7.3 Questions

1. erosion, transportation and deposition
2. wave refraction causes the wave to be concentrated in particular areas and less intense in others.
3.

4. headlands. they are shaped by hydraulic action, corrasion and corrosion
5. Hydraulic action - waves enter the cracks in the rocks and air is compressed into the cracks by the force of the wave. as the air is compressed it acts to erode rock.
Corrasion - the wave action moves rock and other material across the rock shelf and wear away the rock in an abrasive fashion
Corrosion - when waves break they wet the rocks, as the rock dries the salt in the sea water crystallises and acts on the minerals in the rock to erode material

7.2 Questions

1. ripples, fully developed seas, swells
2. the fetch is the length of where the waves form
3. as the waves form it hits the sea floor which causes them to break
4.

5.

6. spilling waves crumble up the top, plunging waves form a tube and you can get pitted, surging waves don't break and they just roll up the sea floor
7. wind swell is marked by a short wavelength and high frequency f waves hitting the beach and a ground swell forms when waves have traveled across a greater distance of ocean before hitting the coast. a ground swell has longer wavelength and the waves hit the beach less frequently

8.This is a synoptic chart of Cyclone Wati which struck the Sydney coast on 27th March 2006

9. there are 3 types of waves, a plunging wave, spilling wave and surging waves. a plunging wave makes a tube, a spilling wave 'crumbles' at its peak and a surging wave roll up the steep of the surface rather than breaking over it
10. Today, large swells hit our beach as I was patrolling it. It was like something out of a history book as large swells smashed into the rocks and rocked surfers around like they were just clothes in a washing machine. Luckily there were no deaths but many injuries mainly head injuries which were the result of this large cyclone swell. Obviously, we closed the beach but this didn't stop the sightseers and photographers to take record breaking shots of the swells. Today was a day to never forget.

Cribbar Waves

The Cribbar, also known as the Widow Maker, a name given to it after leaving many surfers injured after falling from their surfboards as they surfed these enormous waves, is a reef off the coast of sunny Cornwall, United Kingdom. The Cribbar is best known for its big waves that attract big wave surfers from across the world.

The waves won't break unless there's at least a 6-8ft swell and it can hold waves in the 25ft+ range. These waves are undoubtedly big but lose speed and power as they approach the shore, which leaves them behind other big waves around the world. These Cribbar waves were first surfed by American surfer Jack Lydgate in 1966.

Jack Lydgate Surfing a Cribbar Wave

The Science of Big Waves

Pre-viewing Questions


1. Where do ocean waves come from? What gets them started?
They come from winds turning the water into ripples and then into small waves and eventually getting bigger. waves come from out in the ocean and they travel a lot to get to the beach

2. What do you think a surfer should know about waves before they try and ride a wave while surfing?
that the waves can get really big and they can travel really fast. they can get as high up to a 4 story building and as fast as 60 km/h


Questions From the Video


1. Observe all the waves that you see and describe how they form and break. Use as many words found in the segment for you descriptions.

2. Describe how waves are formed, how they originate, and how they are measured?
waves are formed by the wind hitting the water making ripples, the starting point of a wave, and then they get bigger and bigger over kilometers of ocean to the beach. people measure the wave height and the wave length.

3. What is a maverick wave and what is special about the way it is formed?
a maverick is a big wave, like a really big wave and has a massive amount of energy in it and gets a lot of height as it hits the coast.

4. How is energy stored and transferred during wave?
the wave stores the energy in the actual wave and it is transferred into the wave height.

5. List any kind of advice given by the surfers about how to survive these “big waves.”
Respect the wave and its power as it is deadly, attempt with extreme caution and get in and get out.

7.2 definitions

ground swell - that has created a permanent, long-lasting shift in the way the world works.

plunging waves - A plunging wave occurs when the swell comes out of deep water and hits a shallow sandbar or reef

wave height - The difference between the crest and the trough

wavelength - The difference between two crests

fetch - To go and bring back

surf and swash zone - The area where the shore meets the first wave breaking

7.1 definitions

breakwaters - a barrier that breaks the force of waves, as before a harbor.

silting - A sedimentary material consisting of very fine particles intermediate in size between sand and clay

tidal flushing - the movement of water in and out of a water body due, in part, to tidal reason

sea change - when over development and rapid growth of coastal areas occur due to the current Australian trend for people to move from large cities to smaller coastal towns and villages where the lifestyle is more relaxed

urban stormwater - runoff and polluted runoff.

dredging - Dredging is an excavation activity or operation usually carried out at least partly underwater, in shallow seas or fresh water areas

introduced plants - Many non-native plants have been introduced into new territories.

Q1. The pressure of urban development along the coastline has caused a range of geogrpahical issues involving various groups. Residents, tourists and commercial - related activities all need to be managed by geographers so that the development of the coastline is sustainable.

Q2. A sustainable development for the coastline is recommended so the population growth and pollution can be managed.

Q3. Over development and rapid growth of coastal areas occur due to the current Australian trend for people to move from large cities to smaller coastal towns and villages where the lifestyle is more relaxed, and this is known as 'sea change'.

Q4. One government response to sea change is the residential caps they have put in place so the sea areas do not get over populated.

Q5. The four areas I have chosen to analyse are the following; introduced plants, inappropriate development, coastal rivers + lagoons and pollution. Firstly, introduced plants. In 1908 South African a plant to create sand dunes in Australia. The problem was that this plant killed all surrounding native flora.

Secondly the inappropriate development, many people have the dream of owning a beach house, that is why there is such a demand for beach estates. As a result poorly planned, overpopulated beach apartments have been created.

Thirdly, Coastal river entrances. River entrances along the coast are prone to silting up as a result of both natural and human actions.

Lastly, Pollution. Pollution from urban developments along the coastline is altering coastal ecosystems.

Q6.The geographers are the developers of these management solutions for the issues plaguing our coastal environments.

Q7. My name is Lukas de Vries and I have just moved into the new beach front apartments on the coast. I have loved my time here and love the view, but that was what I wanted to talk about, the view. I have seen the people in town look at my apartment blocks with anger and frustration, I realized that they feel as if these apartments should not be here and unfortunately I feel the same way. I find two problems with these apartments, the risks of living so close to the beach with global warming and seas rising, also the surface these buildings are over. If they are so close to the beach, they cannot be stable. I would very much appreciate it if you would post my comments in your next addition of your morning paper. Kind regards, Lukas.