Simeone, S.; Palombo, L., and De Falco, G., 2013. Morphodynamics of a nontidal embayed beach: the case study of Is Arutas (western Mediterranean).
This study evaluates the reliability of the Short morphodynamic model by using experimental data on the wave climate, sediment budget, and topographic beach profiles of an embayed beach located in western Sardinia, Mediterranean Sea. Wave parameters, measured by an offshore buoy located to the NW of Sardinia were downloaded daily, from the Rete Ondamentrica Nazionale Web site. Beach elevation data were collected in 2005 and 2010, using a Differential Global Positioning System, to determine the volume of beach sediments. Three beach profiles were measured in the northern, central, and southern areas of the beach from September 2010 to May 2011 to investigate morphological variability. Grain-size and composition of beach sediments were determined.
From 2005 to 2010, the sediment volume did not show any significant changes (14,200 m3 and 13,800 m3, respectively). Sediments were sandy to gravelly, whereas the composition was siliciclastic. Morphological variability occurred in the swash zone, where the northern and southern profiles showed an opposite trend, in terms of changes in elevation. This was related to the longshore redistribution of sediments and occurred mainly during the autumn–winter season. The Short model revealed that, for 98% of the available data, Is Arutas assumed a “normal” or “transitional” morphodynamic state. The sediment remained constrained between the headlands, in accordance with the results of the Short model, which showed the assumed morphodynamic states did not implicate the transport of sediment outside the system.
Experimental data confirmed that the Short morphodynamic model can be applied to studies on sediment exchange on embayed Mediterranean beaches.
