Estuaries

• Адыгэбзэ • Afrikaans • العربية • Asturianu • Avañe'ẽ • Azərbaycanca • Banjar • Беларуская • Беларуская (тарашкевіца) • भोजपुरी • Български • Bosanski • Català • Cebuano • Čeština • Cymraeg • Dansk • Deutsch • Eesti • Ελληνικά • Español • Esperanto • Euskara • فارسی • Français • Frysk • Gaeilge • Gaelg • Galego • 客家語/Hak-kâ-ngî • 한국어 • Հայերեն • हिन्दी • Hrvatski • Ido • Bahasa Indonesia • Íslenska • Italiano • עברית • Jawa • ಕನ್ನಡ • ქართული • Қазақша • Kreyòl ayisyen • Latina • Latviešu • Lietuvių • Македонски • മലയാളം • მარგალური • Bahasa Melayu • Nederlands • 日本語 • Нохчийн • Norsk bokmål • Norsk nynorsk • Nouormand • Occitan • Oʻzbekcha / ўзбекча • Polski • Português • Română • Русский • Саха тыла • Shqip • Simple English • Slovenčina • Slovenščina • Српски / srpski • Srpskohrvatski / српскохрватски • Suomi • Svenska • தமிழ் • Татарча / tatarça • ไทย • Türkçe • Українська • Vèneto • Tiếng Việt • Walon • Winaray • 吴语 • ייִדיש • 粵語 • 中文 The word "estuary" is derived from the Latin word aestuarium meaning tidal inlet of the sea, which in itself is derived from the term aestus, meaning tide. There have been many definitions proposed to describe an estuary. The most widely accepted definition is: "a semi-enclosed coastal body of water, which has a free connection with the open sea, and within which seawater is measurably diluted with freshwater derived from land drainage". A more comprehensive definition of an estuary is "a semi-enclosed body of water connected to the sea a...

An estuary is a semi-enclosed coastal body of water with a free connection to the open sea and within which sea water is diluted by fresh water. Estuaries are geologically ephemeral and can rapidly disappear with a relatively small change in sea level via glaciations (drop of sea level) and deglaciations (rise of sea level). Deposition of sediment and expansion and succession of salt marshes over time both act to fill in estuaries. The specific morphology of an estuarine basin is determined by its origin. Estuaries may originate from (1) the drowning of river valleys or fjords, (2) the formation of barrier beaches that enclose a shallow bay, or (3) tectonic activity (Levinton 1982). The Hudson River Estuary is a drowned river valley which was also partially glacially excised. The fresh water derived from land drainage tends to float over the denser sea water, but tidal mixing can reduce or obliterate this stratification. Estuaries are highly variable in physical, chemical, and biological properties. The restricted exchange between estuaries and the open sea allows rapid changes in salinity, temperature, nutrients, and sediment load; this variability and low salinity have strong effects on both the composition and the dynamics of the biota. Water Density Stratification in Estuaries The upstream-downstream physical structure of estuaries varies in response to the interaction of fresh water flow, friction, and tidal mixing. The salinity structure of an estuary can be categori...

A partly enclosed coastal body of water in which river water is mixed with seawater is called an estuary. An estuary is thus defined by salinity rather than geography. Many coastal features designated by other names are in fact estuaries (for instance, Chesapeake Bay). Some of the oldest continuous civilizations have flourished in estuarine environments (for example, the Tigris and Euphrates rivers, the Nile delta, and the Ganges delta). Cities such as London (Thames River), New York (Hudson River), and Montreal (St. Lawrence River) developed on estuaries and became important commercial centers. Recent Examples on the Web But, as with many things in this vast estuary at the edge of the Bay Area, the sport and its cottage industry of marinas, bait shops, boat showrooms and bars are threatened by converging forces: climate change, drought, development and California’s escalating water wars. — Taylor Kate Brown, SFChronicle.com, 10 Dec. 2020 Then between two fairy tale chateaux, the estuary of the Gironde. — Cécilia Pelloux, Forbes, 25 Oct. 2021 Paddle waterways, lakes and estuaries, or sail or surf the ocean waves. — Outside Online, 6 Feb. 2023 Throughout his Senate career, Cardin has been a leader in issues of health care, retirement security, the environment and the economy as well as a leading advocate for clean water and the Chesapeake Bay – the U.S.’s largest estuary. — Sarah Elbeshbishi, USA TODAY, 1 May 2023 Next in the timeline was a 17th-century ship that sank in th...