When Do Longshore Currents Move Sediment?
Longshore Currents Develop When Waves Approach a Beach at an Angle (Figure 12.37). Longshore Currents Cause Sediment Transport Called Longshore Drift...
Longshore currents develop when waves approach a beach at an angle (Figure 12.37). Longshore currents cause sediment transport called longshore drift. Longshore drift is the movement of sediments along a coast by waves that approach at an angle to the shore but then the swash recedes directly away from it.
What causes longshore sediment transport?
Sediment transport along the beach (parallel to the shoreline) caused by longshore currents and/or waves approaching obliquely to the shoreline. See Littoral Drift.
How does longshore drift move sediment?
Sediment is carried by the waves along the coastline. The movement of the material is known as longshore drift . Waves approach the coast at an angle because of the direction of prevailing wind. The swash will carry the material towards the beach at an angle.
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