Images

A massive colony of Paragorgia (bubble gum coral) with a squat lobster hiding among the polyps.

USGS hydrologic technician Kurt Weidich services continuous monitoring instruments at the Dumbarton Bridge in south San Francisco Bay.

A squat lobster and small Black belly rosefish huddle near a den on a small ledge in Baltimore Canyon.

A venus flytrap anemone on the lip of a small ridge, with numerous other small animals.

Closeup view of Paragorgia arborea (bubblegum coral), seen during the Deepwater Canyons 2012 Expedition.

Satellite image of Hurricane Sandy (courtesy NASA GOES http://weather.msfc.nasa.gov/GOES/)

Acoustic backscatter intensity data are an indication of the relative hardness or softness of the sea floor, which is closely related to sediment texture and cohesion. The map shows acoustic backscatter intensity of the sea floor in the Buzzards Bay, Massachusetts.

USGS hydrologist Kaitlyn Colella and a Shinnecock Nation member work together gathering oyster and bed sediment samples along Long Island, New York, coast.

 Left to right: Mike Bastoni (volunteer) and Lisa Engler (Massachusetts Bays Program) deploying the USGS-desgined SEABed Observation and Sampling System (SEABOSS) from Ocean Survey Vessel Bold, with Marinna Martini (USGS) running the winch

 Westco discrete nutrient analyzer measures low-levels of nutrients in water samples

Extreme storms can drastically increase water levels and wave energy causing a breach, or complete erosion of the island itself. Hurricane Sandy created a breach in the Otis Pike High Dunes Wilderness Area at Fire Island National Seashore in NY.

Hurricane Sandy leveled dunes and moved eroded sediment from the dunes and beach across the island and into the estuary (Great South Bay) at Fire Island, NY.

USGS scientist Nancy Prouty collects samples from a CTD. A CTD is package of electronic instruments that measure conductivity, temperature, and depth of water.

The streamer is flaked out on the deck with a make shift workbench for tools.  The technical staff (Geological Survey of Canada) are sharing a lighter moment during trouble shooting and repair aboard CCGS Louis S. St-Laurent.

Smaller version of Colored Shaded-Relief Bathymetry (Sheet 1) from USGS Scientific Investigations Map 3225, California State Waters Map Series—Hueneme Canyon and Vicinity, California, as an example of the different kinds of maps (“sheets”) produced within a coastal map “block”.

Smaller version of Acoustic Backscatter (Sheet 3) from USGS Scientific Investigations Map 3225, California State Waters Map Series—Hueneme Canyon and Vicinity, California, as an example of the different kinds of maps (“sheets”) produced within a coastal map “block”.

Smaller version of Seafloor Character (Sheet 5) from USGS Scientific Investigations Map 3225, California State Waters Map Series—Hueneme Canyon and Vicinity, California, as an example of the different kinds of maps (“sheets”) produced within a coastal map “block”.

Smaller version of Seismic-Reflection Profiles (Sheet 8) from USGS Scientific Investigations Map 3225, California State Waters Map Series—Hueneme Canyon and Vicinity, California, as an example of the different kinds of maps (“sheets”) produced within a coastal map “block”.

Smaller version of Detailed Geology and Geomorphology (Sheet 11) from USGS Scientific Investigations Map 3225, California State Waters Map Series—Hueneme Canyon and Vicinity, California, as an example of the different kinds of maps (“sheets”) produced within a coastal map “block”.

Smaller version of Predicted Distribution of Benthic Macro-Invertebrates (Sheet 12) from USGS Scientific Investigations Map 3225, California State Waters Map Series—Hueneme Canyon and Vicinity, California, as an example of the different kinds of maps (“sheets”) produced within a coastal map “block”.