Rob Thieler, PhD
I work on a variety of topics including coastal change hazards, sea-level rise impacts, continental shelf sedimentation, and applications of web and smartphone technology to coastal problems.
Dr. Rob Thieler is the Center Director of the U.S. Geological Survey's Woods Hole Coastal and Marine Science Center in Woods Hole, Massachusetts. Rob conducts marine geologic research on the geologic framework and evolution of the coastal zone. This includes understanding relationships between geology, sediment transport, climate and sea-level change, and coastal erosion. Rob has conducted assessments of sea-level rise vulnerability for the U.S. and locations worldwide. He served as a Lead Author of a U.S. Global Change Research Program report on potential impacts of sea-level rise, and works with many federal and state agencies to develop science and policy plans for addressing coastal change hazards. Rob also studies habitat use and availability for beach-nesting and migratory shorebirds. Rob developed the widely-used DSAS software package for measuring coastal erosion and accretion and has recently developed smartphone applications for coastal science.
Research Interests
Coastal Change Assessment
I have a longstanding interest in coastal change assessment, particularly historical shoreline change. This includes developing new data, knowledge and tools (particularly the Digital Shoreline Analysis System, DSAS) that are widely used by the scientific community to document and interpret patterns of shoreline movement in response to changes in forcing, geologic constraints, and anthropogenic manipulation, as well as the coastal management community (many states use historical erosion rates as a basis for building setback laws or other policy). Major research questions include what statistical techniques adequately address the problems of nonlinear and non-uniform shoreline movement, trend reversals, and short-term variability that increase the magnitude of error in quantitative analyses. There are also important questions regarding the spatial variability of shoreline movement at different temporal scales. All of these issues are important when developing coastal hazard forecasts and informing coastal management decisions. Much of this information is derived and applied at a nationwide scale through our National Assessment of Coastal Change Hazards project, and delivered through our Coastal Change Hazards web portal.
Sea-level Rise Hazards
My colleagues and I conduct research to assess the potential impacts of sea-level rise on coastal evolution and provide tools for coastal management decision making. Historical and recent observations of coastal environments and rates of change are combined with model simulations of coastal environments such as barrier islands and coastal aquifers.
Continental Shelf Geologic Processes
Part of my research involves continental shelf processes such as modern sedimentation, and placing the geologic record preserved in
Professional Experience
2017-Present, Center Director, U.S. Geological Survey Woods Hole Coastal and Marine Science Center
Education and Certifications
Ph.D., 1997, Geology, Duke University
M.S., 1993, Environmental Science, Duke University
B.A., 1987, Political Science, Certificate in Environmental Studies, Dickinson College
Abstracts and Presentations
2021 Eos, Science News by AGU Cape Cod: Shipwrecks, Dune Shacks, and Shifting Sands
2020 The Christian Science Monitor How one science hub grapples with diversifying STEM
2017 College of Wooster Osgood Memorial Lecture
2016 New York Times Strategic Retreat on Cape Cod
2015 Cape Cod Times Cape Wearing Away
2015 Cape Cod Times Sea-level Rise on Cape Cod Op-Ed
Science and Products
Coastal Landscape Response to Sea-Level Rise Assessment for the Northeastern United States
Hurricane Sandy Response- Linking the Delmarva Peninsula's Geologic Framework to Coastal Vulnerability
National Assessment of Coastal Change Hazards
Relative Coastal Vulnerability Assessment of National Park Units to Sea-Level Rise
Mapping Coastal Change Using Unmanned Aerial Systems: A Pilot Study
Evaluating Sea-level Rise Impacts in the Northeastern U.S.
