Olivia Cheriton
Oceanographer, Pacific Coastal and Marine Science Center
I am a physical oceanographer who studies waves, hydrodynamics, and transport processes in coral reef environments. I also have expertise in internal waves and water-column dynamics. I use direct measurements to answer questions about how physical processes -across a range of temporal and spatial scales- affect coastal ecosystems, and to investigate how these patterns might alter with climate change.
Research Interests
Waves, hydrodynamics, and transport processes in coral reef environments
Effects of climate change on coastal physical and biological processes
Coastal ocean physical processes and effects on nearshore ecosystems
Internal tides and nonlinear internal waves over continental shelves
Fine-scale gradients in biological and suspended particulate material
Professional Experience
2012-present: Oceanographer, USGS Coastal and Marine Hazards and Resources Program
2011-2012: Postdoctoral Researcher, Moss Landing Marine Laboratories
2010-2011: Postdoctoral Researcher, University of California at Santa Cruz
2008-2012: Postdoctoral Researcher, Partnership for Interdisciplinary Studies of Coastal Oceans (PISCO), University of California at Santa Cruz
2008: Teaching Assistant & Lecturer, Partnership for Interdisciplinary Studies of Coastal Oceans (PISCO) Summer Course “Coastal Physical Oceanography and Marine Ecosystems,” University of California Santa Cruz
Education and Certifications
PhD: 2008, University of California Santa Cruz, Santa Cruz, CA
BA: 2002, Grinnell College, Grinnell, IA
Science and Products
Spectral wave-driven bedload transport across a coral reef flat/lagoon complex
Sea‐level rise will drive divergent sediment transport patterns on fore reefs and reef flats, potentially causing erosion on atoll islands
Internal tides can provide thermal refugia that will buffer some coral reefs from future global warming
In situ observations of wave transformation and infragravity bore development across reef flats of varying geomorphology
Physicochemical controls on zones of higher coral stress where Black Band Disease occurs at Mākua Reef, Kauaʻi, Hawaiʻi
The influence of sea level on incident and infragravity wave-driven sediment dynamics across a fringing coral reef
Controls on sediment transport over coral reefs off southwest Puerto Rico: Seasonal patterns and Hurricane Maria
Guánica Bay in southwest Puerto Rico is highly turbid and has some of the highest PCB concentrations in the USA. To investigate how and to what extent the bay waters influence coral reef ecosystem health along the coastline, 6 months of hydrodynamic data were collected at 8 sites on the insular shelf. Bed shear stresses were primarily driven by waves and were weakest at the site closest to La Parg
Spatial and temporal variability in ripple formation and migration across a coral reef flat and lagoon
Meteorologic, oceanographic, and geomorphic controls on circulation and residence time in a coral reef-lined embayment: Faga’alu Bay, American Samoa
Most atolls will be uninhabitable by the mid-21st century because of sea-level rise exacerbating wave-driven flooding
Carbonate system parameters of an algal-dominated reef along west Maui
Coastal circulation and water-column properties in the National Park of American Samoa, February–July 2015
Science and Products
Spectral wave-driven bedload transport across a coral reef flat/lagoon complex
Sea‐level rise will drive divergent sediment transport patterns on fore reefs and reef flats, potentially causing erosion on atoll islands
Internal tides can provide thermal refugia that will buffer some coral reefs from future global warming
In situ observations of wave transformation and infragravity bore development across reef flats of varying geomorphology
Physicochemical controls on zones of higher coral stress where Black Band Disease occurs at Mākua Reef, Kauaʻi, Hawaiʻi
The influence of sea level on incident and infragravity wave-driven sediment dynamics across a fringing coral reef
Controls on sediment transport over coral reefs off southwest Puerto Rico: Seasonal patterns and Hurricane Maria
Guánica Bay in southwest Puerto Rico is highly turbid and has some of the highest PCB concentrations in the USA. To investigate how and to what extent the bay waters influence coral reef ecosystem health along the coastline, 6 months of hydrodynamic data were collected at 8 sites on the insular shelf. Bed shear stresses were primarily driven by waves and were weakest at the site closest to La Parg