GEOG 2051 Final Exam Section 3 –
Namikas LSU Study Guide & Key
Concepts
coastal environments: significance - ANSWER ✨✔---- global population 2/3 of population line in
coastal zone
- economic activity/ infrastructure-harbors, recreation, resource extraction
- dynamic-tremendous amounts of energy moving through
- very young
coastal environments: littoral zone - ANSWER ✨✔---- littoral zone-section of coastal environment
where marine processes are capable of making changes
- offshore-water too deep to make changes
- nearshore-first of water zones
- surf zone-where waves are changing
- swash zone-where water rushes up & down coast with each wave
- foreshore-first of land zones, where land gets much steeper to low tide (tidal zone)
- backshore-beach area, cliffs, bluffs, sand dunes
coastal environments: tides - ANSWER ✨✔---- cyclic rise & fall of water
- low tide-flood tide-tide between low tide & high tide, water is rising
- high tide-ebb tide-tide between high tide & low tide, water is going back
- tidal range-distance between high tide & low tide (micro-small, meso-middle, macro-large, hypertidal)
, coastal environments: tide cycles - ANSWER ✨✔---- fundamental cause is gravity from moon,
moon gravity draws water to side of earth underneath moon, creates bulge on side of earth
- there is also a centrifugal force on the opposite side, earth and moon rotating around
- sun-also exerts gravitational attraction & creates tidal bulges, moon orbits earth (28 day cycle), tidal
bulges follow moon
- spring tide-sun, moon, & earth in straight line, tidal bulges on top of each other=highest high tides &
lowest low tides, largest tidal range
- neap tide-first quarter moon, moon above earth, lowest high tides, 7 days after highest, highest low
tides, smallest tidal range
- full moon-moon on other side of earth=another spring tide, 2 weeks after first
- third quarter moon- same as first quarter
coastal environments: wave parameters - ANSWER ✨✔---- wave crests-high point
- wave troughs-low points
- length-distance from crest to crest/ trough to trough (same distance)
- height-difference in elevation from crest to trough
- steepness-ratio of wave height:wave length
- period-how fast, time it takes for waves to travel 1 wave length
coastal environments: wave generation - ANSWER ✨✔---- solar energy-air heats up & expands &
rises (leaves space), air from surrounding area rushes in to fill space left behind (wind), creates waves
- speed of wind-faster=more friction & higher waves
- duration-how long wind lasts, waves grow slowly over time, wind must persist for waves to build up
(weeks)
- fetch-distance of open water available for wind to blow across
coastal environments: wave orbits - ANSWER ✨✔---- water particles move in circular pathways
- travels one circle with each wave length that passes
- height & period determine how fast particle moves
- lower particles move more slowly, eventually flow is too slow to move sediment (wave base)
Namikas LSU Study Guide & Key
Concepts
coastal environments: significance - ANSWER ✨✔---- global population 2/3 of population line in
coastal zone
- economic activity/ infrastructure-harbors, recreation, resource extraction
- dynamic-tremendous amounts of energy moving through
- very young
coastal environments: littoral zone - ANSWER ✨✔---- littoral zone-section of coastal environment
where marine processes are capable of making changes
- offshore-water too deep to make changes
- nearshore-first of water zones
- surf zone-where waves are changing
- swash zone-where water rushes up & down coast with each wave
- foreshore-first of land zones, where land gets much steeper to low tide (tidal zone)
- backshore-beach area, cliffs, bluffs, sand dunes
coastal environments: tides - ANSWER ✨✔---- cyclic rise & fall of water
- low tide-flood tide-tide between low tide & high tide, water is rising
- high tide-ebb tide-tide between high tide & low tide, water is going back
- tidal range-distance between high tide & low tide (micro-small, meso-middle, macro-large, hypertidal)
, coastal environments: tide cycles - ANSWER ✨✔---- fundamental cause is gravity from moon,
moon gravity draws water to side of earth underneath moon, creates bulge on side of earth
- there is also a centrifugal force on the opposite side, earth and moon rotating around
- sun-also exerts gravitational attraction & creates tidal bulges, moon orbits earth (28 day cycle), tidal
bulges follow moon
- spring tide-sun, moon, & earth in straight line, tidal bulges on top of each other=highest high tides &
lowest low tides, largest tidal range
- neap tide-first quarter moon, moon above earth, lowest high tides, 7 days after highest, highest low
tides, smallest tidal range
- full moon-moon on other side of earth=another spring tide, 2 weeks after first
- third quarter moon- same as first quarter
coastal environments: wave parameters - ANSWER ✨✔---- wave crests-high point
- wave troughs-low points
- length-distance from crest to crest/ trough to trough (same distance)
- height-difference in elevation from crest to trough
- steepness-ratio of wave height:wave length
- period-how fast, time it takes for waves to travel 1 wave length
coastal environments: wave generation - ANSWER ✨✔---- solar energy-air heats up & expands &
rises (leaves space), air from surrounding area rushes in to fill space left behind (wind), creates waves
- speed of wind-faster=more friction & higher waves
- duration-how long wind lasts, waves grow slowly over time, wind must persist for waves to build up
(weeks)
- fetch-distance of open water available for wind to blow across
coastal environments: wave orbits - ANSWER ✨✔---- water particles move in circular pathways
- travels one circle with each wave length that passes
- height & period determine how fast particle moves
- lower particles move more slowly, eventually flow is too slow to move sediment (wave base)
