Wind and waves (earth science)
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The document explains the dynamics of air, wind, and water, emphasizing how heated air rises and creates wind, which can lead to storms and influence landforms through erosion and sediment deposition. It describes the formation of waves and beach structures, detailing the effects of waves on coastal erosion and the variety of features like dunes and loess deposits shaped by wind. Additionally, it covers the characteristics of coral reefs, illustrating their different types and ecological significance.
Wind and waves (earth science)
- 2. Movement of the gases in the air. When air heats up, it expands and as a result, it rises. But when air rises, it doesn’t just leave a big hole behind with no air in it. Coolen air from the surrounding rushes into replace it and that is what we call wind. Cold air can sometimes slide across the top of warm air too which creates a very unstable situation and usually results in storms.
- 3. Waves are the result of wind traveling over water. The waves arise from the surface tension of water. Waves are form of energy which in the case of ocean waves, lifts water up as it moves along. Behind the wave it falls and rises again a few times which is why you get more than one ripple from a stone falling into a fond.
- 4. Winds erode by deflation and abrasion. Deflation is the blowing away of fine dry material until the water table is reached. The moisture of the water table binds the material together so it is generally understood that this represents the base level of wind erosion.
- 5. The wind can create landforms when it deposits its sediments, especially in desserts and along coasts. Both layers of loess and sand dunes are landscape features deposited by wind. These blankets of silt and mounds of sand are striking features in some parts of the world.
- 6. Windblown silt that blankets the landscape. Dust storms over thousands of years picked up this material transported it, and then deposited it. The thickest and most extensive deposits of loess on Earth in Western and Northern China. The silt was derived from nearby deserts. This fine, buff – colored sediment gives the yellow riven its name.
- 7. Which are hills of windblown soil. Dunes are formed where there is a supply of dry, unprotected soil and wind strong enough to move it.
- 8. The crescent – shape of dunes, these are most common where there is limited supply of sand.
- 9. The principal erosional work of the wind is to transport rock material. However, the wind is also able to break down unweathered rock. The wind abrades solid rock by means of the rock particles it carries. Along beaches, or on other dry sandy surfaces. They develop one or more smooth polished faces as a result of wind abrasion. Such pebbles are called ventifacts (from latin ventus, meaning “wind”) Various land forms such as natural bridges, rock pinnacles, rocks perched on pedestals, and even larage desert basins have been attributed to abrasion by wind – driven sand.
- 11. When waves reach the shore much of their energy is spent in eroded the rock of the coast. How rapidly rocks are worn back depends upon the nature of the rock material. Currents created wave action also play a part in shore erosion.
- 12. Move toward the sea along the bottom, close to the shore. The undertow tends to move rock debris out to sea along the bottom. However, the force of the waves rushing against the shore is stronger that the undertow.
- 13. Cause of waves which strike the shore at an angle move parallel to the shoreline. Longshore currents are common and tend to move loose material along the coast.
- 14. When water is flung against the shore it can wash away loose sediment such as sand, volcanic ash, and glacial till. As in the case of streams, glaciers, and wind, waves acquire cutting tools in the form of rock fragments.
- 15. Terrace extends out beneath the water at the cliff base.
- 16. Building an extension to the wave – cut terrace, the finest particles, however, are often scattered widely over the sea floor by currents.
- 17. Wave action carries rock materials up on the shore. These deposits are beaches. They may consist of sand, pebbles, cobbles, or boulders, or mixtures of these materials.
- 18. 1. Wave action – tend to deposit debris on the shore. 2. Undertow and Longshore – tend to remove the debris on the shore.
- 19. A wide shelf of deposits may be up beneath the water just offshore resulting gentle slope of the sea away from the shore then causes wave to form a low sand bar.
- 20. Water between bar and the mainland.
- 21. Formed on a headland on Island near the mouth of a bay or inlet by offshore currents moving parallel to the shore.
- 22. Coral reefs commonly form characteristic shoreline features in tropical and subtropical waters. Corals belong to one of the simpler groups of animals, the coelenterates. The typical coral reef consists of great numbers of such colonies together with many other kinds of animals and plants.
- 23. 1. Fringing Reef – is closely attached the shore of an Island or continent. 2. Barrier Reef – is a long narrow strip some distance from the shore. 3. Atoll – is a roughly circular reef where encloses a lagoon.