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Articles 1 - 19 of 19
Full-Text Articles in Geomorphology
The Tidal Prism, Viable Eelgrass Habitat, And The Effects Of Sea Level Rise In Morro Bay, Kaden A. Caliendo
The Tidal Prism, Viable Eelgrass Habitat, And The Effects Of Sea Level Rise In Morro Bay, Kaden A. Caliendo
Master's Theses
The tidal prism, or the volume of water exchanged from the sea to an estuary from mean low to mean high tide, influences system hydrodynamics and ecological functioning. Since 1884, the tidal prism in Morro Bay, California has been estimated to be decreasing over time due to sedimentation from upstream practices. What is the current tidal prism in Morro Bay and how will that change with sea level rise? How will eelgrass respond to rising sea levels?
For this study, inexpensive tidal gauges were deployed at four locations in Morro Bay from March to August 2023 to measure spatially varying …
Benthic Habitat Mapping Of Mountain Top Bank Within The Northern Gulf Of Mexico Through Integrated Geophysical And Visual Data Analysis, Bethany Pertain
Benthic Habitat Mapping Of Mountain Top Bank Within The Northern Gulf Of Mexico Through Integrated Geophysical And Visual Data Analysis, Bethany Pertain
Master's Theses
Mesophotic coral ecosystems (MCEs) are among the seafloor ecosystems that have been poorly studied throughout the world’s oceans, but they are a vital and diverse ecosystem that should be prioritized for future mapping and ecological studies. Priority should be given to them because they possess natural, social, and economic values, and face a variety of threats, all of which, if not better understood will result in the loss of this unique ecosystem. Insights into these ecosystems, among other deep-sea environments, are lacking due to difficulty accessing them, inherent lag between data collection by an autonomous system and observation by a …
Sedimentary Characteristics And Associated Carbon And Nutrients Of Overbank Sediments Deposited During The 2018, 2019, And 2020 Floods In Embanked Floodplains Along The Lower Mississippi River Near Natchez, Mississippi, Rachel Kelk
Master's Theses
The Lower Mississippi River (LMR) experienced major floods in 2018, 2019, and 2020. Sediment deposition in the embanked floodplains during floods represent important storage and sequestration opportunities for carbon and nutrients from ~40% of the continental USA. This research aims to compare depositional thicknesses, organic matter (OM), carbon (C), nitrogen (N), phosphorous (P) concentrations, and grain sizes in floodplain sediments deposited by the combined 2018-19 floods to the 2020 flood along the LMR near Natchez, Mississippi. Greater depositional thicknesses in 2018-19 are best explained by their combined flood durations; the 2019 flood was the longest in recorded history. Slightly higher …
Small-Scale Resuspension And Redistribution Of Surface Sediments In The Northeast Gulf Of Mexico, Austin Harris
Small-Scale Resuspension And Redistribution Of Surface Sediments In The Northeast Gulf Of Mexico, Austin Harris
Master's Theses
Following the release of ~4.9 million barrels of oil into the Gulf of Mexico from the Macondo wellhead, a vast area of the seafloor contained recently deposited marine sediments contaminated by the oil spill. The initial deposition of these contaminated marine sediments was likely not the end of the journey for the particles. Downslope gravitational processes and events of increased current speed in the deep ocean setting can result in recently deposited sediments to resuspend and be moved laterally with the current flow, increasing the area effected by the oil spill. Erosion experiments performed in a closed-loop resuspension flume were …
A Karst Feature Prediction Model For Prince Of Wales Island, Alaska Based On High Resolution Lidar Imagery, Alexander Lyles
A Karst Feature Prediction Model For Prince Of Wales Island, Alaska Based On High Resolution Lidar Imagery, Alexander Lyles
Master's Theses
Investigation into surface karst formation is significant to hazard prediction, hydrogeologic drainage, and land management. Southeast Alaska contains over 600,000 acres of mapped carbonate bedrock, and some of the fastest recorded karst dissolution in the world. The objectives of this study are to develop and compare multiple semi-automated models to map and delineate karst features from bare-earth LiDAR imagery using ArcGIS Desktop 10.7, and to apply a preliminary geostatistical analysis of sinkhole morphometric parameters to highlight potential spatial patterns of karst evolution on Prince of Wales Island, Alaska. A semi-automated approach of mapping karst features provides a dataset that minimizes …
