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Number of results: 114

• Ocean Acidification
  This website highlights ongoing USGS research efforts in ocean acidification and carbon cycling in marine and coastal ecosystems in three different regions: polar, temperate, and tropical.
  Posted: 2010-08-03
• Impacts and Predictions of Coastal Change during Hurricanes
  Beaches serve as a natural barrier between the ocean and inland communities, ecosystems, and resources. These dynamic environments move and change in response to winds, waves, and currents. During a powerful hurricane, changes to beaches can be large, and the results are sometimes catastrophic. Lives are lost, communities are destroyed, and millions of dollars are spent on rebuilding. There is a clear need to identify areas of our coastline that are likely to experience extreme and devastating erosion during a hurricane. It is also important to determine risk levels associated with development in areas where the land shifts and moves with each landfalling storm. The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) provides scientific support for hurricane planning and response. Using observations of beach changes and models of waves and storm surge, we are predicting how the coast will respond to hurricanes and identifying areas vulnerable to extreme coastal changes.
  Posted: 2010-07-14
• Coastal Change on Gulf Islands National Seashore during Hurricane Gustav: West Ship, East Ship, Horn, and Petit Bois Islands
  Hurricane Gustav made landfall on September 1, 2008, near Cocodrie, Louisiana, as a category 2 storm, with maximum sustained winds near 170 km/hr. Hurricane-force winds, with speeds in excess of 119 km/hr, extended along 270 km of the Louisiana coastline, from Marsh Island to the central barrier islands. Tropical-storm-force winds (speeds > 63 km/hr) were felt across the coasts of Mississippi and Alabama. Within this area of high wind and associated storm surge and waves lie the Mississippi barrier islands of West Ship, East Ship, Horn, and Petit Bois, part of the National Park Service (NPS) Gulf Islands National Seashore (GUIS).
  Posted: 2010-06-09
• Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill Response
  In order to assess and prepare for impacts from the Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill, the St. Petersburg Coastal and Marine Science Center is providing lidar, bathymetry, sediment core, and other data, as well as modeled scenarios of barrier-island inundation as the situation evolves.
  Posted: 2010-05-12
• A Review of Land-Cover Mapping Activities in Coastal Alabama and Mississippi
  Land-use and land-cover (LULC) data provide important information for environmental management. Data pertaining to land-cover and land-management activities are a common requirement for spatial analyses, such as watershed modeling, climate change, and hazard assessment. In coastal areas, land development, storms, and shoreline modification amplify the need for frequent and detailed land-cover datasets. The northern Gulf of Mexico coastal area is no exception. The impact of severe storms, increases in urban area, dramatic changes in land cover, and loss of coastal-wetland habitat all indicate a vital need for reliable and comparable land-cover data.
  Posted: 2010-05-10
• ATM Coastal Topography–Texas, 2001: UTM Zone 14
  This DVD contains lidar-derived first-surface (FS) topography GIS datasets of a portion of the Texas coastline, within Universal Transverse Mercator (UTM) zone 14, from Mustang Island to Matagorda Peninsula. These datasets were acquired October 12-13, 2001.
  Posted: 2010-03-05
• ATM Coastal Topography–Texas, 2001: UTM Zone 15
  This DVD contains lidar-derived first-surface (FS) topography GIS datasets of a portion of the Texas coastline within Universal Transverse Mercator (UTM) zone 15, from Matagorda Peninsula to Galveston Island. These datasets were acquired October 12-13, 2001.
  Posted: 2010-03-05
• ATM Coastal Topography–Mississippi, 2001
  This DVD contains lidar-derived first-surface (FS) topography GIS datasets of the Mississippi coastline, from Lakeshore to Petit Bois Island. These datasets were acquired September 9-10, 2001.
  Posted: 2010-03-05
• ATM Coastal Topography–Louisiana, 2001: UTM Zone 15 (Part 1 of 2)
  This DVD contains lidar-derived first-surface (FS) topography GIS datasets of a portion of the Louisiana coastline beach face within Universal Transverse Mercator (UTM) Zone 15, from Isles Dernieres to Grand Isle. These datasets were acquired September 7 and 10, 2001.
  Posted: 2010-03-05
• ATM Coastal Topography–Louisiana, 2001: UTM Zone 16 (Part 2 of 2)
  This DVD contains lidar-derived first-surface (FS) topography GIS datasets of a portion of the Louisiana coastline beach face within Universal Transverse Mercator (UTM) Zone 16, from Grand Isle to the Chandeleur Islands. These datasets were acquired September 7 and 9, 2001.
  Posted: 2010-03-05
• ATM Coastal Topography–Alabama 2001
  This DVD contains Lidar-derived first surface (FS) topography GIS datasets of the Alabama coastline. These datasets were acquired October 3-4, 2001.
  Posted: 2010-03-04
• EAARL Coastal Topography–Pearl River Delta 2008: First Surface
  This DVD contains Lidar-derived first surface (FS) topography GIS datasets of the Pearl River Delta in Louisiana and Mississippi, acquired March 9-11, 2008.
  Posted: 2010-03-03
• Decision Support for Coastal Science and Management
  The Decision Support for Coastal Science and Management project, sponsored by the USGS Coastal and Marine Geology Program (CMGP) is supporting the creation of new capabilities for the synoptic remote sensing of coastal-marine and terrestrial environments based on aircraft and satellite sensors. These coastal remote-sensing, mapping, and point-monitoring tools constitute a unique integrated package of instrumentation and software that may be deployed in support of appropriately timed and scaled zoning decisions by management authorities in order to conserve and sensibly exploit nearshore coastal and marine ecosystems.
  Posted: 2010-02-23
• Digital Data Series 55: Sea-Floor Images and Data from Multibeam Surveys in San Francisco Bay, Southern California, Hawaii, the Gulf of Mexico, and Lake Tahoe, California-Nevada
  Accurate base maps are a prerequisite for any geological study, regardless of the objectives. Land-based studies commonly utilize aerial photographs, USGS 7.5-minute quadrangle maps, and satellite images as base maps. Until now, studies that involve the ocean floor have been at a disadvantage due to an almost complete lack of accurate marine base maps. Many base maps of the sea floor have been constructed over the past century but with a wide range in navigational and depth accuracies. Only in the past few years has marine surveying technology advanced far enough to produce navigational accuracy of 1 meter and depth resolutions of 50 centimeters. The Pacific Seafloor Mapping Project, U.S. Geological Survey, Western Coastal and Marine Geology Program, Menlo Park, California, U.S.A. in cooperation with the Ocean Mapping Group, University of New Brunswick, Canada is using this new technology to systematically map the ocean floor and lakes. This type of marine surveying, called Multibeam surveying, collects high-resolution bathymetry and backscatter data that can be used for a variety of basemaps, GIS coverages, and scientific visualization methods. This is an interactive CD-ROM that contains images, movies, and data of all the surveys the Pacific Seafloor Mapping Project has completed up to January 1999. Images and movies on this CD-ROM, such as shaded relief of the bathymetry, backscatter, oblique views, 3-D views, and Quicktime movies (San Francisco, Los Angeles, and Lake Tahoe) help the viewer to visualize the multibeam data. This CD-ROM also contains ARC/INFO export (.e00) files and full resolution TIFF images of all the survey sites that can be downloaded and used in many GIS software.
