Chapter 16 The Oceans, Coastal Processes, and Landforms

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Chapter 16The Oceans, Coastal Processes, and
Landforms

• Geosystems 6e
• An Introduction to Physical Geography

Robert W. Christopherson Charles E. Thomsen
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The Oceans, Coastal Processes, and Landforms

• Global Oceans and Seas  
• Coastal System Components  
• Coastal System Actions  
• Coastal System Outputs  
• Wetlands, Salt Marshes, and Mangrove Swamps  
• Human Impact on Coastal Environments

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Global Oceans and Seas 

• Chemical Composition of Seawater
• Salinity the concentration of dissolved solids
  in seawater
• Brine water that exceeds the average 35 parts
  per thousand salinity
• Brackish water that is less than the aver 35
  parts per thousand salinity  

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Salinity by Latitude
Figure 16.3
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Oceans Physical Structure
Figure 16.4
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Coastal System Components  

• Inputs to the Coastal System  
• Solar energy
• Atmospheric winds
• Climatic regimes
• Coastal geomorphology
• Human activities
• The Coastal Environment and Sea Level  
• Littoral zone the coastal or shore zone
  includes land and water
• Shoreline contact line between the sea and the
  land

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Littoral Zone
Figure 16.5
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Coastal System Components  

• Coast area of high tide to the first major
  landform change
• Sea level the average surface elevation of the
  worlds oceans

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Coastal System Actions  

• Tides complex daily oscillations in sea level
• Produced by the gravitational pull of the Sun and
  Moon
• Waves undulations of water caused by the
  friction between moving air and the ocean surface
• Tsunami seismic sea waves

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Coastal System Outputs  

• Erosional Coastal Processes and Landforms  
• Erosional coastlines rugged, high relief,
  techtonically active
• Wave-cut terrace
• Depositional Coastal Processes and Landforms 
• Beach place along the coast where sediment is
  in motion, deposited by waves and currents
• Barrier islands long, narrow depositional
  features that form offshore parallel to the coast 

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Erosional Features
Figure 16.13
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Florida Barrier Islands

Figure 16.19
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Littoral Drift
Figure 16.15
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Coastal System Outputs  

• Biological Processes Coral Formations
• Coral marine animal with small cylindrical,
  sack-shaped body
• Secrete calcium carbonate from their bodies
  creating an external skeleton  
• Require clear, sediment-free water
• Coral reef biologically derived sedimentary
  rock
• bleaching

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Coral Reef Distribution
Figure 16.20
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Wetlands, Salt Marshes, and Mangrove Swamps 

• Wetlands land covered by water for a
  significant period of time supporting hydrophytic
  vegetation
• Bogs
• Cypress swamps
• Bottomlands
• Potholes
• Tundra

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Coastal Wetlands

• Salt marshes midlatitudes
• estuaries
• Mangrove swamps - tropics

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Coastal Salt Marsh
Figure 16.22
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Mangroves
Figure 16.23
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Coastal Planning
Figure FS 16.1.1
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End of Chapter 16

• Geosystems 6e
• An Introduction to Physical Geography

Robert W. Christopherson Charles E. Thomsen