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USGS CoastCams

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By Coastal and Marine Hazards and Resources Program June 29, 2023

The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) uses a nationwide network of coastal observing cameras, or CoastCams, to monitor coastal conditions in near real-time and support research by the USGS and its partners into a variety of coastal processes and hazards. The most recent CoastCam images are made publicly available within minutes of data collection and can be accessed using the links below or by navigating to a CoastCam location in the ‘Study Area’ map.

CoastCam locations

coastal camera installed on beach
Sources/Usage: Public Domain. View Media Details
This CoastCam station was established at Head of the Meadow Beach, North Truro, MA in the Cape Cod National Seashore in 2019. This camera records beach and nearshore conditions in a region shared by beachgoers, shorebirds, seals, and sharks. 

 

Atlantic Ocean

 

Beaufort/Chukchi Seas

 

Bering Sea

 

Gulf of Mexico

 

Pacific Ocean

 

The science of CoastCams

USGS CoastCams typically collect images or short videos at regular time intervals (usually every 30–60 minutes). These products are useful to monitor coastlines in near real time, but images are also processed, stored, and analyzed by USGS scientists to improve the understanding of a variety of coastal processes, including:

  • waves and wave runup
  • water levels during regular and extreme conditions
  • changes in beach topography and nearshore bathymetry
  • changes in shoreline position
  • alongshore currents
  • rip channel formation
  • sea ice dynamics

Some USGS CoastCams are located near offshore buoys, which concurrently measure waves, wind, sea-surface temperature, and barometric pressure. Read more about the science of CoastCams and associated buoys using the links above or by navigating to a CoastCam location in the ‘Study Area’ map.

 

link
A building lifted from its foundation by floodwater from Typhoon Merbok is trapped under a bridge in Nome, Alaska

Typhoon Merbok Disaster Emergency Recovery Efforts

Extreme storm events, such as Extratropical-Typhoon Merbok that hit the coast of Western Alaska in September 2022, are stark reminders of the devastating impacts coastal storms can have on Alaska Native community’s livelihoods and infrastructure. A chronic lack of environmental monitoring and technical assistance in rural Alaska present major barriers to communities affected by Typhoon Merbok...
By
Natural Hazards Mission Area, Coastal and Marine Hazards and Resources Program, Pacific Coastal and Marine Science Center, Supplemental Appropriations for Disaster Recovery Activities
link

Typhoon Merbok Disaster Emergency Recovery Efforts

Extreme storm events, such as Extratropical-Typhoon Merbok that hit the coast of Western Alaska in September 2022, are stark reminders of the devastating impacts coastal storms can have on Alaska Native community’s livelihoods and infrastructure. A chronic lack of environmental monitoring and technical assistance in rural Alaska present major barriers to communities affected by Typhoon Merbok...
Learn More
link
Photograph of Head of the Meadow Beach shoreline camera 2

Using Video Imagery to Study Head of the Meadow Beach

Two video cameras are mounted on a bluff near Head of the Meadow Beach, Cape Cod National Seashore, North Truro, MA. One camera looks alongshore toward the north-northeast, and the second looks directly offshore (northeast). The cameras are part of a U.S. Geological Survey research project to study the beach and nearshore environment shared by beachgoers, shorebirds, seals, and sharks. The work is...
By
Natural Hazards Mission Area, Coastal and Marine Hazards and Resources Program, Woods Hole Coastal and Marine Science Center
link

Using Video Imagery to Study Head of the Meadow Beach

Two video cameras are mounted on a bluff near Head of the Meadow Beach, Cape Cod National Seashore, North Truro, MA. One camera looks alongshore toward the north-northeast, and the second looks directly offshore (northeast). The cameras are part of a U.S. Geological Survey research project to study the beach and nearshore environment shared by beachgoers, shorebirds, seals, and sharks. The work is...
Learn More
link
Photograph looking at a sandy beach with waves lapping the shoreline.

