Sabrina Levinson, a USGS intern on the Coastal Sediment Availability and Flux Project (St. Petersburg Coastal and Marine Science Center), pilots a survey waverunner to the shallows of Wallops Island, Virginia.
Daniel Ciarletta, Ph.D.
I investigate the evolution of barrier island morphology to learn about how changes in sediment availability, sea-level rise, and other environmental factors impact coastal resiliency and vulnerability. To accomplish this, I combine field approaches with numerical modeling to quantify geomorphological change through time.
I received my B.S. in Oceanography from the Florida Institute of Technology, and an M.S. in Geoscience plus a Ph.D. in Environmental Science and Management from Montclair State University. I received a Mendenhall Postdoctoral Fellowship from the USGS and started work at the Saint Petersburg Coastal and Marine Science Center in 2019, where I currently research the effects of sediment availability on barrier island evolution.
Science and Products
Storm-Related Barrier Island Morphological Evolution
Storms quickly and dramatically alter barrier island environments by changing adjacent seafloor morphology, eroding beaches, scarping or leveling dunes, and sometimes creating new inlets. Measuring the magnitude of barrier island sediment movement during and after storms allows us to track rates of beach recovery, dune growth, and inlet-related alterations to barrier island sediment supply.
Barrier Island Sensitivity to Changes in Sediment Supply
Observations and models show that maintaining barrier islands requires a balance between sea-level rise and sediment supply. However, most estimates of sediment supply are not based on modern conditions, which could result in less accurate predictions of sediment fluxes. We explore how natural and human alterations impact modern sediment fluxes, or changes, on barrier islands – research that has...
Shoreface Morphology and Geology
Exchanges of sediment between the shoreface and barrier islands allow barrier islands to adjust to changes in water level, such as those associated with storms or sea-level rise. Characterizing shoreface morphology and geology allows us to explore how past and present processes have impacted modern barrier island sediment transport and what that means for future barrier island evolution.
Modeling Barrier Island Evolution, Shoreface Morphology, and Overwash
Barrier island field observations provide information about past and current environmental conditions and changes over time; however, they can’t tell us about the future. Models can predict possible future behaviors but are only as good as their input data. By integrating both observations and models, we can extend observations and arrive at more realistic predictions of barrier island behavior...
Coastal Sediment Availability and Flux (CSAF) Capabilities
As part of the Coastal Sediment Availability and Flux project, we use innovative technology and integrate a variety of techniques to characterize barrier island environments, reconstruct their past history, and predict their future vulnerability.
Coastal Sediment Availability and Flux (CSAF)
Sediments are the foundation of coastal systems, including barrier islands. Their behavior is driven by not only sediment availability, but also sediment exchanges between barrier island environments. We collect geophysical, remote sensing, and sediment data to estimate these parameters, which are integrated with models to improve prediction of coastal response to extreme storms and sea-level rise...
In transit to survey the shallows of Wallops Island, Virginia
Sabrina Levinson, a USGS intern on the Coastal Sediment Availability and Flux Project (St. Petersburg Coastal and Marine Science Center), pilots a survey waverunner to the shallows of Wallops Island, Virginia.
Dan Ciarletta Teaches Students About Sediment Cores at the 2023 St. Petersburg Science Festival
linkDan Ciarletta teaches some students about sediment cores at the 2023 St. Petersburg Science Festival. For more than 10 years, the St. Petersburg Science Festival has celebrated STEAM (science, technology, engineering, art, and mathematics) activities with elementary school children and the public over a two-day event.
Dan Ciarletta Teaches Students About Sediment Cores at the 2023 St. Petersburg Science Festival
linkDan Ciarletta teaches some students about sediment cores at the 2023 St. Petersburg Science Festival. For more than 10 years, the St. Petersburg Science Festival has celebrated STEAM (science, technology, engineering, art, and mathematics) activities with elementary school children and the public over a two-day event.
View of Sand Key, Florida
Photo taken at Sand Key, Florida, overlooking the Gulf of Mexico coast. A high resolution digital video camera is installed atop Dan's Island Condo, one of the condos seen in the distance.
