Synonyms
Atoll lagoon; Backreef lagoon
Definition
A lagoon is a shallow and generally elongate body of water parallel to the coastline and separated from the open sea by a natural barrier. In siliciclastic sediment systems, this barrier is usually a barrier island, but in carbonate systems, the barrier consists of islands such as the Florida Keys, or more frequently, the barrier is a coral-algal reef of the fringing or barrier type. With atolls, the lagoons can be quite deep and generally circular instead of elongated, and may or may not be associated with a land mass.
Fringing and barrier reef lagoons
Water circulation in carbonate lagoons is a product of many variables including lagoon dimensions, continuity of the reef barrier, wind speed and direction, wave-swell height and direction, tides, and, to a lesser extent, salinity and water temperature variations. Large-scale ocean currents and high-energy events may also contribute to across-the-reef flow and lagoon circulation (e.g.,...
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Roberts, H.H., Lugo-Fernández, A. (2011). Lagoon Circulation. In: Hopley, D. (eds) Encyclopedia of Modern Coral Reefs. Encyclopedia of Earth Sciences Series. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-90-481-2639-2_102
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-90-481-2639-2_102
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