Skip to main content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Publications

Earthquake recurrence estimates for northern Caribbean faults from combinatorial optimization

Read article

Woods Hole Coastal and Marine Science Center

2023 Annual Report

Read report

Pragmatically mapping Phragmites with unoccupied aerial systems: A comparison of invasive species land cover classification using RGB and multispectral imagery

Read article

Hydroacoustic observations reveal drivers of mixing and salinization of a karst subterranean estuary during intense precipitation

Read article

Scientific literature and information products produced by Woods Hole Coastal and Marine Science Center staff

Featured Journal Article

Invasive Phragmites plants on the shore of a lake

Pragmatically mapping Phragmites with unoccupied aerial systems: A comparison of invasive species land cover classification using RGB and multispectral imagery

Read article

Featured USGS Series

Image shows equipment being brought on board a ship from the water

Woods Hole Coastal and Marine Science Center—2023 Annual Report.  The 2023 annual report highlights accomplishments, includes a list of publications, and summarizes the work of the center and each of the science groups.

Learn more

Sound Waves

three people on boats in lake with snow covered mountains in background

Coastal and Marine Research News from Across the USGS

Read now
Filter Total Items: 1729

Numerical simulation of sound-side barrier-island inundation and breaching during Hurricane Dorian (2019) Numerical simulation of sound-side barrier-island inundation and breaching during Hurricane Dorian (2019)

Hurricane-induced morphological changes and associated community hazards along sandy, barrier-island coastlines have been studied primarily from the perspective of ocean-side attack by storm-driven ocean surge and large waves. Thus, our understanding of long-term barrier island morphological change focuses on beach erosion, overwash, and inlet formation. In contrast, outwash events with...
Authors
John C. Warner, Christopher R. Sherwood, Christie A. Hegermiller, Zafer Defne, Joseph B. Zambon, Ruoying He, George Xue, Daoyang Bao, Dongxiao Yin, Melissa Moulton
By
Woods Hole Coastal and Marine Science Center

Outwash events inhibit vegetation recovery and prolong coastal vulnerability Outwash events inhibit vegetation recovery and prolong coastal vulnerability

Overwash, when high ocean water levels and waves flood a coastline, is a common phenomenon that can lead to washover deposits and barrier rollover. Outwash, by contrast, involves seaward flow, often driven by high back-barrier water levels, and can produce washout channels and nearshore deposition. Our observations show that washout channels were quickly (days to weeks) filled and...
Authors
Jin-Si R. Over, Christopher R. Sherwood
By
Woods Hole Coastal and Marine Science Center

The δ13C signature of dissolved organic and inorganic carbon reveals complex carbon transformations within a salt marsh The δ13C signature of dissolved organic and inorganic carbon reveals complex carbon transformations within a salt marsh

Coastal wetlands have high rates of atmospheric CO2 uptake, which is subsequently respired back to the atmosphere, stored as organic matter within flooded, anoxic soils, or exported to the coastal ocean. Transformation of fixed carbon occurs through a variety of subsurface aerobic and anaerobic microbial processes, and results in a large inventory of dissolved carbon. Carbon source and...
Authors
Meagan J. Eagle, Kevin D. Kroeger, John Pohlman, J.J. Tamborski, Z.A. Wang, Thomas W. Brooks, Jennifer A. O'Keefe Suttles, Adrian G. Mann
By
Woods Hole Coastal and Marine Science Center

Evidence of mineral alteration in a salt marsh subterranean estuary: Implications for carbon and trace element cycling Evidence of mineral alteration in a salt marsh subterranean estuary: Implications for carbon and trace element cycling

Subterranean estuaries (STE) in salt marshes are biogeochemically active zones where interactions between terrestrial groundwater and seawater drive complex cycling of carbon and trace elements, influenced by mineral dissolution. These systems, characterized by fine-grained organic-rich peat overlying permeable coastal aquifers, play a crucial role as a blue carbon sink, yet their...
Authors
J.J. Tamborski, Meagan J. Eagle, M.T. Thorpe, M.A. Charette, B. Kurylyk, S. Rahman, Kevin D. Kroeger, Jennifer A. O'Keefe Suttles, Adrian G. Mann, Thomas W. Brooks, Z.A. Wang
By
Woods Hole Coastal and Marine Science Center

Ecological thresholds and transformations due to climate change: The role of abiotic stress Ecological thresholds and transformations due to climate change: The role of abiotic stress

An ecological threshold is the point at which a comparatively small environmental change triggers an abrupt and disproportionately large ecological response. In the face of accelerating climate change, there is concern that abrupt ecosystem transformations will become more widespread as critical ecological thresholds are crossed. There has been ongoing debate, however, regarding the...
Authors
Michael Osland, John B. Bradford, Lauren Toth, Matthew J. Germino, James Grace, Judith Z. Drexler, Camille Stagg, Eric E. Grossman, Karen M. Thorne, Stephanie Romanach, Davina Passeri, Gregory Noe, Jessica R. Lacy, Ken Krauss, Kurt P. Kowalski, Glenn R. Guntenspergen, Neil K. Ganju, Nicholas Enwright, Joel A. Carr, Kristin B. Byrd, Kevin Buffington
By
Ecosystems Mission Area, California Water Science Center, Forest and Rangeland Ecosystem Science Center, Pacific Coastal and Marine Science Center, Southwest Biological Science Center, St. Petersburg Coastal and Marine Science Center, Western Ecological Research Center (WERC), Western Geographic Science Center, Woods Hole Coastal and Marine Science Center, Wetland and Aquatic Research Center , Florence Bascom Geoscience Center, Eastern Ecological Science Center

