Images

USGS researcher Jenna Brown takes a measurement with a real time kinematic GPS receiver, this will give her an accurate position and height of the aluminum pole beneath it, which will have mutliple instruments attached to it to measure water flow and elevation changes.

USGS scientists mounted this high-resolution digital camera on an observation tower in the dune at the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Field Research Facility near Kitty Hawk, North Carolina. The camera overlooks the beach, dune, and an instrument array, and collects images throughout calm and storm conditions. 

An alternative to uncrewed aerial systems (UAS; commonly known as 'drones'), U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) scientists use helikites equipped with cameras to collect imagery of the coastline. The pictures collected by these helium-powered kite-balloons are used to create a 3D digital elevation map of the beach.

An alternative to uncrewed aerial systems (UAS; commonly known as 'drones'), U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) scientists use helikites equipped with cameras to collect imagery of the coastline. The pictures collected by these helium-powered kite-balloons are used to create a 3D digital elevation map of the beach.

Metal poles and equipment will installed on the beach and in the surf zone near the Army Corps of Engineers Field Research Facility pier near Kitty Hawk, North Carolina. The poles extend about 5 feet above the ground or seabed, to support instruments that continuously measure wave heights, water levels, and currents using acoustics. 

Coastal communities, especially those on barrier islands, are vulnerable to processes of coastal change. The DUring Nearshore Event eXperiment (DUNEX) project is a multi-agency, a

Overhead image collected by a helikite of field work being conducted in the Outer Banks of North Carolina. An alternative to uncrewed aerial systems (UAS; commonly known as 'drones'), USGS scientists use helikites equipped with cameras to collect imagery of the coastline.

An alternative to uncrewed aerial systems (UAS; commonly known as 'drones'), U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) scientists use helikites equipped with cameras to collect imagery of the coastline. The pictures collected by these helium-powered kite-balloons are used to create a 3D digital elevation map of the beach.

An alternative to uncrewed aerial systems (UAS; commonly known as 'drones'), U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) scientists use helikites equipped with cameras to collect imagery of the coastline. The pictures collected by these helium-powered kite-balloons are used to create a 3D digital elevation map of the beach.

USGS-Black Swift Team with Super Swift UAS, Dutch Harbor Airport, Aleutian Islands, Alaska. Left-to-right: Dale Ruckman, Jack Elston, Christoph Kern, Angie Diefenbach, Maciej Stachura, Matt Burgess, Andy Dietrick.

To survey the bathymetry off of the Pea Island DUNEX site WHOI investigator Peter Traykovski prepares to run into the surf with the ASV nicknamed "Robo Turtle" while USGS investigator Chris Sherwood handles the remote controller.

The US Army Corps of Engineers Field Research Facility in Duck, NC has set up a variety of sensors and arrays on the beach to measure oceanographic paramters for DUNEX

The Helikite in action, being walked by WHOI scientist, Peter Traykovski, at Pea Island DUNEX site, the helium powered balloon kite is used to survey the beach and dune to produce elevation models using Structure from Motion.

A calm hazy horizon after the team pushed two boats up and over the dune to be launched from the beach on Pea Island.

This field work was conducted as part of the During Nearshore Event Experiment (DUNEX) in 2021. 

Assembling the CoastCam station, USGS researchers Jenna Brown and Meg Palmsten stake down support wires as a storm approaches the Pea Island field site.

This field work was conducted as part of the During Nearshore Event Experiment (DUNEX) in 2021. 

Cross-shore array of poles equipped with various sensors to measure water level and other parameters at Pea Island National Wildlife Refuge. This equipment was deployed as part of the During Nearshore Event Experiment (DUNEX) in 2021. 

To survey the bathymetry off of the Pea Island DUNEX site WHOI investigator Peter Traykovski, and USGS investigator, Chris Sherwood, prepare to launch the ASV into the water to measure the bathymetry of the Pea Island DUNEX site.

Point Barrow, Alaska, or Nuvuk, is the northernmost point in the United States. USGS has set up video cameras, mounted to the pole shown here, to study sediment movement and wave dynamics along this dynamic coastline.

Point Barrow, Alaska, or Nuvuk, is the northernmost point in the United States. USGS has set up video cameras, mounted to the pole shown here, to study sediment movement and wave dynamics along this dynamic coastline.

Point Barrow, Alaska, or Nuvuk, is the northernmost point in the United States. USGS has set up video cameras, mounted to the pole shown here, to study sediment movement and wave dynamics along this dynamic coastline.

Elkhorn coral (Acropora palmata) in Tres Palmas Marine Reserve, Rincón, Puerto Rico. This coral can form reef crests and cause waves to break, providing significant protection to the coast.