Publications
Scientific reports, journal articles, and information products produced by USGS Pacific Coastal and Marine Science Center scientists.
Filter Total Items: 1426
A holistic modelling approach to project the evolution of inlet-interrupted coastlines over the 21st century A holistic modelling approach to project the evolution of inlet-interrupted coastlines over the 21st century
Approximately one quarter of the World’s sandy beaches, most of which are interrupted by tidal inlets, are eroding. Understanding the long-term (50-100 year) evolution of inlet-interrupted coasts in a changing climate is therefore of great importance for coastal zone planners and managers. This study therefore focuses on the development and piloting of an innovative model that can...
Authors
Janaka Bamunawala, Ali Dastgheib, Rosh Ranasinghe, Ad van der Spek, Shreedhar Maskey, A. Brad Murray, Trang M. Duong, Patrick L. Barnard, Jeewanthi Gangani Sirisena
Morphology, structure, and kinematics of the San Clemente and Catalina faults based on high-resolution marine geophysical data, southern California Inner Continental Borderland Morphology, structure, and kinematics of the San Clemente and Catalina faults based on high-resolution marine geophysical data, southern California Inner Continental Borderland
Catalina Basin, located within the southern California Inner Continental Borderland (ICB), is traversed by two active submerged fault systems that are part of the broader North America-Pacific plate boundary: the San Clemente fault (along with a prominent splay, the Kimki fault) and the Catalina fault. Previous studies have suggested that the San Clemente fault (SCF) may be accommodating...
Authors
Maureen A. L. Walton, Daniel S. Brothers, James E. Conrad, Katherine L. Maier, Emily C. Roland, Jared W. Kluesner, Peter Dartnell
In situ observations of wave transformation and infragravity bore development across reef flats of varying geomorphology In situ observations of wave transformation and infragravity bore development across reef flats of varying geomorphology
The character and energetics of infragravity (IG, 25 s period 250 s) and very-low frequency (VLF, period > 250 s) waves over coral reef flats can enhance shoreline erosion or accretion, and also govern extreme shoreline events such as runup, overwash, and flooding on coral reef-lined coasts. Here we use in situ wave measurements collected along cross-reef transects at 7 sites on Pacific...
Authors
Olivia M. Cheriton, Curt D. Storlazzi, Kurt J. Rosenberger
Selective sediment transport during Hurricane Sandy on Fire Island (New York, USA): Inferences from heavy-mineral assemblages Selective sediment transport during Hurricane Sandy on Fire Island (New York, USA): Inferences from heavy-mineral assemblages
In October 2012, Hurricane Sandy caused severe erosion on beaches and dunes of Fire Island (New York, USA). Major shoreline changes occurred with erosional dominance in the upper shoreline and aggradation in the lowermost section of the beach due to the deposition of eroded upper beach and dune sediment. Sand laminations with a high concentration of heavy minerals (“black sand...
Authors
Joao Cascalho, Pedro Costa, Guy R. Gelfenbaum, SeanPaul La Selle, Bruce E. Jaffe
Book Review of "Mathematical Geosciences: Hybrid Symbolic-Numeric Methods", by Joseph L. Awange, Béla Paláncz, Robert H. Lewis, and Lajos Völgyesi Book Review of "Mathematical Geosciences: Hybrid Symbolic-Numeric Methods", by Joseph L. Awange, Béla Paláncz, Robert H. Lewis, and Lajos Völgyesi
No abstract available.
Authors
Eric L. Geist
Structural controls on slope failure within the western Santa Barbara Channel based on 2D and 3D seismic imaging Structural controls on slope failure within the western Santa Barbara Channel based on 2D and 3D seismic imaging
The Santa Barbara Channel, offshore California, contains several submarine landslides and ample evidence for incipient failure. This region hosts active thrust and reverse faults that accommodate several mm/yr of convergence, yet the relationships between tectonic deformation and slope failure remain unclear. We present 3‐D and 2‐D multichannel seismic reflection (MCS) data sets...
Authors
Jared W. Kluesner, Daniel S. Brothers, Alexis L Wright, Samuel Y. Johnson
Accurate bathymetric maps from underwater digital imagery without ground control Accurate bathymetric maps from underwater digital imagery without ground control
Structure-from-Motion (SfM) photogrammetry can be used with digital underwater photographs to generate high-resolution bathymetry and orthomosaics with millimeter-to-centimeter scale resolution at relatively low cost. Although these products are useful for assessing species diversity and health, they have additional utility for quantifying benthic community structure, such as coral...
Authors
Gerry A. Hatcher, Jonathan A. Warrick, Andrew C. Ritchie, Evan T. Dailey, David G. Zawada, Christine J. Kranenburg, Kimberly K. Yates
Changes in sediment source areas to the Amerasia Basin, Arctic Ocean, over the past 5.5 million years based on radiogenic isotopes (Sr, Nd, Pb) of detritus from ferromanganese crusts Changes in sediment source areas to the Amerasia Basin, Arctic Ocean, over the past 5.5 million years based on radiogenic isotopes (Sr, Nd, Pb) of detritus from ferromanganese crusts
Ferromanganese (FeMn) crusts provide a useful paleoenvironmental archive for studying the poorly understood climatic, oceanographic, and geologic evolution of the Arctic Ocean. This study is based on the identification and temporal reconstruction of sources and inferred transport pathways of terrigenous material in FeMn crusts collected from several sites across the Amerasia Basin...
Authors
Natalia Konstantinova, James R. Hein, Kira Mizell, Georgy Cherkashov, Brian Dreyer, Deborah Hutchinson
The predictive skills of elastic Coulomb rate-and-state aftershock forecasts during the 2019 Ridgecrest, California, earthquake sequence The predictive skills of elastic Coulomb rate-and-state aftershock forecasts during the 2019 Ridgecrest, California, earthquake sequence
Operational earthquake forecasting protocols commonly use statistical models for their recognized ease of implementation and robustness in describing the short-term spatiotemporal patterns of triggered seismicity. However, recent advances on physics-based aftershock forecasting reveal comparable performance to the standard statistical counterparts with significantly improved predictive...
Authors
Simone Mancini, Margarita Segou, Maximillian J Werner, Thomas E. Parsons
Book review of "Tsunami Propagation in Tidal Rivers", by Elena Tolkova Book review of "Tsunami Propagation in Tidal Rivers", by Elena Tolkova
No abstract available.
Authors
Eric L. Geist
Submarine landslide kinematics derived from high-resolution imaging in Port Valdez, Alaska Submarine landslide kinematics derived from high-resolution imaging in Port Valdez, Alaska
Submarine landslides caused by strong ground shaking during the M9.2 1964 Great Alaska earthquake generated a tsunami that destroyed much of the old town of Valdez, Alaska, and was responsible for 32 deaths at that location. We explore structural details of the 1964 landslide deposit, as well as landslide deposits from earlier events, in order to characterize kinematics of the landslide...
Authors
Emily Roland, Peter J. Haeussler, Thomas E. Parsons, Patrick E. Hart
Impacts of hydrothermal plume processes on oceanic metal cycles and transport Impacts of hydrothermal plume processes on oceanic metal cycles and transport
Chemical, physical and biological processes in hydrothermal plumes control the flux of elements from hydrothermal vents to the global oceans. The timescales of these processes range from less than a second, as the hydrothermal fluid mixes with seawater at the seafloor, to decades, as the plume disperses over thousands of kilometers. Integrating hydrothermal geochemistry throughout the...
Authors
Amy Gartman, Alyssa J. Findlay