Document Type
Thesis
Abstract
It is important to have a thorough understanding of shoreline response to typical sediment transfer. It is commonly assumed that alongshore processes dominate sediment transport, and associated shoreline migration, during both quiescent conditions as well as during storm events. Ten years of high-resolution beach and nearshore profile data were examined to determine the relative influences of cross-shore and alongshore sediment transfer on adjacent shoreline migration at the United States Army Corps of Engineers Field Research Facility on the Outer Banks of Duck, North Carolina. A Real Time Kinematic GPS system was used to collect bathymetric data for the study site once monthly for the decade of 1990-1999. The standard deviation of elevation change was plotted and compared over this time period. Results indicate that cross-shore transport of sediment is more of a controlling factor on shoreline migration than alongshore transport. These results challenge common assumptions that shoreline migration is dominated by alongshore sediment transport processes.
Date Awarded
2009
Department
Geology
Recommended Citation
Henderson, Deadre R., "A Study of the Relationship Between Shoreline Migration and Cross-shore and Alonshore Sediment Transfer" (2009). Geology Senior Theses. William & Mary. Paper 211.
https://scholarworks.wm.edu/geologyseniors/211
