Skip to main content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Publications

Earthquake recurrence estimates for northern Caribbean faults from combinatorial optimization

Read article

Woods Hole Coastal and Marine Science Center

2023 Annual Report

Read report

Pragmatically mapping Phragmites with unoccupied aerial systems: A comparison of invasive species land cover classification using RGB and multispectral imagery

Read article

Hydroacoustic observations reveal drivers of mixing and salinization of a karst subterranean estuary during intense precipitation

Read article

Scientific literature and information products produced by Woods Hole Coastal and Marine Science Center staff

Featured Journal Article

Invasive Phragmites plants on the shore of a lake

Pragmatically mapping Phragmites with unoccupied aerial systems: A comparison of invasive species land cover classification using RGB and multispectral imagery

Read article

Featured USGS Series

Image shows equipment being brought on board a ship from the water

Woods Hole Coastal and Marine Science Center—2023 Annual Report.  The 2023 annual report highlights accomplishments, includes a list of publications, and summarizes the work of the center and each of the science groups.

Learn more

Sound Waves

three people on boats in lake with snow covered mountains in background

Coastal and Marine Research News from Across the USGS

Read now
Filter Total Items: 1737

Geologic characterization of shelf areas using usSEABED for GIS mapping, modeling processes and assessing marine sand and gravel resources Geologic characterization of shelf areas using usSEABED for GIS mapping, modeling processes and assessing marine sand and gravel resources

Geologic maps depicting offshore sedimentary features serve many scientific and applied purposes. Such maps have been lacking, but recent computer technology and software offer promise in the capture and display of diverse marine data. Continental margins contain landforms which provide a variety of important functions and contain important sedimentary records. Some shelf areas also...
Authors
S.J. Williams, J. D. Bliss, M.A. Arsenault, C.J. Jenkins, J.A. Goff
By
Natural Hazards Mission Area, Coastal and Marine Hazards and Resources Program, Pacific Coastal and Marine Science Center, St. Petersburg Coastal and Marine Science Center, Woods Hole Coastal and Marine Science Center

The importance of shallow confining units to submarine groundwater flow The importance of shallow confining units to submarine groundwater flow

In addition to variable density flow, the lateral and vertical heterogeneity of submarine sediments creates important controls on coastal aquifer systems. Submarine confining units produce semi-confined offshore aquifers that are recharged on shore. These low-permeability deposits are usually either late Pleistocene to Holocene in age, or date to the period of the last interglacial...
Authors
J.F. Bratton
By
Woods Hole Coastal and Marine Science Center

Characterization of methane hydrate host sediments using synchrotron-computed microtomography (CMT) Characterization of methane hydrate host sediments using synchrotron-computed microtomography (CMT)

The hydrate-sediment interaction is an important aspect of gas hydrate studies that needs further examination. We describe here the applicability of the computed microtomography (CMT) technique that utilizes an intense X-ray synchrotron source to characterize sediment samples, two at various depths from the Blake Ridge area (a well-known hydrate-prone region) and one from Georges Bank...
Authors
K.W. Jones, H. Feng, S. Tomov, W.J. Winters, M. Prodanovic, D. Mahajan
By
Woods Hole Coastal and Marine Science Center

A circulation modeling approach for evaluating the conditions for shoreline instabilities A circulation modeling approach for evaluating the conditions for shoreline instabilities

Analytical models predict the growth (instability) of shoreline salients when deep-water waves approach the coast from highly oblique angles, contrary to classical shoreline change models in which shoreline salients can only dissipate. Using the process-based wave, circulation, and sediment transport model Delft3D, we test this prediction for simulated bathymetric and wave...
Authors
Jeffrey H. List, Andrew D. Ashton
By
Natural Hazards Mission Area, Coastal and Marine Hazards and Resources Program, Woods Hole Coastal and Marine Science Center

Modeling barrier island response to sea-level rise in the Outer Banks, North Carolina Modeling barrier island response to sea-level rise in the Outer Banks, North Carolina

An 8500-year Holocene simulation developed in GEOMBEST provides a possible scenario to explain the evolution of barrier coast between Rodanthe and Cape Hatteras, NC. Sensitivity analyses suggest that in the Outer Banks, the rate of sea-level rise is the most important factor in determining how barrier islands evolve. The Holocene simulation provides a basis for future simulations, which...
Authors
Laura J. Moore, Jeffrey H. List, S. Jeffress Williams, David Stolper
By
Natural Hazards Mission Area, Coastal and Marine Hazards and Resources Program, Woods Hole Coastal and Marine Science Center

Using topographic lidar data to delineate the North Carolina Shoreline Using topographic lidar data to delineate the North Carolina Shoreline

