Shorelines and Shoreline Processes - The Changing Earth: Exploring Geology and Evolution - page 423

Geo-inSight

Shoreline Processes and Beaches

Beaches are the most familiar depositional landforms
along shorelines. They are found in a variety of sizes
and shapes, with long sandy beaches typical of the
East and Gulf Coasts, and smaller, mostly protected
beaches along the West Coast. The sand on most beaches

is primarily quartz, but there are some notable exceptions,
shell sand beaches in Florida and black sand beaches in
Hawaii. Beaches are dynamic systems where waves, tides,
and marine currents constantly bring about change.

1. The Grand Strand of South Carolina,
shown here at Myrtle Beach, is 100 km
of nearly continuous beach.

2. Small pocket beach at Big Sur, California.

3. Diagram of a beach showing its component parts.

Beach

Dunes

Foreshore Backshore

Beach face Berms

High tide level

Low tide level

Berm

4. The backshore
area of a pocket
beach along the
Pacific coast.
Note that the
berm ends at the
rocks on the
right and the
beach face
slopes steeply
seaward.

5. The origin of beach
cusps like these at
Mykanos, Greece, is
poorly known, but they
are very common.

Beach
face

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