which of the following is not an erosional shoreline feature?

Spit

Exposed wave-cut cliffs and platforms are frequently found along ____________ coasts

emergent

The largest daily tidal ranges are associated with ____________ tides

spring

Areas exposed during low tide and flooded during high tide are called _________.

tidal flats