Images

Coastal wetlands that have been damaged or destroyed can lose their ability to capture carbon dioxide and make the large quantities of carbon stored vulnerable to release into the atmosphere—contributing to climate change.

The Core Laboratories Project is a key service for our center, providing vital support to a variety of projects studying everything from coastal wetlands to deep sea sediment and minerals. The project team delivers high-quality data through advanced analytical techniques and maintains laboratory equipment.

An intern working in the lab!

Maps of five study sites spread across the conterminous United States, Alaska, and the Island of Puerto Rico and descriptions of each site’s coastal setting. From the study Comparisons of Shoreline Positions from Satellite-Derived and Traditional Field- and Remote-Sensing Techniques.

In Fall 2025 the Hawaiʻi Abyssal Nodules and Associated Ecosystems Expedition, led by USGS scientists, will investigate the geology, minerals, and environmental setting of the deep seabed offshore Moku o Keawe (Hawaiʻi Island) in the U.S. Exclusive Economic Zone. This work is part of ongoing collaborative efforts with BOEM and NOAA.

Shipek grab sampler and sediment sample. Image is included in USGS data release, "Grain-size analysis of sediment samples collected in the nearshore zone offshore of Marconi Beach, Wellfleet, MA, December 9, 2024."

To assess our #sedimenttransport prediction techniques, #USGS scientists deployed a high-tech instrument off #SandyNeckBeach in Barnstable, Massachusetts from March-April 2021 to measure water velocity, temperature, and salinity, wave pressure, tidal force, seabed changes, and sediment characteristics. 

The USGS uses a nationwide network of coastal observing cameras (CoastCams) to monitor coastal conditions in near real-time and support research on a variety of coastal processes and hazards.

A new study introduces a cutting-edge biogeomorphic model (UBMorph) to help predict how #ChesapeakeBay #saltmarshes will change over time. Using UBMorph, researchers found that 404 square kilometers (37%) of vegetated #marsh area in Chesapeake Bay could be lost by 2110.

A new #datarelease contains a GIS compilation of vector shorelines and associated #shorelinechange data from the 1800s to the 2010s for the coast of Long Island Sound, #NewYork and #Connecticut. 

The Autonomous MAPping CATaraft, or “Autonomous MAPCAT”, is a remotely controlled, 14 foot long by 7 foot wide boat, built from an inflatable pontoon, aluminum frame, whitewater cataraft.

Collage of images showing natural offshore oil seepage on the California Coastline. From the study Natural Offshore Oil Seepage and Related Tarball Accumulation on the California Coastline—Santa Barbara Channel and the Southern Santa Maria Basin; Source Identification and Inventory.

ROV pilots Raeylynn Heinz and Alex Wick (both from OSU OOI) celebrate as their ROV and the OBS surface in Skilak Lake.

View from the remotely operated vehicle (ROV) after attaching a recovery line to the ocean bottom seismograph 190 meters deep in Skilak Lake, Alaska.

The USGS Aerial Imaging and Mapping Group (AIMG) collaborated with the Wampanoag Tribe of Gay Head (Aquinnah), the Town of Aquinnah, and the Aquinnah Police Department to collect high-resolution data of the Gay Head Cliffs.

The USGS Aerial Imaging and Mapping Group (AIMG) collaborated with the Wampanoag Tribe of Gay Head (Aquinnah), the Town of Aquinnah, and the Aquinnah Police Department to collect high-resolution data of the Gay Head Cliffs.

The USGS Aerial Imaging and Mapping Group (AIMG) collaborated with the Wampanoag Tribe of Gay Head (Aquinnah), the Town of Aquinnah, and the Aquinnah Police Department to collect high-resolution data of the Gay Head Cliffs.

Woods Hole Coastal and Marine Science Center staff with Dave Applegate (USGS Chief Scientist and Acting Associate Director, USGS Natural Hazards Mission Area), Jonathan Godt (Program Coordinator, USGS Landslide Hazards Program), and Emily Himmelstoss (Associate Program Coordinator for Science, USGS Coastal and Marine Hazards and Resources Program) during a special v

Overview map showing area offshore Kodiak Island, Alaska, where 2025 seafloor mapping occurred. Project page: Coastal and Marine Geohazards of the U.S. West Coast and Alaska.

Detailed map showing seafloor features such as submarine canyons and slope failures offshore Kodiak Island, Alaska. Project page: Coastal and Marine Geohazards of the U.S. West Coast and Alaska.

Marie Bartlett talking about foraminifera and sediment cores at the Woods Hole Science Stroll.