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Jeffrey Coe

During a long career with the USGS, I’ve studied a wide variety of landslide types in the western United States and abroad. My general research focus is on understanding landslide processes and quantifying landslide hazards. 

Education and Certifications

  • Kent State University, B.S., 1984, Geology

  • Colorado School of Mines, M.S., 1995, Geology

Affiliations and Memberships*

  • Geological Society of America

  • American Geophysical Union

Honors and Awards

  • Meritorious Service Award, U.S. Department of Interior, 2022

  • Fellow, Geological Society of America, 2021

  • Superior Service Award, U.S. Department of Interior, 2017, for emergency response and research at the West Salt Creek landslide

  • Superior Service Award, U.S. Department of Interior, 2017, for research on debris flows in Oregon

  • Distinguished Practice Award, Geological Society of America, Environmental & Engineering Geology Division, 2017

  • Directors Award, U.S. Geological Survey, 2014, for emergency response at the Oso landslide

  • Past-Presidents’ Award, Colorado Scientific Society, 2010

Science and Products

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Photo of flowing glacier

Barry Arm, Alaska Landslide and Tsunami Monitoring

A large steep slope in the Barry Arm fjord 30 miles (50 kilometers) northeast of Whittier, Alaska has the potential to fall into the water and generate a tsunami that could have devastating local effects on those who live, work, and recreate in and around Whittier and in northern Prince William Sound.
By
Natural Hazards Mission Area, Landslide Hazards Program
link

Barry Arm, Alaska Landslide and Tsunami Monitoring

A large steep slope in the Barry Arm fjord 30 miles (50 kilometers) northeast of Whittier, Alaska has the potential to fall into the water and generate a tsunami that could have devastating local effects on those who live, work, and recreate in and around Whittier and in northern Prince William Sound.
Learn More
link
Tidal Inlet, Glacier Bay National Park, Alaska

Potential Landslide Paths and Implications for Tsunami Hazards in Glacier Bay, Alaska – An Initial Investigation

Glacier Bay and its inlets are a popular destination for cruise ships and passenger boats; about 540,000 people visited Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve (GBNPP) in 2017. A typical tour of the Bay traverses the entire length up to the glacier calving viewpoints in the Johns Hopkins and Tarr Inlets. A 2018 article “Landslides and Giant Waves” by the National Park Service (NPS) states, “The...
By
Natural Hazards Mission Area, Landslide Hazards Program, Geologic Hazards Science Center
link

Potential Landslide Paths and Implications for Tsunami Hazards in Glacier Bay, Alaska – An Initial Investigation

Glacier Bay and its inlets are a popular destination for cruise ships and passenger boats; about 540,000 people visited Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve (GBNPP) in 2017. A typical tour of the Bay traverses the entire length up to the glacier calving viewpoints in the Johns Hopkins and Tarr Inlets. A 2018 article “Landslides and Giant Waves” by the National Park Service (NPS) states, “The...
Learn More
link
February 16, 2014 rock avalanche from Mount La Perouse. Relief from head scarp to toe is about 1770 m.

Mountain Permafrost, Climate Change, and Rock Avalanches in Glacier Bay National Park, Alaska

Release Date: JUNE 18, 2018 We usually hear about landslides and avalanches that are caused by large amounts of rainfall, the shaking from earthquakes, or a volcanic eruption, but we may be hearing more about avalanches caused by the (seemingly innocuous) melting of ice in the coming years.
By
Natural Hazards Mission Area, Landslide Hazards Program
link

Mountain Permafrost, Climate Change, and Rock Avalanches in Glacier Bay National Park, Alaska

Release Date: JUNE 18, 2018 We usually hear about landslides and avalanches that are caused by large amounts of rainfall, the shaking from earthquakes, or a volcanic eruption, but we may be hearing more about avalanches caused by the (seemingly innocuous) melting of ice in the coming years.
Learn More
link
Data logger suspended above a channel with a person pointing up at it from the bottom of the channel

Millicoma Meander, Elliott State Forest, Oregon

The USGS and its cooperators have installed instruments in a steep, recently clear-cut basin in the Elliott State Forest.
By
Natural Hazards Mission Area, Landslide Hazards Program, Geologic Hazards Science Center
link

Millicoma Meander, Elliott State Forest, Oregon

The USGS and its cooperators have installed instruments in a steep, recently clear-cut basin in the Elliott State Forest.
Learn More
link
Aerial photo of the West Salt Creek rock avalanche

Reconstruction of an Avalanche: The West Salt Creek Rock Avalanche

Release Date: MAY 25, 2016 The West Salt Creek Rock Avalanche, Colorado, May 25, 2014
By
Natural Hazards Mission Area, Landslide Hazards Program
link

Reconstruction of an Avalanche: The West Salt Creek Rock Avalanche

Release Date: MAY 25, 2016 The West Salt Creek Rock Avalanche, Colorado, May 25, 2014
Learn More
Filter Total Items: 32

Rock mass quality and structural geology observations in Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve, Alaska from the summers of 2021 and 2022

Subaerial and submarine landslides adjacent to, and within, Glacier Bay, Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve (GBNPP), Alaska pose a threat to the public because of their potential to generate ocean waves that could impact marine activities. Although historical records of tsunamis generated by landslides in GBNPP are uncommon, there are records that document the destructive power of at least thr
By
Landslide Hazards Program

Rock mass quality and structural geology observations in northwest Prince William Sound, Alaska from the summer of 2021

Multiple subaerial landslides adjacent to Prince William Sound, Alaska (for example, Dai and others, 2020; Higman and others, 2023; Schaefer and others, 2024) pose a threat to the public because of their potential to generate ocean waves (Dai and others, 2020; Barnhart and others, 2021; Barnhart and others, 2022) that could impact towns and marine activities. One bedrock landslide on the west side
By
Geologic Hazards Science Center

UAV imagery and digital elevation data for the debris slide in Chaos Canyon, 28 June 2022, Rocky Mountain National Park, Colorado.

