Unit 3:

Sea - features of
erosion and deposition
associated with wave
action

Topic 3
The power of wave action and
typical landforms
Features of erosion associated with Headlands and bays
wave action
• Most coasts have headlands and
• Ocean waves can release a large bays.
amount of energy when they wash
against the land. • Headlands are pieces of land that
stick out into the
• Like rivers, waves carry a load of sea.
sand, silt and stones.
• Bays are curved areas in between
• Waves continuously erode the coast. headlands.

• Erosion is much greater when waves • Rocks of different hardness and

are larger, during storms and strong resistance are the main cause of
winds. headlands and bays. 2
Wave Action: Erosion

• Hydraulic Action:

- is the erosion that occurs when the

motion of water against a rock surface
produces mechanical weathering.

• Abrasion:

- this is when pebbles grind along a

rock platform (waves carry a load of
sand and silt which erodes the rock).

3
Cliffs

• A cliff is a steep wall of rock that is

formed by wave erosion.

• Cliffs form in a similar way to

waterfalls.

• Waves erode the base of rocks on

the coast, causing the rocks above
to collapse.

• As erosion continues, the cliff face

retreats inland.

• The old base of the cliff remains as a

rocky area called a wave-cut
platform.

• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D
49Cv5D7vY
Caves, arches, and stacks

• Caves, arches and stacks are formed by wave erosion. Each feature is part of
a sequence of erosion that takes a long time to form, compared to a human
lifetime. in the cliff.

• Waves attack weak points in the clift. Small caves from around the points.
1.Cave

• Waves attack weak points in the cliff. Small caves form around the points.

2. Arch

• Two caves may form back-to-back on either side of a headland. An arch forms
when two caves meet.

3. Stack

• Wave erosion at the base of the arch and weathering above it weaken the
arch.

• Eventually the arch collapses and forms a stack.

4. Stack

• A stack is a column of rock which stands apart from the land.

Features of deposition caused by
wave action
Material that is eroded from headlands is transported in waves and currents.
This material is then deposited along the coast.
• The most common deposition feature
is a beach.

• A beach = is an area of loose sand or

stones that covers parts of the coast
between low tide and high tide.

• Some of the material on the beach is

transported by rivers and is then
spread along the coast by the action
of the waves.

• The movement of loose material

along the coast is caused by the
action of the waves.

• Longshore drift = If waves push the

loose material up the beach at an
angle, the material rolls down the
beach at a different angle.
Spits = narrow ridges of sand that
stick out into the sea or river
mouth.They are formed by the
action of the waves and the
longshore drift.When there is a
bend in the coast, the movement of
material continues in the direction
of the longshore drift.
This causes a spit of sand to build
up, sticking out away from the
land. Spits will continue to grow
until deposition can no longer
occur, due to changes in currents,
or the presence of a river.
Sometimes water is trapped behind
the spit.This area may become a
marshy area of mud and plants,
called a salt marsh.
Bars

Bars form when a spit grows across a bay

and joins two headlands. An area of water
called a lagoon forms behind the bar. The
lagoon may be filled with water from the
land, and with sea water that washes
over the bar from the sea, during very
high tides.
A lagoon may eventually turn into a salt
marsh.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?
v=3XBqEbPzgds