Beaches and Coasts

UK, Blackwell Publishing. – July 15, 2004. – 419 p. ISBN 0-632-04308-3 Coastlines of the world are as diverse as any geological setting on Earth. Beaches and Coasts is an exciting and unique new textbook that provides an exhaustive treatment of the world's different coasts and details the highly varied processes that have shaped them. Having conducted research on coastlines throughout the world, the authors draw on a wealth of experience that broadens the content of chapters and provides for numerous and varied examples. The book furnishes a basic understanding of the tectonic framework, hydrographic regime, climatic setting, and geologic materials that determine the morphology of a coast. Individual chapters are devoted to major coastal environments such as barriers, tidal inlets, marshes, estuaries, lagoons, deltas, glaciated coasts, rocky coasts and many others. Beaches and Coasts provides the necessary content for teaching a broad coastal geology course. Though designed for introductory students, its comprehensive treatment of coastal topics will make it appropriate for many upper level courses. Coastline variability and functions in the global environment Introduction Coastal settings Population and the coast General coastal conditions Coastal environments Historical trends in coastal research The Earth’s mobile crust Introduction The Earth’s interior Plate boundaries Continental margins Tectonic coastline classification Tectonic effects on coastal sediment supply Summary Sediments and rocks: materials of coastal environments Introduction Rock types Sediment texture Mineralogy Summary Sea-level change and coastal environments Introduction Changing the size and shape of the container: tectonic causes Climate and sea-level change Sea-level rise due to sediment compaction and fluid withdrawal Isostasy Changes in the volume of the world ocean Holocene rise in sea level Current and future sea-level changes The impact of increasing sea-level rise on-modem coastal environments Summary Suggested reading Weather systems, extratropical storms, and hurricanes Introduction Basic atmospheric circulation and weather patterns Mid-latitude storms Hurricanes and tropical storms Summary Waves and the coast Introduction Water motion and wave propagation Wind wave types Distribution and transfer of wave energy Other types of waves Wave-generated currents Summary Beach and nearshore environment Introduction Beach and nearshore morphology Beach types Beach materials Beach dynamics Summary Barrier systems Introduction Physical description Distribution and coastal setting Barrier types Prograding, retrograding, and aggrading barriers Barrier stratigraphy Barrier coast morphology Barrier coasts: morphology and evolution Summary Coastal dunes Introduction Types of coastal dunes and their distribution Dune formation Dune dynamics Summary Coastal lagoons Introduction Definition Morphology and setting General characteristics Example lagoons Summary Tides of the ocean Introduction Tide-generating forces Equilibrium tide Interaction of the Sun and the Moon Effects of orbital geometry Effects of partitioning oceans Tidal signatures Tides in shallow water Summary Tidal inlets Introduction What is a tidal inlet? Inlet morphology Tidal inlet formation Tidal inlet migration Tidal inlet relationships Sand transport patterns Tidal inlet effects on adjacent shorelines Summary Intertidal flats Introduction Morphology of tidal flats Sediments Organisms Sedimentary structures Tidal flat processes Tidal channels Some examples Summary Coastal wetlands Introduction Salt marshes Mangrove coasts Summary Estuaries Introduction Estuarine hydrology Classification of estuaries Estuarine processes Time-velocity relationships Model estuary Estuary types Summary River deltas: the source of most of our coastal sediments Introduction How deltas develop Deltas and sea level Delta environments Delta processes Delta classification Summary Glaciated coasts Introduction The world’s glaciers Pleistocene glaciation Glacial effects on coastlines Examples of glaciated coastlines Summary Rocky coasts Introduction Types and distribution Erosional processes Factors affecting rates of erosion Morphology Summary Reef coasts Introduction General reef characteristics Algal stromatolite reefs Oyster reefs Worm reefs Vermitid gastropod reefs Coral-algal reefs Coral reef deterioration from human activities Summary Coastal erosion Introduction Causes of erosion Coastal erosion factors Example scenarios of coastal erosion Summary Human interaction with coastal dynamics Introduction Construction on the coast Mining the coast Water quality Summary Glossary Coastlines of the world are as diverse as any geological setting on Earth. Beaches and Coasts is an exciting and unique new textbook that provides an exhaustive treatment of the world's different coasts and details the highly varied processes that have shaped them. Having conducted research on coastlines throughout the world, the authors draw on a wealth of experience that broadens the content of chapters and provides for numerous and varied examples. The book furnishes a basic understanding of the tectonic framework, hydrographic regime, climatic setting, and geologic materials that determine the morphology of a coast. Individual chapters are devoted to major coastal environments such as barriers, tidal inlets, marshes, estuaries, lagoons, deltas, glaciated coasts, rocky coasts and many others. Beaches and Coasts provides the necessary content for teaching a broad coastal geology course. Though designed for introductory students, its comprehensive treatment of coastal topics will make it appropriate for many upper level courses. Exciting and unique textbook that provides an exhaustive treatment of the world's different coasts and details the highly varied processes that have shaped them. The authors draw on a wealth of experience that broadens the content of chapters and provides for numerous and varied examples. Provides a basic understanding of the tectonic framework, hydrographic regime, climatic setting, and geologic materials that determine the morphology of a coast. Individual chapters are devoted to major coastal environments such as barriers, tidal inlets, marshes, estuaries, lagoons, deltas, glaciated coasts, rocky coasts, and many others. Provides comprehensive content for teaching a broad coastal geology course for both introductory and upper level courses. "Beaches and Coasts provides the necessary content for teaching a broad coastal geology course. Though it is designed for introductory students, its comprehensive treatment of coastal topics will make it appropriate for many upper level courses."--Jacket