Images

SEM image of a Globigerinoides ruber specimen from the Gulf of Mexico.

Multicores collected from the northern Gulf of Mexico. These cores contain roughly 1 meter of sediment from the seafloor, and represent the past ~2000 years of deposition.

A perspective model of the morphology and geologic framework near Petit Bois Island showing the relationships between seafloor features and the subsurface. The barrier islands rest on the island plaftorm. Petis Bois Pass and offshore shoals are clearly visible from the acoustic surveys. The bathymetry, sidescan sonar, and sediment

Calcification monitoring station with a colony of the massive starlet coral, Siderastrea siderea, fastened in place.

The 3DR Solo with GoPro Hero4 camera and gimbal. Coming to a survey area near you soon. Photo credit: Shawn Harrison, USGS. This photo was taken during USGS unmanned aerial systems (drone) pilot training. Two training sessions were held - one in February-March 2017 in Santa Cruz, California and the second in April 2017 in Gainesville, Florida.

The CMHRP is testing the calcification rates of different genetic strains of threatened Elkhorn coral (Acropora palmata) to advise local and Federal agencies engaged in coral reef restoration.

Fieldtrip participants at the former San Clemente Dam site.

Views of Madeira Beach, Florida, produced from a 17-minute video shot on June 20, 2017. Left: Snapshot, or first frame of video. Right: Time-averaged image, sometimes called a “timex,” created by averaging the intensity of light recorded at each spot, or “pixel,” during the 17-minute video.

“Variance” images derived from the same videos used in the studies. Left, Madeira Beach; right, Cowells Beach. In a variance image, the more variation in light intensity at a given pixel, the brighter the value assigned to that pixel. Bright areas indicate many changes in light intensity, caused by a lot of movement.

Elkhorn corals (Acropora palmata) on the seafloor along the northeastern coast of Buck Island, U.S. Virgin Islands, have died and collapsed into rubble. As coral reef structure degrades, habitat for marine life is lost and nearby coastlines become more susceptible to storms, waves, and erosion.

Healthy elkhorn coral (Acropora palmata) on the seafloor along the southeastern coast of Buck Island, U.S. Virgin Islands. Elkhorn coral is one of many important reef-building species that create 3D structure on the seafloor. Coral reef structure provides habitat for marine life and helps break up waves as they approach the coastline.

Shawn Harrison uses his new skills to check out the surf at Santa Cruz, California.

The 3DR Solo with GoPro Hero4 camera and gimbal. Coming to a survey area near you soon.

Shawn Harrison uses a GPS-equipped backpack to measure sand elevations during a post-storm survey of beaches in Santa Cruz, California. 

Photo collage of the shoreline, beaches, and dunes at Fire Island

Examples of sediment dynamics offshore of barrier islands include the development and erosion of shoals, tidal deltas, and sand ridges.

Arctica islandica shells have been sectioned with a saw and embedded in epoxy for further analysis.

Tropical Storm Nate's predicted effect on Northern Gulf sandy shorelines, based on landfall as a Category 1 hurricane,  is shown at three intensities. Outer band:  Dune erosion. Middle band: Dune overwash. Inner band: Dune inundation, with potential flooding behind the dune. Credit: USGS Coastal Change Hazard Portal.

Marsh shoreline inundation during high tide at a marsh sampling site around Middle Bay in the Grand Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve, Mississippi.

Photograph of a purple sunrise at Bayou Heron boat ramp in the Grand Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve, Mississippi.

Marsh shoreline inundation during high tide north of a marsh sampling site around Middle Bay in the Grand Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve, Mississippi.