Publications
Scientific reports, journal articles, and information products produced by USGS Pacific Coastal and Marine Science Center scientists.
Filter Total Items: 1420
Nearshore water quality and coral health indicators along the west coast of the Island of Hawaiʻi, 2010–2014 Nearshore water quality and coral health indicators along the west coast of the Island of Hawaiʻi, 2010–2014
Coral reefs worldwide are experiencing rapid degradation in response to climate and land-use change, namely effects of warming sea-surface temperatures, contaminant runoff, and overfishing. Extensive coral bleaching caused by the steady rise of sea-surface temperatures is projected to increase, but our understanding and ability to predict where corals may be most resilient to this effect...
Authors
Eric E. Grossman, Lisa Marrack, Nathan R. vanArendonk
The weight of cities: Urbanization effects on Earth’s subsurface The weight of cities: Urbanization effects on Earth’s subsurface
Across the world, people increasingly choose to live in cities. By 2050, 70% of Earth's population will live in large urban areas. Upon considering a large city, questions arise such as, how much does that weigh? What are its effects on the landscape? Does it cause measurable subsidence? Here I calculate the weight of San Francisco Bay region urbanization, where 7.75 million people live...
Authors
Thomas E. Parsons
Geochemistry of coastal permafrost and erosion-driven organic matter fluxes to the Beaufort Sea near Drew Point, Alaska Geochemistry of coastal permafrost and erosion-driven organic matter fluxes to the Beaufort Sea near Drew Point, Alaska
Accelerating erosion of the Alaska Beaufort Sea coast is increasing inputs of organic matter from land to the Arctic Ocean, and improved estimates of organic matter stocks in eroding coastal permafrost are needed to assess their mobilization rates under contemporary conditions. We collected three permafrost cores (4.5–7.5 m long) along a geomorphic gradient near Drew Point, Alaska, where...
Authors
Emily M. Bristol, Craig T. Connolly, Thomas Lorenson, Bruce M. Richmond, Anastasia G. Ilgen, Charles R. Choens, Diana L. Bull, Mikhail Z. Kanevskiy, Go Iwahana, Benjamin M. Jones, James W. McClelland
Editorial: Flooding on coral reef-lined coasts: Current state of knowledge and future challenges Editorial: Flooding on coral reef-lined coasts: Current state of knowledge and future challenges
No abstract available.
Authors
William Skirving, Andrew Pomeroy, Robert T. McCall, John Marra, Curt D. Storlazzi
Toward an integrative geological and geophysical view of Cascadia subduction zone earthquakes Toward an integrative geological and geophysical view of Cascadia subduction zone earthquakes
The Cascadia subduction zone (CSZ) is an exceptional geologic environment for recording evidence of land level changes, tsunamis, and ground motion that reveals at least 19 great megathrust earthquakes over the past 10 kyr. Such earthquakes are among the most impactful natural hazards on Earth, transcend national boundaries, and can have global impact. Reducing the societal impacts of...
Authors
Maureen A. L. Walton, Lydia M. Staisch, Tina Dura, Jessie K. Pearl, Brian L. Sherrod, Joan S. Gomberg, Simon E. Engelhart, Anne Trehu, Janet Watt, Jonathan P. Perkins, Robert C. Witter, Noel Bartlow, Chris Goldfinger, Harvey Kelsey, Ann Morey, Valerie J. Sahakian, Harold Tobin, Kelin Wang, Ray Wells, Erin A. Wirth
By
Natural Hazards Mission Area, Coastal and Marine Hazards and Resources Program, National Cooperative Geologic Mapping Program, Geosciences and Environmental Change Science Center, John Wesley Powell Center for Analysis and Synthesis, Pacific Coastal and Marine Science Center, Core Preparation and Analysis Laboratory and Sample Repositories, Deep Sea Exploration, Mapping and Characterization, Subduction Zone Science
Process-based models and studies of coastal change to inform habitat restoration and climate change adaptation Process-based models and studies of coastal change to inform habitat restoration and climate change adaptation
Puget Sound salmon and estuary recovery strategies identify tens of thousands of acres of floodplain and estuary habitat restoration needed to re-establish ecosystem functions lost or degraded from western land use (Simenstad et al., 2011); the extent for nearshore habitat remains uncertain. Sediment is critical for shaping the structure and functions of these ecosystems and the success...
