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Coastal and Marine Hazards and Resources Program images.

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A brain coral spawns white larvae, which are taken away by an underwater current.
Brain coral spawning coral larvae
Brain coral spawning coral larvae
Brain coral spawning coral larvae

Brain coral spawning coral larvae. The larvae will settle on other surfaces and grow into new coral in a process called recruitment.

Brain coral spawning coral larvae. The larvae will settle on other surfaces and grow into new coral in a process called recruitment.

Map showing the surficial geology of Vineyard and western Nantucket Sounds with equivalent onshore geology
Surficial Geology of Vineyard and western Nantucket Sounds
Surficial Geology of Vineyard and western Nantucket Sounds
Surficial Geology of Vineyard and western Nantucket Sounds

Map showing the surficial geology of Vineyard and western Nantucket Sounds with equivalent onshore geology (adapted from Stone and DiGiacomo-Cohen, 2009). The areal extents over which offshore subsurface geologic units crop out at the sea floor were interpreted from seismic-reflection data.

Map showing the surficial geology of Vineyard and western Nantucket Sounds with equivalent onshore geology (adapted from Stone and DiGiacomo-Cohen, 2009). The areal extents over which offshore subsurface geologic units crop out at the sea floor were interpreted from seismic-reflection data.

Photograph of USGS personnel testing water in a marsh
Testing the Water!
Testing the Water!
Testing the Water!

Jen Suttles,Woods Hole Coastal and Marine Science Center, collects water samples from a salt marsh tidal creek (East Falmouth, MA) for laboratory analysis of total organic carbon. These samples will be compared to data recorded by instrumentation deployed in an adjacent tidal creek as part of research efforts to quantify carbon dynamics in coastal ecosystems

Jen Suttles,Woods Hole Coastal and Marine Science Center, collects water samples from a salt marsh tidal creek (East Falmouth, MA) for laboratory analysis of total organic carbon. These samples will be compared to data recorded by instrumentation deployed in an adjacent tidal creek as part of research efforts to quantify carbon dynamics in coastal ecosystems

Map of seabed geology and sun-illuminated topography, Stellwagen Bank
Map of seabed geology and sun-illuminated topography, Stellwagen Bank
Map of seabed geology and sun-illuminated topography, Stellwagen Bank
Map shows coastal area of southern California from the northern Santa Barbara County to the southern San Diego County.
Area of southern California covered by CoSMoS forecasts
Area of southern California covered by CoSMoS forecasts
Area of southern California covered by CoSMoS forecasts

Current CoSMoS coastal hazard forecasts cover southern California, from Santa Barbara County in the north to San Diego County in the south.

Image of USGS scientist on a beach recording piping plover habitat characteristics
USGS scientist records piping plover habitat characteristics
USGS scientist records piping plover habitat characteristics
USGS scientist records piping plover habitat characteristics

USGS scientist Sara Zeigler records habitat characteristics in iPlover at an ‘exclosed’ nest. On some beaches, managers erect netting around nests to protect eggs/chicks and adults from predators, allowing movement of chicks and parents to and from the nest but excluding predators

USGS scientist Sara Zeigler records habitat characteristics in iPlover at an ‘exclosed’ nest. On some beaches, managers erect netting around nests to protect eggs/chicks and adults from predators, allowing movement of chicks and parents to and from the nest but excluding predators

location map of sample locations from the north and south shores of long island, new york
Location map of the North and South Shores of Long Island, NY
Location map of the North and South Shores of Long Island, NY
Location map of the North and South Shores of Long Island, NY

Groundwater data were collected in the spring and fall of 2008 from three sites representing different geological settings and biogeochemical conditions within the surficial glacial aquifer of Long Island, NY.

Woods Hole drone pilot
Unmanned Aerial System (UAS) pilot
Unmanned Aerial System (UAS) pilot
Unmanned Aerial System (UAS) pilot

Sandy Brosnahan performing first solo flight as a USGS certified drone pilot.  There are multiple exciting applications for drone imagery including erosion studies and physical changes to coastal ecosystems over time. 

Sandy Brosnahan performing first solo flight as a USGS certified drone pilot.  There are multiple exciting applications for drone imagery including erosion studies and physical changes to coastal ecosystems over time. 

