Rip currents, mega-cusps, and eroding dunes

Thornton, Edward B.; MacMahan, Jamie; Sallenger, Asbury H.

doi:10.1016/j.margeo.2007.02.018

Cited by 151 publications

(124 citation statements)

References 24 publications

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“…The particle size of the beaches between Marina and Wharf II is positively correlated with wave height (Thornton et al, 2007). The smallest mean particle size of approximately 0.2 mm (fine sand) occurs near Monterey Harbor.…”

Section: Wave Climate and Beach Particle Sizementioning

confidence: 97%

“…In addition, the shoreline between Monterey and Sand City is sheltered by Point Piños headland from waves from the south and west, resulting in reduced wave energy. The net effect is a large alongshore energy gradient with relatively small wave heights at Monterey increasing to relatively large wave heights at Fort Ord and Marina (Thornton et al, 2007).…”

Section: Wave Climate and Beach Particle Sizementioning

confidence: 99%

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Coastal Regional Sediment Management Planning In Southern Monterey Bay, California

Brew

Battalio

Thornton

et al. 2011

Littoral 2010 – Adapting to Global Change at the Coast: Leadership, Innovation, and Investment

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The coastal dunes and beaches of southern Monterey Bay (the Bay) are eroding at approximately four feet per year, placing oceanfront property, infrastructure, and natural habitat at risk of loss. Erosion is exacerbated by mining operations that extract sand from the beach near the City of Marina. Recognising that much of California's coastal erosion, sediment supply and demand issues can be attributed to human modification of natural processes at regional scales, Regional Sediment Management (RSM) is being pursued by the responsible agencies. This paper presents the findings of the Coastal RSM Plan developed to address erosion in the Bay. The Plan first evaluates the sedimentary processes, erosion rates and sensitive species and habitat along the coast. Those data sets are then combined with economic, ecological, and societal considerations, to identify critical areas of erosion and to propose RSM-based solutions. The Plan recommends three main RSM strategies for the Bay. (1) reduce or eliminate mining of sand from the beach at Marina. Sand mining creates a sediment sink which increases erosion potential and, if stopped, erosion rates would slow. (2) allow dune erosion to continue without human intervention along the undeveloped sections of the Bay. This erosion would continue to supply large volumes of sand to the beaches, providing benefits for sensitive species and habitats, recreation and tourism. (3) investigate beach nourishment to ameliorate erosion along the southern developed part of the Bay, where the majority of high risk facilities are located.

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Section: Wave Climate and Beach Particle Sizementioning

confidence: 97%

Section: Wave Climate and Beach Particle Sizementioning

confidence: 99%

Coastal Regional Sediment Management Planning In Southern Monterey Bay, California

Brew

Battalio

Thornton

et al. 2011

Littoral 2010 – Adapting to Global Change at the Coast: Leadership, Innovation, and Investment

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…Sandbars safeguard beaches by dissipating storm waves before they impact the shore. Morphological coupling, for instance, can lead to alongshore variations in wave dissipation, resulting in localised beach and dune erosion and subsequent property loss during storms (Thornton et al, 2007). Many present-day soft engineering measures to improve coastal safety, such as shoreface nourishments, involve direct or indirect modifications to sandbars (e.g.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Morphological coupling in multiple sandbar systems – a review

Price

Ruessink

Castelle³

2014

Earth Surf. Dynam.

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Abstract. Subtidal sandbars often exhibit alongshore variable patterns, such as crescentic plan shapes and rip channels. While the initial formation of these patterns is reasonably well understood, the morphodynamic mechanisms underlying their subsequent finite-amplitude behaviour have been examined far less extensively. This behaviour concerns, among other aspects, the coupling of alongshore variable patterns in an inner bar to similar patterns in a more seaward bar, and the destruction of crescentic patterns. This review aims to present the current state of knowledge on the finite-amplitude behaviour of crescentic sandbars, with a focus on morphological coupling in double sandbar systems. In this context we include results from our recent study, based on a combination of remote-sensing observations, numerical modelling and data-model integration. Morphological coupling is an inherent property of double sandbar systems, where the inner bar may attain a type of morphology not found in single bar systems. Coupling is governed by water depth variability along the outer-bar crest and by various wave characteristics, including the offshore wave height and angle of incidence. In recent research, the role of the angle of wave incidence for sandbar morphodynamics has received more attention. Numerical modelling results have demonstrated that the angle of wave incidence is crucial to the flow pattern, sediment transport, and thus the emerging morphology of the coupled inner bar. Moreover, crescentic patterns predominantly vanish under highangle wave conditions, highlighting the role of alongshore currents in straightening sandbars and challenging the traditional conception that crescentic patterns vanish under high-energy, erosive wave conditions only.

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“…Ce sont des oscillations du trait de côte, en forme de croissant, souvent couplées à la morphologie subtidale (SHORT, 1999). Ces structures sont importantes car elles impliquent souvent des pics d'érosion locale du haut de plage et parfois du cordon dunaire lors d'épisodes de fortes tempêtes (THORNTON et al, 2007). Ces pics d'érosion sont couramment appelés hotspots dans la littérature.…”

Section: Introductionunclassified

Observation vidéo de la dynamique des méga-croissants de plage : plages d’Anglet (Pays Basque)

Birrien¹,

Castelle²,

Dailloux³

et al. 2012

XIIèmes Journées, Cherbourg

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Résumé :Les méga-croissants de plage (megacusps) sont couramment observés le long des hauts de plages sableuses assez pentues. Ils sont la signature érosive des courants d'arrachement au niveau du trait de côte. Dans ce papier nous présentons 8 mois de suivi par imagerie vidéo des comportements des systèmes barre subtidale/megacusp le long les plages Nord d'Anglet. Au Nord de la zone d'étude, dans la région la plus dynamique et fortement contrainte par une digue, ces systèmes sont régulièrement couplés en phase, inférant que la dynamique des megacusps est en grande partie contrôlée par la barre sous-marine. Mots-clés :Méga-croissants de plage -Morphodynamique -Imagerie vidéo -Barres en croissantTrait de côte -Plage sableuse -Erosion -Couplage Abstract : Megacusps are ubiquitous patterns in the sand along steep beach faces. They are erosive signature at the shoreline of the presence of rip currents. In this paper we present an 8-months video monitoring of both the nearshore sandbars and the megacusps at the Northern beaches of Anglet. In the northern region, where the most important beach changes were observed as a results of the coastal structures constrains, megacusps were found, most of the time, to couple in phase with the nearshore crescentic sandbars, suggesting that megacusp dynamics is essentially controlled by the evolving nearshore bathymetry.

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Rip currents, mega-cusps, and eroding dunes

Cited by 151 publications

References 24 publications

Coastal Regional Sediment Management Planning In Southern Monterey Bay, California

Coastal Regional Sediment Management Planning In Southern Monterey Bay, California

Morphological coupling in multiple sandbar systems – a review

Observation vidéo de la dynamique des méga-croissants de plage : plages d’Anglet (Pays Basque)

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