Tombolo

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For the Italian city, see Tombolo, Italy.
Tombolo at Stockton Island, Ashland County (Wisconsin).
Tombolo at Stockton Island, Ashland County (Wisconsin).
Satelite view of Chesil Beach (shown as a long blue line) in Dorset, England (Landsat image viewed using NASA World Wind software)
Satelite view of Chesil Beach (shown as a long blue line) in Dorset, England (Landsat image viewed using NASA World Wind software)

A tombolo is a deposition landform such as a spit or bar which forms a narrow piece of land between an island or offshore rock and a mainland shore, or between two islands or offshore rocks. They usually form because the island causes wave refraction, depositing sand and shingle moved by longshore drift in each direction around the island where the waves meet. Eustatic sea level rise may also contribute material as material is pushed up as the sea level rises, as in the case of Chesil Beach which connects the Isle of Portland to Dorset in England which is notable as the shingle ridge is parallel rather than perpendicular to the coast.

[edit] List of notable tombolos

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