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Publications

Scientific reports, journal articles, and information products produced by USGS Pacific Coastal and Marine Science Center scientists.

Filter Total Items: 1420

Most atolls will be uninhabitable by the mid-21st century because of sea-level rise exacerbating wave-driven flooding Most atolls will be uninhabitable by the mid-21st century because of sea-level rise exacerbating wave-driven flooding

Sea levels are rising, with the highest rates in the tropics, where thousands of low-lying coral atoll islands are located. Most studies on the resilience of these islands to sea-level rise have projected that they will experience minimal inundation impacts until at least the end of the 21st century. However, these have not taken into account the additional hazard of wave-driven overwash...
Authors
Curt D. Storlazzi, Stephen B. Gingerich, Ap van Dongeren, Olivia M. Cheriton, Peter W. Swarzenski, Ellen Quataert, Clifford I. Voss, Donald W. Field, Hariharasubramanian Annamalai, Greg A. Piniak, Robert T. McCall

Effect of dynamical phase on the resonant interaction among tsunami edge wave modes Effect of dynamical phase on the resonant interaction among tsunami edge wave modes

Different modes of tsunami edge waves can interact through nonlinear resonance. During this process, edge waves that have very small initial amplitude can grow to be as large or larger than the initially dominant edge wave modes. In this study, the effects of dynamical phase are established for a single triad of edge waves that participate in resonant interactions. In previous studies...
Authors
Eric L. Geist

Introduction to “Global tsunami science: Past and future, Volume III” Introduction to “Global tsunami science: Past and future, Volume III”

Twenty papers on the study of tsunamis are included in Volume III of the PAGEOPH topical issue “Global Tsunami Science: Past and Future”. Volume I of this topical issue was published as PAGEOPH, vol. 173, No. 12, 2016 and Volume II as PAGEOPH, vol. 174, No. 8, 2017. Two papers in Volume III focus on specific details of the 2009 Samoa and the 1923 northern Kamchatka tsunamis; they are...
Authors
Alexander B. Rabinovich, Hermann M. Fritz, Yuichiro Tanioka, Eric L. Geist

California State Waters Map Series — Offshore of Gaviota, California California State Waters Map Series — Offshore of Gaviota, California

Introduction In 2007, the California Ocean Protection Council initiated the California Seafloor Mapping Program (CSMP), designed to create a comprehensive seafloor map of high-resolution bathymetry, marine benthic habitats, and geology within the 3-nautical-mile limit of California’s State Waters. The CSMP approach is to create highly detailed seafloor maps through collection...
Authors
Samuel Y. Johnson, Peter Dartnell, Guy R. Cochrane, Stephen R. Hartwell, Nadine E. Golden, Rikk Kvitek, Clifton W. Davenport

California State Waters Map Series — Offshore of Point Conception, California California State Waters Map Series — Offshore of Point Conception, California

Introduction In 2007, the California Ocean Protection Council initiated the California Seafloor Mapping Program (CSMP), designed to create a comprehensive seafloor map of high-resolution bathymetry, marine benthic habitats, and geology within the 3-nautical-mile limit of California’s State Waters. The CSMP approach is to create highly detailed seafloor maps through collection...
Authors
Samuel Y. Johnson, Peter Dartnell, Guy R. Cochrane, Stephen R. Hartwell, Nadine E. Golden, Rikk Kvitek, Clifton W. Davenport

Carbonate system parameters of an algal-dominated reef along west Maui Carbonate system parameters of an algal-dominated reef along west Maui

Constraining coral reef metabolism and carbon chemistry dynamics are fundamental for understanding and predicting reef vulnerability to rising coastal CO2 concentrations and decreasing seawater pH. However, few studies exist along reefs occupying densely inhabited shorelines with known input from land-based sources of pollution. The shallow coral reefs off Kahekili, West Maui, are...
Authors
Nancy G. Prouty, Kimberly K. Yates, Nathan A. Smiley, Christopher Gallagher, Olivia Cheriton, Curt D. Storlazzi

Wave attenuation across a tidal marsh in San Francisco Bay Wave attenuation across a tidal marsh in San Francisco Bay

Wave attenuation is a central process in the mechanics of a healthy salt marsh. Understanding how wave attenuation varies with vegetation and hydrodynamic conditions informs models of other marsh processes that are a function of wave energy (e.g. sediment transport) and allows for the incorporation of marshes into coastal protection plans. Here, we examine the evolution of wave height...
Authors
Madeline R. Foster-Martinez, Jessica R. Lacy, Matthew C. Ferner, Evan A. Variano

Benthic assemblages of mega epifauna on the Oregon continental margin Benthic assemblages of mega epifauna on the Oregon continental margin

Environmental assessment studies are usually required by a country's administration before issuing permits for any industrial activities. One of the goals of such environmental assessment studies is to highlight species assemblages and habitat composition that could make the targeted area unique. A section of the Oregon continental slope that had not been previously explored was targeted...
Authors
Lenaig G. Hemery, Sarah K. Henkel, Guy R. Cochrane

Nonhydrostatic and surfbeat model predictions of extreme wave run-up in fringing reef environments Nonhydrostatic and surfbeat model predictions of extreme wave run-up in fringing reef environments

The accurate prediction of extreme wave run-up is important for effective coastal engineering design and coastal hazard management. While run-up processes on open sandy coasts have been reasonably well-studied, very few studies have focused on understanding and predicting wave run-up at coral reef-fronted coastlines. This paper applies the short-wave resolving, Nonhydrostatic (XB-NH) and...
Authors
Christopher H. Lashley, Dano Roelvink, Ap R. van Dongeren, Mark L. Buckley, Ryan J. Lowe

Developing Foram-AMBI for biomonitoring in the Mediterranean: Species assignments to ecological categories Developing Foram-AMBI for biomonitoring in the Mediterranean: Species assignments to ecological categories

Most environmental bio-monitoring methods using the species composition of marine faunas define the Ecological Quality Status of soft bottom ecosystems based on the relative proportions of species assigned to a limited number of ecological categories. In this study we analyse the distribution patterns of benthic foraminifera in the Mediterranean as a function of organic carbon gradients...
Authors
Frans Jorissen, Maria P. Nardelli, Ahuva Almogi-Labin, Christine Barras, Luisa Bergamin, Erica Bicchi, Akram El Kateb, Luciana Ferraro, Mary McGann, Caterina Morigi, Elena Romano, Anna Sabattini, Magali Schweizer, Silvia Spezzaferri

Pleistocene vertical motions of the Costa Rican outer forearc from subducting topography and a migrating fracture zone triple junction Pleistocene vertical motions of the Costa Rican outer forearc from subducting topography and a migrating fracture zone triple junction

Understanding the links between subducting slabs and upper-plate deformation is a longstanding goal in the field of tectonics. New 3D seismic sequence stratigraphy, mapped within the Costa Rica Seismogenesis Project (CRISP) seismic-reflection volume offshore southern Costa Rica, spatiotemporally constrains several Pleistocene outer forearc processes and provides clearer connections to...
Authors
Joel H. Edwards, Jared W. Kluesner, Eli A. Silver, Nathan L. Bangs

Challenges of forecasting flooding on coral reef–lined coasts Challenges of forecasting flooding on coral reef–lined coasts

Understanding wave-driven coastal flooding is a challenging scientific problem; the need for forecasts is becoming more urgent because of sea level rise, climate change, and ever-growing coastal populations. The tools developed for sandy shorelines are generally not applicable to coral reef–lined coasts with their complex bathymetry, hydrodynamically rough reef platforms, steep and...
Authors
Curt D. Storlazzi
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