Using Video Imagery to Study Marconi Beach

Two video cameras are mounted on a bluff above Marconi Beach, Cape Cod National Seashore, Wellfleet, MA. One camera looks alongshore toward the northeast, and the second looks directly offshore (east). The cameras are part of a U.S. Geological Survey research project to study the beach and nearshore environment shared by beachgoers, shorebirds, seals, and sharks. The work is being conducted under...
By
Natural Hazards Mission Area, Coastal and Marine Hazards and Resources Program, Woods Hole Coastal and Marine Science Center
link

Using Video Imagery to Study Marconi Beach

Two video cameras are mounted on a bluff above Marconi Beach, Cape Cod National Seashore, Wellfleet, MA. One camera looks alongshore toward the northeast, and the second looks directly offshore (east). The cameras are part of a U.S. Geological Survey research project to study the beach and nearshore environment shared by beachgoers, shorebirds, seals, and sharks. The work is being conducted under...
Learn More
link
Left: Map of Tampa Bay area and Gulf of Mexico. Colored balloons along shore. Right: total-water-level graph (top) and diagram.

Operational Total Water Level and Coastal Change Forecasts

The viewer shows predictions of the timing and magnitude of water levels at the shoreline and potential impacts to coastal dunes.
By
Natural Hazards Mission Area, Coastal and Marine Hazards and Resources Program, St. Petersburg Coastal and Marine Science Center, Supplemental Appropriations for Disaster Recovery Activities
link

Operational Total Water Level and Coastal Change Forecasts

The viewer shows predictions of the timing and magnitude of water levels at the shoreline and potential impacts to coastal dunes.
Learn More

USGS Madeira Beach, Florida CoastCam Imagery and Calibration Data

A digital video camera was installed at Madeira Beach, Florida (FL) and faced west along the beach. Every hour during daylight hours, daily from 2017 to 2022, the camera collected raw video and produced snapshots and time-averaged image products. This data release includes the necessary intrinsic orientation (IO) and extrinsic orientation (EO) calibration data to utilize imagery to make quantitati

By
Coastal and Marine Hazards and Resources Program, St. Petersburg Coastal and Marine Science Center

The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) uses a nationwide network of coastal observing cameras, or CoastCams, to monitor coastal conditions in near real-time and support research by the USGS and its partners into a variety of coastal processes and hazards. The most recent CoastCam images are made publicly available within minutes of data collection and can be accessed using the links below or by navigating to a CoastCam location in the ‘Study Area’ map.

CoastCam locations

coastal camera installed on beach
Sources/Usage: Public Domain. View Media Details
This CoastCam station was established at Head of the Meadow Beach, North Truro, MA in the Cape Cod National Seashore in 2019. This camera records beach and nearshore conditions in a region shared by beachgoers, shorebirds, seals, and sharks. 

 

Atlantic Ocean

 

Beaufort/Chukchi Seas

 

Bering Sea

 

Gulf of Mexico

 

Pacific Ocean

 

The science of CoastCams

USGS CoastCams typically collect images or short videos at regular time intervals (usually every 30–60 minutes). These products are useful to monitor coastlines in near real time, but images are also processed, stored, and analyzed by USGS scientists to improve the understanding of a variety of coastal processes, including:

  • waves and wave runup
  • water levels during regular and extreme conditions
  • changes in beach topography and nearshore bathymetry
  • changes in shoreline position
  • alongshore currents
  • rip channel formation
  • sea ice dynamics

Some USGS CoastCams are located near offshore buoys, which concurrently measure waves, wind, sea-surface temperature, and barometric pressure. Read more about the science of CoastCams and associated buoys using the links above or by navigating to a CoastCam location in the ‘Study Area’ map.