This dataset contains a point cloud (HalletPeak_PointCloud.las), digital elevation model (HalletPeak_DEM.tif), and orthoimagery (HalletPeak_Ortho.tif) of a debris slide originating on the southeast flank of Hallett Peak and sliding into Upper Chaos Canyon in Rocky Mountain National Park, Colorado, USA. The slide occurred on 28 June 2022, and imagery was obtained on 15 July 2022. These products wer
By
Geologic Hazards Science Center

Field observations of landslides and related materials following Hurricane Maria, Puerto Rico

During September 2017, Hurricane Maria caused widespread landsliding throughout mountainous regions of Puerto Rico, with more than 71,000 landslides being subsequently identified from aerial imagery (Hughes et al., 2019). Most landslides apparently mobilized as debris flows and occurred within soil (unconsolidated material overlying saprolite and bedrock) and saprolite overlying less-weathered roc
By
Geologic Hazards Science Center

Digital compilation of historical ice terminus positions of tidewater glaciers in Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve, Alaska

In coastal subarctic environments such as the fjords of Southeast Alaska, tidewater glaciers can control local hydrology, climatic patterns, ecology, and geologic hazards like landslides and consequent tsunami waves. Documenting and studying glacial retreat in fjords can help scientists understand the dynamic systems that are intrinsically tied to glacial ice processes and forecast changes in thes
By
Geologic Hazards Science Center, Supplemental Appropriations for Disaster Recovery Activities

Inventory map of submarine and subaerial-to-submarine landslide features in Barry Arm Fjord, Prince William Sound, Alaska

Documenting and assessing submarine or subaerial-to-submarine landslides is critical for understanding the history of slope failures and related tsunami impacts in rapidly deglaciating fjord environments. The discovery of the ~500-million-cubic-meter slow-moving subaerial Barry Arm Landslide in northwest Prince William Sound, Alaska (Dai and others, 2020) highlights the need to better understand l
By
Geologic Hazards Science Center

Slow-moving landslides and subsiding fan deltas mapped from Sentinel-1 InSAR in the Glacier Bay region, Alaska and British Columbia, 2018-2020

This data release contains four GIS shapefiles, one Google Earth kmz file, and five metadata files that summarize results from Interferometric Synthetic Aperture Radar (InSAR) analyses in the Glacier Bay region of Alaska and British Columbia. The principal shapefile (Moving_Ground) and the kmz file (GBRegionMovingGround) contain polygons delineating slow-moving (0.5-6 cm/year in the radar line-of-
By
Natural Hazards Mission Area, Landslide Hazards Program, Geologic Hazards Science Center, Supplemental Appropriations for Disaster Recovery Activities

Interferometric synthetic aperture radar data from 2021 for landslides at Barry Arm Fjord, Alaska

Subaerial landslides at the head of the Barry Arm fjord remain a tsunami threat for the Prince William Sound region in southern Alaska. Tasked RADARSAT-2 synthetic aperture radar (SAR) data from two ultrafine beam modes (2 m), U19 and U15, were used to measure landslide movement of slopes near the toe of the Barry Glacier between 21 May 2021 and 5 November 2021. Data were acquired every 24 days, w
By
Natural Hazards Mission Area, Landslide Hazards Program, Geologic Hazards Science Center

Simulated inundation extent and depth in Harriman Fjord and Barry Arm, western Prince William Sound, Alaska, resulting from the hypothetical rapid motion of landslides into Barry Arm Fjord, Prince William Sound, Alaska

Summary This data release contains postprocessed model output from a simulation of hypothetical rapid motion of landslides, subsequent wave generation, and wave propagation. A simulated displacement wave was generated by rapid motion of unstable material into Barry Arm fjord. We consider the wave propagation in Harriman Fjord and Barry Arm, western Prince William Sound (area of interest and place
By
Geologic Hazards Science Center

Debris-flow and Flood Video Files, Chalk Cliffs, Colorado, USA, 2019

Chalk Cliffs, located 8 miles southwest of Buena Vista, Colorado, is a natural laboratory for research on runoff-initiated debris flows (Coe et al., 2010). In 2019, there were two monitoring stations operating at Chalk Cliffs. The Upper Station drains an area of 0.06 km2 and was used to monitor flow properties and triggering conditions in the headwaters of the study area. It was equipped with two
By
Landslide Hazards Program, Geologic Hazards Science Center

Distribution of large boulders on the deposit of the West Salt Creek rock avalanche, western Colorado

On May 25th, 2014, a 54.5 Mm3 rock avalanche occurred in the West Salt Creek valley in western Colorado following heavy rainfall on top of snow (Coe and others, 2016a). The data in this project includes boulder density in 20-m x 20-m grid cells for the entire West Salt Creek rock avalanche deposit. The grid cells cover 2,154,800 m2, which accounts for nearly the entire surface of the deposit. We e
By
Natural Hazards Mission Area, Landslide Hazards Program, Geologic Hazards Science Center

Simulated inundation extent and depth at Whittier, Alaska resulting from the hypothetical rapid motion of landslides into Barry Arm Fjord, Prince William Sound, Alaska

This data release contains postprocessed model output from simulations of hypothetical rapid motion of landslides, subsequent wave generation, and wave propagation. A modeled tsunami wave was generated by rapid motion of unstable material into Barry Arm Fjord. This wave propagated through Prince William Sound and then into Passage Canal east of Whittier. Here we consider only the largest wave-gene
By
Natural Hazards Mission Area, Landslide Hazards Program, Geologic Hazards Science Center

Multi-temporal maps of the Montaguto earth flow in southern Italy from 1954 to 2010

Historical movement of the Montaguto earth flow in southern Italy has periodically destroyed residences and farmland, and damaged the Italian National Road SS90 and the Benevento-Foggia National Railway. This paper provides maps from an investigation into the evolution of the Montaguto earth flow from 1954 to 2010. We used aerial photos, topographic maps, LiDAR data, satellite images, and field ob
By
Natural Hazards Mission Area, Landslide Hazards Program, Geologic Hazards Science Center

Map showing recent (1997-98 El Nino) and historical landslides, Crow Creek and vicinity, Alameda and Contra Costa Counties, California

This report documents the spatial distribution of 3,800 landslides caused by 1997-98 El Ni?o winter rainfall in the vicinity of Crow Creek in Alameda and Contra Costa Counties, California. The report also documents 558 historical (pre-1997-98) landslides. Landslides were mapped from 1:12,000-scale aerial photographs and classified as either debris flows or slides. Slides include rotational and tra
By
Natural Hazards Mission Area, Landslide Hazards Program, Geologic Hazards Science Center

Geologic map of the north ramp of the exploratory studies facility at Yucca Mountain, Nevada, stations 3+60 to 4+25 meters

No abstract available.
Image: Rock-Fall Estimating
Rock-Fall Estimating
Rock-Fall Estimating
Image: Rock-Fall Estimating

Rock-Fall Estimating

Rock-Fall Estimating

Geologist Ed Harp estimates rock-fall susceptibility in American Fork Canyon, UT.

