Coastal plain- Low-relief regions of land adjacent to the coastContinental shelf- A broad, shallowly submerged region of a continent along a passive margin Continental slope- the slope at the edge of a continental shelf, leading along a passive marginContinental rise- The sloping sea floor that extends from the lower part of the continental slope to the abyssal plainAbyssal plain- A broad, relatively flat region of the ocean that lies at least 4.5 km below sea levelHypsometric curve- A graph that plots surface elevation on the vertical axis and the percentage of the Earth’s surface on the horizontal axisOcean crust- The crust beneath the oceans; composed of gabbro and basalt, overlain by sedimentBasalt- A fine-grained mafic igneous rock Continental crust- The crust beneath the continentsGranite- A coarse-grained intrusive silicic igneous rockEarth- Moon-Sun- Tides- The daily rising or falling of sea level at a given point on the EarthCentrifugal force- Spring tides- An especially high tide that occurs when the Sun is on the same side of the Earth as the MoonNeap tides- An especially low tide that occurs when the angle between the direction of the Moon and the direction of the Sun is 90 degreesFull/new moon- Quarter moon- Shoreline shape- The boundary between the water and landBay of Fundy- Waves- (Wave front- The boundary between the region through which a wave has passed and the region through which it has not yet passed) Wind- Wavelength- The horizontal difference between two adjacent wave troughs or two adjacent crests Wave height- Crest- Trough- Wave base- The depth, approximately equal in distance to half a wavelength in a body of water, beneath which there is no wave movementFetch- The distance across a body of water along which a wind blows to build wavesSurf- (Surf Zone- A region of the shore in which breakers crash onto the shore)Breakers- A water wave in which water at the top of the wave curves over the base of the waveOrbits- Equilibrium- Berm- A horizontal or landward-sloping terrace in the backshore zone of a beach that receives sediment during a stormBeach profile- Wave refraction- The bending of waves as they approach a shore so that their crests make no more than a 5-degree angle with the shorelineHeadland- A place where a hill or cliff protrudes into the seaEmbayment- A low area of coastal land Long shore current- A current that flows parallel to the beach Sand Spit- where the coastline indents landward, beach drift stretches beaches out into open water Barrier islands- An offshore sand bar that rises above the mean high-water level, forming an island Tidal delta- Tidal inlet-Dunes- A pile of sand generally formed by deposition from the windOver wash- Seawalls- A wall of riprap built on the landward side of a backshore zone in order to protect shore cliffs from erosionRiprap- Loose boulders or concrete piled together along a beach to absorb wave energy before it strikes a cliff face Groins- A concrete or stonewall built perpendicular to a shoreline in order to prevent beach drift from removing sandJetties- A manmade wall that protects the entrance to a harborBeach Nourishment- Rip current- A strong, localized seaward flow of water perpendicular to a beachUnder toad- Eustatic- (Eustatic sea-level change- A global rising or falling of the ocean surface)Heat- Thermal energy resulting from the movement of moleculesGlaciers- A river or sheet of ice that slowly flows across the land surface and lasts all year longSpreading- (Spreading rate- the rate at which sea floor moves away from a mid-ocean ridge axis, as measured with respect to the sea floor on the opposite side of the axis Collision- The process of two buoyant pieces of lithosphere converging and squashing togetherSubsidence- The vertical sinking of the Earth’s surface in a region, relative to a reference planeTectonism- Isostasy- (Isostatic equilibrium- the condition that exists when the buoyancy force pushing lithosphere up equals the gravitational force pulling lithosphere down Convection- Heat transfer that results when warmer, less dense material rises while cooler, denser material sinksITCZ- Monsoon- A seasonal reversal in wind direction that causes a shift from a very dry season to a very rainy season in some regions of the worldTropic Cancer- Tropic Capricorn-Equator- Coriolis- (Coriolis effect- the deflection of objects, winds, and currents on the surface of the Earth owing to the planet’s rotation)Equatorial Low- the area of low pressure that develops over the equator because of the intertropical convergence zoneSubtropical High- (Subtropical Divergence Zone- a belt of high pressure in the atmosphere at 30 degree latitude formed where the Hadley cell converges with the Ferrel cell, causing cool, dense air to sinkPolar High- The zone of high pressure in Polar Regions created by the sinking of air in the polar cellsHorse Latitudes- The region of the subtropical high in which winds are weak Rain Shadow- The inland side of a mountain range, which is arid because the mountains block rain clouds from reaching the area Continental Interior- (Continental-interior desert- an inland desert that develops because by the time air masses reach the continental interior, they have lost all of their moisture)Polar- (Polar Glacier- dry bottom glacier) (Polar Front- the convergence zone in the atmosphere at latitude 60 degrees) Cold Coast- Aeolian-Suspended load- tiny solid grains carried along by a stream without settling to the floor of the channel Saltating- (Saltation- the movement of a sediment in which grains bounce along their substrate, knocking other grains into the water column (or air) in the processSurface load- Desert pavement- A mosaic-like stone surface forming the ground in a desertErosion- The grinding away and removal of Earth’s surface materials by moving water, air, or ice Deposition- The process by which sediment settles out of a transporting mediumDunes- A pile of sand generally formed by deposition from the windCrossbeds- Slipface- The lee side of a dun, which sand slides downWhite sands- Gypsum- Moisture- Vegetation- Loess- Layers of fine-grained sediments deposited from the wind; large deposits of loess formed from fine-grained glacial sediment blown off outwash plains Desertification- The process of transforming non-desert areas into desertAral sea- Snow Line- The boundary above which snow remains all year Granular ice- Firn- Compacted granular ice (derived from snow) that forms
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