Coastal Model Applications and Field Measurements Active
Numerical models are used by scientists, engineers, coastal managers, and the public to understand and predict processes in the coastal ocean. This project supports the development and application of open-source coastal models and has several objectives: 1) improve the code of numerical sediment-transport models by implementing new or improved algorithms; 2) obtain measurements of coastal ocean processes to test and verify models; 3) develop new instruments or analysis techniques to make these measurements; and 4) develop software tools and standards to facilitate analysis, comparison, and visualization of observations and models. Study sites are selected for characteristics needed for model development and testing, as well as to address issues of national or regional importance.
This project houses several components, including: model code development; advances in instrumentation, field measurements, and analysis; development of standards and software tools for analysis of model output and comparison with observations; and model applications intended to test model capabilities, capitalize on unique partnering opportunities or field experiments, or address problems of societal relevance that are urgent and/or require new modeling capabilities.
Numerical ocean models are used by scientists, engineers, and coastal managers to understand and predict the effects of physical, biological, and chemical processes in the coastal ocean. This project has four objectives: 1) improve the code of open-source numerical models by implementing new or improved algorithms for processes related to sediment transport; 2) provide measurements of coastal ocean processes to test and verify models; and 3) develop new instruments or analysis techniques to make these measurements; and 4) develop software tools and standards to facilitate incorporation of observations with models and comparison among models. The overall objective is to support development of open-source models that are useful for addressing important problems related to natural hazards and ecosystem change in the coastal ocean.
Below are other science projects associated with this project.
Coastal Model Applications and Field Measurements- Ocean Model Contributions
Below are multimedia items associated with this project.
Below are publications associated with this project.
Alexandrium fundyense cysts in the Gulf of Maine: long-term time series of abundance and distribution, and linkages to past and future blooms
Complex mean circulation over the inner shelf south of Martha's Vineyard revealed by observations and a high-resolution model
A novel approach for direct estimation of fresh groundwater discharge to an estuary
Effect of roughness formulation on the performance of a coupled wave, hydrodynamic, and sediment transport model
Review of Oceanographic and Geochemical Data Collected in Massachusetts Bay during a Large Discharge of Total Suspended Solids from Boston's Sewage-Treatment System and Ocean Outfall in August 2002
Geophysical Data Collected off the South Shore of Martha's Vineyard, Massachusetts
Sediment transport on the Palos Verdes shelf, California
Standard-target calibration of an acoustic backscatter system
Connections Among the Spatial and Temporal Structures in Tidal Currents, Internal Bores, and Surficial Sediment Distributions Over the Shelf off Palos Verdes, California
Collaboration tools and techniques for large model datasets
Calculating wave-generated bottom orbital velocities from surface-wave parameters
Northeast storms ranked by wind stress and wave-generated bottom stress observed in Massachusetts Bay, 1990-2006
Documentation of the U.S. Geological Survey Oceanographic time-series measurement database
Experiment descriptions, site locations and EPIC format data products are available at U.S. Geological Survey Oceanographic Time-Series Data Collection
U.S. Geological Survey Oceanographic Time-Series Data Collection
Oceanographic time-series measurements made by the U.S. Geological Survey between 1975 and the present as part of research programs. The data were collected to address specific research questions and were primarily collected over durations less than a year, using stationary platforms, with sensors near the sea floor. These data have been used to study of ocean dynamics and to validate ocean models
- Overview
Numerical models are used by scientists, engineers, coastal managers, and the public to understand and predict processes in the coastal ocean. This project supports the development and application of open-source coastal models and has several objectives: 1) improve the code of numerical sediment-transport models by implementing new or improved algorithms; 2) obtain measurements of coastal ocean processes to test and verify models; 3) develop new instruments or analysis techniques to make these measurements; and 4) develop software tools and standards to facilitate analysis, comparison, and visualization of observations and models. Study sites are selected for characteristics needed for model development and testing, as well as to address issues of national or regional importance.
This project houses several components, including: model code development; advances in instrumentation, field measurements, and analysis; development of standards and software tools for analysis of model output and comparison with observations; and model applications intended to test model capabilities, capitalize on unique partnering opportunities or field experiments, or address problems of societal relevance that are urgent and/or require new modeling capabilities.
