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“Flying Eyeball” Measures Grand Canyon Sand Completed

By Pacific Coastal and Marine Science Center January 1, 2005

Information about the  USGS Pacific Coastal and Marine Science Center's development of an instrument called the "flying eyeball" to measure river sand, from 1993-2004.

Poster composed of photographs and text.
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USGS Sound Waves newsletter article:
“Sedimentologic Engineering in Grand Canyon”

Publications by USGS collaborators:

Buscombe, D., 2008, Estimation of grain size distributions and associated parameters from digital images of sediment: Sedimentary Geology, v. 210, i. 1-2, p. 1-10, doi:  10.1016/j.sedgeo.2008.06.007

Buscombe, D., and Masselink, G., 2009, Grain size information from the statistical properties of digital images of sediment: Sedimentology, v. 56, i. 2, p. 421-438, doi:10.1111/j.1365-3091.2008.00977.x

Full-scale poster image file

Poster composed of photographs and text.
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Below are publications associated with this project.

Underwater microscope system

Filter Total Items: 13

2010 weather and aeolian sand-transport data from the Colorado River corridor, Grand Canyon, Arizona

Measurements of weather parameters and aeolian sand transport were made in 2010 near selected archeological sites in the Colorado River corridor through Grand Canyon, Arizona. Data collected in 2010 indicate event- and seasonal-scale variations in rainfall, wind, temperature, humidity, and barometric pressure. Differences in weather patterns between 2009 and 2010 included a slightly later spring w
By
Ecosystems, Southwest Biological Science Center

A universal approximation to grain size from images of non-cohesive sediment

The two-dimensional spectral decomposition of an image of sediment provides a direct statistical estimate, grid-by-number style, of the mean of all intermediate axes of all single particles within the image. We develop and test this new method which, unlike existing techniques, requires neither image processing algorithms for detection and measurement of individual grains, nor calibration. The onl
By
Pacific Coastal and Marine Science Center

2009 weather and aeolian sand-transport data from the Colorado River corridor, Grand Canyon, Arizona

This report presents measurements of weather parameters and aeolian sand transport made in 2009 near selected archeological sites in the Colorado River corridor through Grand Canyon, Ariz. The quantitative methods and data discussed here form a basis for monitoring ecosystem processes that affect archeological-site stability. Combined with forthcoming work to evaluate landscape evolution at nearby
By
Pacific Coastal and Marine Science Center

2008 Weather and Aeolian Sand-Transport Data from the Colorado River Corridor, Grand Canyon, Arizona

This report presents measurements of weather parameters and aeolian (windblown) sand transport made in 2008 near selected archaeological sites in the Colorado River corridor through Grand Canyon, Ariz. The quantitative methods and data discussed here form a basis for monitoring ecosystem processes that affect archeological-site stability. Combined with forthcoming work to evaluate landscape evolut
By
Ecosystems, Southwest Biological Science Center

2007 Weather and Aeolian Sand-Transport Data from the Colorado River Corridor, Grand Canyon, Arizona

Weather data constitute an integral part of ecosystem monitoring in the Colorado River corridor and are particularly valuable for understanding processes of landscape change that contribute to the stability of archeological sites. Data collected in 2007 are reported from nine weather stations in the Colorado River corridor through Grand Canyon, Ariz. The stations were deployed in February and Marc
By
Ecosystems, Southwest Biological Science Center

Cobble cam: Grain-size measurements of sand to boulder from digital photographs and autocorrelation analyses

A new application of the autocorrelation grain size analysis technique for mixed to coarse sediment settings has been investigated. Photographs of sand- to boulder-sized sediment along the Elwha River delta beach were taken from approximately 1??2 m above the ground surface, and detailed grain size measurements were made from 32 of these sites for calibration and validation. Digital photographs we

Underwater microscope for measuring spatial and temporal changes in bed-sediment grain size

For more than a century, studies of sedimentology and sediment transport have measured bed-sediment grain size by collecting samples and transporting them back to the laboratory for grain-size analysis. This process is slow and expensive. Moreover, most sampling systems are not selective enough to sample only the surficial grains that interact with the flow; samples typically include sediment from
By
Natural Hazards, Coastal and Marine Hazards and Resources Program

Field test comparison of an autocorrelation technique for determining grain size using a digital 'beachball' camera versus traditional methods

This extensive field test of an autocorrelation technique for determining grain size from digital images was conducted using a digital bed-sediment camera, or 'beachball' camera. Using 205 sediment samples and >1200 images from a variety of beaches on the west coast of the US, grain size ranging from sand to granules was measured from field samples using both the autocorrelation technique develope

Measurements of wind, aeolian sand transport, and precipitation in the Colorado River corridor, Grand Canyon, Arizona; January 2005 to January 2006

This report presents measurements of aeolian sediment-transport rates, wind speed and direction, and precipitation records from six locations that contain aeolian deposits in the Colorado River corridor through Grand Canyon, Grand Canyon National Park, Arizona. Aeolian deposits, many of which contain and preserve archaeological material, are an important part of the Grand Canyon ecosystem. This re
By
Natural Hazards, Coastal and Marine Hazards and Resources Program

Measurements of wind, aeolian sand transport, and precipitation in the Colorado River corridor, Grand Canyon, Arizona - November 2003 to December 2004

Sedimentology and stratigraphy of the Palisades, Lower Comanche, and Arroyo Grande areas of the Colorado River Corridor, Grand Canyon, Arizona

This report analyzes various depositional environments in three archaeologically significant areas of the Colorado River corridor in Grand Canyon. Archaeological features are built on and buried by fluvial, aeolian, and locally derived sediment, representing a complex interaction between geologic and cultural history. These analyses provide a basis for determining the potential influence of Gl

A simple autocorrelation algorithm for determining grain size from digital images of sediment

Autocorrelation between pixels in digital images of sediment can be used to measure average grain size of sediment on the bed, grain-size distribution of bed sediment, and vertical profiles in grain size in a cross-sectional image through a bed. The technique is less sensitive than traditional laboratory analyses to tails of a grain-size distribution, but it offers substantial other advantages: it