Coastal Sediment Availability and Flux (CSAF)
Sediments are the foundation of coastal systems, including barrier islands. Their behavior is driven by not only sediment availability, but also sediment exchanges between barrier island environments. We collect geophysical, remote sensing, and sediment data to estimate these parameters, which are integrated with models to improve prediction of coastal response to extreme storms and sea-level rise.
Featured Publication
The shorelines of Titan’s hydrocarbon seas trace flooded erosional landforms such as river valleys; however, it is unclear whether coastal erosion has subsequently altered these shorelines. Spacecraft observations and theoretical models suggest that wind may cause waves to form on Titan’s seas...
Barrier Islands as Connected Systems
With a wealth of knowledge about how shorelines, beaches, and dunes respond to storms and the variability of inner shelf geology, the USGS Coastal and Marine Hazards and Resources Program is poised to extend its morphologic and geologic expertise across the shoreface and back-barrier data gaps. Shoreface geology is particularly important to assess since it may record evidence of processes that we otherwise don’t have the opportunities or capabilities to observe. With these goals in mind, we measure geology and morphology in coastal environments to reconstruct past environmental histories and estimate the magnitude and rate of sediment exchanges (e.g., fluxes) over a range of time scales. Integration of these observations with models allows us to predict past and future behavior of barrier-island systems in a changing climate and provides information to help our partners mitigate coastal hazards and identify coastal restoration priorities.
Project Objectives:
- Incorporate shoreface morphology and geology into coastal-change assessments
- Conduct repeat geophysical surveys to estimate sediment fluxes with better accuracy and temporal resolution
- Understand how coastal systems respond to storms, variations in sediment supply and rate of sea-level rise over short (1-10s year) and long (100-1000 year) time scales
- Make predictions of future (long-term) coastal vulnerability and resilience rooted in robust morphologic and geologic observations
Learn more about the Coastal Sediment Availability and Flux project
Below are data associated with this project.
Archive of Chirp Subbottom Profile Data Collected in June 2018 From Fire Island, New York
Coastal Bathymetry Data Collected in June 2018 from Fire Island, New York: Wilderness Breach and Shoreface
Coastal Bathymetry Data Collected in 2016 from the Chandeleur Islands, Louisiana
Archive of Chirp Subbottom Profile Data Collected in 2017 From the Northern Chandeleur Islands, Louisiana
Archive of Chirp Subbottom Profile Data Collected in 2016 From the Northern Chandeleur Islands, Louisiana
Archive of Ground Penetrating Radar and Differential Global Positioning System Data Collected in April 2016 from Fire Island, New York
Secrets of the Sediment on Barrier Islands
Join the USGS St. Petersburg Coastal and Marine Science Center as they uncover the secrets of the sediment on barrier islands in Pinellas County, Florida. This video was originally created for use at the 2021 virtual St. Petersburg Science Festival.
Below are publications associated with this project.
Signatures of wave erosion in Titan’s coasts
Quantification of storm-induced bathymetric change in a back-barrier estuary
Evolution of mid-Atlantic coastal and back-barrier estuary environments in response to a hurricane: Implications for barrier-estuary connectivity
Integrating geophysical and oceanographic data to assess interannual variability in longshore sediment transport
Numerical model of coastal Erosion by Waves and Transgressive Scarps (NEWTS)
The Numerical model of coastal Erosion by Waves and Transgressive Scarps (NEWTS) model is a framework to simulate the erosion of a closed-basin coastline through time by fetch-dependent erosion or uniform erosion. The model is written in MATLAB and the MATLAB Image Processing Toolbox and a MEX compiler are required.
Below are news stories associated with this project.
USGS Scientists from across the Nation Publish Circular Summarizing USGS Participation in Unlearning Racism in Geoscience (URGE) and Present Recommendations for Improving Diversity in the USGS Workforce
A recently published USGS Circular summarizes the work of more than 100 scientists from six groups across USGS, the largest participation in URGE of any federal science agency, representing a grassroots plan for making the USGS workforce more diverse and inclusive.