 

link
A building lifted from its foundation by floodwater from Typhoon Merbok is trapped under a bridge in Nome, Alaska

Typhoon Merbok Disaster Emergency Recovery Efforts

Extreme storm events, such as Extratropical-Typhoon Merbok that hit the coast of Western Alaska in September 2022, are stark reminders of the devastating impacts coastal storms can have on Alaska Native community’s livelihoods and infrastructure. A chronic lack of environmental monitoring and technical assistance in rural Alaska present major barriers to communities affected by Typhoon Merbok...
By
Natural Hazards Mission Area, Coastal and Marine Hazards and Resources Program, Pacific Coastal and Marine Science Center, Supplemental Appropriations for Disaster Recovery Activities
link

Typhoon Merbok Disaster Emergency Recovery Efforts

Extreme storm events, such as Extratropical-Typhoon Merbok that hit the coast of Western Alaska in September 2022, are stark reminders of the devastating impacts coastal storms can have on Alaska Native community’s livelihoods and infrastructure. A chronic lack of environmental monitoring and technical assistance in rural Alaska present major barriers to communities affected by Typhoon Merbok...
Learn More
link
Photograph of Head of the Meadow Beach shoreline camera 2

Using Video Imagery to Study Head of the Meadow Beach

Two video cameras are mounted on a bluff near Head of the Meadow Beach, Cape Cod National Seashore, North Truro, MA. One camera looks alongshore toward the north-northeast, and the second looks directly offshore (northeast). The cameras are part of a U.S. Geological Survey research project to study the beach and nearshore environment shared by beachgoers, shorebirds, seals, and sharks. The work is...
By
Natural Hazards Mission Area, Coastal and Marine Hazards and Resources Program, Woods Hole Coastal and Marine Science Center
link

Using Video Imagery to Study Head of the Meadow Beach

Two video cameras are mounted on a bluff near Head of the Meadow Beach, Cape Cod National Seashore, North Truro, MA. One camera looks alongshore toward the north-northeast, and the second looks directly offshore (northeast). The cameras are part of a U.S. Geological Survey research project to study the beach and nearshore environment shared by beachgoers, shorebirds, seals, and sharks. The work is...
Learn More
link
Photograph looking at a sandy beach with waves lapping the shoreline.

Using Video Imagery to Study Marconi Beach

Two video cameras are mounted on a bluff above Marconi Beach, Cape Cod National Seashore, Wellfleet, MA. One camera looks alongshore toward the northeast, and the second looks directly offshore (east). The cameras are part of a U.S. Geological Survey research project to study the beach and nearshore environment shared by beachgoers, shorebirds, seals, and sharks. The work is being conducted under...
By
Natural Hazards Mission Area, Coastal and Marine Hazards and Resources Program, Woods Hole Coastal and Marine Science Center
link

Using Video Imagery to Study Marconi Beach

Two video cameras are mounted on a bluff above Marconi Beach, Cape Cod National Seashore, Wellfleet, MA. One camera looks alongshore toward the northeast, and the second looks directly offshore (east). The cameras are part of a U.S. Geological Survey research project to study the beach and nearshore environment shared by beachgoers, shorebirds, seals, and sharks. The work is being conducted under...
Learn More
link
Left: Map of Tampa Bay area and Gulf of Mexico. Colored balloons along shore. Right: total-water-level graph (top) and diagram.

Operational Total Water Level and Coastal Change Forecasts

The viewer shows predictions of the timing and magnitude of water levels at the shoreline and potential impacts to coastal dunes.
By
Natural Hazards Mission Area, Coastal and Marine Hazards and Resources Program, St. Petersburg Coastal and Marine Science Center, Supplemental Appropriations for Disaster Recovery Activities
link

Operational Total Water Level and Coastal Change Forecasts

The viewer shows predictions of the timing and magnitude of water levels at the shoreline and potential impacts to coastal dunes.
Learn More

USGS Madeira Beach, Florida CoastCam Imagery and Calibration Data

A digital video camera was installed at Madeira Beach, Florida (FL) and faced west along the beach. Every hour during daylight hours, daily from 2017 to 2022, the camera collected raw video and produced snapshots and time-averaged image products. This data release includes the necessary intrinsic orientation (IO) and extrinsic orientation (EO) calibration data to utilize imagery to make quantitati

By
Coastal and Marine Hazards and Resources Program, St. Petersburg Coastal and Marine Science Center
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