By
Landslide Hazards, Communications and Publishing
Image: Rock-Fall Estimating

Rock-Fall Estimating

Rock-Fall Estimating

Geologist Ed Harp estimates rock-fall susceptibility in American Fork Canyon, UT.

By
Landslide Hazards, Communications and Publishing
Image: Rock-Fall Estimating
Rock-Fall Estimating
Rock-Fall Estimating
Image: Rock-Fall Estimating

Rock-Fall Estimating

Rock-Fall Estimating

Geologist Ed Harp estimates rock-fall susceptibility in American Fork Canyon, UT.

By
Landslide Hazards, Communications and Publishing
Image: Rock-Fall Estimating

Rock-Fall Estimating

Rock-Fall Estimating

Geologist Ed Harp estimates rock-fall susceptibility in American Fork Canyon, UT.

By
Landslide Hazards, Communications and Publishing
Image: Landslide Sampling
Landslide Sampling
Landslide Sampling
Image: Landslide Sampling

Landslide Sampling

Landslide Sampling

Scientist Jonathan Godt samples a landslide headscarp in Alameda County, CA.

By
Natural Hazards, Landslide Hazards, Communications and Publishing
Image: Landslide Sampling

Landslide Sampling

Landslide Sampling

Scientist Jonathan Godt samples a landslide headscarp in Alameda County, CA.

By
Natural Hazards, Landslide Hazards, Communications and Publishing
Image: Debris Flow Research
Debris Flow Research
Debris Flow Research
Image: Debris Flow Research

Debris Flow Research

Debris Flow Research

Scientists Jonathan Godt and Rex Baum examine a fresh debris-flow deposit near Buena Vista, CO.

By
Landslide Hazards, Communications and Publishing
Image: Debris Flow Research

Debris Flow Research

Debris Flow Research

Scientists Jonathan Godt and Rex Baum examine a fresh debris-flow deposit near Buena Vista, CO.

By
Landslide Hazards, Communications and Publishing
Image: Debris Flow in Action
Debris Flow in Action
Debris Flow in Action
Image: Debris Flow in Action

Debris Flow in Action

Debris Flow in Action

A debris flow exceeding a meter in depth rushes towards the monitoring station used to measure basal force and other flow properties.

Captured by automated monitoring camera.

 

By
Landslide Hazards Program, Communications and Publishing
Image: Debris Flow in Action

Debris Flow in Action

Debris Flow in Action

A debris flow exceeding a meter in depth rushes towards the monitoring station used to measure basal force and other flow properties.

Captured by automated monitoring camera.

 

By
Landslide Hazards Program, Communications and Publishing
Filter Total Items: 74

The 2022 Chaos Canyon landslide in Colorado: Insights revealed by seismic analysis, field investigations, and remote sensing

An unusual, high-alpine, rapid debris slide originating in ice-rich debris occurred on June 28, 2022, at 16:33:16 MDT at the head of Chaos Canyon, a formerly glacier-covered valley in Rocky Mountain National Park, CO, USA. In this study, we integrate eyewitness videos and seismic records of the event with meteorological data, field observations, pre- and post-event satellite imagery, and uncrewed
Authors
Kate E. Allstadt, Jeffrey A. Coe, Elaine Collins, Francis K. Rengers, Anne Mangeney, Scott M. Esser, Jana Pursley, William L. Yeck, John Bellini, Lance R. Brady
By
Natural Hazards Mission Area, Landslide Hazards Program, Geologic Hazards Science Center

Fractures, scarps, faults, and landslides mapped using LiDAR, Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve, Alaska

This map of fractures, scarps, faults, and landslides was completed to identify areas in Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve that may present a landslide-generated tsunami hazard. To address the potential of landslide and tsunami hazards in the park, the National Park Service (NPS) and the US Geological Survey (USGS) partnered to conduct a multi-year hazard assessment of Glacier Bay National Pa
Authors
Chad Hults, Jeffrey A. Coe, Nikita N. Avdievitch
By
Natural Hazards Mission Area, Earthquake Hazards Program, Landslide Hazards Program, Geologic Hazards Science Center

Kinematic evolution of a large paraglacial landslide in the Barry Arm fjord of Alaska

Our warming climate is adversely affecting cryospheric landscapes via glacial retreat, permafrost degradation, and associated slope destabilization. In Prince William Sound, Alaska, the rapid retreat of Barry Glacier has destabilized the slopes flanking the glacier, resulting in numerous landslides. The largest of these landslides (∼500 Mm3 in volume) is more than 2 km wide and has the potential t
Authors
Lauren N. Schaefer, Jeffrey A. Coe, Katreen Wikstrom Jones, Brian D. Collins, Dennis M. Staley, Michael E. West, Ezgi Karasozen, Charles Prentice-James Miles, Gabriel J. Wolken, Ronald P. Daanan, Kelli Wadsworth Baxstrom
By
Natural Hazards Mission Area, Landslide Hazards Program, Geologic Hazards Science Center

Bedrock erosion by debris flows at Chalk Cliffs, Colorado, USA: Implications for bedrock channel evolution

Debris flow erosion into bedrock helps to set the pace of mountain denudation, but there are few empirical observations of this process. We studied the effects of debris flows on bedrock erosion using Structure-From-Motion photogrammetry and multiple real-time monitoring measurements. We found that the distribution of bedrock erosion across the channel cross-section could be generalized as an expo
Authors
Francis K. Rengers, Jason W. Kean, Jeffrey A. Coe, Megan Hanson, Joel Smith
By
Natural Hazards Mission Area, Landslide Hazards Program, Geologic Hazards Science Center

