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01 Introduction, Types of Structures & the Coastal Environment

Topics:
Introduction
The Design Process
Types of Structures
Considerations
Ocean Waves
Beach Profile, Features and Morphology
Sediment Transport Environment
Water level Datum
Sediment Transport and Coastal Processes Definitions
Online Resources

Handouts: Linear Waves, Beach Profile

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Introduction
Coastal
• zone where the land meets the sea, region of indefinite width that extends inland from the
sea to the first major change in topography.
• shores that are influenced by wave processes (oscillatory flow dynamics)
• Bays, and lakes, and estuaries, including that part of rivers subject to the ebb and flow of
the tide. (rivers, primarily influenced by unidirectional currents, are not included).
Coastal engineering.
• Composite of many physical science and engineering disciplines which apply to the
coastal area, including geology, meteorology, environmental sciences, hydrology,
physics, mathematics, statistics, oceanography, marine science, hydraulics, structural
dynamics, and naval architecture.
• Primary Areas: Harbor works, navigation channel improvements, shore protection, flood
damage reduction, and environmental preservation and restoration.
• Requires the rational interweaving of knowledge many technical disciplines to develop
solutions for problems associated with
o natural and human induced changes in the coastal zone
o the structural and non-structural mitigation of these changes
o the positive & negative impacts of solutions to problem areas on the coast.
• The Coastal Engineer must consider the processes present in the area of interest such as:
o Environmental processes (chemical, ecological).
o Hydrodynamics processes (winds, waves, water level fluctuations, and currents).
o Seasonal meteorological trends (hurricane season, winter storms).
o Sediment processes (sources, transport paths, sinks, and characteristics).
o Geological processes (soil and strata characteristics, stable and migrating sub-
aerial and sub-aqueous features, rebounding or subsiding surfaces).
o Long-term environmental trends (sea level rise, climate change).
o Social and political conditions (land use, development trends, regulatory laws,
social trends, public safety, economics).
Coastal science.
• This field is a suite of interdisciplinary technologies applied to understanding processes,
environments, and characteristics of the coastal zone.

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• Coastal Engineers use these understandings to develop physical adaptations to solve

problems and enhance the human interface with the coast.

The Design Process:

1. Look at what has been done (and worked) before.
• copy/adapt previous designs
• base design on previous, PROVEN designs
• project costs prohibit radical innovations/departures – mistakes are expensive
• basic coastal structures designs are thousands of years old
2. Determination of design parameters Æ loading (design itself may be a small part)
coastal structures generally look at events with 50, 100 and/or 500 year return
intervals as the design events… need to determine what that is and its magnitude!
• wind, waves, scour, icebergs, etc.
3. Issues for the engineer
a. Purpose – what is the purpose of the structure?
i. prevent erosion
ii. protect infrastructure
iii. etc.
b. Constraints – what constraints must be applied to the design?
i. economic cost
ii. environmental/ecological impact/cost Æ mitigation requirements
iii. societal/cultural constraints, e.g. effects of landscape changes,
aesthetics of the design (rubble mound structures can be ugly),
historical sights (bridges), effects on tourism (may have major
economic impacts)
iv. time – how long to build, is the project a response to a crisis, seasonal
effects (e.g. on beach nourishments)
c. Site/Environment
i. loading – wind, waves, currents
ii. soil, bearing capacity
iii. design load parameters – models, available data, calibration
iv. morphology (i.e. process of beach/ coast formation and change,
dynamic behavior of the coast) & geological setting
v. Initial Qualitative Evaluation
ƒ Nautical Charts
ƒ Ariel photos - good for evaluating the dynamics of sandy
coasts
ƒ Geological map - material, jagged contours may indicate hard
rock under sediment (i.e. difficult construction)
ƒ Benchmark documents
vi. Quantitative Analysis
ƒ Sediment processes
ƒ Survey data (preferably over time)
ƒ Sediment budget

