In Blue Machine, I wrote about both the Heard Island experiment (an audacious attempt to take the temperature of the whole ocean using sound) and also haddock mating calls. It was therefore very pleasing to find posters at the huge Ocean Sciences meeting a few weeks ago on those completely unrelated topics (apart from both involving sound), sitting right next to each other.
The beach on Eilean Ban is made of the most amazing sediment. Mostly made of gastropod shells, and the gastropods shells are mostly wee pointy things (needle whelks?). Normally these are rather rare shells around here 🤯 I've never seen a beach like it! 🥰 #Mull#Gastropods#Sand#Sediment
We had a #cycletrip to #BudleighSalterton today, which is a nice round trip of 48 km. It was a pleasant day, not too hot and with a refreshing breeze. Those of you in the know will be glad that I wore shorts and so my pump could not get stuck in my trouser leg.
The #beach is made of pebbles of various sizes ranging from the size 15-20 cm down to less than a centimetre. The colours vary from #purple and #pink to #grey and #blue.
Looking out to #sea (the #EnglishChannel), you can see that the water is various colours too ranging from marine #blue and #green to #brown near the #shore where #sediment gets churned up. (Note, it is nothing to do with the current notorious practices of private water companies.)
The angle of repose on a beach face is directly related to grain size and roundness, with grain size (positive correlation) seemingly more important than roundness (negative correlation). This is perhaps the steepest beach in the Northwest…and maybe with the roundest sediment.
I call this bowling ball beach, because when the waves lift and move the cobbles, it sounds like pins falling at a bowling alley…and because the stones are very obviously shaped.