Distribution of large boulders on the deposit of the West Salt Creek rock avalanche, western Colorado

On May 25, 2014, a 54.5-million cubic meter rock avalanche in the West Salt Creek valley, Mesa County, Colorado, traveled 4.6 kilometers, leaving a deposit that covers about 2.2 square kilometers. To check the particle-size distribution of the deposit for information about the high mobility of the avalanche, we estimated boulder distribution density for the entire deposit by counting 1-meter (m) o
Authors
Adrian C. Lewis, Rex L. Baum, Jeffrey A. Coe
By
Natural Hazards Mission Area, Landslide Hazards Program, Geologic Hazards Science Center

Revising supraglacial rock avalanche magnitudes and frequencies in Glacier Bay National Park, Alaska

The frequency of large supraglacial landslides (rock avalanches) occurring in glacial environments is thought to be increasing due to feedbacks with climate warming and permafrost degradation. However, it is difficult to (i) test this; (ii) establish cause–effect relationships; and (iii) determine associated lag-times, due to both temporal and spatial biases in detection rates. Here we applied the
Authors
William Smith, Stuart A. Dunning, Neil Ross, Jon Telling, Erin K. Bessette-Kirton, Dan H. Shugar, Jeffrey A. Coe, M. Geertsema
By
Natural Hazards Mission Area, Landslide Hazards Program, Geologic Hazards Science Center, Geology, Minerals, Energy, and Geophysics Science Center

Measuring and attributing sedimentary and geomorphic responses to modern climate change: Challenges and opportunities

Today, climate change is affecting virtually all terrestrial and nearshore settings. This commentary discusses the challenges of measuring climate-driven physical landscape responses to modern global warming: short and incomplete data records, land use and seismicity masking climatic effects, biases in data availability and resolution, and signal attenuation in sedimentary systems. We identify opp
Authors
Amy E. East, Jonathan Warrick, Dongfeng Li, Joel B. Sankey, Margaret H. Redsteer, Ann E. Gibbs, Jeffrey A. Coe, Patrick L. Barnard
By
Ecosystems Mission Area, Geology, Minerals, Energy, and Geophysics Science Center, Pacific Coastal and Marine Science Center, Southwest Biological Science Center

Spaceborne InSAR mapping of landslides and subsidence in rapidly deglaciating terrain, Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve and vicinity, Alaska and British Columbia

The Glacier Bay area in southeastern Alaska and British Columbia, encompassing Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve, has experienced rapid glacier retreat since the end of the Little Ice Age in the mid-1800s. The impact that rapid deglaciation has had on the slope stability of valley walls and on the sedimentation of fans and deltas adjacent to fjords and inlets is an ongoing research topic. Usi
Authors
Jinwook Kim, Jeffrey A. Coe, Zhong Lu, Nikita N. Avdievitch, Chad Hults
By
Natural Hazards Mission Area, Geologic Hazards Science Center, Supplemental Appropriations for Disaster Recovery Activities

Submarine landslide susceptibility mapping in recently deglaciated terrain, Glacier Bay, Alaska

Submarine mass wasting events have damaged underwater structures and propagated waves that have inundated towns and affected human populations in nearby coastal areas. Susceptibility to submarine landslides can be pronounced in degrading cryospheric environments, where existing glaciers can provide high volumes of sediment, while cycles of glaciation and ice-loss can damage and destabilize slopes.
Authors
Nikita N. Avdievitch, Jeffrey A. Coe
By
Natural Hazards Mission Area, Geologic Hazards Science Center, Supplemental Appropriations for Disaster Recovery Activities

Glacier and permafrost hazards

No abstract available.
Authors
G.J. Wolken, A.K. Liljedahl, M. Brubaker, Jeffrey A. Coe, G. Fiske, H.H. Christiansen, M. Jacquemart, B.M. Jones, A. Kaab, F. Løvholt, S. Natali, A.C.A. Rudy, D. Streletskiy
By
Natural Hazards Mission Area, Landslide Hazards Program, Geologic Hazards Science Center

Preliminary assessment of the wave generating potential from landslides at Barry Arm, Prince William Sound, Alaska

We simulated the concurrent rapid motion of landslides on an unstable slope at Barry Arm, Alaska. Movement of landslides into the adjacent fjord displaced fjord water and generated a tsunami, which propagated out of Barry Arm. Rather than assuming an initial sea surface height, velocity, and location for the tsunami, we generated the tsunami directly using a model capable of simulating the dynamic
Authors
Katherine R. Barnhart, Ryan P. Jones, David L. George, Jeffrey A. Coe, Dennis M. Staley
By
Natural Hazards Mission Area, Landslide Hazards Program, Volcano Hazards Program, Geologic Hazards Science Center, Volcano Science Center, Supplemental Appropriations for Disaster Recovery Activities

When hazard avoidance is not an option: Lessons learned from monitoring the postdisaster Oso landslide, USA

On 22 March 2014, a massive, catastrophic landslide occurred near Oso, Washington, USA, sweeping more than 1 km across the adjacent valley flats and killing 43 people. For the following 5 weeks, hundreds of workers engaged in an exhaustive search, rescue, and recovery effort directly in the landslide runout path. These workers could not avoid the risks posed by additional large-scale slope collaps
Authors
Mark E. Reid, Jonathan W. Godt, Richard G LaHusen, Stephen L Slaughter, Thomas C. Badger, Brian D. Collins, William Schulz, Rex L. Baum, Jeffrey A. Coe, Edwin L Harp, Kevin M. Schmidt, Richard M. Iverson, Joel B. Smith, Ralph Haugerud, David L. George
By
Natural Hazards Mission Area, Coastal and Marine Hazards and Resources Program, Landslide Hazards Program, National Cooperative Geologic Mapping Program, Volcano Hazards Program, Geologic Hazards Science Center, Geosciences and Environmental Change Science Center, Volcano Science Center
Potential Landslides and Tsunami Hazards in Glacier Bay, Alaska

Potential Landslides and Tsunami Hazards in Glacier Bay, Alaska

USGS landslide scientists recently completed an investigation that provides an initial assessment of areas where landslides could enter the water of...