Sediment Provenance Of Tsunami Deposits: Implications For Assessing The Relative Intensity Of Paleotsunamis From The Sendai Coastline Of Japan, Tiffany Otai
Master's Theses
The 2011 Tohoku tsunami impacted the northeastern coast of Japan and caused unexpected damages due to the underestimation of this type of hazard. Of particular importance is the fact that geologic evidence for a predecessor event, the Jogan tsunami (CE 869), could have forecasted the severity of the 2011 Tohoku event. While the timing of tsunamis is important for effective hazard mitigation, outside of the 2011 Tohoku event, the intensity of past tsunamis remains unclear. To understand paleotsunami intensity, it is important to document characteristics of modern analogues like the 2011 event. This study utilizes surface distributions of foraminifera from …
Incorporating Shear Resistance Into Debris Flow Triggering Model Statistics, Noah J. Lyman
Incorporating Shear Resistance Into Debris Flow Triggering Model Statistics, Noah J. Lyman
Master's Theses
Several regions of the Western United States utilize statistical binary classification models to predict and manage debris flow initiation probability after wildfires. As the occurrence of wildfires and large intensity rainfall events increase, so has the frequency in which development occurs in the steep and mountainous terrain where these events arise. This resulting intersection brings with it an increasing need to derive improved results from existing models, or develop new models, to reduce the economic and human impacts that debris flows may bring. Any development or change to these models could also theoretically increase the ease of collection, processing, and …
Response And Recovery Of Horn And Petit Bois Islands, Mississippi, Usa To Tropical Cyclone Impacts: 2004 – 2016, Shara Gremillion
Response And Recovery Of Horn And Petit Bois Islands, Mississippi, Usa To Tropical Cyclone Impacts: 2004 – 2016, Shara Gremillion
Master's Theses
Horn and Petit Bois islands are two of five Mississippi (MS) barrier islands that provide physical protection from tropical cyclones threatening the MS Gulf Coast, in addition to critical habitat for the northern Gulf of Mexico (GOM). In September 2004, Hurricane Ivan removed a large volume of sediment from the eastern ends of Horn and Petit Bois islands with its 1-2 m storm surge and ~194 kph wind speeds. Then, in August 2005 Hurricane Katrina severely impacted the two islands again with its 3.5-5.5 m storm surge on Horn and Petit Bois islands, and up to 204 kph wind speeds …
Detecting Coastal Marsh Change From Aerial Imagery Using Spectral And Textural Methods: Pascagoula River Estuary, Mississippi, 1955-2014, Margaret Claire Bell Waldron
Detecting Coastal Marsh Change From Aerial Imagery Using Spectral And Textural Methods: Pascagoula River Estuary, Mississippi, 1955-2014, Margaret Claire Bell Waldron
Master's Theses
As sea level rise accelerates, coastal marsh ecosystems are increasingly vulnerable. Vertical accretion rates must exceed or keep pace with rates of sea level rise to prevent transition to open water or inland migration of marsh vegetation. While some marsh systems along the northern Gulf of Mexico coast have remained stable, others, e.g., the marshes of the Louisiana Gulf Coast, have experienced high rates of conversion to open water. This study examined the historical extent of intertidal marsh at the mouth of the Pascagoula River in Jackson County, Mississippi to determine whether marsh extent changed during the period 1955-2014 and …
Late Quaternary Evolution And Stratigraphic Framework Influence On Coastal Systems Along The North-Central Gulf Of Mexico, Usa, Robert Hollis
Late Quaternary Evolution And Stratigraphic Framework Influence On Coastal Systems Along The North-Central Gulf Of Mexico, Usa, Robert Hollis
Master's Theses