  Posted: 2009-11-24
• Data Series 470: Terrestrial Lidar Datasets of New Orleans, Louisiana, Levee Failures from Hurricane Katrina, August 29, 2005
  Hurricane Katrina made landfall with the northern Gulf Coast on August 29, 2005, as one of the strongest hurricanes on record. The storm damage incurred in Louisiana included a number of levee failures that led to the inundation of approximately 85 percent of the metropolitan New Orleans area. Whereas extreme levels of storm damage were expected from such an event, the catastrophic failure of the New Orleans levees prompted a quick mobilization of engineering experts to assess why and how particular levees failed. As part of this mobilization, civil engineering members of the United States Geological Survey (USGS) performed terrestrial lidar topographic surveys at major levee failures in the New Orleans area. The focus of the terrestrial lidar effort was to obtain precise measurements of the ground surface to map soil displacements at each levee site, the nonuniformity of levee height freeboard, depth of erosion where scour occurred, and distress in structures at incipient failure. In total, we investigated eight sites in the New Orleans region, including both earth and concrete floodwall levee breaks. The datasets extend from the 17th Street Canal in the Orleans East Bank area to the intersection of the Gulf Intracoastal Waterway (GIWW) with the Mississippi River Gulf Outlet (MRGO) in the New Orleans East area. The lidar scan data consists of electronic files containing millions of surveyed points. These points characterize the topography of each levee’s postfailure or incipient condition and are available for download through online hyperlinks. The data serve as a permanent archive of the catastrophic damage of Hurricane Katrina on the levee systems of New Orleans. Complete details of the data collection, processing, and georeferencing methodologies are provided in this report to assist in the visualization and analysis of the data by future users.
  Posted: 2009-11-03
• Gulf of Mexico Deep-Sea Coral Ecosystem Studies, 2008–2011
  DISCOVRE (DIversity, Systematics, and COnnectivity of Vulnerable Reef Ecosystems) is a new U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) program focused on deep-water coral ecosystems in the Gulf of Mexico. This integrated, multidisciplinary, international effort investigates a variety of topics related to unique and fragile deep-sea coral ecosystems from the microscopic level to the ecosystem level, including components of microbiology, population genetics, paleoecology, food webs, taxonomy, community ecology, physical oceanography, and mapping.
  Posted: 2009-10-01
• USGS Northern Gulf of Mexico (NGOM)
  The goal of the USGS Northern Gulf of Mexico project is to understand the evolution of coastal ecosystems on the Northern Gulf Coast, the impact of human activities on these ecosystems, and the vulnerability of ecosystems and human communities to more frequent and more intense hurricanes in the future.
  Posted: 2009-05-28
• National Seafloor Mapping and Characterization
  Images of the sea floor off the coasts of California, Hawaii, Florida, Mississippi, Alabama, Texas, Louisiana, and Washington; images of lake floor of Lake Michigan, Crater Lake, Lake Tahoe. Backscatter and swath bathymetry, regular and in 3-D view.
  Posted: 2009-05-11
• Coastal Change Hazards: Hurricanes and Extreme Storms
  This project investigates the coastal impacts of hurricanes and extreme storms, such as Hurricanes Isabel (2003), Dennis (1999), Bonnie & Georges (1998), and winter storms, such as those associated with the 1997-98 El Niño.
  Posted: 2009-04-28
• Hurricane Ike: Observations and Analysis of Coastal Change
  Understanding storm-induced coastal change and forecasting these changes require knowledge of the physical processes associated with the storm and the geomorphology of the impacted coastline. The primary physical processes of interest are the wind field, storm surge, and wave climate. Not only does wind cause direct damage to structures along the coast, but it is ultimately responsible for much of the energy that is transferred to the ocean and expressed as storm surge, mean currents, and large waves. Waves and currents are the processes most responsible for moving sediments in the coastal zone during extreme storm events. Storm surge, the rise in water level due to the wind, barometric pressure, and other factors, allows both waves and currents to attack parts of the coast not normally exposed to those processes.
  Posted: 2009-04-07
• Coastal Change During Hurricane Ivan 2004
  Category 3 Hurricane Ivan came ashore near Gulf Shores, Alabama, on September 16, 2004. The barrier islands of the northern Gulf of Mexico near the Florida/Alabama border were exposed to the strongest winds. The communities of Gulf Shores, Pine Island and Orange Beach, AL, are, in places, very low lying with their dunes rising up only several meters. These dunes were unable to contain the 3-4 meter storm surge.
  Posted: 2009-04-07
• Development of High-Resolution Digital Elevation Products along the Northern Gulf of Mexico Coast
  Poster Absract
  Posted: 2009-03-01
• ARCHIVE OF DIGITAL BOOMER AND CHIRP SEISMIC REFLECTION DATA COLLECTED DURING USGS CRUISES 01RCE05 AND 02RCE01 IN THE LOWER ATCHAFALAYA RIVER, MISSISSIPPI RIVER DELTA, AND OFFSHORE SOUTHEASTERN LOUISIANA, OCTOBER 23-30, 2001, AND AUGUST 18-19, 2002
  n October of 2001 and August of 2002, the U.S. Geological Survey conducted geophysical surveys of the Lower Atchafalaya River, the Mississippi River Delta, Barataria Bay, and the Gulf of Mexico south of East Timbalier Island, Louisiana. This report serves as an archive of unprocessed digital marine seismic reflection data, trackline maps, navigation files, observers' logbooks, GIS information, and formal FGDC metadata. In addition, a filtered and gained GIF image of each seismic profile is provided. Refer to the Acronyms page for expansion of acronyms and abbreviations used in this report.
  Posted: 2008-12-01
• Archive of Digitized Analog Boomer Seismic Reflection Data Collected from Lake Pontchartrain, Louisiana, to Mobile Bay, Alabama, During Cruises Onboard the R/V ERDA-1, June and August 1992
  In June and August of 1992, the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) conducted geophysical surveys to investigate the shallow geologic framework from Lake Pontchartrain, Louisiana, to Mobile Bay, Alabama. This work was conducted onboard the Argonne National Laboratory’s R/V ERDA-1 as part of the Mississippi/Alabama Pollution Project. This report is part of a series to digitally archive the legacy analog data collected from the Mississippi-Alabama SHelf (MASH). The MASH data rescue project is a cooperative effort by the USGS and the Minerals Management Service (MMS).
  Posted: 2008-12-01
• USGS Open-File Report 2004-1358
  The northern Gulf of Mexico contains many documented gas hydrate deposits near the sea floor. Although gas hydrate often is present in shallow subbottom sediment, the extent of hydrate occurrence deeper than 10 meters below sea floor in basins away from vents and other surface expressions is unknown. We obtained giant piston cores, box cores, and gravity cores and performed heat-flow analyses to study these shallow gas hydrate deposits aboard the RV Marion Dufresne in July 2002. This report presents measurements and interpretations from that cruise. Our results confirm the presence of gas hydrate in vent-related sediments near the sea bed. The presence of gas hydrate near the vents is governed by the complex interaction of regional and local factors, including heat flow, fluid flow, faults, pore-water salinity, gas concentrations, and sediment properties. However, conditions appropriate for extensive gas hydrate formation were not found away from the vents.
