Images

A photo of a National Park Service information plate on “Sharks in Cape Cod Waters”, Cape Cod, MA, taken during a field study reconnaissance mission.  

Map showing rates of shoreline change on the north coast of Alaska. Rates range from -15 meters per year to +11 meters per year.

Seagull on Indian Rocks Beach, Florida

Several instruments visible on board the research vessel JOIDES Resolution. Photo taken from the ship bridge roof. USGS logo visible on one of the pieces of equipment. Research cruises taken on the JOIDES Resolution are often interdisciplinary and collaborative across many universities, scientific agencies, and other research institutions.

Glenn Simpson (left), Park Manager of the Dry Tortugas National Park, National Park Service and Ilsa Kuffner (right), USGS Research Marine Biologist, with an elkhorn coral from Pulaski Shoal being weighed and measured.

Joseph Terrano collects field notes in the Grand Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve, Mississippi marsh. 

Joseph Terrano of the USGS St. Petersburg Coastal and Marine Science Center prepares water level loggers to install near the marsh shoreline in Grand Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve, Mississippi.

Sediment tiles, used for short-term sedimentation rates, are collected in November 2019 from Point aux Chênes, Mississippi marsh following a 3-month deployment; the sediment accumulated on the tile will be measured and analyzed for diatoms and sediment properties.

Mounds of sand cleared from the roadway stand high on both sides of a road near the beach in Pensacola Beach, Florida, in October 2004 after Hurricane Ivan.

U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) researcher Dave Thompson stands next to a garage in Gulf Shores, Alabama, that filled with sand after Hurricane Ivan in 2004.

Established in 2009, the U.S. Geological Survey’s Coral Assessment Network (USGS-CAN) provides data on coral-growth (calcification) rates throughout the Florida Keys. Pictured here is a coral at Crocker Reef in the upper Florida Keys.

Established in 2009, the U.S. Geological Survey’s Coral Assessment Network (USGS-CAN) provides data on coral-growth (calcification) rates throughout the Florida Keys and St. Croix, U.S. Virgin Islands. Pictured here is one of 30 stations located in Buck Island Reef National Monument.

Sediments in estuarine and marsh environments contain organic peat, or material derived from life, that plays an important role in ecosystem health. Here, USGS geologist Chris Smith of the St.

The USGS Coastal and Estuarine Dynamics Group will be deploying a cross shore array at Pea Island, various intruments will be connected to the poles to measure oceanographic conditions

Dale Griffin of the St. Petersburg Coastal and Marine Science Center is interviewed about the links between Saharan dust and harmful algal blooms off the coast of Florida. 

A scientist deploys a sound velocity cast from a boat while conducting a chirp geophysical survey offshore of the Rockaway Peninsula, New York. These geophysical data were used to quantify volumes of available shoreface sediment on this margin.

Scientists collected marine vibracores from a research vessel in Mississippi Sound to study shelf geology as part of a collaboration between Mississippi State University and the USGS St. Petersburg Coastal and Marine Science Center.

Photo of Fire Island, New York showing back barrier, dunes, beach, and nearshore environments.

Explore coastal change at Fire Island in this interactive Story Map.

A great white heron standing atop the mangrove roots of Boggy Key, in the upper Florida Keys. This heron has a limited range, which includes the Florida Keys and Everglades National Park. It is rarely seen outside of these areas. 

Fire Island is a barrier island off the coast of Long Island, New York that hosts several protected areas, nesting habitat for shorebirds, and beachgoers looking for a relaxing place for recreation. USGS studies how the island changes over time - in both the past and present - to better understand how the island may evolve in the future. 

Predicted probabilities of dune erosion (inner band), overwash (middle band), and inundation (outer band) for Hurricane Dorian. Photographs are representative of coastal change observed during past storm events.