Publications
Scientific reports, journal articles, and information products produced by USGS Pacific Coastal and Marine Science Center scientists.
Filter Total Items: 1336
Sub-decadal turbidite frequency during the early Holocene: Eel Fan, offshore northern California
Remotely operated and autonomous underwater vehicle technologies were used to image and sample exceptional deep sea outcrops where an ∼100-m-thick section of turbidite beds is exposed on the headwalls of two giant submarine scours on Eel submarine fan, offshore northern California (USA). These outcrops provide a rare opportunity to connect young deep-sea turbidites with their feeder system. 14C me
Authors
Charles K. Paull, Mary L. McGann, Esther J. Sumner, Philip M Barnes, Eve M. Lundsten, Krystle Anderson, Roberto Gwiazda, Brian D. Edwards, David W Caress
Lateral baroclinic forcing enhances sediment transport from shallows to channel in an estuary
We investigate the dynamics governing exchange of sediment between estuarine shallows and the channel based on field measurements at eight stations spanning the interface between the channel and the extensive eastern shoals of South San Francisco Bay. The study site is characterized by longitudinally homogeneous bathymetry and a straight channel, with friction more important than the Coriolis forc
Authors
Jessica R. Lacy, Steve Gladding, Andreas Brand, Audric Collignon, Mark T. Stacey
Autonomous bed-sediment imaging-systems for revealing temporal variability of grain size
We describe a remotely operated video microscope system, designed to provide high-resolution images of seabed sediments. Two versions were developed, which differ in how they raise the camera from the seabed. The first used hydraulics and the second used the energy associated with wave orbital motion. Images were analyzed using automated frequency-domain methods, which following a rigorous partial
Authors
Daniel Buscombe, David M. Rubin, Jessica R. Lacy, Curt D. Storlazzi, Gerald Hatcher, Henry Chezar, Robert Wyland, Christopher R. Sherwood
Improving tsunami resiliency: California's Tsunami Policy Working Group
California has established a Tsunami Policy Working Group to facilitate development of policy recommendations for tsunami hazard mitigation. The Tsunami Policy Working Group brings together government and industry specialists from diverse fields including tsunami, seismic, and flood hazards, local and regional planning, structural engineering, natural hazard policy, and coastal engineering. The gr
Authors
Charles R. Real, Laurie Johnson, Lucile M. Jones, Stephanie L. Ross
Coastal circulation and water-column properties in the War in the Pacific National Historical Park, Guam: measurements and modeling of waves, currents, temperature, salinity, and turbidity, April-August 2012
The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) Pacific Coastal and Marine Science Center (PCMSC) initiated an investigation in the National Park Service’s (NPS) War in the Pacific National Historical Park (WAPA) to provide baseline scientific information on coastal circulation and water-column properties along west-central Guam, focusing on WAPA’s Agat Unit, as it relates to the transport and settlement of cor
Authors
Curt D. Storlazzi, Olivia M. Cheriton, Jamie M.R. Lescinski, Joshua B. Logan
SAFRR tsunami scenario: Impacts on California ecosystems, species, marine natural resources, and fisheries
We evaluate the effects of the SAFRR Tsunami Scenario on California’s ecosystems, species, natural resources, and fisheries. We discuss mitigation and preparedness approaches that can be useful in Tsunami planning. The chapter provides an introduction to the role of ecosystems and natural resources in tsunami events (Section 1). A separate section focuses on specific impacts of the SAFRR Tsunami S
Authors
Deborah Brosnan, Anne Wein, Rick Wilson
Dynamic response to strike-slip tectonic control on the deposition and evolution of the Baranof Fan, Gulf of Alaska
The Baranof Fan is one of three large deep-sea fans in the Gulf of Alaska, and is a key component in understanding large-scale erosion and sedimentation patterns for southeast Alaska and western Canada. We integrate new and existing seismic reflection profiles to provide new constraints on the Baranof Fan area, geometry, volume, and channel development. We estimate the fan’s area and total sedimen
Authors
Maureen A. L. Walton, Sean P. S. Gulick, Robert S. Reece, Ginger A. Barth, Gail L. Christeson, Harm J. VanAvendonk
Sediment concentrations, flow conditions, and downstream evolution of two turbidity currents, Monterey Canyon, USA
The capacity of turbidity currents to carry sand and coarser sediment from shallow to deep regions in the submarine environment has attracted the attention of researchers from different disciplines. Yet not only are field measurements of oceanic turbidity currents a rare achievement, but also the data that have been collected consist mostly of velocity records with very limited or no suspended sed
Authors
Jingping Xu, Octavio E. Sequeiros, Marlene A. Noble
Assessment of tsunami hazard to the U.S. Atlantic margin
Tsunami hazard is a very low-probability, but potentially high-risk natural hazard, posing unique challenges to scientists and policy makers trying to mitigate its impacts. These challenges are illustrated in this assessment of tsunami hazard to the U.S. Atlantic margin. Seismic activity along the U.S. Atlantic margin in general is low, and confirmed paleo-tsunami deposits have not yet been found,
Authors
Uri S. ten Brink, Jason Chaytor, Eric L. Geist, Daniel S. Brothers, Brian D. Andrews
Editorial for Journal of Hydrology: Regional Studies
Hydrological regimes and processes show strong regional differences. While some regions are affected by extreme drought and desertification, others are under threat of increased fluvial and/or pluvial floods. Changes to hydrological systems as a consequence of natural variations and human activities are region-specific. Many of these changes have significant interactions with and implications for
Authors
Patrick Willems, Okke Batelaan, Denis A. Hughes, Peter W. Swarzenski
Source processes for the probabilistic assessment of tsunami hazards
The importance of tsunami hazard assessment has increased in recent years as a result of catastrophic consequences from events such as the 2004 Indian Ocean and 2011 Japan tsunamis. In particular, probabilistic tsunami hazard assessment (PTHA) methods have been emphasized to include all possible ways a tsunami could be generated. Owing to the scarcity of tsunami observations, a computational appro
Authors
Eric L. Geist, Patrick J. Lynett
A framework for the probabilistic analysis of meteotsunamis
A probabilistic technique is developed to assess the hazard from meteotsunamis. Meteotsunamis are unusual sea-level events, generated when the speed of an atmospheric pressure or wind disturbance is comparable to the phase speed of long waves in the ocean. A general aggregation equation is proposed for the probabilistic analysis, based on previous frameworks established for both tsunamis and storm
Authors
Eric L. Geist, Uri S. ten Brink, Matthew D. Gove