National Assessment of Shoreline Change: Part 1

National Assessment of Shoreline Change: Part 1
Author: Robert A. Morton
Publisher: DIANE Publishing
Total Pages: 44
Release: 2008-07
Genre: Science
ISBN: 1437902596

Beach erosion is a chronic problem along open-ocean shores of the U.S. As coastal populations continue to grow and community infrastructures are threatened by erosion, there is increased demand for accurate info. regarding past and present trends and rates of shoreline movement, and a need for a comprehensive analysis of shoreline movement. This report on states bordering the Gulf of Mexico (Florida, Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana, and Texas) summarizes the methods of analysis, interprets the results, provides explanations regarding the historical and present trends and rates of change, and describes how different coastal communities are responding to coastal erosion in 2004 (prior to Hurricanes Katrina and Rita). Illustrations.

From Sail to Steam

From Sail to Steam
Author: Richard V. Francaviglia
Publisher: University of Texas Press
Total Pages: 523
Release: 2010-06-28
Genre: History
ISBN: 0292789033

“The story of the ships, mariners, and ports that formed a vital connection between Texas and the rest of the world . . . [A] ‘first-stop’ reference.” —The Journal of American History Second Place, Presidio La Bahia Award, Sons of the Republic of Texas The Gulf Coast has been a principal place of entry into Texas ever since Alonso Alvarez de Pineda explored these shores in 1519. Yet, nearly five hundred years later, the maritime history of Texas remains largely untold. In this book, Richard V. Francaviglia offers a comprehensive overview of Texas’ merchant and military marine history, drawn from his own extensive collection of maritime history materials, as well as from research in libraries and museums around the country. Based on recent discoveries in nautical archaeology, Francaviglia tells the stories of the Spanish flotilla that wrecked off Padre Island in 1554 and of La Salle’s flagship Belle, which sank in 1687. He explores the role of the Texas Navy in the Texas Revolution of 1835–1836 and during the years of the Texas Republic and also describes the Civil War battles at Galveston and Sabine Pass. Finally, he recounts major developments of the nineteenth century, concluding with the disastrous Galveston Hurricane in 1900. More than one hundred illustrations, many never before published, complement the text. “Although there have been many excellent and valuable books published previously on specific topics in Texas’ maritime development (e.g. the Texas Navy, river trade, the Civil War, etc.), we have been waiting a long time for a single volume that ties all those loose threads together into a single, cohesive whole.” —Andrew W. Hall, specialist in Texas marine history and archaeology

Geo-Texas

Geo-Texas
Author: Eric R. Swanson
Publisher: Texas A&M University Press
Total Pages: 228
Release: 1995
Genre: Nature
ISBN: 9780890966822

Geo-Texas succeeds in bringing together astronomy, geology, meteorology, oceanography, and environmental studies in a highly informative, one-of-a-kind guide to Earth sciences in the Lone Star State. Eric R. Swanson draws on the latest scientific findings in treating the natural history of Texas from the oldest known rock, through the age of the dinosaurs, to the geologic present, from the early development of Texas' water and land resources to the current crisis of environmental pollution. In examining Texas natural sciences-and the abiding connection between Texans and their physical surroundings-Geo-Texas is engagingly anecdotal and draws freely on the wry humor with which Texans have always observed and regarded their environment. Entertaining accounts of natural phenomena, such as a meteorite scoring a direct hit on a swimming pool and a Texas twister sweeping up a farmer and returning him to earth unharmed, supplement the scholarship in each chapter to show how cultural and scientific issues converge. Students and teachers of Texas Earth science will find Geo-Texas indispensable. With more than eighty illustrations and valuable appendices listing rock hound clubs, Earth science organizations, and points of interest throughout the state, Geo-Texas will also appeal to the general reader and serve as the Earth science guide for lovers of Texas and its multifaceted environment.

Coastal Morphodynamics

Coastal Morphodynamics
Author: Nilay Kanti Barman
Publisher: Springer
Total Pages: 123
Release: 2016-04-25
Genre: Science
ISBN: 3319335758

This book discusses the perceptions and sketches, geological background, materials and coastal processes of the East Coast of India. It also suggests strategies for effectively managing natural coastal processes in these areas. India has a coastline of about 7,516 km with a variety of coastal extensions, which developed at different time scales, producing permanent variations in the morphologies of the coastal areas through hydrodynamic, fluvial, aeolian and terrestrial processes. The book focuses on the Balasore coast, an area drained by three main rivers (the Subarnarekha, the Dugdeugi and the Burahbolong), which impacts the coastal morphodynamic processes of the area and accounts for their multifaceted nature. Large drops or increases in the sediment supply within a short time span or over prolonged periods cause shoreline shifting. Eight satellite images from 1975, 1980, 1990, 1995, 2000, 2005, 2010 and 2013 were used to measure the shoreline dynamics, and a reference line was established using first order polynomial model with base data with 0.5 pixel root mean square error (RMSE) accuracy. The end point rate (EPR) model was adopted for estimating the future position of the shoreline. In order to assess the beach morphodynamics, the coastal modeling system (SMC) was used, which incorporates with a series of appliances and numerical models structured consistent with the space and time scale of the different dynamics affecting the littoral and beach morphology based on diverse thematic and reference documents. This study employed short-term analysis using the MOPLA module of the SMC system, which consists of three attached modules: the wave transformation module (Oluca), the depth-averaged currents module (Copla) and the sediment transport and morphological evolution module (Eros). The shoreline dynamics findings show that the magnitude of erosion is higher in the northern part of the coastline in the left bank area of the Subarnarekha river estuary and in the estuarine part of the Dugdugi and Burahbalang rivers. The southern part of the shoreline near Rasalpur and Joydevkasba is relatively stable, and the study suggests that the current shoreline shift trend will continue in the future. The SMC model indicates that the wave height, significant wave height, current velocity and the potential transport of sediment at the Kirtaniya study point are high, while at Choumukh they are low and at the Rasalpur study point they are intermediate.