Woods Hole Coastal and Marine Science Center

Acoustic backscatter intensity data are an indication of the relative hardness or softness of the sea floor, which is closely related to sediment texture and cohesion. The map shows acoustic backscatter intensity of the sea floor in the Buzzards Bay, Massachusetts. In general, higher values (light tones) represent rock, boulders, cobbles, gravel, shell reefs, and coarse

 Left to right: Mike Bastoni (volunteer) and Lisa Engler (Massachusetts Bays Program) deploying the USGS-desgined SEABed Observation and Sampling System (SEABOSS) from Ocean Survey Vessel Bold, with Marinna Martini (USGS) running the winch

Satellite image of Hurricane Sandy (courtesy NASA GOES http://weather.msfc.nasa.gov/GOES/)

Image showing a study area from Boston Harbor to the mouth of Cape Cod Bay including some images of geophysical and sample data available in the associated report.

 Westco discrete nutrient analyzer measures low-levels of nutrients in water samples

Overwash processes caused by storms, like the one seen here following Hurricane Sandy on a barrier island in Virginia, push sand landward over dunes to create low-elevation, minimally vegetated sandy habitats used by a variety of species, like piping plovers.

Digital still photograph from Ipswich Bay near Salisbury, MA, showing a lobster, sponges, and brachiopods, on cobbles and ledge covered with bubblegum algae and red filamentous algae.  A thin veneer of coarse sand and gravelly sediment partially cover the rocks. Water depth at this location is approximately 24 meters.

Macroalgae, seagrass, and litter in West Falmouth Harbor, MA

 Sunrise with a recently deployed buoy measuring meteorological data off Fire Island, NY in 2012.  The data collected is part of a study of the coastal processes that mobilize and transport sediment in the region

Anti-fouling treatment is applied to a sensor on a platform about to be deployed off Fire Island, NY in 2012.  The data collected is part of a study of the coastal processes that mobilize and transport sediment in the region

Maps showing (A) acoustic backscatter and (B) bathymetry collected with the inteferomentric sonar.  High backscatter is displayed by light tones and low backscatter is displayed as dark tones within the backscatter image.  Regional bathymetric contours are in meters.  West of Watch Hill, the modern sand deposit is organized into a series of shoreface-attached