Read Article
USGS Geologists Join Efforts in Montecito to Assess Debris-Flow Aftermath

USGS Geologists Join Efforts in Montecito to Assess Debris-Flow Aftermath

Days after fatal debris flows devastated Southern California’s Montecito community,  a team of U.S. Geological Survey geologists joined county, state...

Read Article

Science and Products

link
Photo of flowing glacier

Barry Arm, Alaska Landslide and Tsunami Monitoring

A large steep slope in the Barry Arm fjord 30 miles (50 kilometers) northeast of Whittier, Alaska has the potential to fall into the water and generate a tsunami that could have devastating local effects on those who live, work, and recreate in and around Whittier and in northern Prince William Sound.
By
Natural Hazards Mission Area, Landslide Hazards Program
link

Barry Arm, Alaska Landslide and Tsunami Monitoring

A large steep slope in the Barry Arm fjord 30 miles (50 kilometers) northeast of Whittier, Alaska has the potential to fall into the water and generate a tsunami that could have devastating local effects on those who live, work, and recreate in and around Whittier and in northern Prince William Sound.
Learn More
link
Tidal Inlet, Glacier Bay National Park, Alaska

Potential Landslide Paths and Implications for Tsunami Hazards in Glacier Bay, Alaska – An Initial Investigation

Glacier Bay and its inlets are a popular destination for cruise ships and passenger boats; about 540,000 people visited Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve (GBNPP) in 2017. A typical tour of the Bay traverses the entire length up to the glacier calving viewpoints in the Johns Hopkins and Tarr Inlets. A 2018 article “Landslides and Giant Waves” by the National Park Service (NPS) states, “The...
By
Natural Hazards Mission Area, Landslide Hazards Program, Geologic Hazards Science Center
link

Potential Landslide Paths and Implications for Tsunami Hazards in Glacier Bay, Alaska – An Initial Investigation

Glacier Bay and its inlets are a popular destination for cruise ships and passenger boats; about 540,000 people visited Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve (GBNPP) in 2017. A typical tour of the Bay traverses the entire length up to the glacier calving viewpoints in the Johns Hopkins and Tarr Inlets. A 2018 article “Landslides and Giant Waves” by the National Park Service (NPS) states, “The...
Learn More
link
February 16, 2014 rock avalanche from Mount La Perouse. Relief from head scarp to toe is about 1770 m.

Mountain Permafrost, Climate Change, and Rock Avalanches in Glacier Bay National Park, Alaska

Release Date: JUNE 18, 2018 We usually hear about landslides and avalanches that are caused by large amounts of rainfall, the shaking from earthquakes, or a volcanic eruption, but we may be hearing more about avalanches caused by the (seemingly innocuous) melting of ice in the coming years.
By
Natural Hazards Mission Area, Landslide Hazards Program
link

Mountain Permafrost, Climate Change, and Rock Avalanches in Glacier Bay National Park, Alaska

Release Date: JUNE 18, 2018 We usually hear about landslides and avalanches that are caused by large amounts of rainfall, the shaking from earthquakes, or a volcanic eruption, but we may be hearing more about avalanches caused by the (seemingly innocuous) melting of ice in the coming years.
Learn More
link
Data logger suspended above a channel with a person pointing up at it from the bottom of the channel

Millicoma Meander, Elliott State Forest, Oregon

The USGS and its cooperators have installed instruments in a steep, recently clear-cut basin in the Elliott State Forest.
By
Natural Hazards Mission Area, Landslide Hazards Program, Geologic Hazards Science Center
link

Millicoma Meander, Elliott State Forest, Oregon

The USGS and its cooperators have installed instruments in a steep, recently clear-cut basin in the Elliott State Forest.
Learn More
link
Aerial photo of the West Salt Creek rock avalanche

Reconstruction of an Avalanche: The West Salt Creek Rock Avalanche

Release Date: MAY 25, 2016 The West Salt Creek Rock Avalanche, Colorado, May 25, 2014
By
Natural Hazards Mission Area, Landslide Hazards Program
link

Reconstruction of an Avalanche: The West Salt Creek Rock Avalanche

Release Date: MAY 25, 2016 The West Salt Creek Rock Avalanche, Colorado, May 25, 2014
Learn More
Filter Total Items: 32

Rock mass quality and structural geology observations in Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve, Alaska from the summers of 2021 and 2022

Subaerial and submarine landslides adjacent to, and within, Glacier Bay, Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve (GBNPP), Alaska pose a threat to the public because of their potential to generate ocean waves that could impact marine activities. Although historical records of tsunamis generated by landslides in GBNPP are uncommon, there are records that document the destructive power of at least thr
By
Landslide Hazards Program

Rock mass quality and structural geology observations in northwest Prince William Sound, Alaska from the summer of 2021

Multiple subaerial landslides adjacent to Prince William Sound, Alaska (for example, Dai and others, 2020; Higman and others, 2023; Schaefer and others, 2024) pose a threat to the public because of their potential to generate ocean waves (Dai and others, 2020; Barnhart and others, 2021; Barnhart and others, 2022) that could impact towns and marine activities. One bedrock landslide on the west side
By
Geologic Hazards Science Center

UAV imagery and digital elevation data for the debris slide in Chaos Canyon, 28 June 2022, Rocky Mountain National Park, Colorado.