Numerical ocean models are used by scientists, engineers, and coastal managers to understand and predict the effects of physical, biological, and chemical processes in the coastal ocean. This project has four objectives: 1) improve the code of open-source numerical models by implementing new or improved algorithms for processes related to sediment transport; 2) provide measurements of coastal ocean processes to test and verify models; and 3) develop new instruments or analysis techniques to make these measurements; and 4) develop software tools and standards to facilitate incorporation of observations with models and comparison among models. The overall objective is to support development of open-source models that are useful for addressing important problems related to natural hazards and ecosystem change in the coastal ocean.
- Science
Below are other science projects associated with this project.
Coastal Model Applications and Field Measurements- Ocean Model Contributions
The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) and Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI) led a project funded by the National Oceanographic Partnership Program (NOPP) with support from the Office of Naval Research (ONR) and the National Science Foundation (NSF), to develop a community sediment-transport modeling system (CSTMS). - Multimedia
Below are multimedia items associated with this project.
- Publications
Below are publications associated with this project.
Alexandrium fundyense cysts in the Gulf of Maine: long-term time series of abundance and distribution, and linkages to past and future blooms
Here we document Alexandrium fundyense cyst abundance and distribution patterns over nine years (1997 and 2004–2011) in the coastal waters of the Gulf of Maine (GOM) and identify linkages between those patterns and several metrics of the severity or magnitude of blooms occurring before and after each autumn cyst survey. We also explore the relative utility of two measures of cyst abundance and demAuthorsDonald M. Anderson, Bruce A. Keafer, Judith L. Kleindinst, Dennis J. McGillicuddy, Jennifer L. Martin, Kerry Norton, Cynthia H. Pilskaln, Juliette L. Smith, Christopher R. Sherwood, Bradford ButmanFilter Total Items: 38Complex mean circulation over the inner shelf south of Martha's Vineyard revealed by observations and a high-resolution model
Inner-shelf circulation is governed by the interaction between tides, baroclinic forcing, winds, waves, and frictional losses; the mean circulation ultimately governs exchange between the coast and ocean. In some cases, oscillatory tidal currents interact with bathymetric features to generate a tidally rectified flow. Recent observational and modeling efforts in an overlapping domain centered on tAuthorsNeil K. Ganju, Steven J. Lentz, Anthony R. Kirincich, J. Thomas FarrarA novel approach for direct estimation of fresh groundwater discharge to an estuary
Coastal groundwater discharge is an important source of freshwater and nutrients to coastal and estuarine systems. Directly quantifying the spatially integrated discharge of fresh groundwater over a coastline is difficult due to spatial variability and limited observational methods. In this study, I applied a novel approach to estimate net freshwater discharge from a groundwater-fed tidal creek ovAuthorsNeil K. GanjuEffect of roughness formulation on the performance of a coupled wave, hydrodynamic, and sediment transport model
A variety of algorithms are available for parameterizing the hydrodynamic bottom roughness associated with grain size, saltation, bedforms, and wave–current interaction in coastal ocean models. These parameterizations give rise to spatially and temporally variable bottom-drag coefficients that ostensibly provide better representations of physical processes than uniform and constant coefficients. HAuthorsNeil K. Ganju, Christopher R. SherwoodReview of Oceanographic and Geochemical Data Collected in Massachusetts Bay during a Large Discharge of Total Suspended Solids from Boston's Sewage-Treatment System and Ocean Outfall in August 2002
During the period August 14-23, 2002, the discharge of total suspended solids (TSS) from the Massachusetts Water Resources Authority sewage-treatment plant ranged from 32 to 132 milligrams per liter, causing the monthly average discharge to exceed the limit specified in the National Pollution Discharge Elimination System permit. Time-series monitoring data collected by the U.S. Geological Survey iAuthorsMichael H. Bothner, Bradford Butman, Michael A. CassoGeophysical Data Collected off the South Shore of Martha's Vineyard, Massachusetts
