Final answer:
Waves change as they approach the shore through increased friction, decreased wavelength, and increased height. As waves approach the shore, they undergo shoaling, where the wave height increases due to the energy being compressed in shallower waters. The correct answer is A.
Step-by-step explanation:
As waves approach the shore, several changes occur:
The friction along the top of the wave increases, causing the wave to slow down and decrease in speed.
The wavelength decreases, which is the distance between two consecutive crests or troughs of the wave.
The height of the wave increases as the energy of the wave is compressed into a smaller volume, creating higher waves. This effect is known as shoaling.
Therefore, the correct options for how waves change as they approach the shore are:
Friction along the top of the wave increases.
The distance between crests decreases.
As waves approach the shore, they undergo shoaling, where the wave height increases due to the energy being compressed in shallower waters. This is contrary to misconceptions that the wave's frequency or amplitude might increase, which are not the case near the shoreline.
Waves change significantly as they approach the shore. One of the main effects is known as shoaling, which happens because as waves reach shallower water near the shore, their energy becomes compressed into a smaller volume of water. This process generally leads to higher wave heights. Therefore, out of the given options, the correct answer is that the height of the wave increases. To address related concepts briefly: the period of a wave is inversely related to its frequency, so when the period increases, the frequency decreases; the energy of a wave increases with an increase in its amplitude; the amplitude of a sound wave usually decreases with distance from its source due to the energy spreading out; and for electromagnetic (EM) waves, as the frequency increases, the wavelength actually decreases.