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| A community model of nearshore waves, currents,
sediment transport, and morphological change is being developed, and will be
tested with some of the field observations described in this list of
projects. |
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| Beaches and
the adjacent nearshore ocean are important. Land-based sediments, chemicals,
biota, and fresh water must cross this region to enter the deep ocean.
Moreover, most people live within 100 miles of a shoreline that changes
constantly as winds, waves, and currents move sand along and across the
beach. |
| Our goal
is to understand and model waves, currents, and sand movement in the nearshore,
surf, and swash (eg, the beach face). |
Given
weather conditions (winds, offshore waves), a map (offshore islands, canyons,
shoals, nearshore sandbars, the slope of the beach face), and sediment
characteristics, we want to predict:
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- wave
height and direction along the coastline |
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- current
strength and direction in the surf and swash |
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- beach
erosion and accretion |
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| We test and
improve models by comparing their predictions with observations (see photos
below) of waves, currents, and beach evolution. |
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Cross-shore
transect of wave, current, and seafloor location sensors during a large
nor'easter storm (waves in the background at 4 m high) in 1994 near Duck, NC
(Duck94-CoOP). |
The surf
and swash zones are harsh environments. Sensors are pounded by huge waves and
sand blasted by strong, sediment- and debris-laden currents. Frames fixed to
the seafloor can be buried by moving sandbars or undermined by
erosion.
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Kent Smith,
Brian Woodward, and Dennis Darnell watch divers deploy a frame in the surfzone
using the FRF CRAB in 1997 near Duck, NC (SandyDuck). |
Obtaining
field observations requires a crew of specialized engineers and technicians to
design, deploy, and maintain instruments and mounts.
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ABOVE:
Steve Elgar and Britt Raubenheimer adjusting a stack of 3 current meters
during low tide near the Scripps pier in 2000 (SWASHX). |
RIGHT:
Britt Raubenheimer adjusting a current meter in 3-m water depth in 1994
near Duck, NC (Duck94-CoOP). |
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Carey
Humphries, Kimball Millikan, Brian Woodward, Steve Elgar, Bill Boyd, Dennis
Darnell, and Bill Schmidt about to be slammed by a breaking wave as they repair
a sensor frame near the Scripps pier in 1998 (XTREE). |
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Bill Boyd and
Steve Elgar returning to the SIO pier after checking sensors deployed near the
Scripps Submarine Canyon in 2000 (NCEX Pilot). |
Information
on some of our projects can be viewed using the links
on the top left.
Support
for our research is provided by:
For more
information:
please contact Steve
Elgar (elgar@whoi.edu)
or Britt
Raubenheimer (britt@whoi.edu)
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