You are swimming with your buddies on a beach in the surf.You leave your cooler and supplies on the beach,and after a half hour you swim back to shore,but your stuff isn't there.You look along the beach and see your cooler 200 m down the beach.How did that happen?
A)You and your buddies must have gotten caught in a rip current without knowing it.
B)You and your buddies must have been swimming parallel to the shore without thinking about it.
C)You and your buddies must have had too many and just lost track of where you were.
D)You and your buddies were affected by the longshore current and drifted with it along the coast.

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

The most likely scenario is that you and your buddies were affected by the longshore current, which is a current that runs parallel to the shore. This would have caused you to drift along the coast while you were swimming, and your cooler and supplies would have been carried down the beach with the current. Rip currents (A) would have pulled you directly away from shore, and swimming parallel to the shore (B) would not have caused your cooler and supplies to move down the beach. Option C is not a likely choice as it does not explain the movement of the cooler.

You Are Swimming with Your Buddies on a Beach in the Surf.You