Coastal systems in the Gulf of Mexico are threatened to reduced sediment supply, storm impacts and relative sea level rise (RSLR). The geologic record can provide insights of geomorphic threshold crossings (formation, progradation, transgression, destruction) to these forcing mechanisms to predict future barrier evolution to climate change. The stratigraphic framework and antecedent topography directly influence coastal evolution over geologic timescales. This study synthesizes ~2100km of geophysical data, 700+ sediment cores, and 63 radiocarbon dates to regionally map two sequence boundaries, multiple ravinement surfaces and fourteen depositional facies. One marine isotope stage (MIS) 6 valley’s fill provided up to 300 x10 …
Holocene Formation And Evolution Of Horn Island, Mississippi, Usa, Nina Gal
Holocene Formation And Evolution Of Horn Island, Mississippi, Usa, Nina Gal
Master's Theses
Horn Island, one of the most stable barriers along the Mississippi-Alabama chain, provides critical habitat, helps regulate estuarine conditions in the Mississippi Sound, and reduces wave energy and storm surge for the mainland. This study integrates 2,200 km of high-resolution geophysics, 35 sediment cores, and 15 radiocarbon ages to better understand the formation and evolution of the island in response to sea-level rise, storms, and antecedent geology. The Biloxi and Pascagoula incised valleys converge at Horn Island and have played a profound role in the evolution of the system. Within the incised valleys, numerous shallow paleochannels between 4 and 9 …
Coastal Wetland Dynamics Under Sea-Level Rise And Wetland Restoration In The Northern Gulf Of Mexico Using Bayesian Multilevel Models And A Web Tool, Tyler Hardy
Master's Theses
There is currently a lack of modeling framework to predict how relative sea-level rise (SLR), combined with restoration activities, affects landscapes of coastal wetlands with uncertainties accounted for at the entire northern Gulf of Mexico (NGOM). I developed such a modeling framework – Bayesian multi-level models to study the spatial pattern of wetland loss in the NGOM, driven by relative RSLR, vegetation productivity, tidal range, coastal slope, and wave height – all interacting with river-borne sediment availability, indicated by hydrological regimes. These interactions have not been comprehensively investigated before. I further modified this model to assess the efficacy of restoration …
Quantifying The Environmental Performance Of A Stream Habitat Improvement Project, Cody Morse
Quantifying The Environmental Performance Of A Stream Habitat Improvement Project, Cody Morse
Master's Theses
River restoration projects are being installed worldwide to rehabilitate degraded river habitat. Many of these projects focus on stream habitat improvement (SHI), and an estimated 60%of the 37,000 projects listed in the National River Restoration Science Synthesis Program focus on SHI for salmon and trout species. These projects frequently lack a sufficient monitoring program or account for the environmental costs associated with SHI. The present study used life cycle assessment (LCA) techniques and topographic effectiveness monitoring to quantify environmental costs on the basis of geomorphic change. This methodology was a novel approach to assessing the cost-benefit relationship of SHI. To …
Sedimentary Characteristics And Nutrient Sequestration Of Embanked Floodplains Along The Lower Mississippi River, Mississippi And Louisiana, R M Malitha Rathnayake
Sedimentary Characteristics And Nutrient Sequestration Of Embanked Floodplains Along The Lower Mississippi River, Mississippi And Louisiana, R M Malitha Rathnayake
Master's Theses
The Mississippi River Basin is the largest river basin in North America and the third largest river basin in the world. Most of the corn, soybeans, wheat, cattle, and hogs harvested in the United States come from the Mississippi River Basin and about 58% of the entire drainage basin is croplands. Runoff from these lands carries sediments and nutrients, and the Mississippi River transports these downstream and ultimately deposits them in the Gulf of Mexico. The northern Gulf of Mexico is one of largest human-caused hypoxic zones in the world. Hypoxia is the phenomena where the dissolved oxygen level decreases …
Modern Fair-Weather And Storm Sediment Transport Around Ship Island, Mississippi: Implications For Coastal Habitats And Restoration Efforts, Eve Rettew Eisemann
Modern Fair-Weather And Storm Sediment Transport Around Ship Island, Mississippi: Implications For Coastal Habitats And Restoration Efforts, Eve Rettew Eisemann
Master's Theses