This dataset contains a point cloud (HalletPeak_PointCloud.las), digital elevation model (HalletPeak_DEM.tif), and orthoimagery (HalletPeak_Ortho.tif) of a debris slide originating on the southeast flank of Hallett Peak and sliding into Upper Chaos Canyon in Rocky Mountain National Park, Colorado, USA. The slide occurred on 28 June 2022, and imagery was obtained on 15 July 2022. These products wer
By
Geologic Hazards Science Center

Field observations of landslides and related materials following Hurricane Maria, Puerto Rico

During September 2017, Hurricane Maria caused widespread landsliding throughout mountainous regions of Puerto Rico, with more than 71,000 landslides being subsequently identified from aerial imagery (Hughes et al., 2019). Most landslides apparently mobilized as debris flows and occurred within soil (unconsolidated material overlying saprolite and bedrock) and saprolite overlying less-weathered roc
By
Geologic Hazards Science Center

Digital compilation of historical ice terminus positions of tidewater glaciers in Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve, Alaska

In coastal subarctic environments such as the fjords of Southeast Alaska, tidewater glaciers can control local hydrology, climatic patterns, ecology, and geologic hazards like landslides and consequent tsunami waves. Documenting and studying glacial retreat in fjords can help scientists understand the dynamic systems that are intrinsically tied to glacial ice processes and forecast changes in thes
By
Geologic Hazards Science Center, Supplemental Appropriations for Disaster Recovery Activities

Inventory map of submarine and subaerial-to-submarine landslide features in Barry Arm Fjord, Prince William Sound, Alaska

Documenting and assessing submarine or subaerial-to-submarine landslides is critical for understanding the history of slope failures and related tsunami impacts in rapidly deglaciating fjord environments. The discovery of the ~500-million-cubic-meter slow-moving subaerial Barry Arm Landslide in northwest Prince William Sound, Alaska (Dai and others, 2020) highlights the need to better understand l
By
Geologic Hazards Science Center

Slow-moving landslides and subsiding fan deltas mapped from Sentinel-1 InSAR in the Glacier Bay region, Alaska and British Columbia, 2018-2020

This data release contains four GIS shapefiles, one Google Earth kmz file, and five metadata files that summarize results from Interferometric Synthetic Aperture Radar (InSAR) analyses in the Glacier Bay region of Alaska and British Columbia. The principal shapefile (Moving_Ground) and the kmz file (GBRegionMovingGround) contain polygons delineating slow-moving (0.5-6 cm/year in the radar line-of-
By
Natural Hazards Mission Area, Landslide Hazards Program, Geologic Hazards Science Center, Supplemental Appropriations for Disaster Recovery Activities

Interferometric synthetic aperture radar data from 2021 for landslides at Barry Arm Fjord, Alaska

Subaerial landslides at the head of the Barry Arm fjord remain a tsunami threat for the Prince William Sound region in southern Alaska. Tasked RADARSAT-2 synthetic aperture radar (SAR) data from two ultrafine beam modes (2 m), U19 and U15, were used to measure landslide movement of slopes near the toe of the Barry Glacier between 21 May 2021 and 5 November 2021. Data were acquired every 24 days, w
By
Natural Hazards Mission Area, Landslide Hazards Program, Geologic Hazards Science Center

Simulated inundation extent and depth in Harriman Fjord and Barry Arm, western Prince William Sound, Alaska, resulting from the hypothetical rapid motion of landslides into Barry Arm Fjord, Prince William Sound, Alaska

Summary This data release contains postprocessed model output from a simulation of hypothetical rapid motion of landslides, subsequent wave generation, and wave propagation. A simulated displacement wave was generated by rapid motion of unstable material into Barry Arm fjord. We consider the wave propagation in Harriman Fjord and Barry Arm, western Prince William Sound (area of interest and place
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Geologic Hazards Science Center

Debris-flow and Flood Video Files, Chalk Cliffs, Colorado, USA, 2019

Chalk Cliffs, located 8 miles southwest of Buena Vista, Colorado, is a natural laboratory for research on runoff-initiated debris flows (Coe et al., 2010). In 2019, there were two monitoring stations operating at Chalk Cliffs. The Upper Station drains an area of 0.06 km2 and was used to monitor flow properties and triggering conditions in the headwaters of the study area. It was equipped with two
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Landslide Hazards Program, Geologic Hazards Science Center

Distribution of large boulders on the deposit of the West Salt Creek rock avalanche, western Colorado

On May 25th, 2014, a 54.5 Mm3 rock avalanche occurred in the West Salt Creek valley in western Colorado following heavy rainfall on top of snow (Coe and others, 2016a). The data in this project includes boulder density in 20-m x 20-m grid cells for the entire West Salt Creek rock avalanche deposit. The grid cells cover 2,154,800 m2, which accounts for nearly the entire surface of the deposit. We e
By
Natural Hazards Mission Area, Landslide Hazards Program, Geologic Hazards Science Center

Simulated inundation extent and depth at Whittier, Alaska resulting from the hypothetical rapid motion of landslides into Barry Arm Fjord, Prince William Sound, Alaska

This data release contains postprocessed model output from simulations of hypothetical rapid motion of landslides, subsequent wave generation, and wave propagation. A modeled tsunami wave was generated by rapid motion of unstable material into Barry Arm Fjord. This wave propagated through Prince William Sound and then into Passage Canal east of Whittier. Here we consider only the largest wave-gene
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Natural Hazards Mission Area, Landslide Hazards Program, Geologic Hazards Science Center

Multi-temporal maps of the Montaguto earth flow in southern Italy from 1954 to 2010

Historical movement of the Montaguto earth flow in southern Italy has periodically destroyed residences and farmland, and damaged the Italian National Road SS90 and the Benevento-Foggia National Railway. This paper provides maps from an investigation into the evolution of the Montaguto earth flow from 1954 to 2010. We used aerial photos, topographic maps, LiDAR data, satellite images, and field ob
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Natural Hazards Mission Area, Landslide Hazards Program, Geologic Hazards Science Center

Map showing recent (1997-98 El Nino) and historical landslides, Crow Creek and vicinity, Alameda and Contra Costa Counties, California

This report documents the spatial distribution of 3,800 landslides caused by 1997-98 El Ni?o winter rainfall in the vicinity of Crow Creek in Alameda and Contra Costa Counties, California. The report also documents 558 historical (pre-1997-98) landslides. Landslides were mapped from 1:12,000-scale aerial photographs and classified as either debris flows or slides. Slides include rotational and tra
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Natural Hazards Mission Area, Landslide Hazards Program, Geologic Hazards Science Center

Geologic map of the north ramp of the exploratory studies facility at Yucca Mountain, Nevada, stations 3+60 to 4+25 meters

No abstract available.
Image: Rock-Fall Estimating
Rock-Fall Estimating
Rock-Fall Estimating
Image: Rock-Fall Estimating

Rock-Fall Estimating

Rock-Fall Estimating

Geologist Ed Harp estimates rock-fall susceptibility in American Fork Canyon, UT.

