Coastal Change Likelihood Assessment--Predicting Coastal Landscape Change with Accuracy

Woods Hole Coastal and Marine Science Center Newsletter: August-November 2025

Sharing science stories, popular social media posts, recent publications, fieldwork activities, and more center happenings.

Sound Waves Newsletter

Explore coastal and marine science from across the USGS in Sound Waves.

Natural Disaster Preparedness Starts with Science

The USGS Coastal and Marine Hazards and Resources Program provides information needed to protect coastal communities

Helping Our Neighbors: USGS Surveys Primary Drinking Water Source for the Town of Falmouth

USGS Seafloor Mapping Provides the Scientific Foundation Needed to Address National Priorities

We Make Treasure Maps: USGS Charts the Seafloor to Help Locate Critical Minerals, Precious Metals, and Other Vital Resources

Valuable Data Collected on M7.0 Earthquake Offshore Cape Mendocino, California

Successful deployment and retrieval of Rapid Response Ocean Bottom Seismographs represents significant advancement in natural hazards research

Approaching Storms

Discover USGS tools that forecast storms and report coastal conditions for emergency management

Woods Hole Coastal and Marine Science Center

Our center is one of three facilities serving the mission of the USGS Coastal and Marine Hazards and Resources Program.

We study extreme events and physical, biological, and chemical processes that shape our coastal and marine environments. Using this information, we identify hazards and provide critical information on our Nation’s resources. Our research and science-based products provide the strong scientific foundation needed by decisions makers, scientists, and state and federal agencies to address public safety, national security, and resource management across our Nation’s coastal and submerged lands.

News

Sound Waves Newsletter: December 2025-January 2026

Sound Waves Newsletter: December 2025-January 2026

Photo Roundup: December 2025-January 2026

Photo Roundup: December 2025-January 2026

Woods Hole Coastal and Marine Science Center Newsletter: December 2025-January 2026

Woods Hole Coastal and Marine Science Center Newsletter: December 2025-January 2026

Publications

Comparisons of shoreline positions from satellite-derived and traditional field- and remote-sensing techniques Comparisons of shoreline positions from satellite-derived and traditional field- and remote-sensing techniques

Satellite-derived shorelines (SDS) have the potential to help researchers answer critical coastal science questions and support work to predict coastal change by filling in the spatial and temporal gaps present in current field-based and remote-sensing data collection methods. The U.S. Geological Survey conducted comparison analyses of traditionally sourced shorelines and SDS in diverse...
Authors
Andrea C. O'Neill, Sharon F. Batiste, Daniel D. Buscombe, Joseph Burgess, Kara S. Doran, Ann E. Gibbs, Rachel E. Henderson, Julia L. Heslin, Catherine N. Janda, Mark A. Lundine, Joseph F. Terrano, Jonathan A. Warrick, Kathryn M. Weber

Proceedings of the Deepwater Hydrate Coring Expedition UT-GOM2-2 Proceedings of the Deepwater Hydrate Coring Expedition UT-GOM2-2

This report was the result of a scientific collaboration between the following institutions The University of Texas at Austin (UT), DOE, NETL, the United States Geological Survey (USGS), the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM), The Ohio State University, Columbia University, University of New Hampshire, Oregon State University, University of Washington, Tufts University, Colorado...
Authors
Peter Flemings, Carla Thomas, Stephen C. Phillips, Timothy Collett, Ann E. Cook, Evan Solomon, Frederick S. Colwell, Joel E. Johnson, David Awwiller, Irita Aylward, Athma Bhandari, Donald Brooks, Jessica Z. Buser-Young, Alejandro Cardona, Michael Casso, Rachel Coyte, Tom Darrah, Marcy Davis, Brandon Dugan, Dan Duncan, John T. Germaine, Melanie Holland, Jesse Houghton, Saffron Martin, N. Tanner Mills, Michael Mimitz, Daniel Minarich, Yuki Morono, Zachary Murphy, Joshua O’Connell, Ethan Petrou, Tom Pettigrew, John W. Pohlman, Alexey Portnov, Marcie Purkey Phillips, Thomas Redd, Derek E. Sawyer, Peter Schultheiss, Kelly Shannon, Cathal Small, Camille Sullivan, Kayla Tozier, Man-Yin Tsang, Camila Van Der Maal, William F. Waite, Taylor Walton

A simple predictive model for salt marsh internal deterioration under sea-level rise and sediment deficits: Application to Chesapeake Bay A simple predictive model for salt marsh internal deterioration under sea-level rise and sediment deficits: Application to Chesapeake Bay

Salt marshes are dynamic biogeomorphic systems reliant on autochthonous and allochthonous input to maintain their three-dimensional configuration. Sea-level rise, subsidence, and sediment deficits can lead to submergence, open-water expansion, and ultimately loss of the vegetated marsh plain and associated ecosystem services. Widely used management-focused models focus on vegetation...
Authors
Neil K. Ganju, Kate Ackerman, Zafer Defne, Giulio Mariotti, David Curson, Zachary Posnik, Joel Carr, Joanna Grand

Science

Image: Marsh Management at Blackwater National Wildlife Refuge

Prioritizing marsh restoration needs throughout Chesapeake Bay

A new USGS study estimates potential losses of Chesapeake Bay salt marshes that could occur in the next 80 years if no marsh restoration is undertaken. Using a suite of models, USGS researchers identified how future potential marsh changes can be used to prioritize present-day site-specific planning and restoration needs.
Prioritizing marsh restoration needs throughout Chesapeake Bay

Prioritizing marsh restoration needs throughout Chesapeake Bay

A new USGS study estimates potential losses of Chesapeake Bay salt marshes that could occur in the next 80 years if no marsh restoration is undertaken. Using a suite of models, USGS researchers identified how future potential marsh changes can be used to prioritize present-day site-specific planning and restoration needs.
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map

GeoPackage of Seabed Hazards to Offshore Infrastructure

Energy and resource development is increasing along the Nation’s outer continental shelves, where coastal waters meet the deep sea. Offshore infrastructure, such as oil and gas platforms and mining devices, help extract and transport resources from beneath the seafloor to where they’re needed on land. These resources are essential for powering homes and businesses across the country and supporting...
GeoPackage of Seabed Hazards to Offshore Infrastructure

GeoPackage of Seabed Hazards to Offshore Infrastructure

Energy and resource development is increasing along the Nation’s outer continental shelves, where coastal waters meet the deep sea. Offshore infrastructure, such as oil and gas platforms and mining devices, help extract and transport resources from beneath the seafloor to where they’re needed on land. These resources are essential for powering homes and businesses across the country and supporting...
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Image Collage of Landsat, pollinator, and volcanologist

Seafloor Benthic Mapping and Characterization: Enhancing our Understanding of Aleutian Islands’ Hazards, Potential Seabed Minerals and Deep Corals

A USGS-led expedition in the Aleutian Arc off Alaska will provide critical information on energy resources, underwater earthquakes and other hazards, seafloor habitats, and biological resources, including key fisheries, as well as potential seabed minerals.
Seafloor Benthic Mapping and Characterization: Enhancing our Understanding of Aleutian Islands’ Hazards, Potential Seabed Minerals and Deep Corals

Seafloor Benthic Mapping and Characterization: Enhancing our Understanding of Aleutian Islands’ Hazards, Potential Seabed Minerals and Deep Corals

A USGS-led expedition in the Aleutian Arc off Alaska will provide critical information on energy resources, underwater earthquakes and other hazards, seafloor habitats, and biological resources, including key fisheries, as well as potential seabed minerals.
Learn More