Short-term beach rotation, wave climate and the North Atlantic Oscillation (NAO)

Abstract

Beach profile surveys, offshore wave climate and variations in atmospheric conditions have been utilized to assess a short-term beach rotation phenomenon in a headland embayment Tenby, West Wales. Beach rotation, expressed by subaerial volumetric change, was shown by a negative phase relationship between beach extremities (r = —0.67), while cross-correlation at a one-month timelag increased statistical significance (r = 0.84). Due to beach aspect, gale wave heights decreased as wave direction rotated to the south (R2 = 0.4) and west (R 2 = 0.65), while offshore wave direction influenced change at the southern and northern extremities (R2 = 0.52 and 0.34, respectively). Shelter from offshore islands and Giltar Headland contributes via wave diffraction to accretive, erosive and rotational patterns, and these are sensitive to variations around the predominant wave direction (229°). A southerly shift induces north/south sediment movement, as waves diffract around the offshore islands, while a westerly change results in south/north sediment movement (i.e. beach rotation), as diffracted wave domination transfers to the headland. A general gale wave height reduction occurred when the North Atlantic Oscillation (NAO) was weak or in a transitional phase between positive or negative phases (R2 = 0.69 and R2 = 0.72, respectively). Morphological change was also attuned to atmospheric variation where a reversal in beach rotation was influenced by variations in positive and negative NAO/volume correlations and longshore profile location (R2 = 0.54 and 0.69, respectively). The results of this study have wider implications for coastal management; it is suggested that models developed in similar systems elsewhere will form the basis of human intervention or no active intervention strategies.