By
Landslide Hazards, Communications and Publishing
Image: Rock-Fall Estimating

Rock-Fall Estimating

Rock-Fall Estimating

Geologist Ed Harp estimates rock-fall susceptibility in American Fork Canyon, UT.

By
Landslide Hazards, Communications and Publishing
Image: Rock-Fall Estimating
Rock-Fall Estimating
Rock-Fall Estimating
Image: Rock-Fall Estimating

Rock-Fall Estimating

Rock-Fall Estimating

Geologist Ed Harp estimates rock-fall susceptibility in American Fork Canyon, UT.

By
Landslide Hazards, Communications and Publishing
Image: Rock-Fall Estimating

Rock-Fall Estimating

Rock-Fall Estimating

Geologist Ed Harp estimates rock-fall susceptibility in American Fork Canyon, UT.

By
Landslide Hazards, Communications and Publishing
Image: Landslide Sampling
Landslide Sampling
Landslide Sampling
Image: Landslide Sampling

Landslide Sampling

Landslide Sampling

Scientist Jonathan Godt samples a landslide headscarp in Alameda County, CA.

By
Natural Hazards, Landslide Hazards, Communications and Publishing
Image: Landslide Sampling

Landslide Sampling

Landslide Sampling

Scientist Jonathan Godt samples a landslide headscarp in Alameda County, CA.

By
Natural Hazards, Landslide Hazards, Communications and Publishing
Image: Debris Flow Research
Debris Flow Research
Debris Flow Research
Image: Debris Flow Research

Debris Flow Research

Debris Flow Research

Scientists Jonathan Godt and Rex Baum examine a fresh debris-flow deposit near Buena Vista, CO.

By
Landslide Hazards, Communications and Publishing
Image: Debris Flow Research

Debris Flow Research

Debris Flow Research

Scientists Jonathan Godt and Rex Baum examine a fresh debris-flow deposit near Buena Vista, CO.

By
Landslide Hazards, Communications and Publishing
Image: Debris Flow in Action
Debris Flow in Action
Debris Flow in Action
Image: Debris Flow in Action

Debris Flow in Action

Debris Flow in Action

A debris flow exceeding a meter in depth rushes towards the monitoring station used to measure basal force and other flow properties.

Captured by automated monitoring camera.

 

By
Landslide Hazards Program, Communications and Publishing
Image: Debris Flow in Action

Debris Flow in Action

Debris Flow in Action

A debris flow exceeding a meter in depth rushes towards the monitoring station used to measure basal force and other flow properties.

Captured by automated monitoring camera.

 

By
Landslide Hazards Program, Communications and Publishing
Filter Total Items: 74

The 2022 Chaos Canyon landslide in Colorado: Insights revealed by seismic analysis, field investigations, and remote sensing

An unusual, high-alpine, rapid debris slide originating in ice-rich debris occurred on June 28, 2022, at 16:33:16 MDT at the head of Chaos Canyon, a formerly glacier-covered valley in Rocky Mountain National Park, CO, USA. In this study, we integrate eyewitness videos and seismic records of the event with meteorological data, field observations, pre- and post-event satellite imagery, and uncrewed
Authors
Kate E. Allstadt, Jeffrey A. Coe, Elaine Collins, Francis K. Rengers, Anne Mangeney, Scott M. Esser, Jana Pursley, William L. Yeck, John Bellini, Lance R. Brady
By
Natural Hazards Mission Area, Landslide Hazards Program, Geologic Hazards Science Center

Fractures, scarps, faults, and landslides mapped using LiDAR, Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve, Alaska

This map of fractures, scarps, faults, and landslides was completed to identify areas in Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve that may present a landslide-generated tsunami hazard. To address the potential of landslide and tsunami hazards in the park, the National Park Service (NPS) and the US Geological Survey (USGS) partnered to conduct a multi-year hazard assessment of Glacier Bay National Pa
Authors
Chad Hults, Jeffrey A. Coe, Nikita N. Avdievitch
By
Natural Hazards Mission Area, Earthquake Hazards Program, Landslide Hazards Program, Geologic Hazards Science Center

Kinematic evolution of a large paraglacial landslide in the Barry Arm fjord of Alaska

Our warming climate is adversely affecting cryospheric landscapes via glacial retreat, permafrost degradation, and associated slope destabilization. In Prince William Sound, Alaska, the rapid retreat of Barry Glacier has destabilized the slopes flanking the glacier, resulting in numerous landslides. The largest of these landslides (∼500 Mm3 in volume) is more than 2 km wide and has the potential t
Authors
Lauren N. Schaefer, Jeffrey A. Coe, Katreen Wikstrom Jones, Brian D. Collins, Dennis M. Staley, Michael E. West, Ezgi Karasozen, Charles Prentice-James Miles, Gabriel J. Wolken, Ronald P. Daanan, Kelli Wadsworth Baxstrom
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Natural Hazards Mission Area, Landslide Hazards Program, Geologic Hazards Science Center

Bedrock erosion by debris flows at Chalk Cliffs, Colorado, USA: Implications for bedrock channel evolution

Debris flow erosion into bedrock helps to set the pace of mountain denudation, but there are few empirical observations of this process. We studied the effects of debris flows on bedrock erosion using Structure-From-Motion photogrammetry and multiple real-time monitoring measurements. We found that the distribution of bedrock erosion across the channel cross-section could be generalized as an expo
Authors
Francis K. Rengers, Jason W. Kean, Jeffrey A. Coe, Megan Hanson, Joel Smith
By
Natural Hazards Mission Area, Landslide Hazards Program, Geologic Hazards Science Center

Distribution of large boulders on the deposit of the West Salt Creek rock avalanche, western Colorado

On May 25, 2014, a 54.5-million cubic meter rock avalanche in the West Salt Creek valley, Mesa County, Colorado, traveled 4.6 kilometers, leaving a deposit that covers about 2.2 square kilometers. To check the particle-size distribution of the deposit for information about the high mobility of the avalanche, we estimated boulder distribution density for the entire deposit by counting 1-meter (m) o
Authors
Adrian C. Lewis, Rex L. Baum, Jeffrey A. Coe
By
Natural Hazards Mission Area, Landslide Hazards Program, Geologic Hazards Science Center

