Images

Established in 2009, the U.S. Geological Survey’s Coral Assessment Network (USGS-CAN) provides data on coral-growth (calcification) rates throughout the Florida Keys and St. Croix, U.S. Virgin Islands. Pictured here is one of 30 stations located in Buck Island Reef National Monument.

This instrument, the Edgetech SB-516 or "chirp", emits acoustic signals that penetrate the sediment on the seafloor. The reflected sound is recorded and is used to create a cross-section image, or profile, of the sub-bottom.

A view of the mouth of the Klamath River where it meets the Pacific Ocean in northern California. The river runs from Oregon to California. Four dams along the Klamath are pending removal. USGS is studying coastal watershed response to dam removal, including long-term before-after/control-impact (BACI) studies.

Sediments in estuarine and marsh environments contain organic peat, or material derived from life, that plays an important role in ecosystem health. Here, USGS geologist Chris Smith of the St.

A science crew on M/V (marine vessel) Bold Horizon retrieve gear from offshore San Francisco.

USGS scientists on the back deck of M/V Bold Horizon in San Francisco Bay: (back row, standing: left to right) Brandon Nasr, Danny Brothers, Travis Alonghi (USGS student contractor), Gerry Hatcher, Jenna Hill, Pete Dal Ferro, and Jenny McKee; (front row, kneeling: left to right) USGS scientists Janet Watt and Nora Nieminski.

USGS science crew from Pacific Coastal and Marine Science Center work together to get the vibracorer coring device in position to collect sediment core samples off San Francisco, California.

The Rossfelder P-5 vibracorer, with its polybuterate liner visible, is secured on the deck of the research vessel Bold Horizon, awaiting deployment off the coast of California just north of San Francisco. More liners are stored in a cage off to the side.

The USGS uses the Rossfelder P-5 vibracorer to collect deep-water sediment samples from the seafloor. Here, they are heading out offshore of San Francisco with the Golden Gate Bridge in the background.

USGS scientists Brandon Nasr, Jenna Hill, Nora Nieminski, and Jenny McKee removing a sediment-filled core liner from the jumbo piston core barrel with the picturesque northern California coastline in the background.

UCSC student Travis Alonghi and USGS scientist Danny Brothers deploying the Chirp sub-bottom profiler at sunset from M/V Bold Horizon.

The USGS Coastal and Estuarine Dynamics Group will be deploying a cross shore array at Pea Island, various intruments will be connected to the poles to measure oceanographic conditions

USGS scientists Nora Nieminski, Jenna Hill, and Brandon Nasr working to cap and secure a trigger core on deck. Trigger cores can provide important information about seafloor sediments just below the seafloor

The crew of research vessel Bold Horizon with USGS science crew prepare to launch the Chirp sub-bottom profiler off the west coast near northern California and southern Oregon.

USGS scientists Pete Dal Ferro and Jenny McKee securing a recently collected jumbo piston core (JPC) on the back deck of M/V Bold Horizon for preliminary core processing.

After recovery, the jumbo piston corer sits on the deck of research vessel Bold Horizon in its launch and recovery system. This muddy collar is removed to reveal the removable length of the core, which sits within a stiff plastic tube inside the metal tube.

USGS marine technician Jenny McKee prepares the jumbo piston corer for launching off research vessel Bold Horizon off the coast of California and Oregon. The corer will collect sediment samples from the seafloor. Scientists will examine the sediment to determine its age, character, and distribution. This area off the west coast of the U.S.

USGS scientist Janet Watt making a shear vane measurement on a gravity core to understand how the seafloor responds to earthquake shaking.

Dr. Nora Nieminski is a research geologist and Mendenhall Fellow at the USGS Pacific Coastal and Marine Science Center in Santa Cruz, California. She is pictured here, on board Marine Vessel Bold Horizon, with a piston core sample collected from the southern Cascadia subduction zone offshore of northern California/southern Oregon.

Goleta Beach in Santa Barbara experienced an unusual storm and large wave event in the Spring of 2014. Gaviota Pier, seen far off in the background, sustained heavy damage as did the restaurants on the pier and nearby. The USGS conducts seasonal surveys throught the year to see how the beaches are changing through time.

A female Kemp's ridley sea turtle, named Finley, shows off the popoff ADL (orange) and satellite tag (blue).