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Q: What slows the bottom of a wave causing the top to collapse?
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What slows water at the bottom of a wave near shore?

Friction with the sea bed/shore


What makes waves crash on the shore?

Waves crash on the shore when they approach shallow water, causing the wave height to increase and eventually break. This is due to the friction between the rising wave and the ocean floor, which slows down the bottom of the wave and causes the top to topple forward, forming a breaking wave.


What is the name of a wave that curves over and breaks?

A wave that curves over and breaks is called a "curling" or "cresting" wave. This process occurs when the wave's energy is concentrated at the crest, causing it to collapse and break.


When a wave slows down what property of the wave is affected?

When a wave slows down, the frequency of the wave remains constant, but the wavelength decreases. This is known as the phenomenon of wave refraction, which happens when a wave encounters a change in the medium through which it is traveling, causing it to slow down.


What happens when a deep-water wave strikes the bottom of the ocean?

waves get slower and higher then they break


When a wave arrives at an irregular shoreline the wave front remains straight as it impacts on the shore?

When a wave reaches an irregular shoreline, the wave front will refract, causing it to bend around the contours of the shoreline. This refraction occurs because the shallow water near the shore slows down the part of the wave closer to the shore, causing the wave front to bend.


What causes a breaking wave?

Waves out in the ocean don't break because they are in deep water, waves break when they reach shallower water and so the bottom of the wave catches on the bottom and causes a bit of friction which slows the wave down and cause it to fall over itself, which is breaking


What happens to the wavelength of a wave as it leaves the air and enters Perspex?

The wavelength of the wave decreases as it enters Perspex due to the change in the speed of the wave, according to Snell's Law. The wave slows down in Perspex, causing the wavelength to shorten.


When a wave changes direction as it speeds up or slows down its called what?

This is called refraction. Refraction occurs when a wave enters a different medium where its speed changes, causing it to bend.


Is a part of a wave that folds over when it drags along the beach?

As the momentum of the wave moves towards the shallow shore, the bottom slows due to friction with the seabed, while the top keeps moving. Eventually, the top of the wave curls over in a crest, that breaks on to the beach.


What is a wave called that topples over?

A wave that topples over is known as a "crashing" or "breaking" wave. This occurs when the wave reaches a point where its crest becomes too steep relative to its height, causing it to collapse forward as it breaks against a shoreline or obstacle.


How does a wave break work?

A wave breaks when the bottom of the wave's crest reaches shallow water, causing the wave to slow down. This difference in speed between the top and bottom of the wave causes the wave to eventually crest and break. The shape of the shoreline, ocean floor, and wave size all play a role in how a wave breaks.