Coastal Processes
GEOL 103 Laboratory Overview
Learning Goals
In this module, you will:
- basic terminology of coastal and shoreline processes - waves, tides, deltas, beaches
- how barrier islands and shoreline features are modified by natural processes, and
- how humans interact and modify shoreline environments.
Introduction
Oceans 101
Oceans dominate Earth's surface - there is more water on Earth's surface than there is land. For this reason, oceans play an outsized role in regulating Earth's climate system. More humans live near all the oceans than anywhere else on land and rely on the oceans for many resources, so a substantial portion of the human population is impacted by the health of the oceans or disasters linked to oceans (hurricanes, droughts, wildfires, etc.) Below is a brief introduction to oceans by NASA and National Geographic.
NASA | The Ocean: A Driving Force for Weather and Climate
Oceans 101 | National Geographic
Oceanscapes
Some dramatic coastal landscapes can be seen worldwide, and oceans have shaped all of them. Below are some examples.
Great Barrier Reef
The world's largest coral reef system located off the shore of Queensland, Australia. It is a World Heritage Site and supports a wide diversity of sea life. The reef is a living organism that grew on the eroded sediment derived from the mountain ranges of eastern Australia.
Location of the Great Barrier Reef in Australia.
Coastal Landforms
Amazing geological landforms can be created because of wave erosion. Commonly found in certain parts of the world that have steep coastal terrains (headlands), where wave energy along shorelines breakdown the rocks and create some very distinctive landscapes (sea arches and stacks) as well as depositional features such as barrier islands and beaches.
Explore the coast of Pacifica, CA in the map below. This area of the Pacific Coast is filled with steep bluffs, sea stacks, and very narrow beaches.
The coast of Pacifica, CA.
Ocean Tides
The gravitational action of the sun and moon on Earth causes the ocean levels to temporarily rise and fall regularly along the shorelines. In most coasts, the tides cause water levels to rise and fall daily. In certain geological settings the tidal range can be extreme (more than 40 ft in Bay of Fundy). In the low country region, the tidal range is more modest (4-6 ft).
The Bay of Fundy in Canada is location for some impressive tides.
El Nino
Ocean currents can have significant impact on climates of the lands in coastal areas surrounding the ocean basins. The El Nino phenomenon is the disruption of the ocean currents in the Pacific Ocean along the Equator. Because of the disruption, monsoons in Southeast Asia and rains in coastal California are disrupted. The nutrient-rich water off the Pacific Ocean shores of South America are starved of nutrients and fish, causing substantial hardships to people of these coastal areas.
Click on the map above to examine the ocean currents in all the ocean basins. The red colors show the sea surface temperature during the strong El Nino season of 2016.
Hurricanes and Oceans
Below is a map of all the recent hurricane tracks within the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic basins. Zoom into the map to identify the hurricanes (or cyclones or typhoons as they are called in other parts of the world.)
Hurricanes in the World (up-to-date for this year).
Resources for the Lab
Textbook Resources
Below are links to textbook resources:
Video Resources
See the Lab Instructions for videos you need to watch.