Please use this identifier to cite or link to this item: https://www.um.edu.mt/library/oar/handle/123456789/88254
Title: Pocket beach sediment : a field investigation of the geodynamic processes of coarse-clastic beaches on the Maltese Islands (Central Mediterranean)
Authors: Sammut, Sephora
Gauci, Ritienne
Drago, Aldo
Gauci, Adam
Azzopardi, Joel
Keywords: Beaches -- Morphological aspects -- Malta
Geomorphology -- Malta
Coastal sediments -- Malta
Coast changes -- Malta
Geodynamics -- Malta
Issue Date: 2017
Publisher: Elsevier
Citation: Sammut, S., Gauci, R., Drago, A., Gauci, A., & Azzopardi, J. (2017). Pocket beach sediment: a field investigation of the geodynamic processes of coarse-clastic beaches on the Maltese Islands (Central Mediterranean). Marine Geology, 387, 58-73.
Abstract: Research on pocket beaches is generally lacking, and merits more intensive investigative efforts in view of the importance of coastal landscapes, especially along the Mediterranean coastline. This paper is a first as a geomorphological study of pocket coarse-clastic beaches in the Maltese Islands, shedding light on beach sediment dynamics and related spatio-temporal controls between and within beaches. Four beaches along the coastline of the Maltese Islandswere selected as study areas, with distinct geological lithologies, coastal configurations and wave exposures. Systematic sampling was done with field data collected on beachmorphology, sediment size and shape properties to account for both seasonal and post-storm trends. Sediment tracer experiments were also carried out to determine the major transport pathways and recoveries of gravel beach sediments. Wave exposure, geological background and coastal configuration were found to be important components in coarse-clastic pocket beach response to forcings. This study re-affirms that microtidal pocket beaches constitute individual environments, which require a rigorous and representative systematic sampling approach based on sediment behaviour in both the longshore and cross-shore dimensions. This study demonstrates the need to further investigate the different spatio-temporal processes in microtidal pocket beaches, including aspects related to intrinsic sediment dynamics.
URI: https://www.um.edu.mt/library/oar/handle/123456789/88254
Appears in Collections:Scholarly Works - FacArtGeo



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