Revising supraglacial rock avalanche magnitudes and frequencies in Glacier Bay National Park, Alaska

The frequency of large supraglacial landslides (rock avalanches) occurring in glacial environments is thought to be increasing due to feedbacks with climate warming and permafrost degradation. However, it is difficult to (i) test this; (ii) establish cause–effect relationships; and (iii) determine associated lag-times, due to both temporal and spatial biases in detection rates. Here we applied the
Authors
William Smith, Stuart A. Dunning, Neil Ross, Jon Telling, Erin K. Bessette-Kirton, Dan H. Shugar, Jeffrey A. Coe, M. Geertsema
By
Natural Hazards Mission Area, Landslide Hazards Program, Geologic Hazards Science Center, Geology, Minerals, Energy, and Geophysics Science Center

Measuring and attributing sedimentary and geomorphic responses to modern climate change: Challenges and opportunities

Today, climate change is affecting virtually all terrestrial and nearshore settings. This commentary discusses the challenges of measuring climate-driven physical landscape responses to modern global warming: short and incomplete data records, land use and seismicity masking climatic effects, biases in data availability and resolution, and signal attenuation in sedimentary systems. We identify opp
Authors
Amy E. East, Jonathan Warrick, Dongfeng Li, Joel B. Sankey, Margaret H. Redsteer, Ann E. Gibbs, Jeffrey A. Coe, Patrick L. Barnard
By
Ecosystems Mission Area, Geology, Minerals, Energy, and Geophysics Science Center, Pacific Coastal and Marine Science Center, Southwest Biological Science Center

Spaceborne InSAR mapping of landslides and subsidence in rapidly deglaciating terrain, Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve and vicinity, Alaska and British Columbia

The Glacier Bay area in southeastern Alaska and British Columbia, encompassing Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve, has experienced rapid glacier retreat since the end of the Little Ice Age in the mid-1800s. The impact that rapid deglaciation has had on the slope stability of valley walls and on the sedimentation of fans and deltas adjacent to fjords and inlets is an ongoing research topic. Usi
Authors
Jinwook Kim, Jeffrey A. Coe, Zhong Lu, Nikita N. Avdievitch, Chad Hults
By
Natural Hazards Mission Area, Geologic Hazards Science Center, Supplemental Appropriations for Disaster Recovery Activities

Submarine landslide susceptibility mapping in recently deglaciated terrain, Glacier Bay, Alaska

Submarine mass wasting events have damaged underwater structures and propagated waves that have inundated towns and affected human populations in nearby coastal areas. Susceptibility to submarine landslides can be pronounced in degrading cryospheric environments, where existing glaciers can provide high volumes of sediment, while cycles of glaciation and ice-loss can damage and destabilize slopes.
Authors
Nikita N. Avdievitch, Jeffrey A. Coe
By
Natural Hazards Mission Area, Geologic Hazards Science Center, Supplemental Appropriations for Disaster Recovery Activities

Glacier and permafrost hazards

No abstract available.
Authors
G.J. Wolken, A.K. Liljedahl, M. Brubaker, Jeffrey A. Coe, G. Fiske, H.H. Christiansen, M. Jacquemart, B.M. Jones, A. Kaab, F. Løvholt, S. Natali, A.C.A. Rudy, D. Streletskiy
By
Natural Hazards Mission Area, Landslide Hazards Program, Geologic Hazards Science Center

Preliminary assessment of the wave generating potential from landslides at Barry Arm, Prince William Sound, Alaska

We simulated the concurrent rapid motion of landslides on an unstable slope at Barry Arm, Alaska. Movement of landslides into the adjacent fjord displaced fjord water and generated a tsunami, which propagated out of Barry Arm. Rather than assuming an initial sea surface height, velocity, and location for the tsunami, we generated the tsunami directly using a model capable of simulating the dynamic
Authors
Katherine R. Barnhart, Ryan P. Jones, David L. George, Jeffrey A. Coe, Dennis M. Staley
By
Natural Hazards Mission Area, Landslide Hazards Program, Volcano Hazards Program, Geologic Hazards Science Center, Volcano Science Center, Supplemental Appropriations for Disaster Recovery Activities

When hazard avoidance is not an option: Lessons learned from monitoring the postdisaster Oso landslide, USA

On 22 March 2014, a massive, catastrophic landslide occurred near Oso, Washington, USA, sweeping more than 1 km across the adjacent valley flats and killing 43 people. For the following 5 weeks, hundreds of workers engaged in an exhaustive search, rescue, and recovery effort directly in the landslide runout path. These workers could not avoid the risks posed by additional large-scale slope collaps
Authors
Mark E. Reid, Jonathan W. Godt, Richard G LaHusen, Stephen L Slaughter, Thomas C. Badger, Brian D. Collins, William Schulz, Rex L. Baum, Jeffrey A. Coe, Edwin L Harp, Kevin M. Schmidt, Richard M. Iverson, Joel B. Smith, Ralph Haugerud, David L. George
By
Natural Hazards Mission Area, Coastal and Marine Hazards and Resources Program, Landslide Hazards Program, National Cooperative Geologic Mapping Program, Volcano Hazards Program, Geologic Hazards Science Center, Geosciences and Environmental Change Science Center, Volcano Science Center
Potential Landslides and Tsunami Hazards in Glacier Bay, Alaska

Potential Landslides and Tsunami Hazards in Glacier Bay, Alaska

USGS landslide scientists recently completed an investigation that provides an initial assessment of areas where landslides could enter the water of...

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USGS Geologists Join Efforts in Montecito to Assess Debris-Flow Aftermath

USGS Geologists Join Efforts in Montecito to Assess Debris-Flow Aftermath

Days after fatal debris flows devastated Southern California’s Montecito community,  a team of U.S. Geological Survey geologists joined county, state...

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*Disclaimer: Listing outside positions with professional scientific organizations on this Staff Profile are for informational purposes only and do not constitute an endorsement of those professional scientific organizations or their activities by the USGS, Department of the Interior, or U.S. Government

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