Distribution and disturbances of ditches across salt marshes of the Northeast U.S. with implications for management and restoration Distribution and disturbances of ditches across salt marshes of the Northeast U.S. with implications for management and restoration

Effective management of valuable coastal systems, such as salt marshes requires an understanding of the complex stressors influencing their continued threat of drowning. However, efforts to determine the effects of one potential stressor, ditches, have produced diverging results complicating management efforts. Ditches (linear trenches dug to drain salt marshes for agriculture and...
Authors
Erin K. Peck, Julie E. Walker, Kate Ackerman, Joel A. Carr, Maureen D. Correll, Zafer Defne, Linda A. Deegan, Mitchell Eaton, Neil K. Ganju, Mitch Hartley, Catherine Johnson, Jason J Mercer, Katharine J. Ruskin, Jonathan D. Woodruff, Brian Yellen
By
Woods Hole Coastal and Marine Science Center

Tracking diagenetic alteration of magnetic susceptibility in thrust ridge and slope basin sediments of the Cascadia margin (ODP Sites 1249 and 1252; IODP Site U1325) Tracking diagenetic alteration of magnetic susceptibility in thrust ridge and slope basin sediments of the Cascadia margin (ODP Sites 1249 and 1252; IODP Site U1325)

We investigated sediment core records from the Cascadia Margin (Ocean Drilling Program Sites 1249 and 1252 at Hydrate Ridge; Integrated Ocean Drilling Program Site U1325 offshore Vancouver Island) using a Zr/Rb heavy mineral proxy from X-ray fluorescence (XRF) core scanning to identify intervals of primary detrital magnetic susceptibility (κ) and predict intervals where diagenesis caused...
Authors
Stephen C. Phillips, Joel E. Johnson, William Clyde, Wei-Li Hong, Jacob Setera, Marta E. Torres
By
Woods Hole Coastal and Marine Science Center

Decomposing the Tea Bag Index and finding slower organic matter loss rates at higher elevations and deeper soil horizons in a minerogenic salt marsh Decomposing the Tea Bag Index and finding slower organic matter loss rates at higher elevations and deeper soil horizons in a minerogenic salt marsh

Environmental gradients can affect organic matter decay within and across wetlands and contribute to spatial heterogeneity in soil carbon stocks. We tested the sensitivity of decay rates to tidal flooding and soil depth in a minerogenic salt marsh using the Tea Bag Index (TBI). Tea bags were buried at 10 and 50 cm depths across an elevation gradient in a subtropical Spartina alterniflora...
Authors
Satyatejas G. Reddy, W. Reilly Farrell, Fengrun Wu, Steven C. Pennings, Jonathan Sanderman, Meagan J. Eagle, Christopher Craft, Amanda C. Spivak
By
Woods Hole Coastal and Marine Science Center

Earthquake recurrence estimates for northern Caribbean faults from combinatorial optimization Earthquake recurrence estimates for northern Caribbean faults from combinatorial optimization

We use combinatorial optimization to find the optimal spatial distribution of random samples of earthquakes (≥6.5) that minimize the misfit in target slip rates for all faults in the northeast Caribbean, and we derive magnitude-frequency relationships with uncertainties for these faults. Slip rates for many faults are derived from GPS block models, not direct measurements, because of...
Authors
Uri S. ten Brink, Eric L. Geist
By
Woods Hole Coastal and Marine Science Center

Woods Hole Coastal and Marine Science Center—2023 annual report Woods Hole Coastal and Marine Science Center—2023 annual report

The 2023 annual report of the U.S. Geological Survey Woods Hole Coastal and Marine Science Center highlights accomplishments of 2023, includes a list of 2023 publications, and summarizes the work of the center, as well as the work of each of its science groups. This product allows readers to gain a general understanding of the focus areas of the center’s scientific research and learn...
Authors
Sara Ernst
By
Woods Hole Coastal and Marine Science Center

Sensitivity analysis of a dynamic vegetation-sediment transport model using equadratures: Exploring inorganic accretion on a marsh platform Sensitivity analysis of a dynamic vegetation-sediment transport model using equadratures: Exploring inorganic accretion on a marsh platform

Salt marsh systems require a net import of inorganic sediment to maintain their structure in response to sea‐level rise. Marshes are affected by physical processes including tides, waves, sediment transport, and the influence of vegetation, and these processes interact in complex ways leading to sediment accretion or erosion. We implement a 3‐D hydrodynamic sediment transport model in an...
Authors
Rachel Allen, Neil K. Ganju, Tarandeep Kalra, Alfredo Aretxabaleta, Jessica R. Lacy
By
Pacific Coastal and Marine Science Center, Woods Hole Coastal and Marine Science Center, Office of Science Quality and Integrity

Mapping river flow from thermal images in approximately real time: Proof of concept on the Sacramento River, California, USA Mapping river flow from thermal images in approximately real time: Proof of concept on the Sacramento River, California, USA

Image velocimetry has become an effective method of mapping flow conditions in rivers, but this analysis is typically performed in a post-processing mode after data collection is complete. In this study, we evaluated the potential to infer flow velocities in approximately real time as thermal images are being acquired from an uncrewed aircraft system (UAS). The sensitivity of thermal...
Authors
Carl J. Legleiter, Paul J. Kinzel, Michael Dille, Massimo Vespignani, Uland Wong, Isaac E Anderson, Elizabeth Hyde, Christopher L. Gazoorian, Jennifer Marie Cramer
By
Water Resources Mission Area, National Innovation Center, New York Water Science Center, Woods Hole Coastal and Marine Science Center
Was this page helpful?