| Term |
Definition |
Details |
Type |
| Onshore | A movement from sea to land | Usually used to descibe winds | Coastal Environment
|
| Backshore | The beach area, landward of the foreshore above the normal reach of the tides, that provides the primary protection from the hinterland | | Coastal Environment |
| Intertidal and Nearshore | Zone of land between highest and lowest tides | In low-lying areas i.e mudflats, this can be very extensive and important ecologically | Coastal Environment |
| Offshore Zone | A zone that is seaward of the breakpoint | This may include features such as offshore bars | Coastal Environment |
| Coast | The area where landmasses meet the sea | Often used to encompass the zones on either side of the shoreline | Coastal Environment |
| Coastline/Shoreline | A line used in the analysis of shoreline evolution | It represents the cliff top edge on cliffed coasts, edge of hard defences where these exist, and the backshore/ hinter | Coastal Environment |
| Coastal Zonation | The identification of areas of coast often for planning purposes | The term may refer to zones such as offshore, onshore or to sections of the coast sharing common marine processes. | Coastal Environment |
| Littoral Zone | The environmental zone that exists between the highest and lowest levels of the spring tides. | | Coastal Environment |
| Beach System | The inputs, outputs, transfers, processes and stores that interact with each other on the beach | (blank) | System |
| Coastal System | The inputs, outputs, transfers, processes and stores that interact with each other along the coast | (blank) | System |
| Littoral Cells | Offshore littoral zones within which the circulation of sediment through longshore drift and other processes, is relatively self contained. | 11 such zones have been identified for England and Wales | System |
| Sediment Sinks | These occur when sediment movements meet and material is lost from marine circulation | They are often associated with the creation of depositional features | System |
| Dynamic Equilibrium | The balance between inputs and outputs in a system | It is linked to the concept of "steady state" | System |
| Storm Surge | A rapid rise in sea level brought about by a combination of factors. | These factors include; - High sring tides - strong onshore winds - funneling of water into narrow coastal zones - very low atmospheric pressure - esturine rivers at flood level due to prolonged rainfall. | System |
| Storm Event | An exceptionally powerful storm with associated geomorphological consequences i.e the creation of a new storm beach | (blank) | System |
| Structure | Geological features | i.e folding and faulting | Physical Factor AC |
| Lithology | Rock Type | (blank) | Physical Factor AC |
| Differential Erosion | The erosion of different geological elements at different rates due to variations. | i.e lithology or faulting which may lead to features such as headlands and bays. | Physical Factor AC |
| Fault Zone | Area of rocks with a high degree of faulting, making it prone to erosion | (blank) | Physical Factor AC |
| Jointing | Fractures in rocks that do not involve faulting | (blank) | Physical Factor AC |
| Bedding Plane | Surface within a rock that is parallel to the surface of deposition | Often associated with cracks that may lead to erosion | Physical Factor AC |
| Concordant Features | Features that occur where geological structures run parallel with the coast | (blank) | Physical Factor AC |
| Discordant Features | Features which occur when structures run at right angles to the coast | (blank) | Physical Factor AC |
| Wave Frequency | The number of waves per minute | (blank) | Physical Factor AC |
| Fetch | The distance that a wave travels before breaking | (blank) | Physical Factors AC |
| Dominant Wind | The wind direction that has the principal impact on marine processes in an area | (blank) | Physical Factor AC |
| Prevailing Wind | The wand that blows most frequently in an area | It is often the dominant wind | Physical Factor AC |
| Corrasion | Erosion caused by pebbles and rock fragments hitting the beach or cliff rocks. | (blank) | C Process |
| Abrasion | Another term for corrasion | (blank) | C Process |
| Corrosion | Erosion brought about by chemical action on rocks | (blank) | C Process |