  Posted: 2008-11-17
• Bathymetric Survey of the Nearshore from Belle Pass to Caminada Pass, Louisiana: Methods and Data Report
  "Bathymetric Survey of the Nearshore from Belle Pass to Caminada Pass, Louisiana: Methods and Data Report" is a 27-page, full-color report of a high-resolution, single-beam bathymetric survey along the Louisiana southern coastal zone from Belle Pass to Caminada Pass.
  Posted: 2008-11-01
• Archive of Digital CHIRP Seismic Reflection Data Collected During USGS Cruise 06SCC01 Offshore of Isles Dernieres, Louisiana, June 2006
  In June of 2006, the U.S. Geological Survey conducted a geophysical survey offshore of Isles Dernieres, Louisiana, as part of the USGS Barrier Island Coastal Monitoring project, which is part of a broader study focused on Subsidence and Coastal Change (SCC).
  Posted: 2008-11-01
• Archive of Boomer Seismic Reflection Data Collected During USGS Cruises 00SCC02 and 00SCC04, Barataria Basin, Louisiana, May 12 - 31 and June 17 - July 2, 2000
  This archive presents processed seismic profiles, associated navigation files, trackline maps, logbooks, and formal metadata for boomer data collected on USGS Cruises 00SCC02 and 00SCC04
  Posted: 2008-08-28
• Open-File Report 2004-1447: A Preliminary Assessment of Geologic Framework and Sediment Thickness Studies Relevant to Prospective US Submission on Extended Continental Shelf
  A compilation of marine seismic reflection and refraction profile data and derivative sediment thickness studies in the United States 200-mile Exclusive Economic Zone and beyond that would be relevant to a submission for extended continental shelf under the provisions of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS Article 76).
  Posted: 2008-08-28
• ARCHIVE OF CHIRP SEISMIC REFLECTION DATA COLLECTED DURING USGS CRUISES 00SCC02 AND 00SCC04, BARATARIA BASIN, LOUISIANA, MAY 12 - 31 AND JUNE 17 - JULY 2, 2000
  00SCC02 AREA A - ARCHIVE OF CHIRP SEISMIC REFLECTION DATA COLLECTED DURING USGS CRUISES 00SCC02 AND 00SCC04, BARATARIA BASIN, LOUISIANA, MAY 12 - 31 AND JUNE 17 - JULY 2, 2000
  Posted: 2008-08-28
• Decision Support for Coastal Science and Management
  The Decision Support for Coastal Science and Management project, sponsored by the USGS Coastal and Marine Geology Program (CMGP) is supporting the creation of new capabilities for the synoptic remote sensing of coastal-marine and terrestrial environments based on aircraft and satellite sensors. These coastal remote-sensing, mapping, and point-monitoring tools constitute a unique integrated package of instrumentation and software that may be deployed in support of appropriately timed and scaled zoning decisions by management authorities in order to conserve and sensibly exploit nearshore coastal and marine ecosystems.
  Posted: 2008-07-15
• Archive of Sediment Data Collected from Sandy Point to Belle Pass, Louisiana, 1983 through 2000 (Vibracore Surveys: 00SCC, CR83, P86, and USACE Borehole Cores)
  In 2000, the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), in cooperation with the University of New Orleans (UNO) and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE), conducted geologic surveys in Barataria Bight from Sandy Point to Belle Pass, LA (Study Area Map). Sediment cores were collected as part of the USGS Subsidence and Coastal Change (SCC) Project, which included the Barataria Sand-Resource Study (bss) vibracore surveys (Kindinger and others, 2001). This report also contains information from other cruise data sets, including the Cheniere Ronquille, LA, data (CR83) and the Plaquemines, LA, data (P86). The sediment data for these cruises were obtained by the Louisiana Geological Survey (LGS), the Louisiana Department of Natural Resources (LDNR), and Alpine Ocean Seismic Survey, Inc., as part of the near shore sand resource inventory of "Louisiana Sand Resource Inventory 1985 Vibracore Services" (Suter and others, 1991; Alpine Ocean Seismic Survey, Inc., 1986). Additionally, this report also includes the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers EUSTIS borehole cores (B-#). EUSTIS is the type of drill rig used to obtain the borehole cores and is used as name identifier for the USACE borehole cores presented herein. These cores are presented on a separate map with links to the description profiles and grain-size data that can be found by clicking on the USACE EUSTIS link.
  Posted: 2008-06-01
• Derivation of Ground Surface and Vegetation in a Coastal Florida Wetland with Airborne Laser Technology
  The geomorphology and vegetation of marsh-dominated coastal lowlands were mapped from airborne laser data points collected on the Gulf Coast of Florida near Cedar Key. Surface models were developed using low- and high-point filters to separate ground-surface and vegetation-canopy intercepts. In a non-automated process, the landscape was partitioned into functional landscape units to manage the modeling of key landscape features in discrete processing steps. The final digital ground surface-elevation model offers a faithful representation of topographic relief beneath canopies of tidal marsh and coastal forest. Bare-earth models approximate field-surveyed heights by + 0.17 m in the open marsh and + 0.22 m under thick marsh or forest canopy. The laser-derived digital surface models effectively delineate surface features of relatively inaccessible coastal habitats with a geographic coverage and vertical detail previously unavailable.
  Posted: 2008-06-01
• Land Area Change in Coastal Louisiana: A Multidecadal Perspective (from 1956 to 2006)
  The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) analyzed changes in the configuration of land and water in coastal Louisiana by using a sequential series of 14 data sets summarizing land and water areas from 1956 to 2006. The purpose of this study is to provide a spatially and temporally consistent source of quantitative information on land area across coastal Louisiana, broken into three physiographic provinces (the term "coastal Louisiana" is used to present data on the collective area).
  Posted: 2008-05-21
• EAARL Topography-Padre Island National Seashore
  This Web site contains 116 Lidar-derived bare earth topography maps and GIS files for Padre Island National Seashore-Texas.
  Posted: 2008-04-01
• EAARL Topography–Gulf Islands National Seashore
  Digital atlas of lidar-derived topography maps for Gulf Islands National Seashore-Mississippi
  Posted: 2008-03-17
• USGS Coastal Change Hazards
  USGS Coastal Change Hazards - Focuses on hurricanes, tsunamis, sea-level rise, shoreline erosion, wetland destruction, and other issues relevant to coastal zone management and disaster preparedness.
  Posted: 2008-01-01
• Teacher Guide to Tampa Bay Fly-Through
  Students will gain an understanding of the underlying physical structure, topography bathymetry, and shoreline in the Tampa Bay area. They will also be more familiar and oriented with natural and manmade features of the area. Students will practice map labeling, contour drawing, and perform unit conversions with a calculator.