The Mississippi – Alabama barrier island chain is experiencing accelerated sea level rise, decreased sediment supply, and frequent hurricane impacts. These three factors drive unprecedented rates of morphology change and ecosystem reduction. All islands in the chain have experienced land loss on the order of hectares per year since records began in the 1840s. In 1969, Hurricane Camille impacted as a Category 5, breaching Ship Island, and significantly reduced viable seagrass habitat. Hurricane Katrina impacted as a Category 3 in 2005, further widening Camille Cut. To better understand the sustainability of these important islands and the ecosystems they support, sediment …
Determining The Viability Of Recent Storms As Modern Analogues For North-Central Gulf Of Mexico Paleotempestology Through Sedimentary Analysis And Storm Surge Reconstruction, Joshua Caleb Bregy
Determining The Viability Of Recent Storms As Modern Analogues For North-Central Gulf Of Mexico Paleotempestology Through Sedimentary Analysis And Storm Surge Reconstruction, Joshua Caleb Bregy
Master's Theses
The northern Gulf of Mexico has been devastated by recent intense storms. Camille (1969) and Katrina (2005) are two notable hurricanes that made landfall in virtually the same location in Mississippi. However, fully understanding the risks and processes associated with hurricane impacts is impeded by a short and fragmented instrumental record. Paleotempestology could potentially use modern analogues from intense storms in this region to extend the hurricane record back to pre-observational time. Existing empirically based models can back-calculate surge heights over coastal systems as a function of transport distance, particle settling velocity, and gravitational acceleration. We collected cores in a …
Alluvial Sedimentation Associated With Logging In Low Gradient Watersheds In Desoto National Forest, Mississippi, Andrew W. Simmons
Alluvial Sedimentation Associated With Logging In Low Gradient Watersheds In Desoto National Forest, Mississippi, Andrew W. Simmons
Master's Theses
Forestry and related businesses are an important factor of Mississippi’s economy, contributing between $11 and $14 billion annually (Mississippi Forestry Commission, 2006). The timber industry is not only important in Mississippi but is an important sector of the economy throughout the Gulf Coast region. While providing positive economic benefits to the region, the forestry industry can also negatively affect soil properties, hillslope stability, and increase sedimentation rates in local streams and rivers. The aim of this research is to determine if forestry removal causes an increase of soil erosion and how it affects floodplain sedimentation in the low gradient watershed …
Evaluating Geomorphic Change In Little Creek Using Repeated Cross-Sectional And Longitudinal Profile Surveys, Drew Allen Perkins
Evaluating Geomorphic Change In Little Creek Using Repeated Cross-Sectional And Longitudinal Profile Surveys, Drew Allen Perkins
Master's Theses
Six geomorphic study reaches were established in 2002 along a forested mountain stream (gradients range from 0.02 to 0.05) on Cal Poly's Swanton Pacific Ranch in Santa Cruz County, California. These study reaches are a component of paired and nested watershed studies in the approximately 500 hectare Little Creek watershed. The overall goal of this study was to monitor water quality and channel conditions before, during, and after a selective harvest of redwood. A selective harvest occurred in the North Fork of Little Creek in Summer 2008. In August 2009, approximately 90% of the Little Creek Watershed was burned in …
Collisional Reactivation Of Rift Margin Fracture Zones, Taiwan And The Taconic Allochthon, David C. Mirakian
Collisional Reactivation Of Rift Margin Fracture Zones, Taiwan And The Taconic Allochthon, David C. Mirakian
Master's Theses
Chapter I. Transverse Topographic Development due to the Reactivation of a Partially-Subducted Fracture Zone: The Southwest Hsüehshan Range, Central Taiwan
Abstract — The southwest flank of the Hsüehshan Range is defined by a topographic break which cuts across regionally mapped structures in central Taiwan. The mountain front trends ~345°, slightly oblique to the Sanyi-Puli seismic zone which has been previously interpreted as a reactivated continental margin fracture zone. Structural data collected along the length of the topographic break reveal two populations of cross-cutting faults with distinct fault-zone materials and a series of southwest-plunging folds. Paleostress axes were reconstructed using the …