Submarine Bars on Sandy Coasts

A brief review of the studies concerning the problem of submarine bars over the past decade is presented. Various types of bars are distinguished, and the mechanisms responsible for the formation thereof are discussed. The short-term (days, weeks) behavior of the bars is described in relation to the changes in the local wave parameters. The bar systems are shown to demonstrate cyclic behavior of two different types on time scales of years and decades. In the former case, the bars arise near the shore, migrate towards the sea, and degrade in the external margin of the coastal zone. The other cycle's type is characterized by the landward migration of the bars and their welding with a subaerial beach, which results in creating a conveyor delivering material to the beach and eventually to the foredune by Aeolian transport. In the former case, the bar zone behaves as a closed system, while, in the latter, as a transition zone. It is noted that the long-term evolution of a bar system is controlled by a feedback mechanism tending to return the system to the initial state. DOI: 10.1134/S0001437011010115