Observations of gravel beach dynamics during high energy wave conditions using a laser scanner

•A 2D laser-scanner was used to measure morpho- and hydrodynamics of the swash zone.•Gravel beach swash zone dynamics were measured during energetic wave conditions.•Small net morphological changes but significant sediment mobilization were recorded.•An asymmetrical morphological response was observed during a tide cycle.•Swash hydrodynamics on gravel beaches are strongly controlled by the beach step.

A 2D laser-scanner was deployed at the high tide runup limit of a pure gravel beach (Loe Bar, Cornwall, England) to measure high-frequency (2.5 Hz) swash hydrodynamics and topographic changes during an energetic wave event. Measurements performed with the laser-scanner were corrected to compensate for levelling and orientation errors, and a variance threshold was applied to separate the beach topography from the water motions. Laser measurements were used to characterise the swash hydrodynamics and morphological changes during one tidal cycle through the calculation of several parameters, such as the 2% exceedence of the runup maxima (R2%), swash flow velocity skewness (< u3>), runup spectra and cumulative topographic changes. Results indicate that despite the small net morphological changes over the tide cycle, significant sediment mobilization occurs. A clear asymmetrical morphological response was found during the different tidal phases: the rising tide is dominated by accretion whilst the falling tide is dominated by erosion. The main factor controlling this asymmetrical morphological response is the step migration that, depending on the tide phase, controls the wave breaking point and consequently the dominant sediment transport direction. During the rising tide, step development decreases the shoreface slope and reduces the runup energy, whilst during the falling tide the step remobilization increases the shoreface slope and energy on the runup.