  Posted: 2008-01-01
• Science and the Storms: the USGS Response to the Hurricanes of 2005
  This report is designed to give a view of the immediate response of the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) to four major hurricanes of 2005: Dennis, Katrina, Rita, and Wilma. Some of this response took place days after the hurricanes; other responses included fieldwork and analysis through the spring. While hurricane science continues within the USGS, this overview of work following these hurricanes reveals how a Department of the Interior bureau quickly brought together a diverse array of its scientists and technologies to assess and analyze many hurricane effects. Topics vary from flooding and water quality to landscape and ecosystem impacts, from geotechnical reconnaissance to analyzing the collapse of bridges and estimating the volume of debris. Thus, the purpose of this report is to inform the American people of the USGS science that is available and ongoing in regard to hurricanes. It is the hope that such science will help inform the decisions of those citizens and officials tasked with coastal restoration and planning for future hurricanes.
  Posted: 2008-01-01
• Archive of Digital CHIRP Seismic Reflection Data Collected During USGS Cruise 06SCC03 Offshore of Cheniere Caminada, Louisiana, July 2006
  In July of 2006, the U.S. Geological Survey conducted a geophysical survey offshore of Cheniere Caminada, Louisiana, as part of the USGS Barrier Island Coastal Monitoring project (BICM), which is part of a broader study focused on Subsidence and Coastal Change (SCC).
  Posted: 2007-12-01
• Coastal and Marine Knowledge Bank
  An initiative to develop and present a national-scale, interdisciplinary scientific framework for marine environments, the coastal zone, and coastal watersheds
  Posted: 2007-11-28
• USGS Open-File Report 2006-1195, Surficial Sediment Character of the Louisiana Offshore Continental Shelf Region: a GIS Compilation
  The Louisiana coastal zone, comprising the Mississippi River delta plain stretching nearly 400 km from Sabine Pass at the Texas border east to the Chandeleur Islands at the Mississippi border, represents one of North America's most important coastal ecosystems in terms of natural resources, human infrastructure, and cultural heritage. At the same time, this region has the highest rates of coastal erosion and wetland loss in the Nation due to a complex combination of natural processes and anthropogenic actions over the past century. The USGS has actively supported coastal and wetlands geologic research for the past two decades in partnership with universities (e.g., Louisiana State University, University of New Orleans), state agencies (e.g. Louisiana Geological Survey, Louisiana Department of Natural Resources), and private organizations (Williams and others, 1992a,b; Williams and Cichon, 1993; List and others, 1994). These studies have focused on regional-scale mapping of coastal and wetland change and developing a better understanding of the processes that cause coastal erosion and wetlands loss, particularly the rapid deterioration of Louisiana's barrier islands, estuaries, and wetlands environments. With a better understanding of these processes, the ability to model and predict erosion and wetlands loss will improve. More accurate predictions will, in turn, allow for proper management of coastal resources. Improved predictions will also allow for better assessments of the utility of different restoration alternatives.
  Posted: 2007-10-11
• Index for Open file report 2005 1071
  This USGS Open-File report presents digital sidescan-sonar imagery, digital seismic-reflection data, and descriptions and analyses of piston and gravity cores collected by the USGS in the Gulf of Mexico. These data were collected in water depths greater than 200 m. In addition to the data, the report also contains interpretive overlays dervied from these datasets.
  Posted: 2007-10-11
• LASED IMS
  Louisiana Sedimentary and Environmental Database Internet Map Server
  Posted: 2007-10-09
• El Niño Home Page
  El Niño information with links to a broad range of topics such as Floods, Landslides, Coastal Hazards, Climate, News Releases.
  Posted: 2007-09-30
• National Assessment of Shoreline Change Project
  Beach erosion is a chronic problem along most open-ocean shores of the United States. As coastal populations continue to grow, and community infrastructures are threatened by erosion, there is increased demand for accurate information regarding past and present shoreline changes. There is also need for a comprehensive analysis of shoreline movement that is regionally consistent. To meet these national needs, the Coastal and Marine Geology Program of the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) is conducting an analysis of historical shoreline changes along open-ocean sandy shores of the conterminous United States and parts of Alaska and Hawaii. A primary goal of this work is to develop standardized methods for mapping and analyzing shoreline movement so that internally consistent updates can periodically be made to record shoreline erosion and accretion.
  Posted: 2007-09-29
• National Assessment of Coastal Change Hazards
  The National Assessment of Coastal Change Hazards is a multi-year undertaking to identify and quantify the vulnerability of U.S. shorelines to coastal change hazards such as the effects of severe storms, sea-level rise, and shoreline erosion and retreat. It will continue to improve our understanding of processes that control these hazards, and will allow researchers to determine the probability of coastal change locally, regionally, and nationally. The Assessment will deliver these data and assessment findings about coastal vulnerability to coastal managers, other researchers, and the general public.
  Posted: 2007-09-28
• Historical Changes in the Mississippi-Alabama Barrier Islands and the Roles of Extreme Storms, Sea Level, and Human Activities
  Historical Changes in the Mississippi-Alabama Barrier Islands and the Roles of Extreme Storms, Sea Level, and Human Activities explores the causes of Mississippi-Alabama barrier island land loss and translocation.
  Posted: 2007-08-16
• Florida Shelf Habitat (FLaSH) Map Project
  The FLaSH Map project is a multiagency approach to benthic habitat mapping. Existing data is presented via user-friendly graphic, geographic, and visualization tools. Data from multibeam, sidescan sonar imagery, still and video images, streaming resistivity, and sediment grabs are available for viewing by the general public, scientists and managers.
  Posted: 2007-06-18
• Gulf of Mexico and Southeast Tidal Wetlands
  This project is investigating the loss of coastal wetlands and adjacent uplands in order to determine long-term change in wetlands and to provide a model for determining areas that are most vulnerable to loss because of combinations of human and natural impacts.
  Posted: 2007-06-01
• Archive of Digital Chirp Seismic Reflection Data Collected During USGS Cruise 05SCC01 Offshore of Port Fourchon and Timbalier Bay, Louisiana, August 2005
  In August of 2005, the U.S. Geological Survey conducted geophysical surveys offshore of Port Fourchon and Timbalier Bay, Louisiana, as part of the USGS Subsidence and Coastal Change (SCC) Study.
  Posted: 2007-02-01
• U.S. Geological Survey Open-File Report 2004-1285, Archive of Raw Bottom Photographs collected during Cruise P1-04-GM, Northern Gulf of Mexico, 21-24 June, 2004, Disk 1, Title Page
  This 2-disk DVD report is a data release of bottom photography collected with the WHOI TowCam system in the northern Gulf of Mexico in June, 2004.
  Posted: 2006-10-20
• USGS OFR 2004-1090, Coastal Vulnerability Assessment of PAIS to Sea-Level Rise, Title Page
  Coastal Vulnerability Assessment of Padre Island National Seashore to Sea-Level Rise.
