Sediment transported by waves and currents is typically sorted by size and density, producing distinctive geometrical patterns or structures that are primarily manifested by variations in grain size.
Cores of sedimentary deposits taken adjacent to measurements of near-bed fluid motion and bed elevation will be used to study the relation between wave climate, sediment transport processes, bathymetric evolution and the resulting sedimentary deposits in the most active portion of the profile envelope.
Our primary objective is to determine the dominant transport mechanism(s) during bar migration. Secondary objectives are to determine the role, if any, of rip currents in effecting the off-shore transport of coarse sediment; and to resolve ambiguities in sediment transport direction, which may arise in the interpretation of point measurements of bed elevation.
The geometry of alternating layers of coarse and fine grains produced by such migrating bedforms as ripples, megaripples and even the longshore bar itself can be used to determine the dominant transport mechanisms of bar migration, and also to resolve ambiguities in sediment transport direction which may arise in the interpretation of point measurements of bed elevation.
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Department of Marine, Earth and Atmospheric Sciences