Regularly-spaced grooves on shore platforms in north Northumberland, UK

Abstract

Unusual regularly-spaced grooves are found between low water mark (LWM) and high water mark (HWM) on several shore platforms in north Northumberland. References in the literature are sparse, so data were collected to establish the nature of the grooves and to elucidate the processes that might have formed them. Groove formation is confined to strata with widely spaced bedding planes on shore platforms dipping at no more than 5° towards the sea. The grooves are symmetrical, bifurcation is common and grooves on sandstones are deeper and more sinuous than those on limestones. Grooves at mid-tide levels are wider than grooves near LWM and HWM and the trend of the grooves is not related to joint trends. The process that has formed the characteristically smooth surfaces of the grooves is considered to be abrasion by sand and pebbles carried by waves in the surf zone of the shore platform. The width of the grooves is remarkably regular, and it is suggested that this may be due to the effects of the increase in incident wave energy given by edge waves.