  Posted: 2006-10-20
• USGS Open-File Report 2005-1027, An Operational Mean High Water Datum for Determination of Shoreline Position from Topographic Lidar Data, Title Page
  .The National Assessment of Coastal Change Hazards Project of the U.S. Geological Survey, Coastal and Marine Geology Program, is using lidar mapping technology to determine shoreline position for the Nation's open ocean coasts with sandy beaches. The lidar mapping provides elevations relative to the NAVD88 fixed vertical datum. The shorelines determined from lidar-derived beach profiles are defined as an operational Mean High Water (MHW) contour, and therefore the elevation of the MHW tidal datum must be known relative to NAVD 88. The elevation of the MHW tidal datum varies relative to NAVD 88 along the coast as a function of the local tide range and mean tide level. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) tide station data were studied and compiled to tabulate MHW, Mean Higher High Water, and Mean Tide Level elevations along the East, West, and Gulf Coasts. In all, 136 tide stations were chosen: 93 along the East Coast, 19 along the West Coast, and 24 along the Gulf Coast. Although open coast tide stations were preferable for determining MHW, some stations that were not fully on the open coast were used to fill gaps where few or no open coast stations were available. The East, Gulf, and West coastlines were divided into "MHW Zones". These zones are sections of coast to which one MHW elevation is assigned. This operational MHW elevation, which is the average of MHW from all tide stations in the zone, is the elevation used for all lidar shorelines derived within that zone. Twenty-seven zones were created in all: twenty on the East Coast, three on the Gulf Coast, and four on the West Coast.
  Posted: 2006-10-20
• U.S. Geological Survey Open-File Report 03-108, Coastal vulnerability Assessment of Gulf Islands National Seashore (GUIS), Title Page
  Coastal Vulnerability Assessment of Gulf Islands National Seashore to Sea-Level Rise
  Posted: 2006-10-20
• USGS Open-File Report 2004-1043: National Assessment of Shoreline Change: Part 1, Historical Shoreline Changes and Associated Coastal Land Loss Along the U.S. Gulf of Mexico
  National Assessment of Shoreline Change: Part 1, Historical Shoreline Changes and Associated Coastal Land Loss Along the U.S. Gulf of Mexico is a 44-page, full-color discussion of historical shoreline change and coastal land loss along the U.S. Gulf of Mexico.
  Posted: 2006-09-15
• USGS Coastal and Marine Geology - usSEABED
  usSEABED provides data on sediment and rock distributions in the waters off the United States.
  Posted: 2006-08-28
• usSEABED: Gulf of Mexico and Caribbean Offshore Surficial Sediment Data Release, Title Page
  usSEABED: Gulf of Mexico and Caribbean (Puerto Rico and U.S. Virgin Islands) Offshore Surficial Sediment Data Release.
  Posted: 2006-07-18
• Constraining Rates and Trends of Historical Wetland Loss, Mississippi River Delta Plain, South-Central Louisiana
  'Constraining Rates and Trends of Historical Wetland Loss, Mississippi River Delta Plain, South-Central Louisiana' was originally published in Coastal Environment and Water Quality - Proceedings of the AIH 25th Anniversary Meeting and International Conference 'Challenges in Coastal Hydrology and Water Quality.' The paper describes the timing, magnitude, and rate of wetland loss for five wetland-loss hotspots in the Terrebonne Basin of the Mississippi River delta plain.
  Posted: 2006-07-11
• Coastal Classification Mapping Project
  A Coastal Classification Map describing local geomorphic features is the first step toward determining the hazard vulnerability of an area. The Coastal Classification Map series of the National Assessment of Coastal Change Project presents ground conditions such as beach width, dune elevations, overwash potential, and density of development. In order to complete a hazard vulnerability assessment, that information must be integrated with other information, such as prior storm impacts and beach stability.
  Posted: 2006-05-02
• Coastal Classification Atlas - South Texas Coastal Classification Maps - Mansfield Channel to the Rio Grande
  A Coastal Classification Map describing local geomorphic features is the first step toward determining the hazard vulnerability of an area. The Coastal Classification Maps of the National Assessment of Coastal Change Project present ground conditions such as beach width, dune elevations, overwash potential, and density of development. In order to complete a hazard vulnerability assessment, that information must be integrated with other information, such as prior storm impacts and beach stability. The Coastal Classification Maps provide much of the basic information for such an assessment and represent a critical component of a storm-impact forecasting capability. This CD covers the south Texas from Mansfield Channel to the Rio Grande.
  Posted: 2006-05-02
• Microbial Ecology in Reef Sediments of Biscayne National Park
  'Microbial Ecology in Reef Sediments of Biscayne National Park' is a 4-page discussion of bacterial communities as a critical component of the coral reef ecosystem.
  Posted: 2006-05-02
• Coastal Classification Atlas - Central Texas Coastal Classification Maps - Aransas Pass to Mansfield Channel
  A Coastal Classification Map describing local geomorphic features is the first step toward determining the hazard vulnerability of an area. The Coastal Classification Maps of the National Assessment of Coastal Change Project present ground conditions such as beach width, dune elevations, overwash potential, and density of development. In order to complete a hazard vulnerability assessment, that information must be integrated with other information, such as prior storm impacts and beach stability. The Coastal Classification Maps provide much of the basic information for such an assessment and represent a critical component of a storm-impact forecasting capability. This CD covers the central Texas from Aransas Pass to Mansfield Channel.
  Posted: 2006-04-10
• Automated Extraction of Coastal Dune High and Dune Low from High Resolution Lidar Digital Elevation Models
  An automated method of extracting dune high (Dhi) and dune low (Dlo) from lidar DEMs has been developed for use on the sandy Southeast and Gulf coasts of the United States. The method has been written into an Arc AML script that runs from a command line in ArcInfo Workstation, a popular GIS software product. The output are GIS ready Dhi and Dlo point shapefiles that include several attributes that can assist in post-processing editing as well as elevation.
  Posted: 2005-12-06
• The Coastal Impact Assessment Tool (CIAT), Version 1.0, User's Manual - USGS Open-File Report 2005-1260
  User's manual for The Coastal Impact Assessment Tool (CIAT), Version 1.0.
  Posted: 2005-12-06
• Coastal Classification Atlas - Southeast Texas Coastal Classification Maps - Sabine Pass to the Colorado River
  A Coastal Classification Map describing local geomorphic features is the first step toward determining the hazard vulnerability of an area. The Coastal Classification Maps of the National Assessment of Coastal Change Project present ground conditions such as beach width, dune elevations, overwash potential, and density of development. In order to complete a hazard vulnerability assessment, that information must be integrated with other information, such as prior storm impacts and beach stability. The Coastal Classification Maps provide much of the basic information for such an assessment and represent a critical component of a storm-impact forecasting capability. This CD covers the eastern Texas from Sabine Pass to the Colorado River.
  Posted: 2005-10-10
• Coastal Classification Atlas - Western Louisiana Coastal Classification Maps - Lower Mud Lake Entrance Channel to Sabine Pass
  A Coastal Classification Map describing local geomorphic features is the first step toward determining the hazard vulnerability of an area. The Coastal Classification Maps of the National Assessment of Coastal Change Project present ground conditions such as beach width, dune elevations, overwash potential, and density of development. In order to complete a hazard vulnerability assessment, that information must be integrated with other information, such as prior storm impacts and beach stability. The Coastal Classification Maps provide much of the basic information for such an assessment and represent a critical component of a storm-impact forecasting capability. This CD covers the western Louisiana coast from the Lower Mud Lake Entrance Channel to Sabine Pass.
