Take this book to the beach; it will open up a whole new world. Illustrated throughout with color photographs, maps, and graphics, it explores one of the planet's most dynamic environments-from tourist beaches to Arctic beaches strewn with ice chunks to steaming hot tropical shores. The World's Beaches tells how beaches work, explains why they vary so much, and shows how dramatic changes can occur on them in a matter of hours. It discusses tides, waves, and wind; the patterns of dunes, washover fans, and wrack lines; and the shape of berms, bars, shell lags, cusps, ripples, and blisters. What is the world's longest beach? Why do some beaches sing when you walk on them? Why do some have dark rings on their surface and tiny holes scattered far and wide? This fascinating, comprehensive guide also considers the future of beaches, and explains how extensively people have affected them-from coastal engineering to pollution, oil spills, and rising sea levels.

Dedication Page (Santa Aguila Foundation)PREFACE(ACKNOWLEDGMENTS)LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONSLIST OF TABLESPart I: THE GLOBAL CHARACTER OF BEACHESChapter 1: A WORLD OF BEACHESBeaches: Crossroads of HistoryBeaches: Avenues of CommerceBeaches: Nature's Most Dynamic EnvironmentBeaches: Varied MaterialsBeaches: Obstacle CoursesBeaches: To Be or Not To BeBeaches: Comber's Delight or Nature's Trash Collector?Beaches: A Natural LaboratoryChapter 2: BEACHES OF THE WORLD What is a Beach?Recipe for Making a BeachClassification of Coasts and BeachesClassifications and a Global ModelBeach Sediments and the Plate Tectonic SettingBeaches as LandformsClimate and Types of CoastsWe Stand on Their ShouldersChapter 3: OF WHAT ARE BEACHES MADE: SEDIMENTSBeach SedimentsGrain Size, Sorting and ShapeGrain CompositionTerrigenous SedimentsHeavy MineralsCarbonate SedimentsOther Beach MaterialsChapter 4: HOW BEACHES WORK: WAVES, CURRENTS, TIDES AND WIND The Most Dynamic Place on EarthWavesWave EnergyWave TypesBreakersWave Refraction, Diffraction and ReflectionCurrents (Alongshore; Onshore; Offshore)Wave-Current-Sediment InteractionTsunamisTidesTides and Beach Groundwater Other Water Level ChangesSurgesEl NiñoWindThe Global PictureChapter 5: THE FORM OF THE BEACH: CRABS-EYE AND BIRDS-EYE VIEWSBeach Profiles: The Crab's Eye ViewProfile ChangesBeach Plans: The Bird's Eye ViewBerms and CuspsWashover FansOffshore Bars Part II: HOW TO READ A BEACHChapter 6: THE BEACH SURFACE UP-CLOSE: IMPRINTS OF TIDES, CURRENTS, AND WAVESNear-Shore, Beach, and Tidal Flat FeaturesRipple MarksModified Ripple MarksSwash and Backwash FeaturesOther Surface FeaturesChapter 7: ESCAPE FROM WITHIN: AIR AND WATER IN THE BEACHKnee Deep in Sand: Airy BeachesAir Escape StructuresWatery Beaches and Water Escape StructuresChapter 8: WHICH EVER WAY THE WIND BLOWS: REWORKING THE BEACH SURFACEWind on Wet Sand and MudWet-to-Dry Transition StructuresWind on Dry SedimentDunes and Dune StructuresDune Plants: Surviving in a DesertChapter 9: BEACH CREATURES: TRACKS, TRAILS, AND TRACESBeach Animals from Micro to MacroMacrofaunal CluesMolluscs (clams and snails)CrustaceansChelicerataPolychaetesOther Invertebrate AnimalsVetebratesEvidence of the Habitat Role of AnimalsChapter 10: CARBONATE BEACHES: SEA SHELLS AND THE STORIES THEY TELLCarbonate Shells, Skeletons, and SecretionsOther Carbonate SedimentsNon-Calcareous Plant and Animal RemainsShell AbundanceWhere do Seashells Come From?The Significance of Broken SeashellsShell RoundingOrientation of Shells on the BeachSecondary Shell ColorShell Collecting: An Environmental AfterthoughtChapter 11: DIGGING THE BEACH: INTO THE THIRD DIMENSIONBeddingBlack Sands and Cross BeddingBurrows and BioturbationPart III: THE GLOBAL THREAT TO BEACHESChapter 12: BEACHES AND PEOPLECoastal EngineeringHard StabilizationSoft StabilizationOther Damaging ActivitiesWater PollutionOil SpillsThe Environmental Truths About BeachesChapter 13: EPILOGUEThe Urbanized Beach: From Middens to the Maelstrom of DevelopmentGLOSSARYREFERENCES