In SF Bay, even an exceptionally wet year can't supply enough sediment to keep pace with rising seas
Study highlights a paradox for coastal managers: climate change may trigger more landslides, but most of that sediment doesn't reach coastlines
Study highlights a paradox for coastal managers: climate change may trigger more landslides, but most of that sediment doesn't reach coastlines
Beach nourishment morphodynamics at the Columbia River Mouth
Decades of satellite imagery show how groins reshape California beaches
Long-term observations reveal how human-built coastal structures influence sediment transport
Long-term observations reveal how human-built coastal structures influence sediment transport
Morphodynamics of dune-based coastal flood mitigation under sea-level rise
Process-based modeling focuses on two beaches in Santa Cruz County
Process-based modeling focuses on two beaches in Santa Cruz County
A mid-ocean ridge revealed by 3D magnetic modeling
Study presents new geologic map of Escanaba Trough
Study presents new geologic map of Escanaba Trough
Waves, not just runoff, drive sediment buildup on American Samoa coral reefs
Great Salt Lake sediments record thousands of years of earthquake history
USGS study investigates how sediments respond to surface rupture and earthquake shaking
USGS study investigates how sediments respond to surface rupture and earthquake shaking
New high-resolution geophysics in the Outer California Borderland
Data reveal repeated episodes of slope failure and earthquake activity over last 750,000 years
Data reveal repeated episodes of slope failure and earthquake activity over last 750,000 years
USGS Scientist Contributes to World Ocean Assessment
United Nations scientific report assesses state of the global ocean
United Nations scientific report assesses state of the global ocean
USGS leads deep-sea sampling expedition in the Samoan Basin
Interagency effort with NOAA, BOEM to map and characterize abyssal seafloor offshore American Samoa
Interagency effort with NOAA, BOEM to map and characterize abyssal seafloor offshore American Samoa
Tracking sediment erosion and transport in a reef-adjacent watershed
New research focuses on the Río Loco watershed and Bahía de Guánica, Puerto Rico
New research focuses on the Río Loco watershed and Bahía de Guánica, Puerto Rico
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
In SF Bay, even an exceptionally wet year can’t supply enough sediment to keep pace with rising seas, new study finds
In SF Bay, even an exceptionally wet year can’t supply enough sediment to keep pace with rising seas, new study finds
Beach nourishment morphodynamics at the Columbia River Mouth
Beach nourishment morphodynamics at the Columbia River Mouth
Decades of satellite imagery show how groins reshape California beaches
Decades of satellite imagery show how groins reshape California beaches
Publications
A geographic dataset of rocky reefs habitat areas of particular concern for the United States West Coast A geographic dataset of rocky reefs habitat areas of particular concern for the United States West Coast
The United States National Marine Fisheries Service determines “essential fish habitat (EFH)” for federally managed species in coordination with regional fishery management councils, considers adverse effects to those habitats, and provides information to further habitat conservation and enhancement. Identifying discrete subsets of EFH as “habitat areas of particular concern (HAPC)” can...
Morphodynamics of snow barchans at Concordia Station, Antarctica Morphodynamics of snow barchans at Concordia Station, Antarctica
Barchans are crescent-shaped dunes that form and migrate under unimodal wind regimes in areas of low sediment availability. While sand barchan morphodynamics has been extensively studied, snow barchans remain poorly documented. Here, using hourly time-series images taken near Concordia Station, Antarctica, we measure the sizes (lengths 0.3 m to 13 m, widths 0.4 m to 7.5 m) and migration...
Hydrothermal manganese-oxide mineralization of a carbonate ooze, Samoan hotspot region, South Pacific Ocean Hydrothermal manganese-oxide mineralization of a carbonate ooze, Samoan hotspot region, South Pacific Ocean
Low-temperature hydrothermal manganese oxides occur throughout the global oceans. However, the hydrothermal replacement of a carbonate ooze by manganese oxides is described here for the first time. The 24 samples dredged from three locations around the Territory of American Samoa in the South Pacific Ocean include six samples with remnant carbonate and volcaniclastic sediments, which we...
Science
Typhoon Merbok Disaster Recovery Project: Accomplishments
The Typhoon Merbok Disaster Emergency Recovery Efforts project addresses critical data and capacity gaps in coastal Alaska by generating high resolution environmental datasets, hazard analyses, and monitoring tools needed to quantify erosion, flooding, and permafrost-related risks at the community scale.
Geologic Mapping for Landscape Resiliency in California, Oregon, and Washington
This project uses geologic and geomorphic mapping in the context of societally relevant problems in the Earth’s critical zone. Leveraging interdisciplinary research ties and interagency collaborations, it utilizes remote sensing data, corroborated with field observations, to determine i) the spatial distribution of geomorphic processes and ages of Quaternary deposits in the context of active...
By
Earthquake Hazards Program, Landslide Hazards Program, National Cooperative Geologic Mapping Program, Earthquake Science Center, Geologic Hazards Science Center, Geology, Minerals, Energy, and Geophysics Science Center, Geosciences and Environmental Change Science Center, Pacific Coastal and Marine Science Center, Big Sur Landslides
American Samoa Mapping Project
USGS scientists are leading a sampling effort to the Samoa Basin, offshore of American Samoa. This work is part of an interagency-supported three-month hydrograph survey project led by NOAA and in partnership with BOEM.