what are the characteristics of a destructive and a contructive wave?

Destructive waves are characterised by strong backwash and a weaker swash, as well as the waves being steeper and close together. A destructive wave takes sediment away from the beach. On the other hand, constructive waves are the opposite. They have a stronger swash, and a weaker backwash. The swash deposits sediments onto the beach, however the backwash is not strong enough to remove sediment from the beach and therefore builds up the beach. The constructive waves are lower and further apart in comparison to the destructive wave.

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