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Types of Coastal Structures
(Table VI-2-1 of the Coastal Engineering Manual)
Type of Structure Objective
Prevent or alleviate flooding by
Sea dike
the sea of low-lying land areas
Protect land and structures from
Seawall
flooding and overtopping
Protect the shoreline against
Revetment
erosion
Retain soil and prevent sliding of
Bulkhead
the land behind
Groin Prevent beach erosion
Detached breakwater Prevent beach erosion
Reef breakwater Prevent beach erosion
Submerged sill Prevent beach erosion
Beach drain Prevent beach erosion
Beach nourishment and Prevent beach erosion and
dune construction protect against flooding
Shelter harbor basins, harbor
Breakwater entrances, and water intakes
against waves and currents
Shelter harbor basins and
Floating breakwater mooring areas against short-
period waves
Stabilize navigation channels at
Jetty
river mouths and tidal inlets
Prevent unwanted sedimentation
Training walls or erosion and protect moorings
against currents
Protect estuaries against storm
Storm surge barrier
surges
Pipeline outfall Transport of fluids
Provide deck space for traffic,
Pile structure pipelines, etc., and provide
mooring facilities
Protect coastal structures against
Scour protection instability caused by seabed
scour
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Principal Function
Separation of shoreline from hinterland
by a high impermeable structure
Reinforcement of some part of the
beach profile
Reinforcement of some part of the
beach profile
Reinforcement of the soil bank
Reduction of longshore transport of
sediment
Reduction of wave heights in the lee of
the structure and reduction of longshore
transport of sediment
Reduction of wave heights at the shore
Retard offshore movement of sediment
Accumulation of beach material on the
drained portion of beach
Artificial infill of beach and dune
material to be eroded by waves and
currents in lieu of natural supply
Dissipation of wave energy and/or
reflection of wave energy back into the
sea
Reduction of wave heights by reflection
and attenuation
Confine streams and tidal flow. Protect
against storm water and crosscurrents.
Direct natural or man-made current
flow by forcing water movement along
the structure
Separation of estuary from the sea by
movable locks or gates
Gravity-based stability
Transfer of deck load forces to the
seabed
Provide resistance to erosion caused by
waves and current
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Ocean Waves
Waves (and the forces they generate) are the major factor that determines the geometry of
beaches, the planning and design of marinas, waterways, shore protection measures,
hydraulic structures, and other civil and military coastal works. Estimates of wave
conditions are needed in almost all coastal engineering studies.

• Waves on the surface of the ocean with periods of 3 to 25 sec are primarily generated
by winds and are a fundamental feature of coastal regions of the world.
• Other wave motions exist on the ocean including internal waves, tides, edge waves
and tsunamis.
• A significant amount of wave energy is dissipated in the nearshore region and on
beaches.
• Wave energy forms beaches; sorts bottom sediments on the shore face; transports
bottom materials onshore, offshore, and alongshore; and exerts forces upon coastal
structures.
• A basic understanding of the fundamental physical processes in the generation and
propagation of surface waves must precede any attempt to understand complex water
motion in seas, lakes and waterways. Regular Waves theory provides the fundamental
principles governing the mechanics of wave motion essential in the planning and
design of coastal works.

Classifications
• Regular Waves - waves of constant height and period.
o Linear Waves - simplest mathematical representation Æ
first-order where ocean waves are 2-D, small in amplitude, sinusoidal, and
progressively definable by their wave height and period in a given water
depth. (see handout)
o Non-linear Waves – higher order 2-D approximation of the ocean surface
which deviates from a pure sinusoid. These more complex theories
become nonlinear and allow formulation of waves that are not of purely
sinusoidal in shape; e.g. waves having the flatter troughs and peaked crests
(typical in shallow coastal waters when waves are relatively high).
• Irregular Waves - wave systems where successive waves may have differing
periods and heights Æ more descriptive of the waves seen in nature. Requires
considering the sea surface as an irregular wave train with random
characteristics. To quantify this randomness of ocean waves requires
statistical and probabilistic approach.

Practicing coastal engineers must use a combination of these approaches to obtain

information for design.
• Information from the Irregular Waves theory section may be used to
determine the expected range of wave conditions and directional distributions
of wave energy in order to select an individual wave height and period for the
problem under study.
• Then Regular Waves theory may be used to characterize the kinematics and
dynamics that might be expected.

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• Many engineering problems can be handled with ease and reasonable accuracy by
this Linear Wave theory. For convenience, prediction methods in coastal engineering
generally have been based on simple waves. For some situations, simple theories
provide acceptable estimates of wave conditions.
• When waves become large or travel toward shore into shallow water, higher-order
non-linear wave theories are often required to describe wave phenomena.
• The linear theory that is valid when waves are infinitesimally small and their motion
is small also provides some insight for finite-amplitude periodic waves (nonlinear).
However, the linear theory cannot account for the fact that wave crests are higher
above the mean water line than the troughs are below the mean water line.
• Results obtained from the various theories should be carefully interpreted for use in
the design of coastal projects or for the description of coastal environment.

