In 1999, the USGS, in partnership with the South Carolina Sea Grant Consortium, began a study to investigate processes affecting shoreline change along the northern coast of South Carolina, focusing on the Grand Strand region. Previous work along the U.S. Atlantic coast shows that the structure and composition of older geologic strata located seaward of the coast heavily influences the coastal behavior of areas with limited sediment supply, such as the Grand Strand. By defining this geologic framework and identifying the transport pathways and sinks of sediment, geoscientists are developing conceptual models of the present-day physical processes shaping the South Carolina coast. The primary objectives of this research effort are: 1) to provide a regional synthesis of the shallow geologic framework underlying the coastal upland, shoreface and inner continental shelf, and define its role in coastal evolution and modern beach behavior; 2) to identify and model the physical processes affecting coastal ocean circulation and sediment transport, and to define their role in shaping the modern shoreline; and 3) to identify sediment sources and transport pathways; leading to construction of a regional sediment budget.

In 1999, the USGS, in partnership with the South Carolina Sea Grant Consortium, began a study to investigate processes affecting shoreline change along the northern coast of South Carolina, focusing on the Grand Strand region. Previous work along the U.S. Atlantic coast shows that the structure and composition of older geologic strata located seaward of the coast heavily influences the coastal behavior of areas with limited sediment supply, such as the Grand Strand. By defining this geologic framework and identifying the transport pathways and sinks of sediment, geoscientists are developing conceptual models of the present-day physical processes shaping the South Carolina coast. The primary objectives of this research effort are: 1) to provide a regional synthesis of the shallow geologic framework underlying the coastal upland, shoreface and inner continental shelf, and define its role in coastal evolution and modern beach behavior; 2) to identify and model the physical processes affecting coastal ocean circulation and sediment transport, and to define their role in shaping the modern shoreline; and 3) to identify sediment sources and transport pathways; leading to construction of a regional sediment budget.

In 1999, the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), in partnership with the South Carolina Sea Grant Consortium, began a study to investigate processes affecting shoreline change along the northern coast of South Carolina, focusing on the Grand Strand region. Previous work along the U.S. Atlantic coast shows that the structure and composition of older geologic strata located seaward of the coast heavily influences the coastal behavior of areas with limited sediment supply, such as the Grand Strand. By defining this geologic framework and identifying the transport pathways and sinks of sediment, geoscientists are developing conceptual models of the present-day physical processes shaping the South Carolina coast. The primary objectives of this research effort are: 1) to provide a regional synthesis of the shallow geologic framework underlying the coastal upland, shoreface and inner continental shelf, and define its role in coastal evolution and modern beach behavior; 2) to identify and model the physical processes affecting coastal ocean circulation and sediment transport, and to define their role in shaping the modern shoreline; and 3) to identify sediment sources and transport pathways; leading to construction of a regional sediment budget.

In 1999, the USGS, in partnership with the South Carolina Sea Grant Consortium, began a study to investigate processes affecting shoreline change along the northern coast of South Carolina, focusing on the Grand Strand region. Previous work along the U.S. Atlantic coast shows that the structure and composition of older geologic strata located seaward of the coast heavily influences the coastal behavior of areas with limited sediment supply, such as the Grand Strand. By defining this geologic framework and identifying the transport pathways and sinks of sediment, geoscientists are developing conceptual models of the present-day physical processes shaping the South Carolina coast. The primary objectives of this research effort are: 1) to provide a regional synthesis of the shallow geologic framework underlying the coastal upland, shoreface and inner continental shelf, and define its role in coastal evolution and modern beach behavior; 2) to identify and model the physical processes affecting coastal ocean circulation and sediment transport, and to define their role in shaping the modern shoreline; and 3) to identify sediment sources and transport pathways; leading to construction of a regional sediment budget.

From April 13 to 20, 2013, scientists from the U.S. Geological Survey St. Petersburg Coastal and Marine Science Center (USGS SPCMSC) collected push cores and vibracores on Dauphin Island, Alabama, along with push and auger cores in salt marshes at several locations in southwestern coastal Alabama. This work, a component of the SPCMSC’s Barrier Island Evolution Research (BIER) project, was conducted as part of USGS field activity number (FAN) 13BIM01. The objectives of the study were to evaluate processes affecting the development and evolution of certain back-barrier environments (marsh, flats, ponds, etc.) and to assist in developing geologic controls on barrier island breaching. In addition to the collection of sediment cores, marsh surface sediments were collected for micropaleontological analysis (included in this report). Ground penetrating radar (GPR) was collected on Dauphin Island and adjacent barrier-island environments. Elevation-corrected subsurface profile images of the processed GPR data, unprocessed digital GPR trace data, post-processed differential Global Positioning System (DGPS) data, and Geographic Information System (GIS) files are reported in Forde and others (2016, https://doi.org/10.3133/ds982). This data report is an archive of field-collected and laboratory analytical data for the sediment cores and surface sediments. Data products include: GPS-derived site locations and elevations; core logs and photographs; lithologic, radiochemical, elemental composition, stable isotopic composition, micropaleontological data; and Federal Geographic Data Committee (FGDC) metadata.

