Classification of Coastal Environments, Shorezone Profile Dynamics.
Abstract
Principal components analysis was used to quantify subaerial and subaqueous summer to winter nearshore morphological change on the North Carolina coast near Duck. The first two eigenvectors explained 61.1% of the total variance. El (35.4% of the variance) is a profile rotation and E2 (25.7% of the variance) is a bar/trough function. Two major periods of change were found. High pressure systems in October and extratropical cyclones in November were the weather systems implicated in these changes. These storms caused the profiles to become dissipative. Steepness declined and two bars replaced a single bar profile form. A relationship between pre-existing morphology and subsequent changes in the equilibrium bar/trough morphology was observed during the storm period. Wave characteristics (height, period, steepness, direction, and breaker type) could not be associated with profile changes. The simultaneous offshore sediment movement across three well-defined zones of the shorezone suggest that shore-normal edge waves may be the dominant causative agent for these changes.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Mar 01, 1984
- Accession Number
- ADA139947
Entities
People
- B. P. Hayden
- R. J. Wayland
Organizations
- University of Virginia