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Scientific reports, journal articles, and information products produced by USGS Pacific Coastal and Marine Science Center scientists.
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Filter Total Items: 1417
Subduction megathrust heterogeneity characterized from 3D seismic data Subduction megathrust heterogeneity characterized from 3D seismic data
Megathrust roughness and structural complexity are thought to be controls on earthquake slip at subduction zones because they result in heterogeneity in shear strength and resolved stress. However, because active megathrust faults are difficult to observe, the causes and scales of complexity are largely unknown. Here we measured the in situ properties of the megathrust of the Middle...
Authors
James D. Kirkpatrick, Joel H. Edwards, Alessandro Verdecchia, Jared W. Kluesner, Rebecca M. Harrington, Eli Silver
Sea-level rise exponentially increases coastal flood frequency Sea-level rise exponentially increases coastal flood frequency
Sea-level rise will radically redefine the coastline of the 21st century. For many coastal regions, projections of global sea-level rise by the year 2100 (e.g., 0.5–2 meters) are comparable in magnitude to today’s extreme but short-lived increases in water level due to storms. Thus, the 21st century will see significant changes to coastal flooding regimes (where present-day, extreme-but...
Authors
Mohsen Taherkhani, Sean Vitousek, Patrick L. Barnard, L Neil Frazer, Tiffany Anderson, Charles Fletcher
Genesis and evolution of ferromanganese crusts from the summit of Rio Grande Rise, southwest Atlantic Ocean Genesis and evolution of ferromanganese crusts from the summit of Rio Grande Rise, southwest Atlantic Ocean
The Rio Grande Rise (RGR) is a large elevation in the Atlantic Ocean and known to host potential mineral resources of ferromanganese crusts (Fe–Mn), but no investigation into their general characteristics have been made in detail. Here, we investigate the chemical and mineralogical composition, growth rates and ages of initiation, and phosphatization of relatively shallow-water (650–825...
Authors
Mariana Benites, James R. Hein, Kira Mizell, Terrence Blackburn, Luigi Jovane
Steps to develop early warning systems and future scenarios of wave-driven flooding along coral reef-lined coasts Steps to develop early warning systems and future scenarios of wave-driven flooding along coral reef-lined coasts
Tropical coral reef-lined coasts are exposed to storm wave-driven flooding. In the future, flood events during storms are expected to occur more frequently and to be more severe due to sea-level rise, changes in wind and weather patterns, and the deterioration of coral reefs. Hence, disaster managers and coastal planners are in urgent need of decision-support tools. In the short-term...
Authors
Gundula Winter, Curt D. Storlazzi, Sean Vitousek, Ap van Dongeren, Robert T. McCall, Ron Hoeke, William Skirving, John Marra, Johan Reyns, Jerome Aucan, Matthew J. Widlansky, Janet Becker, Chris Perry, Gerd Masselink, Ryan Lowe, Murray Ford, Andrew Pomeroy, Fernando J. Mendez, Ana C. Rueda, Moritz Wandres
Molecular indicators of methane metabolisms at cold seeps along the United States Atlantic margin Molecular indicators of methane metabolisms at cold seeps along the United States Atlantic margin
A lipid biomarker study was undertaken to determine the microbial composition and variability in authigenic carbonates and associated soft bottom habitats from the Norfolk and the Baltimore Canyon seep fields along the US mid-Atlantic margin. Results from this study capture a distinct molecular signal from methane oxidizing archaea, including archaeol (I), sn-2-hydroxyarchaeol...
Authors
Nancy G. Prouty, Pamela L. Campbell, Hilary Close, Jennifer F. Biddle, Sabrina Beckmann
Defining active, inactive, and extinct seafloor massive sulfide deposits Defining active, inactive, and extinct seafloor massive sulfide deposits
Hydrothermal activity results in the formation of hydrothermal mineral deposits, including seafloor massive sulfide deposits, at oceanic spreading ridges, arcs, and back-arcs. As hydrothermal systems age, the mineral deposits eventually become severed from the heat source and fluid-flow pathways responsible for their formation and become extinct. The timescales and processes by which...
