A beach is a landform that occurs along the coast of an ocean, sea, or lake. It is a depositional landform, formed when sediment is carried by the waves and then deposited on the shore. Beaches are often composed of coarse grained material such as sand or gravel. Other materials that are carried to the beach by the waves may include shells, broken coral, and calcified algae.
The beach is a popular destination for recreational activities such as swimming, walking, sunbathing, and playing volleyball. In addition, many beaches host fishing and sailing opportunities. They may also be a location for commercial seaside amusements such as amusement rides, concession stands, and beachfront hotels.
In the early 19th century, a fashionable movement arose to move upper class families from the cities and towns to the coastal regions for health and pleasure. This development led to the rise of seaside resorts such as Brighton in England and Ramsgate in Kent. The movement was further promoted by the picturesque ideal that viewed the landscape as beautiful and desirable, as illustrated in Jane Austen’s unfinished novel Sanditon and other romantic works of the period.
Coastal waters are constantly influenced by the tides and the data macau movements of winds, both local and global. These conditions cause a constant flow of water that continually moves sand, both from the shore to the sea and back again. This process is what makes beaches, as a result, they are continuously changing and evolving.
When waves break on a beach, they often leave behind a ridge or mound of sand called a beach berm. A beach berm is usually a relatively steep slope that rises above the still water (the level at which waves are normally submerged). As the sand in the berm continues to be deposited, it will eventually form a deep trough called a runnel.
Beach sand is generally comprised of quartz, with some feldspars and a few other heavier minerals in temperate regions. In the tropics, however, some beaches are covered with sand that contains calcium carbonate from the skeletal remains of marine organisms and small round or oval particles of calcium carbonate called ooids. The ooids precipitate, or drop off, from the surfaces of rounded bits of shell and quartz grains. This sand is often white in color. Beaches can also contain fragments of other materials both natural and manmade. For example, beaches in the State of Washington frequently accumulate logs and driftwood, and beaches on the Skeleton Coast in Namibia accumulate the bones of whales and other animals. They also may be covered in rubbish, including plastics.