Table and accompanying photographs for biogeomorphic classification of shorebird nesting sites on the U.S. Atlantic coast from March to September, 2016
Topographic, imagery, and raw data associated with unmanned aerial systems (UAS) flights over Black Beach, Falmouth, Massachusetts on 18 March 2016
National Assessment of Shoreline Change: A GIS compilation of Updated Vector Shorelines and Associated Shoreline Change Data for the Southeast Atlantic Coast
USGS_Delmarva_SedTexture_Geomorph: Sediment Texture and Geomorphology of the Sea Floor from Fenwick Island, Maryland to Fisherman's Island, Virginia (polygon shapefile, Geographic, WGS84)
Biogeomorphic classification and images of shorebird nesting sites on the U.S. Atlantic coast
High-resolution geophysical data collected along the Delmarva Peninsula 2015, U.S. Geological Survey Field Activity 2015-001-FA
High-resolution geophysical data collected along the Delmarva Peninsula 2014, USGS Field Activity 2014-002-FA
National Assessment of Shoreline Change: A GIS compilation of Updated Vector Shorelines and Associated Shoreline Change Data for the Gulf of Mexico Coast
Coastal Landscape Response to Sea-Level Rise Assessment for the Northeastern United States Data Release
Probabilistic patterns of inundation and biogeomorphic changes due to sea-level rise along the northeastern U.S. Atlantic coast
Using a Bayesian network to understand the importance of coastal storms and undeveloped landscapes for the creation and maintenance of early successional habitat
Relationships between regional coastal land cover distributions and elevation reveal data uncertainty in a sea-level rise impacts model
Transient coastal landscapes: Rising sea level threatens salt marshes
Smartphone technologies and Bayesian networks to assess shorebird habitat selection
UAS-SfM for coastal research: Geomorphic feature extraction and land cover classification from high-resolution elevation and optical imagery
Global and regional sea level rise scenarios for the United States
National assessment of shoreline change—Summary statistics for updated vector shorelines and associated shoreline change data for the Gulf of Mexico and Southeast Atlantic coasts
Sand ridge morphology and bedform migration patterns derived from bathymetry and backscatter on the inner-continental shelf offshore of Assateague Island, USA
Smartphone-based distributed data collection enables rapid assessment of shorebird habitat suitability
Evaluation of dynamic coastal response to sea-level rise modifies inundation likelihood
Using a Bayesian network to predict barrier island geomorphologic characteristics
iPlover
iPlover was developed by the U.S. Geological Survey Woods Hole Coastal and Marine Science Center and the USGS Center for Integrated Data Analytics. It is used by trained and vetted personnel to record information about habitats on coastal beaches and he environment surrounding them.
Science and Products
Coastal Landscape Response to Sea-Level Rise Assessment for the Northeastern United States
Hurricane Sandy Response- Linking the Delmarva Peninsula's Geologic Framework to Coastal Vulnerability
National Assessment of Coastal Change Hazards
Relative Coastal Vulnerability Assessment of National Park Units to Sea-Level Rise
Mapping Coastal Change Using Unmanned Aerial Systems: A Pilot Study
Evaluating Sea-level Rise Impacts in the Northeastern U.S.
Table and accompanying photographs for biogeomorphic classification of shorebird nesting sites on the U.S. Atlantic coast from March to September, 2016
Topographic, imagery, and raw data associated with unmanned aerial systems (UAS) flights over Black Beach, Falmouth, Massachusetts on 18 March 2016
National Assessment of Shoreline Change: A GIS compilation of Updated Vector Shorelines and Associated Shoreline Change Data for the Southeast Atlantic Coast
USGS_Delmarva_SedTexture_Geomorph: Sediment Texture and Geomorphology of the Sea Floor from Fenwick Island, Maryland to Fisherman's Island, Virginia (polygon shapefile, Geographic, WGS84)
Biogeomorphic classification and images of shorebird nesting sites on the U.S. Atlantic coast
High-resolution geophysical data collected along the Delmarva Peninsula 2015, U.S. Geological Survey Field Activity 2015-001-FA
High-resolution geophysical data collected along the Delmarva Peninsula 2014, USGS Field Activity 2014-002-FA
National Assessment of Shoreline Change: A GIS compilation of Updated Vector Shorelines and Associated Shoreline Change Data for the Gulf of Mexico Coast
Coastal Landscape Response to Sea-Level Rise Assessment for the Northeastern United States Data Release
Probabilistic patterns of inundation and biogeomorphic changes due to sea-level rise along the northeastern U.S. Atlantic coast
Using a Bayesian network to understand the importance of coastal storms and undeveloped landscapes for the creation and maintenance of early successional habitat
Relationships between regional coastal land cover distributions and elevation reveal data uncertainty in a sea-level rise impacts model
Transient coastal landscapes: Rising sea level threatens salt marshes
Smartphone technologies and Bayesian networks to assess shorebird habitat selection
UAS-SfM for coastal research: Geomorphic feature extraction and land cover classification from high-resolution elevation and optical imagery
Global and regional sea level rise scenarios for the United States
National assessment of shoreline change—Summary statistics for updated vector shorelines and associated shoreline change data for the Gulf of Mexico and Southeast Atlantic coasts
Sand ridge morphology and bedform migration patterns derived from bathymetry and backscatter on the inner-continental shelf offshore of Assateague Island, USA
Smartphone-based distributed data collection enables rapid assessment of shorebird habitat suitability
Evaluation of dynamic coastal response to sea-level rise modifies inundation likelihood
Using a Bayesian network to predict barrier island geomorphologic characteristics
iPlover
iPlover was developed by the U.S. Geological Survey Woods Hole Coastal and Marine Science Center and the USGS Center for Integrated Data Analytics. It is used by trained and vetted personnel to record information about habitats on coastal beaches and he environment surrounding them.