Coastal Processes and Wave Types

Vocabulary flashcards on wave types, coastal erosion processes, and sediment transport for coastal geography revision.

Destructive wave

A steep, high-frequency wave (11–16 per minute) with weak swash and strong backwash that erodes beaches and cliffs.

Constructive wave

A low-height, low-frequency wave (6–9 per minute) with strong swash and weak backwash that builds up a beach.

Swash

The flow of water up the beach after a wave breaks; direction is controlled by the prevailing wind.

Backwash

The water running back down the beach under gravity after swash; moves perpendicular to the shoreline.

Coast

The zone where land meets the sea; a coastal environment.

Fetch

The uninterrupted distance over which wind travels to generate a wave; one of the main factors controlling wave strength.

Coastal erosion

The wearing away of land and removal of sediments by wave action.

Solution (corrosion)

Erosional process in which seawater dissolves soluble rocks such as chalk.

Abrasion (corrasion)

Erosional process where rock fragments carried by waves grind against cliffs, acting like sandpaper.

Hydraulic action

Erosional process where waves force air and water into cracks in rock, increasing pressure and causing the rock to break apart.

Attrition

Erosional process where rock fragments carried by the sea collide and become smaller and rounder.

Longshore drift

The zig-zag transport of sediment along a coast due to angled swash and gravity-controlled backwash.

Wave frequency

The number of waves breaking on shore per minute; higher in destructive waves, lower in constructive waves.

Factors influencing wave strength

Fetch, wind duration, and wind strength determine how powerful a wave will be.