Photo taken at Sand Key, Florida, overlooking the Gulf of Mexico coast. A high resolution digital video camera is installed atop Dan's Island Condo, one of the condos seen in the distance.
Secrets of the Sediment on Barrier Islands (AD)
Join the USGS St. Petersburg Coastal and Marine Science Center as they uncover the secrets of the sediment on barrier islands in Pinellas County, Florida. This video was originally created for use at the 2021 virtual St. Petersburg Science Festival.
Join the USGS St. Petersburg Coastal and Marine Science Center as they uncover the secrets of the sediment on barrier islands in Pinellas County, Florida. This video was originally created for use at the 2021 virtual St. Petersburg Science Festival.
Secrets of the Sediment on Barrier Islands
Join the USGS St. Petersburg Coastal and Marine Science Center as they uncover the secrets of the sediment on barrier islands in Pinellas County, Florida. This video was originally created for use at the 2021 virtual St. Petersburg Science Festival.
Join the USGS St. Petersburg Coastal and Marine Science Center as they uncover the secrets of the sediment on barrier islands in Pinellas County, Florida. This video was originally created for use at the 2021 virtual St. Petersburg Science Festival.
Modeled beach profile evolution at Fishing Point, Virginia
Animation displays modeled beach profile elevation as it has evolved at Fishing Point, Virginia. These data are based on historical charts and images and measure distance (in kilometers) of cross-shore accretion. QS is the flux of sand to the beach, and QD is the flux of sand from the beach to the active dune.
Animation displays modeled beach profile elevation as it has evolved at Fishing Point, Virginia. These data are based on historical charts and images and measure distance (in kilometers) of cross-shore accretion. QS is the flux of sand to the beach, and QD is the flux of sand from the beach to the active dune.
Eroding marshes on the bay behind Long Beach Island, New Jersey
The remnants of an eroding marsh sit on a bayside beach behind Long Beach Island, New Jersey. Marsh loss and bayside erosion can be outcomes of both natural landscape evolution and human modification of coastal barrier systems.
The remnants of an eroding marsh sit on a bayside beach behind Long Beach Island, New Jersey. Marsh loss and bayside erosion can be outcomes of both natural landscape evolution and human modification of coastal barrier systems.
Science and Products
Storm-Related Barrier Island Morphological Evolution
Storms quickly and dramatically alter barrier island environments by changing adjacent seafloor morphology, eroding beaches, scarping or leveling dunes, and sometimes creating new inlets. Measuring the magnitude of barrier island sediment movement during and after storms allows us to track rates of beach recovery, dune growth, and inlet-related alterations to barrier island sediment supply.
Barrier Island Sensitivity to Changes in Sediment Supply
Observations and models show that maintaining barrier islands requires a balance between sea-level rise and sediment supply. However, most estimates of sediment supply are not based on modern conditions, which could result in less accurate predictions of sediment fluxes. We explore how natural and human alterations impact modern sediment fluxes, or changes, on barrier islands – research that has...
Shoreface Morphology and Geology
Exchanges of sediment between the shoreface and barrier islands allow barrier islands to adjust to changes in water level, such as those associated with storms or sea-level rise. Characterizing shoreface morphology and geology allows us to explore how past and present processes have impacted modern barrier island sediment transport and what that means for future barrier island evolution.
Modeling Barrier Island Evolution, Shoreface Morphology, and Overwash
Barrier island field observations provide information about past and current environmental conditions and changes over time; however, they can’t tell us about the future. Models can predict possible future behaviors but are only as good as their input data. By integrating both observations and models, we can extend observations and arrive at more realistic predictions of barrier island behavior...
Coastal Sediment Availability and Flux (CSAF) Capabilities
As part of the Coastal Sediment Availability and Flux project, we use innovative technology and integrate a variety of techniques to characterize barrier island environments, reconstruct their past history, and predict their future vulnerability.
