Publications
Scientific reports, journal articles, and information products produced by USGS Pacific Coastal and Marine Science Center scientists.
Filter Total Items: 1420
Geologic controls on submarine slope failure along the central U.S. Atlantic margin: Insights from the Currituck Slide Complex Geologic controls on submarine slope failure along the central U.S. Atlantic margin: Insights from the Currituck Slide Complex
Multiple styles of failure, ranging from densely spaced, mass transport driven canyons to the large, slab-type slope failure of the Currituck Slide, characterize adjacent sections of the central U.S. Atlantic margin that appear to be defined by variations in geologic framework. Here we use regionally extensive, deep penetration multichannel seismic (MCS) profiles to reconstruct the...
Authors
Jenna C. Hill, Daniel S. Brothers, Bradley K. Craig, Uri S. ten Brink, Jason D. Chaytor, Claudia Flores
Sources and dispersal of land-based runoff from small Hawaiian drainages to a coral reef: Insights from geochemical signatures Sources and dispersal of land-based runoff from small Hawaiian drainages to a coral reef: Insights from geochemical signatures
Land-based sediment and contaminant runoff is a major threat to coral reefs, and runoff reduction efforts would benefit from knowledge of specific runoff sources. Geochemical signatures of small drainage basins were determined in the fine fraction of soil and sediment, then used in the nearshore region of a coral reef-fringed urban embayment on southeast Oahu, Hawaii, to describe sources...
Authors
Renee K. Takesue, Curt D. Storlazzi
Land-use change and managed aquifer recharge effects on the hydrogeochemistry of two contrasting atoll island aquifers, Roi-Namur Island, Republic of the Marshall Islands Land-use change and managed aquifer recharge effects on the hydrogeochemistry of two contrasting atoll island aquifers, Roi-Namur Island, Republic of the Marshall Islands
Freshwater resources on low-lying atoll islands are highly vulnerable to climate change and sea-level rise. In addition to rainwater catchment, groundwater in the freshwater lens is a critically important water resource on many atoll islands, especially during drought. Although many atolls have high annual rainfall rates, dense natural vegetation and high evapotranspiration rates can...
Authors
Mehrdad Hejazian, Jason J. Gurdak, Peter W. Swarzenski, Kingsley Odigie, Curt D. Storlazzi
Sediment transport in the presence of large reef bottom roughness Sediment transport in the presence of large reef bottom roughness
The presence of large bottom roughness, such as that formed by benthic organisms on coral reef flats, has important implications for the size, concentration, and transport of suspended sediment in coastal environments. A 3 week field study was conducted in approximately 1.5 m water depth on the reef flat at Ningaloo Reef, Western Australia, to quantify the cross-reef hydrodynamics and...
Authors
Andrew Pomeroy, Ryan J. Lowe, Marco Ghisalberti, Curt D. Storlazzi, Graham Symonds, Dano Roelvink
Fluidized-sediment pipes in Gale crater, Mars, and possible Earth analogs Fluidized-sediment pipes in Gale crater, Mars, and possible Earth analogs
Since landing in Gale crater, the Mars Science Laboratory rover Curiosity has traversed fluvial, lacustrine, and eolian sedimentary rocks that were deposited within the crater ∼3.6 to 3.2 b.y. ago. Here we describe structures interpreted to be pipes formed by vertical movement of fluidized sediment. Like many pipes on Earth, those in Gale crater are more resistant to erosion than the...
Authors
David M. Rubin, A.G. Fairen, J. Frydenvang, O. Gasnault, Guy R. Gelfenbaum, W. Goetz, J.P. Grotzinger, S. Le Mouélic, N. Mangold, H. Newsom, D. Z. Oehler, W. Rapin, J. Schieber, R. C. Wiens
Tsunamis: Bayesian probabilistic hazard analysis Tsunamis: Bayesian probabilistic hazard analysis
No abstract available.
Authors
Anita Grezio, Stefano Lorito, Tom Parsons, Jacopo Selva
Hurricane Sandy washover deposits on Fire Island, New York Hurricane Sandy washover deposits on Fire Island, New York
Washover deposits on Fire Island, New York, from Hurricane Sandy in 2012 were investigated a year after the storm to document the sedimentary characteristics of hurricane washover features. Sediment data collected in the field includes stratigraphic descriptions and photos from trenches, bulk sediment samples, U-channels, and gouge and push cores. Samples and push cores were further...
Authors
SeanPaul M. La Selle, Brent D. Lunghino, Bruce E. Jaffe, Guy Gelfenbaum, Pedro J.M. Costa
Book review: Extreme ocean waves Book review: Extreme ocean waves
“Extreme Ocean Waves”, edited by E. Pelinovsky and C. Kharif, second edition, Springer International Publishing, 2016; ISBN: 978-3-319-21574-7, ISBN (eBook): 978-3-319-21575-4 The second edition of “Extreme Ocean Waves” published by Springer is an update of a collection of 12 papers edited by Efim Pelinovsky and Christian Kharif following the April 2007 meeting of the General Assembly of...
Authors
Eric L. Geist
Book review: Physics of tsunamis Book review: Physics of tsunamis
“Physics of Tsunamis”, second edition, provides a comprehensive analytical treatment of the hydrodynamics associated with the tsunami generation process. The book consists of seven chapters covering 388 pages. Because the subject matter within each chapter is distinct, an abstract appears at the beginning and references appear at the end of each chapter, rather than at the end of the...
Authors
Eric L. Geist
A global probabilistic tsunami hazard assessment from earthquake sources A global probabilistic tsunami hazard assessment from earthquake sources
Large tsunamis occur infrequently but have the capacity to cause enormous numbers of casualties, damage to the built environment and critical infrastructure, and economic losses. A sound understanding of tsunami hazard is required to underpin management of these risks, and while tsunami hazard assessments are typically conducted at regional or local scales, globally consistent...
Authors
Gareth Davies, Jonathan Griffin, Finn Lovholt, Sylfest Glimsdal, Carl Harbitz, Hong Kie Thio, Stefano Lorito, Roberto Basili, Jacopo Selva, Eric L. Geist, Maria Ana Baptista
Is “morphodynamic equilibrium” an oxymoron? Is “morphodynamic equilibrium” an oxymoron?
Morphodynamic equilibrium is a widely adopted yet elusive concept in the field of geomorphology of coasts, rivers and estuaries. Based on the Exner equation, an expression of mass conservation of sediment, we distinguish three types of equilibrium defined as static and dynamic, of which two different types exist. Other expressions such as statistical and quasi-equilibrium which do not...
Authors
Zeng Zhou, Giovanni Coco, Ian Townend, Maitane Olabarrieta, Mick van der Wegen, Zheng Gong, Andrea D’Alpaos, Shu Gao, Bruce E. Jaffe, Guy R. Gelfenbaum, Qing He, Yaping Wang, Stefano Lanzoni, Zhengbing Wang, Han Winterwerp, Changkuan Zhang
Habitat suitability models for groundfish in the Gulf of Alaska Habitat suitability models for groundfish in the Gulf of Alaska
Identifying and quantifying the major ecosystem processes that regulate recruitment strength of commercially and ecologically important fish species is a central goal of fisheries management research. In the Gulf of Alaska (GOA) five groundfish species are of particular interest: sablefish (Anoplopoma fimbria), Pacific cod (Gadus macrocephalus), walleye pollock (Gadus chalcogrammus)...
Authors
Jodi L. Pirtle, S. Kalei Shotwell, Mark Zimmermann, Jane A. Reid, Nadine E. Golden