Publications

Barrier islands are ubiquitous coastal features that create low-energy environments where salt marshes, oyster reefs, and mangroves [Read more…] about Stochastic dynamics of barrier island elevation

Coastal dunes help stabilize barrier islands by reducing the frequency of overwashes and promoting vertical accretion. In doing so, [Read more…] about Probabilistic structure of events controlling the after-storm recovery of coastal dunes

This study quantifies the hydraulic flow field around a draghead using a 1:7 scaled California and general type draghead. The flow field velocity measurements were taken with each draghead stationary and moving with a prototype speed of 2 knots. [Read more…] about Quantification of the Flow Field around a Draghead Using a Physical Model

During tropical cyclones, processes including dune erosion, overwash, inundation, and storm-surge ebb can rapidly reshape barrier islands, thereby increasing coastal hazards and flood exposure inland. Relatively few measurements are available to evaluate the physical processes shaping coastal systems close to shore during these extreme events as it is inherently challenging to obtain reliable field data due to energetic waves and rapid bed level changes which can damage or shift instrumentation. [Read more…] about Data-Model Comparisons of Storm Processes During Hurricane Harvey

This report details the results from the laboratory analysis of 950 surface-sediment grab samples collected at nearshore seabed and dry beach locations near South Padre Island (SPI) over the course of a 15-month field study between August 2018 and November 2019. The field sampling campaign was part of a sediment tracer study to elucidate sediment transport pathways in the nearshore region of SPI after tracer release over a submerged feeder berm. [Read more…] about Sand Tracer Study of a Nearshore Berm in South Padre Island, TX

Meteotsunami waves can be triggered by atmospheric disturbances accompanying tropical cyclone rainbands (TCRs) before, during, and long after a tropical cyclone (TC) makes landfall. Due to a paucity of high-resolution field data along open coasts during TCs, relatively little is known about the atmospheric forcing that generate and resonantly amplify these ocean waves, nor their coastal impact. [Read more…] about Meteotsunamis Accompanying Tropical Cyclone Rainbands During Hurricane Harvey

Beaches facing the Gulf of Mexico along the northern part of the Yucatan Peninsula experience frequent Central American cold surge events, or northerly storms locally called “Nortes,” which interrupt the usual daily patterns of sea- and land-breeze–dominated nearshore dynamics. These perturbations of prevailing hydrodynamic forcing conditions also affect sediment distribution and transport parameters in the surf and swash zone, which are critical elements in understanding and modeling complex morphodynamic processes during storm events. [Read more…] about Variability in Onshore Sediment Transport on a Natural Beach During a Central American Cold Surge Event

During tropical cyclones, meteotsunami waves can be triggered by atmospheric disturbances accompanying tropical cyclone rainbands (TCRs). Due to a paucity of high resolution field data along open coasts during these extreme events, relatively little is known about meteotsunami generation by TCRs and the coastal impact of these wave phenomena. [Read more…] about Meteotsunami generation by tropical cyclone rainbands: nearshore effects of rainband dynamics and storm surge

One of the physically least understood characteristics of geophysical transport of sediments along sediment surfaces is the well-known experimental observation [Read more…] about Unification of Aeolian and Fluvial Sediment Transport Rate from Granular Physics

An accelerating global rate of sea level rise (SLR), coupled with direct human impacts to coastal watersheds and shorelines, threatens the continued survival of salt [Read more…] about Modeling long-term salt marsh response to sea level rise in the sediment-deficient Plum Island Estuary, MA