In North Carolina, shoreline change rates are an important component of the state's coastal management program. To enhance methods of measuring shoreline change, the NC Division of Coastal Management (DCM) is considering using mean high water (MHW) shorelines extracted from lidar data together with traditional wet/dry shorelines digitized from aerial photography. To test their...
Authors
Patrick W. Limber, Jeffrey H. List, Jeffrey D. Warren, Amy S. Farris, Kathryn M. Weber
By
Natural Hazards Mission Area, Coastal and Marine Hazards and Resources Program, Woods Hole Coastal and Marine Science Center

Simultaneous determination of thermal conductivity, thermal diffusivity and specific heat in sI methane hydrate Simultaneous determination of thermal conductivity, thermal diffusivity and specific heat in sI methane hydrate

Thermal conductivity, thermal diffusivity and specific heat of sI methane hydrate were measured as functions of temperature and pressure using a needle probe technique. The temperature dependence was measured between −20°C and 17°C at 31.5 MPa. The pressure dependence was measured between 31.5 and 102 MPa at 14.4°C. Only weak temperature and pressure dependencies were observed. Methane...
Authors
W.F. Waite, L.A. Stern, S. H. Kirby, W.J. Winters, D.H. Mason
By
Natural Hazards Mission Area, Coastal and Marine Hazards and Resources Program, Woods Hole Coastal and Marine Science Center

Three-dimensional structure of fluid conduits sustaining an active deep marine cold seep Three-dimensional structure of fluid conduits sustaining an active deep marine cold seep

Cold seeps in deep marine settings emit fluids to the overlying ocean and are often associated with such seafloor flux indicators as chemosynthetic biota, pockmarks, and authigenic carbonate rocks. Despite evidence for spatiotemporal variability in the rate, locus, and composition of cold seep fluid emissions, the shallow subseafloor plumbing systems have never been clearly imaged in...
Authors
M.J. Hornbach, C. Ruppel, C.L. Van Dover
By
Natural Hazards Mission Area, Coastal and Marine Hazards and Resources Program, Woods Hole Coastal and Marine Science Center

Shoreline change as a proxy for subaerial beach volume change Shoreline change as a proxy for subaerial beach volume change

It is difficult and expensive to calculate changes in sediment volume for large sections of sandy beaches. Shoreline change could be a useful proxy for volume change because it can be collected quickly and relatively easily over long distances. In this paper, we summarize several studies that find a high correlation between shoreline change and subaerial volume change. We also examine...
Authors
Amy S. Farris, Jeffrey H. List
By
Natural Hazards Mission Area, Coastal and Marine Hazards and Resources Program, Woods Hole Coastal and Marine Science Center

Tidal asymmetry and residual circulation over linear sandbanks and their implication on sediment transport: a process-oriented numerical study Tidal asymmetry and residual circulation over linear sandbanks and their implication on sediment transport: a process-oriented numerical study

A series of process-oriented numerical simulations is carried out in order to evaluate the relative role of locally generated residual flow and overtides on net sediment transport over linear sandbanks. The idealized bathymetry and forcing are similar to those present in the Norfolk Sandbanks, North Sea. The importance of bottom drag parameterization and bank orientation with respect to...
Authors
Rosario Sanay, George Voulgaris, John C. Warner
By
Natural Hazards Mission Area, Coastal and Marine Hazards and Resources Program, Woods Hole Coastal and Marine Science Center

Ra and Rn isotopes as natural tracers of submarine groundwater discharge in Tampa Bay, Florida Ra and Rn isotopes as natural tracers of submarine groundwater discharge in Tampa Bay, Florida

A suite of naturally occurring radionuclides in the U/Th decay series (222Rn, 223,224,226,228Ra) were studied during wet and dry conditions in Tampa Bay, Florida, to evaluate their utility as groundwater discharge tracers, both within the bay proper and within the Alafia River/estuary — a prominent free-flowing river that empties into the bay. In Tampa Bay, almost 30% of the combined...
Authors
P.W. Swarzenski, C. Reich, K.D. Kroeger, M. Baskaran
By
Natural Hazards Mission Area, Coastal and Marine Hazards and Resources Program, Woods Hole Coastal and Marine Science Center

Law of the sea, the continental shelf, and marine research Law of the sea, the continental shelf, and marine research

The question of the amount of seabed to which a coastal nation is entitled is addressed in the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS). This treaty, ratified by 153 nations and in force since 1994, specifies national obligations, rights, and jurisdiction in the oceans, and it allows nations a continental shelf out to at least 200 nautical miles or to a maritime boundary...
Authors
Deborah R. Hutchinson, Robert W. Rowland
By
Natural Hazards Mission Area, Coastal and Marine Hazards and Resources Program, Woods Hole Coastal and Marine Science Center
Was this page helpful?