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U.S. Geological Survey Sea Floor Stress and Sediment Mobility Database

South Atlantic Bight

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Map showing South Atlantic Bight
Figure 4. Map showing the bathymetry of the South Atlantic Bight and regional physiographic features. Characterizations of bottom shear stress and sea floor mobility in this database extend offshore to approximately the 120-m isobath.

The South Atlantic Bight region extends from the coast of North Carolina southward to the Florida Keys (Fig. 4).

Spatially and temporally resolved estimates of bottom shear stress are calculated for seasonal and annual time periods. Seasons are defined as Winter (December-February), Spring (March-May), Summer (June-August), and Fall (September-November).

Specifications for stress and mobility time series:

  • Spatial Resolution: Approximately 5 km.
  • Time Period: May, 2010, to May, 2011.
  • Temporal Resolution: Hourly.

Data sets used to compute the bottom stress and sediment mobility time series:

  • Currents: The South Atlantic Bight and Gulf of Mexico Circulation Nowcast/Forecast (SABGOM) model, which uses the Regional Ocean Modeling System (ROMS). The SABGOM domain includes the coastal regions of the South Atlantic Bight and the Gulf of Mexico. These two areas have been split in order to better delineate regions based on similar physical processes and forcing; results presented here are for the South Atlantic Bight only. Developed at North Carolina State University (http://omgsrv1.meas.ncsu.edu:8080/ocean-circulation).
    Contact: Model run by Dr. Ruoying He, Ocean Observing and Modeling Group (http://omgrhe.meas.ncsu.edu/Group/).
  • Waves: Simulating WAves Nearshore (SWAN) model applied to the western North Atlantic. Contact: Model run by Dr. P. Soupy Dalyander, U.S. Geological Survey St. Petersburg Coastal and Marine Science Center
  • Sediment Texture Data: USGS East-Coast Sediment Texture database (Poppe and others, 2005).

Complete details on the procedure used to create the data files may be found in the associated metadata (links in Table 3).

Table 3. Statistics of sea floor wave-current stress and sediment mobility in Arc polygon and point shapefile format for the South Atlantic Bight from model output. Stress statistics are determined for the entire model grid, whereas mobility statistics are determined only at locations where sediment texture data are available. See metadata files for details of the calculations. Click on zip file to download.

Data Layer Name
Preview
Explanation File Type
Metadata
Files

Median of Bottom Shear Stress

Preview (Yearly Value)

The value of bottom shear stress exceeded 50% of the time. Shapefile - polygon

View Metadata
zip

Interpercentile Range of Bottom Shear Stress

Preview (Yearly Value)

Half the difference between the 84th and 16th percentile. A measure of variability, equivalent to the standard deviation in a normal distribution. Shapefile - polygon

View Metadata
zip

95th Percentile of Bottom Shear Stress

Preview (Yearly Value)

Value of bottom shear stress exceeded 5% of the time. A measure of the largest stresses. Shapefile - polygon

View Metadata
zip

Bed Mobility Percentage

Preview (Yearly Value)

Percentage of time the critical stress is exceeded (determined for locations with sediment texture data). A measure of the extent of bed mobility. Shapefile - point

View Metadata
zip

Bed Mobility Recurrence Interval

(version 1.1)

Preview (Yearly Value)

Time between mobility events (determined for locations with sediment texture data). A measure of the of frequency of mobility events. Shapefile - point

View Metadata
zip
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