  Posted: 2005-07-12
• Coastal Classification Atlas - Alabama-Mississippi Coastal Classification Maps - Perdido Pass to Cat Island
  A Coastal Classification Map describing local geomorphic features is the first step toward determining the hazard vulnerability of an area. The Coastal Classification Maps of the National Assessment of Coastal Change Project present ground conditions such as beach width, dune elevations, overwash potential, and density of development. In order to complete a hazard vulnerability assessment, that information must be integrated with other information, such as prior storm impacts and beach stability. The Coastal Classification Maps provide much of the basic information for such an assessment and represent a critical component of a storm-impact forecasting capability. This CD covers the Alabama-Mississippi Coast from Perdido Pass to Cat Island.
  Posted: 2005-05-11
• Coastal Classification Atlas - Southeastern Louisiana Coastal Classification Maps - Pass Abel to East Timbalier Island
  A Coastal Classification Map describing local geomorphic features is the first step toward determining the hazard vulnerability of an area. The Coastal Classification Maps of the National Assessment of Coastal Change Project present ground conditions such as beach width, dune elevations, overwash potential, and density of development. In order to complete a hazard vulnerability assessment, that information must be integrated with other information, such as prior storm impacts and beach stability. The Coastal Classification Maps provide much of the basic information for such an assessment and represent a critical component of a storm-impact forecasting capability. This CD covers Southeastern Louisiana Coastal Classification from Pass Abel to East Timbalier Island.
  Posted: 2005-05-04
• Pulley Ridge
  Pulley Ridge is a 100+ km-long series of N-S trending, drowned, barrier islands on the southwest Florida Shelf approximately 250 km west of Cape Sable, Florida. The ridge has been mapped using multibeam bathymetry, submarines and remotely operated vehicles, and a variety of geophysical tools. The ridge is a subtle feature about 5 km across with less than 10 m of relief. The shallowest parts of the ridge are about 60 m deep. Surprisingly at this depth, the southern portion of the ridge hosts an unusual variety of zooxanthellate scleractinian corals, green, red and brown macro algae, and typically shallow-water tropical fishes.
  Posted: 2005-03-18
• Marine Aggregate Resources and Processes
  The Marine Aggregates (Sand and Gravel Assessment) Project has developed and is implementing a scientifically rigorous series of regional studies mapping the seafloor sedimentary character and assessing marine sand and gravel resources around the United States. Results of the regional assessments will ultimately comprise a national assessment of marine sand and gravel. This study is responding to increasing demand for web-accessible GIS-type data and interpreted geologic map information on the sedimentary character of the seafloor and aggregate resources suitable for beach nourishment and coastal restoration, as well as seafloor sediment texture information for benthic habitat mapping and sediment transport studies.
  Posted: 2004-05-07
• The National Assessment of Shoreline Change: A GIS Compilation of Vector Shorelines and Associated Shoreline Change Data for the U.S. Gulf of Mexico - USGS Open File Report 2004-1089
  The Coastal and Marine Geology Program of the U.S. Geological Survey has generated a comprehensive database of digital vector shorelines and shoreline change rates for the U.S. Gulf of Mexico. These data, which are presented herein, were compiled as part of the U.S. Geological Survey's National Assessment of Shoreline Change Project.
  Posted: 2004-04-14
• Cruise Report, G1-03-GM, USGS Gas Hydrates Cruise,
  A summary of the field program and instrumentation used on the R/V Gyre geophysics cruise in the Gulf of Mexico, May, 2003.
  Posted: 2004-03-05
• Evolution and History of Incised Valleys: The Mobile Bay Model - USGS Fact Sheet
  Incised valleys along the Gulf coast commonly result from rivers eroding rapidly in response to a fall in sea level. As sea level rises, sediments fill incised valleys and form nearshore elongated sandbodies such as barrier islands. These sandbodies can be potential sites for hard-mineral accumulations and are modern analogues to buried sands in the ancient rock record with high potential of being oil and gas reservoirs. Processes that formed residual sediment accumulations may also help to predict the outcome of man's erosion mitigation and wetland nourishment efforts. Today, the geologic imprint of incised valleys across the continental shelf provides evidence of sea-level change over the past 18,000 years.
  Posted: 2004-03-02
• Hurricane Impacts on the Coastal Environment - USGS Fact Sheet
  In terms of insured losses, Hurricane Andrew is the most severe catastrophe in the Nation history. Prior to the arrival of Andrew, the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), in cooperation with the Louisiana Geological Survey (LGS), acquired an extensive body of information and data on the behavior and long-term erosion of Louisiana barrier islands. As a result, we have a clear understanding of pre-storm conditions in this area; Andrew provided an opportunity to learn in detail the impact of a very large storm on Louisiana coastal environment.
  Posted: 2004-03-02
• The Lake Pontchartrain Basin: Louisiana's Troubled Urban Estuary - USGS Fact Sheet
  Scientific studies recently begun by the U.S. Geological Survey suggest that several key natural processes and human-induced environmental factors are directly affecting the health of the Lake Pontchartrain Basin, one of America's largest estuaries. An increased knowledge of the critical geologic and estuarine processes affecting the Basin is essential for its management, improving environmental conditions, and mitigating future problems in the region. Such baseline information is of immediate value to planners and decision makers involved in the task of reversing the Basin's environmental degradation and restoring its water and habitat qualities.
  Posted: 2004-03-02
• U.S. Geological Survey Digital Data Series 79, >Coastal Erosion and Wetland Change in Louisiana:
  Coastal erosion and wetland change in Louisiana
  Posted: 2003-12-11
• USGS Open File Report 03-398
  Shoreline change posters for the Louisiana Barrier Islands, 1885 - 1996
  Posted: 2003-12-02
• USGS OFR 02-411 - Multibeam Mapping of Selected Areas of the Outer Continental Shelf, Northwestern Gulf of Mexico - Data, Images, and GIS
  Following the publication of high-resolution (5-meter spatial resolution) multibeam echosounder (MBES) images of the Flower Garden Banks National Marine Sanctuary area of the northwest Gulf of Mexico (Gardner et al., 1998), the Flower Garden Banks National Marine Sanctuary (FGBNMS) and the Minerals Management Service (MMS) have been interested in additional MBES data in the area. A coalition of FGBNMS, MMS, and the US Geological Survey (USGS) was formed to map additional areas of interest in the northwestern Gulf of Mexico (Figure 1) in 2002. FGBNMS chose the survey areas and the USGS chose the MBES. MMS and FGBNMS funded the mapping and the USGS organized the ship and multibeam systems through a cooperative agreement between the USGS and the University of New Brunswick. The objective of the cruise was to map seven regions of interest to MMS and the FGBNMS. This report provides the multibeam bathymetry and acoustic backscatter data, images, FGDC-compliant metadata, and a geographic information system (GIS) project from the 2002 surveys. This report also provides the multibeam bathymetry and acoustic backscatter data, images, and metadata from the 1997 USGS survey of East and West Flower Garden Bank and Stetson Bank.
