Pattern of Aeolian Sand Transport and Morphological Change in the Foredune Ridge, Shindu Dunefield, Korea: A Case Study during the Winter, December 2000 to March 2001

Abstract

This paper's aims are to investigate the pattern of aeolian sand transport and morphological change in the foredune ridge, Shindu dunefield, Korea. For this purpose, erosion pins and sand traps were installed in three zones, and monitored about once a week over the period of study, December 9, 2000 to approximately March 30, 2001. The results are as follows. First, the main direction of sand transport was onshore irrespective of the monitoring zones, whereas the ratios of parallel transport to perpendicular transport were different according to the monitoring zones and positions. Second, the aeolian activity in the dune base was more active than that in the dune crest, which was due to vegetation cover on the seaside of the foredune ridge. This was reflected by the pattern of morphological change: the focus of volume change in the foredune ridge moved from dune base to dune crest, continuing to bury the vegetation cover. Third, the mean grain size of aeolian sands transported into zone A was coarser than that in zone C. However, no significant difference was observed in all the monitoring zones between aeolian grain size caught in the dune base and that in the dune crest. Finally, the continuous volume increase occurred in the foredune ridge over the period of study. However, the amount of volume change varied according to the zones. Variation in volume change may result from differences in the elevation and orientation of the foredune ridge. The morphological responses of the foredune ridge reveal that the foredune ridge acted as a whole.