Coastal Sediment Availability and Flux (CSAF)
Sediments are the foundation of coastal systems, including barrier islands. Their behavior is driven by not only sediment availability, but also sediment exchanges between barrier island environments. We collect geophysical, remote sensing, and sediment data to estimate these parameters, which are integrated with models to improve prediction of coastal response to extreme storms and sea-level rise...
In transit to survey the shallows of Wallops Island, Virginia
Sabrina Levinson, a USGS intern on the Coastal Sediment Availability and Flux Project (St. Petersburg Coastal and Marine Science Center), pilots a survey waverunner to the shallows of Wallops Island, Virginia.
Sabrina Levinson, a USGS intern on the Coastal Sediment Availability and Flux Project (St. Petersburg Coastal and Marine Science Center), pilots a survey waverunner to the shallows of Wallops Island, Virginia.
Dan Ciarletta Teaches Students About Sediment Cores at the 2023 St. Petersburg Science Festival
linkDan Ciarletta teaches some students about sediment cores at the 2023 St. Petersburg Science Festival. For more than 10 years, the St. Petersburg Science Festival has celebrated STEAM (science, technology, engineering, art, and mathematics) activities with elementary school children and the public over a two-day event.
Dan Ciarletta Teaches Students About Sediment Cores at the 2023 St. Petersburg Science Festival
linkDan Ciarletta teaches some students about sediment cores at the 2023 St. Petersburg Science Festival. For more than 10 years, the St. Petersburg Science Festival has celebrated STEAM (science, technology, engineering, art, and mathematics) activities with elementary school children and the public over a two-day event.
View of Sand Key, Florida
Photo taken at Sand Key, Florida, overlooking the Gulf of Mexico coast. A high resolution digital video camera is installed atop Dan's Island Condo, one of the condos seen in the distance.
Photo taken at Sand Key, Florida, overlooking the Gulf of Mexico coast. A high resolution digital video camera is installed atop Dan's Island Condo, one of the condos seen in the distance.
Secrets of the Sediment on Barrier Islands (AD)
Join the USGS St. Petersburg Coastal and Marine Science Center as they uncover the secrets of the sediment on barrier islands in Pinellas County, Florida. This video was originally created for use at the 2021 virtual St. Petersburg Science Festival.
Join the USGS St. Petersburg Coastal and Marine Science Center as they uncover the secrets of the sediment on barrier islands in Pinellas County, Florida. This video was originally created for use at the 2021 virtual St. Petersburg Science Festival.
Secrets of the Sediment on Barrier Islands
Join the USGS St. Petersburg Coastal and Marine Science Center as they uncover the secrets of the sediment on barrier islands in Pinellas County, Florida. This video was originally created for use at the 2021 virtual St. Petersburg Science Festival.
Join the USGS St. Petersburg Coastal and Marine Science Center as they uncover the secrets of the sediment on barrier islands in Pinellas County, Florida. This video was originally created for use at the 2021 virtual St. Petersburg Science Festival.
Modeled beach profile evolution at Fishing Point, Virginia
Animation displays modeled beach profile elevation as it has evolved at Fishing Point, Virginia. These data are based on historical charts and images and measure distance (in kilometers) of cross-shore accretion. QS is the flux of sand to the beach, and QD is the flux of sand from the beach to the active dune.
Animation displays modeled beach profile elevation as it has evolved at Fishing Point, Virginia. These data are based on historical charts and images and measure distance (in kilometers) of cross-shore accretion. QS is the flux of sand to the beach, and QD is the flux of sand from the beach to the active dune.
Eroding marshes on the bay behind Long Beach Island, New Jersey
The remnants of an eroding marsh sit on a bayside beach behind Long Beach Island, New Jersey. Marsh loss and bayside erosion can be outcomes of both natural landscape evolution and human modification of coastal barrier systems.
The remnants of an eroding marsh sit on a bayside beach behind Long Beach Island, New Jersey. Marsh loss and bayside erosion can be outcomes of both natural landscape evolution and human modification of coastal barrier systems.