摘要
River mouth areas provide one of the most desired locations for human habitation. Although occupying only a small portion of the total length of the world’s shoreline, river mouths are dynamic and complex with highly variable physical and chemical characteristics.The size, shape, and position of a river’s mouth are dependent on its geologic and hydrologic history. Further, the processes that operate in a river’s mouth are affected by the sea and its currents, tides, and salinity; the river and its discharge and sediment characteristics; and wind generated waves and storm surges. Present-day locations are, geologically speaking, of recent origin because of the rise in sea level that accompanied deglaciation and the sedimentation that followed drowning.
River mouth areas provide one of the most desired locations for human habitation. Although occupying only a small portion of the total length of the world's shoreline, river mouths are dynamic and complex with highly variable physical and chemical characteristics.The size, shape, and position of a river's mouth are dependent on its geologic and hydrologic history. Further, the processes that operate in a river's mouth are affected by the sea and its currents, tides, and salinity; the river and its discharge and sediment characteristics; and wind generated waves and storm surges. Present-day locations are, geologically speaking, of recent origin because of the rise in sea level that accompanied deglaciation and the sedimentation that followed drowning.