LONGSHORE DRIFT
LONGSHORE DRIFT
When swimming in the ocean, have you ever wondered why you tend to be carried down the beach, away from your towel in an undertow?
The answer is simple. This process is called longshore drift and is generated by wave and current action.
Water and sediment are transported in a zig-zag pattern as waves and currents approach the shoreline at an angle. This zig-zag pattern is the mechanism for sediment transport as the swash is immediately followed by the backwash to the ocean. This energy created from the breaking waves allows for weak currents to carry large amounts of coarse-grained sediment down the shoreline. These weak currents, known as longshore currents, carry water and sediment parallel to the shoreline toward the downdrift end of the beach. For an animated view of lonshore drift,
When swimming in the ocean, have you ever wondered why you tend to be carried down the beach, away from your towel in an undertow?
The answer is simple. This process is called longshore drift and is generated by wave and current action.
Water and sediment are transported in a zig-zag pattern as waves and currents approach the shoreline at an angle. This zig-zag pattern is the mechanism for sediment transport as the swash is immediately followed by the backwash to the ocean. This energy created from the breaking waves allows for weak currents to carry large amounts of coarse-grained sediment down the shoreline. These weak currents, known as longshore currents, carry water and sediment parallel to the shoreline toward the downdrift end of the beach. For an animated view of lonshore drift,