Sediments are the foundation of coastal systems, including barrier islands. Their behavior is driven by not only sediment availability, but also sediment exchanges between barrier island environments. We collect geophysical, remote sensing, and sediment data to estimate these parameters, which are integrated with models to improve prediction of coastal response to extreme storms and sea-level rise.
Featured Publication
The shorelines of Titan’s hydrocarbon seas trace flooded erosional landforms such as river valleys; however, it is unclear whether coastal erosion has subsequently altered these shorelines. Spacecraft observations and theoretical models suggest that wind may cause waves to form on Titan’s seas...
Barrier Islands as Connected Systems
With a wealth of knowledge about how shorelines, beaches, and dunes respond to storms and the variability of inner shelf geology, the USGS Coastal and Marine Hazards and Resources Program is poised to extend its morphologic and geologic expertise across the shoreface and back-barrier data gaps. Shoreface geology is particularly important to assess since it may record evidence of processes that we otherwise don’t have the opportunities or capabilities to observe. With these goals in mind, we measure geology and morphology in coastal environments to reconstruct past environmental histories and estimate the magnitude and rate of sediment exchanges (e.g., fluxes) over a range of time scales. Integration of these observations with models allows us to predict past and future behavior of barrier-island systems in a changing climate and provides information to help our partners mitigate coastal hazards and identify coastal restoration priorities.
Project Objectives:
- Incorporate shoreface morphology and geology into coastal-change assessments
- Conduct repeat geophysical surveys to estimate sediment fluxes with better accuracy and temporal resolution
- Understand how coastal systems respond to storms, variations in sediment supply and rate of sea-level rise over short (1-10s year) and long (100-1000 year) time scales
- Make predictions of future (long-term) coastal vulnerability and resilience rooted in robust morphologic and geologic observations
Learn more about the Coastal Sediment Availability and Flux project
Below are data associated with this project.
Archive of Chirp Subbottom Profile Data Collected in June 2018 From Fire Island, New York
Coastal Bathymetry Data Collected in June 2018 from Fire Island, New York: Wilderness Breach and Shoreface
Coastal Bathymetry Data Collected in 2016 from the Chandeleur Islands, Louisiana
Archive of Chirp Subbottom Profile Data Collected in 2017 From the Northern Chandeleur Islands, Louisiana
Archive of Chirp Subbottom Profile Data Collected in 2016 From the Northern Chandeleur Islands, Louisiana
Archive of Ground Penetrating Radar and Differential Global Positioning System Data Collected in April 2016 from Fire Island, New York
Secrets of the Sediment on Barrier Islands
Join the USGS St. Petersburg Coastal and Marine Science Center as they uncover the secrets of the sediment on barrier islands in Pinellas County, Florida. This video was originally created for use at the 2021 virtual St. Petersburg Science Festival.
Below are publications associated with this project.
Signatures of wave erosion in Titan’s coasts
Quantification of storm-induced bathymetric change in a back-barrier estuary
Evolution of mid-Atlantic coastal and back-barrier estuary environments in response to a hurricane: Implications for barrier-estuary connectivity
Integrating geophysical and oceanographic data to assess interannual variability in longshore sediment transport
Numerical model of coastal Erosion by Waves and Transgressive Scarps (NEWTS)
The Numerical model of coastal Erosion by Waves and Transgressive Scarps (NEWTS) model is a framework to simulate the erosion of a closed-basin coastline through time by fetch-dependent erosion or uniform erosion. The model is written in MATLAB and the MATLAB Image Processing Toolbox and a MEX compiler are required.
Below are news stories associated with this project.
USGS Scientists from across the Nation Publish Circular Summarizing USGS Participation in Unlearning Racism in Geoscience (URGE) and Present Recommendations for Improving Diversity in the USGS Workforce
A recently published USGS Circular summarizes the work of more than 100 scientists from six groups across USGS, the largest participation in URGE of any federal science agency, representing a grassroots plan for making the USGS workforce more diverse and inclusive.