Authors
Eric E. Grossman
The effect of changing sea ice on wave climate trends along Alaska's central Beaufort Sea coast The effect of changing sea ice on wave climate trends along Alaska's central Beaufort Sea coast
Diminishing sea ice is impacting the wave field across the Arctic region. Recent observation- and model-based studies highlight the spatiotemporal influence of sea ice on offshore wave climatologies, but effects within the nearshore region are still poorly described. This study characterizes the wave climate in the central Beaufort Sea coast from 1979 to 2019 by utilizing a wave hindcast...
Authors
Cornelis M. Nederhoff, Li H. Erikson, Anita C Engelstad, Peter A. Bieniek, Jeremy L. Kasper
Coastal permafrost erosion Coastal permafrost erosion
Highlights • Since the early 2000s, erosion of permafrost coasts in the Arctic has increased at 13 of 14 sites with observational data that extend back to ca. 1960 and ca. 1980, coinciding with warming temperatures, sea ice reduction, and permafrost thaw. • Permafrost coasts along the US and Canadian Beaufort Sea experienced the largest increase in erosion rates in the Arctic, ranging...
Authors
Benjamin M. Jones, Anna M. Irrgang, Louise M. Farquharson, Hugues Lantuit, Dustin Whalen, Stanislav Ogorodov, Mikhail Grigoriev, Craig E. Tweedie, Ann E. Gibbs, Matt C Strzelecki, Alisa Baranskaya, Nataliya Belova, Anatoly Sinitsyn, Art Kroon, Alexey Maslakov, Goncalo Vieira, Guido Grosse, Paul Overduin, Ingmar Nitze, Christopher V. Maio, Jacquelyn R. Overbeck, Mette Bendixen, Piotr Zagorski, Vladimir Romanovsky
Changing storm conditions in response to projected 21st century climate change and the potential impact on an arctic barrier island–lagoon system—A pilot study for Arey Island and Lagoon, eastern Arctic Alaska Changing storm conditions in response to projected 21st century climate change and the potential impact on an arctic barrier island–lagoon system—A pilot study for Arey Island and Lagoon, eastern Arctic Alaska
Executive Summary Arey Lagoon, located in eastern Arctic Alaska, supports a highly productive ecosystem, where soft substrate and coastal wet sedge fringing the shores are feeding grounds and nurseries for a variety of marine fish and waterfowl. The lagoon is partially protected from the direct onslaught of Arctic Ocean waves by a barrier island chain (Arey Island) which in itself...
Authors
Li H. Erikson, Ann E. Gibbs, Bruce M. Richmond, Curt D. Storlazzi, Benjamin M. Jones, Karin Ohman
The impacts of the 2015/2016 El Niño on California's sandy beaches The impacts of the 2015/2016 El Niño on California's sandy beaches
The El Niño Southern Oscillation is the most dominant mode of interannual climate variability in the Pacific. The 2015/2016 El Niño event was one of the strongest of the last 145 years, resulting in anomalously high wave energy across the U.S. West Coast, and record coastal erosion for many California beaches. To better manage coastal resources, it is critical to understand the impacts...
Authors
Schuyler A Smith, Patrick L. Barnard
On the use of statistical analysis to understand submarine landslide processes and assess their hazard On the use of statistical analysis to understand submarine landslide processes and assess their hazard
Because of their inaccessibility, submarine landslides are typically studied individually and at great effort and expense to provide knowledge of the specific site conditions where these landslides occur. Statistical analysis of submarine landslide scars can offer generalized perspectives on the processes that initiate submarine landslides and can help toward hazard assessment in areas...
Authors
Uri S. ten Brink, Eric L. Geist