Investigating Coasts

Investigating Coasts

W.A.L.A :Cliffs

L.O: Explain how the sea can make cliffs collapse

Additional resourceful information

https://youtu.be/csTIpgb8AfQ

• Heavy and powerful waves hitting the coastline hurl pebbles and rocks at the base of the cliffs

• This constant pounding in turn shakes the rocks leaving them open to erosion

• A wave-cut notch is formed by erosional processes such as abrasion and hydraulic action - this is a dent in the cliff usually at the level of high tide.

• As the notch increases in size, the cliff becomes unstable and collapses, leading to the retreat of the cliff face.

• As the waves pull back they carry away the eroded material, leaving a wave-cut platform

• The process then starts all over again as the cliff moves further and further back

How a cliff is is torn away as a result of sea action