  Posted: 2003-10-29
• USGS OFR 02-410 - USGS Western Region Coastal and Marine Geology Cruise Report, R/V Ocean Surveyor Cruise O1-02-GM: Bathymetry and Acoustic Backscatter of Selected Areas of the Outer Continental Shelf, Northwestern Gulf of Mexico
  Following the publication of high-resolution multibeam echosounder (MBES) images and data of the Flower Gardens area of the northwest Gulf of Mexico outer continental shelf (Gardner et al., 1998), the Flower Gardens Banks National Marine Sanctuary (FGBNMS) and the Minerals Management Service (MMS) have been interested in additional MBES data in the area. A coalition of FGBNMS, MMS, and the US Geological Survey (USGS) was formed to map additional areas of interest in the northwestern Gulf of Mexico (Fig. 1) in 2002. The areas were chosen by personnel of the FGBNMS and the choice of MBES was made by the USGS. MMS and FGBNMS funded the mapping and the USGS organized the ship and multibeam systems through a Cooperative Agreement between the USGS and the University of New Brunswick. The University of New Brunswick (UNB) contracted the RV Ocean Surveyor and the EM1000 MBES system from C&C Technologies, Inc., Lafayette, LA. C&C personnel oversaw data collection whereas UNB personnel conducted the cruise and processed all the data. USGS personnel were responsible for the overall cruise including the final data processing and digital map products.
  Posted: 2003-10-29
• USGS OFR 02-396 - Cruise Report: R/V Moana Wave Cruise M-1-02-GM: Bathymetry and Acoustic Backscatter of the Mid and Outer Continental Shelf, Head of De Soto Canyon, Northeastern Gulf of Mexico
  The mid to outer continental shelf off Mississippi-Alabama and off northwest Florida were the focus of US Geological Survey (USGS) multibeam echosounder (MBES) mapping cruises in 2000 and 2001, respectively. These areas were mapped to investigate the extent of "deep-water reefs" first suggested by Ludwick and Walton (1957). The reefs off Mississippi and Alabama were initially described in water depths of 60 to 120 m (Ludwick and Walton, 1957) but the 2000 mapping found reef and hardgrounds to be much more extensive than previously thought (Gardner et al., 2001). The persistent trend of reef-like features along the outer shelf of Mississippi-Alabama suggested the trend might continue along the northwest Florida mid and outer shelf so a MBES-mapping effort was mounted in 2001 to test this suggestion. It is critical to determine the accurate location, geomorphology, and types of the ridges and reefs that occur in this region to understand the Quaternary history of the area and to assess their importance as benthic habitats for fisheries. The 2001 survey found a series of shelf-depth platforms with ridges (possibly reefs) constructed on their surfaces (Gardner et al., 2002).
  Posted: 2003-10-29
• Open-File Report 03-002, Texture, Carbonate Content, and Preliminary Maps of Surficial Sediments of the Flower Garden Banks Area, Northwestern Gulf of Mexico Outer Shelf, Title Page
  The purpose of this report is to release texture and carbonate content data from 107 seafloor sediments collected within and near the East and West Flower Garden Banks areas of the Flower Garden Banks National Marine Sanctuary and to show relationships between these data and existing bathymetric data.
  Posted: 2003-10-22
• U.S. Coral Reefs—Imperiled National Treasures | USGS Fact Sheet 025-02
  Coral reefs are home to 25% of all marine species. However, the tiny colonial animals that build these intricate limestone masses are dying at alarming rates. If this trend continues, in 20 years the living corals on many of the world’s reefs will be dead and the ecosystems that depend on them severely damaged. As part of the effort to protect our Nation’s extensive reefs, U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) scientists are working to better understand the processes that affect the health of these ecologically and economically important ecosystems.
  Posted: 2003-03-18
• Subsurface Controls on Historical Subsidence Rates and Associated Wetland Loss in Southcentral Louisiana
  The Gulf Coast Basin is a region where subsidence and fault activation are common around large, mature oil and gas fields even though moderately deep hydrocarbon production has generally been disregarded as the primary cause. This project will test the hypothesis that long-term, large-volume oil and gas production in the Gulf Coast Basin has resulted in land-surface subsidence and activation of deep-seated faults around some fields.
  Posted: 2003-03-14
• Primary Causes of Wetland Loss at Madison Bay, Terrebonne Parish, Louisiana - USGS Open File Report 03-060
  The Gulf Coast Basin is a region where subsidence and fault activation are common around large, mature oil and gas fields even though moderately deep hydrocarbon production has generally been disregarded as the primary cause. This project will test the hypothesis that long-term, large-volume oil and gas production in the Gulf Coast Basin has resulted in land-surface subsidence and activation of deep-seated faults around some fields.
  Posted: 2003-03-11
• Subsidence and Sea-Level Rise in Southeastern Louisiana: Implications for Coastal Management and Restoration
  The Mississippi River delta plain is subject to the highest rate of relative sea-level rise (3 ft per century) of any region in the Nation largely due to rapid geologic subsidence. This collaborative study is responsible for developing an objective and reliable scientific database on subsidence and sea-level rise by conducting detailed studies within the Mississippi River delta plain.
  Posted: 2002-12-12
• USGS - Lake Pontchartrain Geochemistry
  Lake Pontchartrain, as the largest estuary in southern Louisiana, is an important recreational, commercial, and environmental resource for New Orleans, southeastern Louisiana, and the Nation. This publication is one of the products resulting from a 5-year cooperative program started in 1995 by the U.S. Geological Survey (http://coastal.er.usgs.gov/pontchartrain/). The program is focused on the geological framework and sedimentary processes of the Lake Pontchartrain Basin. Detailed documentation of selected aspects of the cooperative program are provided here.
  Posted: 2002-10-16
• Wetland Subsidence, Fault Reactivation, and Hydrocarbon Production in the U.S. Gulf Coast Region - USGS Fact Sheet 091-01
  Wetland losses are so extensive in the Gulf of Mexico Coast region of the United States that they represent critical concerns to government environmental agencies and natural resource managers.
  Posted: 2002-09-20
• Shallow Stratigraphic Evidence of Subsidence and Faulting Induced by Hydrocarbon Production in Coastal Southeast Texas - USGS Open File Report 01-274
  Wetland losses and their progressive conversion to open water around producing oil and gas fields in the Gulf Coast region have been attributed to a variety of natural and anthropogenic processes. Three large, mature hydrocarbon fields in coastal southeast Texas were examined to evaluate competing hypotheses of wetland losses and to characterize subaerial and submerged surfaces near reactivated faults and zones of subsidence.
  Posted: 2002-09-19
• Subsidence and Fault Activation Related to Fluid Energy Production, Gulf Coast Basin
  The Gulf Coast Basin is a region where subsidence and fault activation are common around large, mature oil and gas fields even though moderately deep hydrocarbon production has generally been disregarded as the primary cause. This project will test the hypothesis that long-term, large-volume oil and gas production in the Gulf Coast Basin has resulted in land-surface subsidence and activation of deep-seated faults around some fields.