Authors
John W. Jamieson, Amy Gartman
Mapping metabolic activity at single cell resolution in intact volcanic fumarole soil Mapping metabolic activity at single cell resolution in intact volcanic fumarole soil
Interactions among microorganisms and their mineralogical substrates govern the structure, function, and emergent properties of microbial communities. These interactions are predicated on spatial relationships, which dictate metabolite exchange and access to key substrates. To quantitatively assess links between spatial relationships and metabolic activity, this study presents a novel...
Authors
Jeffrey J. Marlow, Isabella Colocci, Sean Jungbluth, Nils Moritz Weber, Amy Gartman, Jens Kallmeyer
Anthropogenic pollutants and biomarkers for the identification of 2011 Tohoku-oki tsunami deposits (Japan) Anthropogenic pollutants and biomarkers for the identification of 2011 Tohoku-oki tsunami deposits (Japan)
Organic geochemistry is commonly used in environmental studies. In tsunami research, however, its applications are in their infancy and it is still rarely used. We present results for two types of organic geochemical markers, biomarkers and anthropogenic markers, present in deposits left by 2011 Tohoku-oki tsunami on the Sendai Plain, Japan. As the tsunami inundated the coastal lowland...
Authors
Piero Bellanova, Mike Frenken, Klaus Reicherter, Bruce E. Jaffe, Witold Szczucinski, Jan Schwarzbauer
A new technique to calculate earthquake stress transfer and to forecast aftershocks A new technique to calculate earthquake stress transfer and to forecast aftershocks
Coseismic stress changes have been the primary physical principle used to explain aftershocks and triggered earthquakes. However, this method does not adequately forecast earthquake rates and diverse rupture populations when subjected to formal testing. We show that earthquake forecasts can be impaired by assumptions made in physics-based models, such as the existence of hypothetical...
Authors
Margarita Segou, Thomas E. Parsons
Blind testing of shoreline evolution models Blind testing of shoreline evolution models
Beaches around the world continuously adjust to daily and seasonal changes in wave and tide conditions, which are themselves changing over longer time-scales. Different approaches to predict multi-year shoreline evolution have been implemented; however, robust and reliable predictions of shoreline evolution are still problematic even in short-term scenarios (shorter than decadal). Here...
Authors
Jennifer Montaño, Giovanni Coco, Jose Antolinez, Tomas Beuzen, Karin Bryan, Laura Cagigal, Bruno Castelle, Mark Davidson, Evan B. Goldstein, Raimundo Ibaceta, Déborah Idier, Bonnie C. Ludka, Sina Masoud-Ansari, Fernando Mendez, A. Brad Murray, Nathaniel G. Plant, Katherine Ratlif, Arthur Robinet, Ana Rueda, Nadia Sénéchal, Joshua Simmons, Kristen Splinter, Scott Stephens, Ian Townend, Sean Vitousek, Kilian Vos
A model for the growth and development of wave-dominated deltas fed by small mountainous rivers: Insights from the Elwha River delta, Washington A model for the growth and development of wave-dominated deltas fed by small mountainous rivers: Insights from the Elwha River delta, Washington
Observations from ground-penetrating radar, sediment cores, elevation surveys and aerial imagery are used to understand the development of the Elwha River delta in north-western Washington, USA, which prograded as a result of two dam removals in late 2011. Swash-bar, foreshore and swale depositional elements are recognized within ground-penetrating radar profiles and sediment cores. A...
Authors
Julie Zurbuchen, Alexander R. Simms, Jonathan A. Warrick, Ian M. Miller, Andrew C. Ritchie
Geographic and oceanographic influences on ferromanganese crust composition along a Pacific Ocean meridional transect, 14N to 14S Geographic and oceanographic influences on ferromanganese crust composition along a Pacific Ocean meridional transect, 14N to 14S
The major controls on the variability of ferromanganese (FeMn) crust composition have been generally described over the past 40 years; however, most compilation studies lack quantitative statistics and are limited to a small region of several seamounts or compare FeMn crusts from disparate areas of the global oceans. This study provides the first detailed research to address the...
Authors
Kira Mizell, James R. Hein, Phoebe J. Lam, Anthony A.P. Koppers, Hubert Staudigel