Coastal systems and main factors influencing their evolution (short and long term). Coastal forms. The main types of coastline and their classification criteria.
Sea level oscillations and their morphological and sedimentary effects on the coasts. Coastal depositional sequences. Quaternary climatic oscillations and glacio-eustatic sea level changes. Sea level changes during the Holocene and Upper-Pleistocene and main effects on Italian coasts.
Coasts subject to vertical movements and the relative sea level changes. Tectonic, volcano-tectonic and isostatic processes.
The classification of Valentin.
Geomorphological indicators of sea level changes. Palaeo-deposites and marine palaeo-forms. Marine terraces. Coral reefs.
Submerging coasts: Rias and Fjords.
The waves: wave generation and wave measurement. Definition of: physiographic unit, traverse and fetch sector, wind regime and wave planes. The propagation of waves in shallow waters (shoaling, refraction, breaking, diffraction and reflection phenomena). The longshore currents. The long coast sediments transport. Impacts of human structures on coastal drift.
Tides: causes and distribution. The main effects on the coasts of the tides. Microtidal, mesotidal and macrotide regimes. Tides measuring. Estuaries and tidal flats.
Beaches. The origin of sediments. Sediments size and the Udden-Wentworth scale. Analytical methods for sediments size analysis. Beach profile and sedimentary structures. The sediment balance. Beach morphodynamic classification: reflecting, intermediate and dissipative beaches. Coastal lagoons and ponds.
Coastal dunes. Dunes formation. Geographical distribution of coastal dunes. The anthropic impacts and the dune system defense.
Spits and barrier systems.
Delta definition and classification: wave-, tide- and fluvial-dominated systems.
The coasts dominated by the ice. The permafrost.
The high coasts and their evolution. The main processes influencing high rocky coasts evolution. Coastal cliffs, wave cut platforms and tidal notches.
Coasts of the intertropical area. Coral reefs: geographical distribution, origin of reef and reef-atolls. Morphology of the barrier reef. Mangroves.
Present-day climate changes and their impacts on the coasts. Sea level rise and future scenarios.
Coastal risk: high and low coasts erosion, marine flooding processes.
Field trips and laboratory activities.
ITALIAN VERSION
