WETMAAP Technique 5
Cape Hatteras: Element
Technique 5: Determining Rates of Change
Element 1: Rate of Shoreline Erosion
Materials:
4 "Shoreline" overlays taped together (Technique 2, Element 3) on
1:24,000 Cape Hatteras-Buxton Topographic Map
Ruler
Calculator
Protractor
Exercise:
1. Using a line running through the lighthouse and perpendicular to the shoreline, measure the distance from the "1852 Shoreline" to the "1990 Shoreline".
What is the distance in feet between the "1852 Shoreline" and the "1990 Shoreline?
What is the difference in years between the two shorelines?
What is the "per year" rate of shoreline change?
2. Assume the "rate of change" that you calculated above is constant.
If the lighthouse is presently 120 feet from the beach, how long would it be before the lighthouse has waves lapping at it’s base?