The U.S. Geological Survey Woods Hole Science Center conducted a nearshore geophysical survey offshore of the southern coast of Martha's Vineyard, in the vicinity of the Martha's Vineyard Coastal Observatory in 2007. This mapping program was part of a larger research effort supporting the Office of Naval Research Ripples Directed-Research Initiative studies at Martha's Vineyard Coastal ObservatoryAuthorsJ. F. Denny, W. W. Danforth, D. S. Foster, C. R. SherwoodSediment transport on the Palos Verdes shelf, California
Sediment transport and the potential for erosion or deposition have been investigated on the Palos Verdes (PV) and San Pedro shelves in southern California to help assess the fate of an effluent-affected deposit contaminated with DDT and PCBs. Bottom boundary layer measurements at two 60-m sites in spring 2004 were used to set model parameters and evaluate a one-dimensional (vertical) model of locAuthorsB. Ferre, C. R. Sherwood, P.L. WibergStandard-target calibration of an acoustic backscatter system
The standard-target method used to calibrate scientific echo sounders and other scientific sonars by a single, solid elastic sphere is being adapted to acoustic backscatter (ABS) systems. Its first application, to the AQUAscat 1000, is described. The on-axis sensitivity and directional properties of transducer beams at three operating frequencies, nominally 1, 2.5, and 4 MHz, have been determinedAuthorsKenneth G. Foote, Marinna A. MartiniConnections Among the Spatial and Temporal Structures in Tidal Currents, Internal Bores, and Surficial Sediment Distributions Over the Shelf off Palos Verdes, California
The topography of the Continental Shelf in the central portion of the Southern California Bight has rapid variations over relatively small spatial scales. The width of the shelf off the Palos Verdes peninsula, just northwest of Los Angeles, California, is only 1 to 3 km. About 7 km southeast of the peninsula, the shelf within San Pedro Bay widens to about 20 km. In 2000, the Los Angeles County SanAuthorsMarlene A. Noble, Kurt J. Rosenberger, Jingping Xu, Richard P. Signell, Alex SteeleCollaboration tools and techniques for large model datasets
In MREA and many other marine applications, it is common to have multiple models running with different grids, run by different institutions. Techniques and tools are described for low-bandwidth delivery of data from large multidimensional datasets, such as those from meteorological and oceanographic models, directly into generic analysis and visualization tools. Output is stored using the NetCDFAuthorsR. P. Signell, S. Carniel, J. Chiggiato, I. Janekovic, J. Pullen, C. R. SherwoodCalculating wave-generated bottom orbital velocities from surface-wave parameters
Near-bed wave orbital velocities and shear stresses are important parameters in many sediment-transport and hydrodynamic models of the coastal ocean, estuaries, and lakes. Simple methods for estimating bottom orbital velocities from surface-wave statistics such as significant wave height and peak period often are inaccurate except in very shallow water. This paper briefly reviews approaches for esAuthorsP.L. Wiberg, C. R. SherwoodNortheast storms ranked by wind stress and wave-generated bottom stress observed in Massachusetts Bay, 1990-2006
Along the coast of the northeastern United States, strong winds blowing from the northeast are often associated with storms called northeasters, coastal storms that strongly influence weather. In addition to effects caused by wind stress, the sea floor is affected by bottom stress associated with these storms. Bottom stress caused by orbital velocities associated with surface waves integrated overAuthorsB. Butman, C. R. Sherwood, P.S. DalyanderDocumentation of the U.S. Geological Survey Oceanographic time-series measurement database
The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) Oceanographic Time-Series Measurement Database contains oceanographic observations made as part of studies designed to increase understanding of sediment transport processes and associated dynamics. Analysis of these data has contributed to more accurate prediction of the movement and fate of sediments and other suspended materials in the coastal ocean. The measurAuthorsEllyn T. Montgomery, Marinna A. Martini, Frances L. Lightsom, Bradford Butman, Daniel J. Nowacki, Steven E. Suttles - Web Tools
Experiment descriptions, site locations and EPIC format data products are available at U.S. Geological Survey Oceanographic Time-Series Data Collection
U.S. Geological Survey Oceanographic Time-Series Data Collection
Oceanographic time-series measurements made by the U.S. Geological Survey between 1975 and the present as part of research programs. The data were collected to address specific research questions and were primarily collected over durations less than a year, using stationary platforms, with sensors near the sea floor. These data have been used to study of ocean dynamics and to validate ocean models