From April 13 to 20, 2013, scientists from the U.S. Geological Survey St. Petersburg Coastal and Marine Science Center (USGS SPCMSC) collected push cores and vibracores on Dauphin Island, Alabama, along with push and auger cores in salt marshes at several locations in southwestern coastal Alabama. This work, a component of the SPCMSC’s Barrier Island Evolution Research (BIER) project, was conducted as part of USGS field activity number (FAN) 13BIM01. The objectives of the study were to evaluate processes affecting the development and evolution of certain back-barrier environments (marsh, flats, ponds, etc.) and to assist in developing geologic controls on barrier island breaching. In addition to the collection of sediment cores, marsh surface sediments were collected for micropaleontological analysis (included in this report). Ground penetrating radar (GPR) was collected on Dauphin Island and adjacent barrier-island environments. Elevation-corrected subsurface profile images of the processed GPR data, unprocessed digital GPR trace data, post-processed differential Global Positioning System (DGPS) data, and Geographic Information System (GIS) files are reported in Forde and others (2016, https://doi.org/10.3133/ds982). This data report is an archive of field-collected and laboratory analytical data for the sediment cores and surface sediments. Data products include: GPS-derived site locations and elevations; core logs and photographs; lithologic, radiochemical, elemental composition, stable isotopic composition, micropaleontological data; and Federal Geographic Data Committee (FGDC) metadata.

Oceanographic observations have been made at nine locations in Long Bay, South Carolina from October 2003 through April 2004. These sites are centered around a shore-oblique sand feature that is approximately 10 km long, 2 km wide, and in excess of 3 m thick. The observations were collected through a collaborative effort with the U.S. Geological Survey, the University of South Carolina, and Georgia Institute of Technology Savannah Campus as part of a larger study to understand the physical processes that control the transport of sediments in Long Bay.

The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), Woods Hole Science Center (WHSC) has been an active member of the Woods Hole research community for over 40 years. In that time there have been many sediment collection projects conducted by USGS scientists and technicians for the research and study of seabed environments and processes. These samples are collected at sea or near shore and then brought back to the WHSC for study. While at the Center, samples are stored in ambient temperature, cold or freezing conditions, depending on the best mode of preparation for the study being conducted or the duration of storage planned for the samples. Recently, storage methods and available storage space have become a major concern at the WHSC. The shapefile sed_archive.shp, gives a geographical view of the samples in the WHSC's collections, and where they were collected along with images and hyperlinks to useful resources.

In 1999, the USGS, in partnership with the South Carolina Sea Grant Consortium, began a study to investigate processes affecting shoreline change along the northern coast of South Carolina, focusing on the Grand Strand region. Previous work along the U.S. Atlantic coast shows that the structure and composition of older geologic strata located seaward of the coast heavily influences the coastal behavior of areas with limited sediment supply, such as the Grand Strand. By defining this geologic framework and identifying the transport pathways and sinks of sediment, geoscientists are developing conceptual models of the present-day physical processes shaping the South Carolina coast. The primary objectives of this research effort are: 1) to provide a regional synthesis of the shallow geologic framework underlying the coastal upland, shoreface and inner continental shelf, and define its role in coastal evolution and modern beach behavior; 2) to identify and model the physical processes affecting coastal ocean circulation and sediment transport, and to define their role in shaping the modern shoreline; and 3) to identify sediment sources and transport pathways; leading to construction of a regional sediment budget.

In 1999, the USGS, in partnership with the South Carolina Sea Grant Consortium, began a study to investigate processes affecting shoreline change along the northern coast of South Carolina, focusing on the Grand Strand region. Previous work along the U.S. Atlantic coast shows that the structure and composition of older geologic strata located seaward of the coast heavily influences the coastal behavior of areas with limited sediment supply, such as the Grand Strand. By defining this geologic framework and identifying the transport pathways and sinks of sediment, geoscientists are developing conceptual models of the present-day physical processes shaping the South Carolina coast. The primary objectives of this research effort are: 1) to provide a regional synthesis of the shallow geologic framework underlying the coastal upland, shoreface and inner continental shelf, and define its role in coastal evolution and modern beach behavior; 2) to identify and model the physical processes affecting coastal ocean circulation and sediment transport, and to define their role in shaping the modern shoreline; and 3) to identify sediment sources and transport pathways; leading to construction of a regional sediment budget.