Map of the seafloor showing its characteristics which include long, linear features that are earthquake fault zones.
Offshore of Point Estero
Offshore of Point Estero
Offshore of Point Estero

Seafloor offshore of Point Estero (PE) showing east (EH) and west (WH) strands of the Hosgri fault zone. Arrow points to a seafloor slope (a 12,000 year old shoreline) that has been offset by the east Hosgri strand, indicating a slip rate of about 2.6 millimeters per year.

Seafloor offshore of Point Estero (PE) showing east (EH) and west (WH) strands of the Hosgri fault zone. Arrow points to a seafloor slope (a 12,000 year old shoreline) that has been offset by the east Hosgri strand, indicating a slip rate of about 2.6 millimeters per year.

Map of offshore southern California showing the contours of the seafloor, with labels pointing to circles showing landslides.
Large submarine slides off southern California
Large submarine slides off southern California
Large submarine slides off southern California

Large submarine slides off southern California (outlined in small white dots). Low-resolution bathymetry shown in light grey (approximately 100 meters/pixel). High-resolution bathymetry shown in darker grey (less than 20 meters/pixel).

Large submarine slides off southern California (outlined in small white dots). Low-resolution bathymetry shown in light grey (approximately 100 meters/pixel). High-resolution bathymetry shown in darker grey (less than 20 meters/pixel).

4-photos of scientists doing field work on boats, and in or near the water
Scientists doing field work at Elwha River
Scientists doing field work at Elwha River
Scientists doing field work at Elwha River

Researchers survey Elwha River elevation and depths. Clockwise from upper left: setting up a traditional survey instrument above the river; measuring river depths from a kayak with sonar and GPS; walking the beach with GPS backpacks; and determining offshore depths using a personal watercraft with GPS and sonar.

Researchers survey Elwha River elevation and depths. Clockwise from upper left: setting up a traditional survey instrument above the river; measuring river depths from a kayak with sonar and GPS; walking the beach with GPS backpacks; and determining offshore depths using a personal watercraft with GPS and sonar.

Schematic showing how sediment on the seafloor moves in response to multiple forces
Schematic showing how sediment on the seafloor moves
Schematic showing how sediment on the seafloor moves
Screenshot of Total Water Level and Coastal-Change Forecast Viewer on June 4, 2016
Screenshot of Total Water Level and Coastal-Change Forecast Viewer
Screenshot of Total Water Level and Coastal-Change Forecast Viewer
Screenshot of Total Water Level and Coastal-Change Forecast Viewer

Screenshot of Total Water Level and Coastal-Change Forecast Viewer (<https://coastal.er.usgs.gov/hurricanes/research/twlviewer/>) on June 4, 2016, two days before Tropical Storm Colin was expected to hit Florida’s Gulf of America coast.

Picture shows six members of the USGS communications team receiving receiving an award
Coastal and Marine Geology Program team at the USGS awards ceremony
Coastal and Marine Geology Program team at the USGS awards ceremony
Coastal and Marine Geology Program team at the USGS awards ceremony

Coastal and Marine Geology Program web team members receive their awards at the USGS Awards Ceremony on May 3, 2016. From left to right: USGS Director Suzette Kimball, who presented the awards; Jolene Gittens; Greg Miller; Kerry Rae, Chief of Staff for Jennifer Gimbel, Deputy Assistant Secretary for Water and Science, U.S. Dept.

Coastal and Marine Geology Program web team members receive their awards at the USGS Awards Ceremony on May 3, 2016. From left to right: USGS Director Suzette Kimball, who presented the awards; Jolene Gittens; Greg Miller; Kerry Rae, Chief of Staff for Jennifer Gimbel, Deputy Assistant Secretary for Water and Science, U.S. Dept.

A scientist drives a 20 foot long aluminum tube into a coral reef to collect a coral core.
Taking a coral core in the Gulf of Chiriqui, Panama
Taking a coral core in the Gulf of Chiriqui, Panama
Taking a coral core in the Gulf of Chiriqui, Panama

Collecting a coral core in the Gulf of Chiriqui, Panama, by forcing a 20-foot aluminum tube into the reef. This core retrieved about 6,000 years of reef history.

Collecting a coral core in the Gulf of Chiriqui, Panama, by forcing a 20-foot aluminum tube into the reef. This core retrieved about 6,000 years of reef history.

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