About the Project
This project is one of a number that are in competition for funding from the NERC GW4+ DTP. The GW4+ DTP consists of the Great Western Four alliance of the University of Bath, University of Bristol, Cardiff University and the University of Exeter plus six Research Organisation partners. The partnership aims to provide a broad training in earth and environmental sciences, designed to train tomorrow’s leaders in earth and environmental science. For further details about the programme, please see http://nercgw4plus.ac.uk/
Background
Archaeological coastal sites play a crucial role in the cultural heritage of our country. At Tintagel, Cornwall, the geomorphological evolution of the rocky coastline is critical to interpreting the site: the early medieval citadel was built here because of the strategic headland. We cannot reconstruct the history of this nationally important site without understanding the geomorphology. Cliff erosion and the risks to coastal property has long been a topic of investigation; however, in the context of climate change, there is a limited understanding of the vulnerability of rocky coastlines. In situ and remotely sensed techniques have recently been adopted to understand wave-beach-cliff interaction; this project would extend our understanding of these dynamics to plunging coastal cliffs (with no beach frontage), where measurements have not yet been obtained.
The knowledge that the studentship will bring will enable us to understand how to conserve coastal heritage for future generations.
Project Aims and Methods
The main aims of the project are to:
• Determine the combined role of waves and structural geology in influencing the long-term morphological evolution of plunging coastal cliffs in a high wave energy environment.
• Couple the archaeological and geomorphological chronology of Tintagel.
• Understand how the coastline is likely to evolve with the influence of increased storminess and sea level rise.
• Provide an interactive online 3D model for visitors, schools and local managers, illustrating the archaeology and geomorphology of the site in the past, present and future.
These aims will be achieved by:
• Collating existing and historic mapping of the site in order to determine a recent (c. 200-300 years) geo-chronology of coastal evolution.
• Improving our understanding of wave-cliff impacts on a highly exposed stretch of coastline by deploying in situ (pressure transducers, seismometers) and remote sensing instrumentation (Unmanned Autonomous Vehicle, Terrestrial Laser Scanner).
• Establishing appropriate wave-cliff impact metrics based on the field observations for process-based cliff erosion modelling. These will be used to hindcast and forecast coastal cliff evolution.
• Acquiring digital elevation models over a 2-year period (in addition to existing DEMs), using UAV, TLS and photogrammetry, to determine cliff erosion volumes and analyse structurally controlled cliff failures.
References
• Brain, M.J., Rosser, N.J., Norman, E.C., and Petley, D.N., (2014), Are microseismic ground displacements a significant geomorphic agent? Geomorphology, 207, pp. 161–173.
• Earlie, C.S., Young, A.P., Masselink, G., Russell, P.E., (2015) Coastal cliff erosion and response to extreme storm waves, Geophysical Research Letters, DOI 10.1002/2014GL062534
• Naylor, L., Stephenson, W., and Trenhaile, A.S., (2010). Rock coast geomorphology: recent advances and future research directions. Geomorphology, 114, pp. 3–11.
• Thomas. C (1993), Tintagel: Arthur and Archaeology, Batsford/ English Heritage, London.
• Young, A.P., Guza, R.T., Dickson, M.E., O’Reilly, W.C., and Flick, R.E., (2013) Ground motions on rocky, cliffed, and sandy shorelines generated by ocean waves, Journal of Geophysical Research: Oceans, 118, pp. 6590–6620.
• Vann Jones, E.C., Rosser, N.J., Brain, M.J., Petley, D.,N, (2015) Quantifying the environmental controls on erosion of hard rock cliff, Marine Geology, 365, pp 230–242.
• Walkden, M. J., and Hall, J. W., (2011), A mesoscale predictive model of the evolution and management of a soft-rock coast. Journal of Coastal research, 27, 529–543.
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