USGS Coastal Storm Projection Data Inform Department of Defense Infrastructure Risk Assessments
Long-term Satellite Data Reveal How Climate Shapes West Coast Shorelines
Ecological Thresholds, Abiotic Stress, and Climate Change: A Conceptual Framework
Nature-based "Horizontal Levees" Reduce Flood Risk in San Francisco Bay
Old Postcards, New Science: Historical Photos Document 92 Years of Coastal Change
A 700-year rupture sequence of great eastern Aleutian earthquakes from tsunami evidence and modeling
The Threat of Coastal Flooding from Cascadia Earthquake-Driven Land Subsidence
USGS Coral Reef Science Informs State, Territorial, and National Policy
Permafrost thaw and subsidence, sea-level rise, and erosion are transforming Alaska’s Arctic coastal zone
Interior Highlights Critical Mineral Prospectivity on the Seafloor
USGS factsheet shows potential in the nation’s seabed, an area larger than U.S. lands
USGS factsheet shows potential in the nation’s seabed, an area larger than U.S. lands
Pacific Coastal and Marine Science Center
PCMSC is one of three centers serving the mission of the USGS Coastal and Marine Hazards and Resources Program—the primary Federal marine geology and physical science research program responsible for the Nation’s entire coastal and marine landscape.
What We Do: Coastal and Marine Science at USGS Santa Cruz
What We Do: Coastal and Marine Science at USGS Santa Cruz
Get an overview of the coastal and marine research conducted by the USGS in Santa Cruz, California in our downloadable booklet.
Research Projects
Research Projects
Read about our science projects, find out where we are working, and discover the reasons why our research matters.
News
Projecting Accelerated Erosion of O‘ahu's Shorelines
Projecting Accelerated Erosion of O‘ahu's Shorelines
Exploring Critical Minerals and Volcanic Processes in Aleutian Rocks
Exploring Critical Minerals and Volcanic Processes in Aleutian Rocks
Detecting Hydrothermal Vents and Collecting Environmental DNA: Investigating the Water Column in the Aleutian Arc
Detecting Hydrothermal Vents and Collecting Environmental DNA: Investigating the Water Column in the Aleutian Arc
Publications
Seasonal rotation of California pocket beaches Seasonal rotation of California pocket beaches
Pocket beaches are short, headland-bound coastal landforms that may exhibit shoreline rotation in response to time-varying wave conditions. Here we examine the presence, location and style of pocket beach rotation along the 1700 km coast of California using a comprehensive 22-year satellite-derived shoreline dataset. These analyses identify 23 pocket beaches that exhibit annual cycles of...
Are equilibrium shoreline models just convolutions? Are equilibrium shoreline models just convolutions?
Yes. Equilibrium shoreline models, which simulate wave-driven cross-shore erosion and accretion, are mathematically equivalent to a discrete convolution (i.e., a weighted, moving average) of a time series of wave-forcing conditions with a parameterized memory-decay kernel function. The direct equivalence between equilibrium shoreline models and convolutions reveals key theoretical...
Waterline responses to climate forcing along the North American West Coast Waterline responses to climate forcing along the North American West Coast
Understanding waterline variability at seasonal to interannual timescales is crucial for predicting coastal responses to climate forcing. However, relationships between large-scale climate variability and coastal morphodynamics remain underexplored beyond intensively monitored sites. This study leverages a newly developed 25-year (1997–2022) satellite-derived waterline dataset along the...
Science
Seafloor Benthic Mapping and Characterization: Enhancing our Understanding of Aleutian Islands’ Hazards, Potential Seabed Minerals and Deep Corals
A USGS-led expedition in the Aleutian Arc off Alaska will provide critical information on energy resources, underwater earthquakes and other hazards, seafloor habitats, and biological resources, including key fisheries, as well as potential seabed minerals.
By
Ecosystems Mission Area, Natural Hazards Mission Area, Coastal and Marine Hazards and Resources Program, Land Management Research Program, Species Management Research Program, Eastern Ecological Science Center, Pacific Coastal and Marine Science Center, St. Petersburg Coastal and Marine Science Center, Wetland and Aquatic Research Center , Woods Hole Coastal and Marine Science Center, Hawaiian Volcano Observatory, Deep Sea Exploration, Mapping and Characterization
Coastal Wetland Vulnerability to Climate Change and Sea-Level Rise: Understanding Ecological Thresholds and Ecosystem Transformations
Eighteen USGS coastal scientists from all four coasts of the conterminous United States are working together to advance the understanding of climate change and sea-level rise impacts to coastal wetlands.
By
California Water Science Center, Chesapeake Bay Activities, Eastern Ecological Science Center, Florence Bascom Geoscience Center, Great Lakes Science Center, Pacific Coastal and Marine Science Center, St. Petersburg Coastal and Marine Science Center, Western Ecological Research Center (WERC), Western Geographic Science Center, Wetland and Aquatic Research Center , Woods Hole Coastal and Marine Science Center
Habitat Vulnerability to Climate Change: Identifying Climate Change Induced Mass Mortality Events Across Large Landscapes of the United States
USGS researchers will characterize extreme climatic events across U.S. following a review of case studies of mass mortality events associated with climate extremes including drought, precipitation, freeze, heat waves, and storm events.