  Posted: 2002-09-18
• Environmental Atlas of the Lake Pontchartrain Basin - USGS Open File Report 02-206
  The Environmental Atlas of the Lake Pontchartrain Basin provides citizens, planners, managers, educators, scientists and other professionals with a multidisciplinary and integrated source of information on Lake Pontchartrain and its surrounding Basin.
  Posted: 2002-05-14
• Geomorphic Classification Of Coastal Land Loss Between 1932 And 1990 In The Mississippi River Delta Plain, Southeastern Louisiana
  A 34x45 inch Poster (pdf) on changes in part of the low-lying Mississippi delta over a 58 year period.
  Posted: 2002-04-24
• Process Classification Of Coastal Land Loss Between 1932 And 1990 In The Mississippi River Delta Plain, Southeastern Louisiana
  Informative poster: 34x45 inches (pdf) on causes and mechanisms of land loss in a low-lying coastal area of the Mississippi delta.
  Posted: 2002-04-24
• An Environmental and Geological Bibliography for Lake Pontchartrain, Louisiana
  This presentation has been prepared both as a CD ROM and as a Web site for those with access to the Internet. It contains examples of illustrations that would not be available in normal local libraries, including a slide show designed to introduce Lake Pontchartrain to school and general audiences, satellite photographs, and downloadable environmental atlas pages. It also includes information on presentations and organizations involved in a series of scientific conferences on the environment of Lake Pontchartrain.
  Posted: 2002-04-24
• Gulf of Mexico GLORIA Sidescan Sonar Geologic Interpretation
  This (online) CD-ROM contains copies of the 250 m resolution GLORIA sidescan sonar mosaic for the Gulf of Mexico and its geologic interpretation. The imagery and interpretation have been archived here to preserve this legacy data set. The data are intended to be GIS-ready in as much as the data do not require any additional cleanup, formatting, renaming of fields or other "data work" to use the data in the GIS of choice.
  Posted: 2002-04-24
• Lake Pontchartrain, LA, Geochemistry
  Geology, geologic history, sediments, circulation, satellite imagery, of Lake Pontchartrain, LA, and a sediment database and geochemical assessment of the Lake.
  Posted: 2002-04-23
• Assessment of Coastal Vulnerability to Sea-Level Rise: Preliminary Results for the U.S. Gulf of Mexico Coast
  This report estimates relative vulnerability to sea-level rise of different coastal environments in the U.S. Gulf of Mexico. This initial classification is based on coastal geomorphology, regional coastal slope, rate of sea-level rise, wave and tide characteristics, and historical shoreline change rates.
  Posted: 2002-04-23
• SeaMARC 1A sidescan sonar mosaic, cores and depositional interpretation of the Mississippi Fan: ArcView GIS Data Release
  An online CDROM contains a SeaMARC 1A sidescan sonar mosaic, cores, and a depositional interpretation of the Mississippi Fan, with an ArcView GIS Data Release. This study focused on a depositional lobe identified in previous GLORIA imagery. A channel and breached levee were studied to understand the processes by which sedimentation is redirected to a different part of the fan. The channel that originated at the breach in the levee of the main channel was traced to the distal edge of the Mississippi Fan where deposits associated with the end of this channel system were mapped.
  Posted: 2002-04-23
• Atchafalaya and Mississippi River Deltas Study
  This study will evaluate the transport and storage of particle reactive, environmentally relevant contaminates through the Mississippi River and Atchafalaya River delta complexes to the near-shore Gulf of Mexico.
  Posted: 2002-03-18
• U.S. Geological Survey Open-File Report 00-352
  USGS Open-File Report 00-352; SeaMARC 1A sidescan sonar mosaic, cores and depositional interpretation of the Mississippi Fan: ArcView GIS Data Release
  Posted: 2001-10-10
• USGS Open-File Report 00-417
  shoreline erosion study of the Mississippi River Delta
  Posted: 2001-09-07
• Mapping Coastal Change Hazards
  An illustrated discussion of coastal change hazards and the work that the U.S. Geological Survey is doing to map and understand these hazards.
  Posted: 2001-05-03
• Coastal and Marine Geology Program Internet Map Server
  This site serves Interactive maps and Geographic Information System (GIS) data from regions around the United States.
  Posted: 2001-03-01
• Global Inventory of Natural Gas Hydrate Occurance
  This updated global inventory reports on natural gas hydrate recovered from 20 places worldwide and includes 79 places where the presence of gas hydrate has been inferred from geophysical, geochemical, or geological evidence.
  Posted: 2001-01-09
• Education and Outreach Information
  Helpful information about Activities at the USGS Western Region Coastal and Marine Geology Team.
  Posted: 2000-11-20
• Sea-level Rise and Coastal Forests on the Gulf of Mexico - Open File Report 99-441
  Sea-level Rise and Coastal Forests on the Gulf of Mexico is a 127-page report discussing the effects of sea-level rise and storm impacts on coastal forests of the Gulf of Mexico. Separate chapters are devoted to non-mangrove and mangrove forests. Information on the responses of individual tree species to increased salinity and flooding is included.
  Posted: 2000-08-10
• GLORIA Imagery of the Exclusive Economic Zone of the USA
  USGS research using GLORIA sidescan sonar to map the sea floor within the 200-mile wide Exclusive Economic Zone.
  Posted: 2000-07-12
• Geologic Framework and Processes of the Lake Pontchartrain Basin
  Lake Pontchartrain and adjacent lakes form one of the largest and most important estuaries in the Gulf Coast Region. The estuary drains the Pontchartrain Basin, an area of over 12,000 square kilometers situated on the eastern side of the Mississippi River delta plain. In Louisiana, nearly one-third of the state population lives within the 14 parishes of the Pontchartrain Basin.
  Posted: 2000-03-15
• East Gulf of Mexico Satellite Imagery
  Satellite imagery of the eastern Gulf of Mexico, measuring sea surface temperature, reflectance, and altimetry, is taken, processed, and posted in online archives several times per day.
  Posted: 2000-01-27
• Gas Hydrates in the Gulf of Mexico
  Investigation of potential gas-hydrate deposits and possible links between hydrate occurrence and sea-floor failures using remote-sensing technology.
  Posted: 1999-09-22
• Image Processing Methods - Open File Report 97-287
  Image Processing Methods: Procedures in selection, registration, normalization and enhancement of satellite imagery in coastal wetlands.
  Posted: 1999-06-25
• About Gas Hydrates and a USGS gas hydrate project
  Questions and answers about submarine gas hydrates: an ice-like crystalline solid formed of water and gas that is found in places under the sea floor and has important implications to techniques of deep-sea drilling and future energy supplies.
  Posted: 1999-03-08
• Hurricane Georges Coastal Impacts - Pre/Post-Storm Oblique Aerial Photography
  This set of oblique aerial photogrpahy covers three areas impacted by Hurricane Georges in September, 1998 - Puerto Rico, the Florida Keys, and Gulf Coast barrier islands off Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama.
  Posted: 1998-10-14
• Coasts in Crisis - Corals, Wetlands, and Hurricanes
  Educational background information on corals, wetlands, and hurricanes, and why we study them.
  Posted: 1998-05-05