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Remote Sensing Coastal Change Project Collects Aerial Imagery Observations of Hurricane Isaias Impacts

In order to assess the degree of coastal impacts due to Hurricane Isaias along the northern Outer Banks in North Carolina, the USGS Remote Sensing Coastal Change (RSCC) Project responded by collecting aerial imagery along the coastline immediately prior to (Aug. 2, 2020) and after (Aug. 5 and 8, 2020) the storm made landfall and moved north.

Aerial view of the northern Outer Banks, North Carolina from post-Hurricane Isaias showing bulldozers clearing the road of sand
The USGS Remote Sensing Coastal Change Project collected aerial imagery of the northern Outer Banks, North Carolina coastline from pre- and post-Hurricane Isaias, in order to use Structure-from-Motion techniques to produce digital elevation models (DEMs) and orthomosaic photos, to be used in evaluating the storm-induced coastal change, such as sand transported onto roadways that is being removed in this post-storm photo. (Credit: Wayne Wright, USGS. Public domain.)

Overflights of the coast from Duck to Cape Lookout were conducted by pilot Wayne Wright collecting overlapping photos to be processed with Structure-from-Motion techniques to create digital elevation models (DEMs) and orthomosaic images. These products will allow for the storm-induced topographic changes to be measured, and to provide information about the vulnerability and recovery of the coastline that was impacted by Hurricane Dorian in 2019.

These observations were collected as part of ongoing USGS and DUNEX (https://uscoastalresearch.org/dunex) monitoring efforts of the northern Outer Banks in North Carolina, to better understand storm impacts, island recovery, and topographic change along the coast.

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