| Hydraulic Action | Erosion brought about by the pressure of water on cliffs and beaches. | (blank) | C Process |
| Wave Refraction | The "bending" of a wave due to friction as its base touches the seabed | (blank) | C Process |
| Longshore Drift | The movement of material along a beach caused by waves (swash) striking the beach at an angle, and the backwash returning at right angles | (blank) | C Process |
| Rip Currents | Fast flowing backwash that can scour beach channels | (blank) | C Process |
| Tides | The periodic rises and falls of sea level due to the gravitational action of the sun and moon | (blank) | C Process |
| Micro-Tidal Environment | The zone of littoral affected by tidal action | It has particular relevance to ecological systems | C Process |
| Swash | Water moving up a beach after a wave has broken | (blank) | C Process |
| Backwash | The movement of water back down a beach due to gravity | (blank) | C Process |
| Sub-aerial Erosion | Non-marine erosional processes that occur on cliff and beach surfaces | (blank) | C Process |
| Rotational Slipping | Landslipping that occurs on a curved plane | It is often caused by weak underlying rocks giving way during saturation | C Process |
| Slumping | Movement of material down a slope, under gravity, but lubricated by water | (blank) | C Process |
| Flow | The movement of liquid or semi-liquid material downslope e.g on a cliff face | (blank) | C Process |
| Landslide | Movement of dry material downslope (due to gravity) with no lubrication | (blank) | C Process |
| Long Term Changes | Long Term - permanent changes that occur quickly or slowly | (blank) | C Process |
| Short Term Changes | Changes that happen relatively quickly and usually regarded as temporary | (blank) | C Process |
| Active Cliffs | Cliffs undergoing active erosion | (blank) | C Landforms |
| Degraded Cliffs | Non-active cliffs | (blank) | C Landforms |
| Wave-cut notch | An "undercut" or notch at the base of a cliff caused by marine erosion | (blank) | C Landforms |
| Wave-cut flatform | A gently sloping platform (less than 4o) at the base of the cliff, cut by marine action | (blank) | C Landfrorms |
| Cliff Profile | The verticle outline or cross-section of a cliff | (blank) | C Landforms |
| Sea Cave | Hollow cut in a cliff by marine action | eg. limestone caves Llantwit Major | C Landforms |
| Sea Arch | Arch in a cliff cut by marine action | eg. Durdle Door, Dorset | C Landform |
| Stack | Tall remnant of a cliff, left isolated by marine action | eg. The Needles | C Landform |
| Stump | Short remnant of a cliff, left isolated by marine action | (blank) | C Landform |
| Geo | Steep sided inlet cut by marine action | (blank) | C Landform |
| Beach | The deposit of non-cohesive material on the interface between dry land and the sea | (blank) | C Landform |
| Beach Cusps | Small "embayments" found on beaches that channel swash to their centres, thus maintaining their form | (blank) | C Landform |
| Beach Profile | Vertical cross section of a beach | (blank) | C Landform |
| Storm Beach | A line of coarse material deposited on the upper beach during a storm | (blank) | C Landform |
| Berm | Ridge of coarse material on the upper beach deposited by spring tides and storms | (blank) | C Landforms |
| Spit | Long strip of shingle joined to the coast | This results from marine deposition | C Landforms |
| Bar | Offshore deposit of sand or shingle | (blank) | C Landform |
| Tombolo | Island linked to mainland by a depositional feature such as a spit | (blank) | C Landform |
| Sea Level Changes | Can be positive, negative, eustatic, isostatic | Positive (a sea level rise relative to the land), Negative ( a sea level fall relative to the land), Eustatic ( changes caused by sea volume changes ie. global warming), Isostatic (changes brought about by vertical land movements ie. melting of glaciers) | C Landform |
| Raised Beach | Old becah left "high and dry" by falling sea level | (blank) | C Landform |
| Fjord | Glacial valley drowned by sea level rise to form narrow, steep sided inlet | (blank) | C Landform |
| Ria | Steep sided river valley drowned by sea level rise | e.g Dartmouth | C Landform |
| Estuaries | Lower stretches of rivers that are tidal - often drowned by post-glacial sea level rise | eg. Southhampton Water | C Landform |