Beach Profile, Features and Morphology

Coastline
Shoreline Breakerline

Bluff or
Escarpment Winter
Berm Summer
Berm
Berm Crest

Low Tide Terrace

Scarp High Tide Level

Low Tide Level

Scarp
Longshore
Bar

Shore Face
Longshore
Trough
Surf Zone

Coast Backshore Foreshore or Inshore (extends Offshore

Beach Face through breaker
zone)

Nearshore
(defines area of
nearshore currents)

berm - nearly horizontal portion of a beach with an abrupt face, formed from the deposition of material by
wave action at high tide
berm crest - ridge marking the seaward limit of the berm
longshore bar - offshore ridge or mound of sand, gravel or other loose material running parallel to the
shore which is submerged (at least at high tide) and located a short distance from the shore.
longshore trough - a long, wide, shallow depression on the seafloor running parallel to the shore
scarp - elongated and comparatively steep slope separating flat or gently sloping areas on the seafloor or on
a beach
swash zone - that region on the beach face delineated at the upper level by the maximum uprush of the
wave and at its lower extremity by the maximum downrush

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Beach Morphology
• Beach Classification - material and dynamic behavior important for coastal
structure design
• Material Classification
o Muddy - consistency important; shear strength, compressibility considered
o Sandy - grain size distribution and effective weight
o Rocky - dynamic behavior mostly ignored
o (coral, mangrove, volcanic ash, pebbles and gravel… subcategories)
• Influence of Material on Nearshore Profile
o determining Foreshore Slope
o Flat and shallow profile in front of structure may dissipate incoming wave
energy and protect the structure, however it may be vulnerable to storm
surge (increased shoaling problem)
o Influence on wave forms and breaking and sediment transport
ƒ Grain size effect - fine sand Æ flatter slope

Profile Determination:
• 2 quantitative methods to determine profile
• both assume the beach will reach and maintain an equilibrium under constant
wave conditions

1. Empirical: grain size (d50) vs. slope relationship

2. Equilibrium Beach Profile:

 gw 
h = Ay2 / 3 or h = Ay4 / 5 , A = f (D ) = f  f  ,
 T 
where h ≡ water depth, A ≡ beach profile scale parameter (from figure),
y ≡ distance offshore, D ≡ mean grain size, wf ≡ grain fall velocity,
T ≡ wave period

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• Mean grain size usually taken between MHHW and MLLW, but it will
vary with seaward distance
• Note: if beach deviates from theoretical slope, it may not be stable…
investigate further

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Hydrodynamic Interaction at the beach

Surf Zone and Fall Velocity Parameters
Qualitative indicators which may help determine the feasibility of a project

Surf Zone Parameter:

tan β tan β
ξo = or ξ b =
H o Lo H b Lo
ξo ≡ surf zone parameter based on deep water wave parameters
ξb ≡ surf zone parameter based on breaking wave parameters
β ≡ beach face slope
Ho, Hb ≡ deep water and breaking wave heights, respectively
Lo, Lb ≡ deep water and breaking wave lengths, respectively

ξ characterizes the dynamic interaction between wave and beaches:

Response of beach or structure to a dynamic load (i.e. waves)
ξ is small Î weak interaction
interaction increases with ξ but peaks and then diminishes

breaker types:
Spilling ξo < 0.5 ξb < 0.4
Plunging 0.5 < ξo < 3.3 0.4 < ξb < 2.0
Surging 3.3 < ξo 2.0 < ξb

Sediment Parameters (important for sediment transport), indicate the mobility of the
sediment (erosion)
τb u *2
Shields parameter θ= =
ρg (sg − 1)d g (sg − 1)d
w
Fall Velocity Parameter Vr =
gT

θ ≡ Shields parameter,
τb ≡ bed shear stress,
u* ≡ bed friction or shear velocity,
ρ ≡ water/fluid density
sg ≡ sediment specific gravity ≡ ρs/ ρ
ρs ≡ sediment density
d ≡ sediment grain diameter
Vr ≡ fall velocity parameter
w ≡ fall velocity
T ≡ wave period

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Sediment Transport Environment

Is the site erosional or accretional?
What will be the interaction of the site and the structure (scour)?

In the inshore zone waves exert the dominant influence on mobilization and transport of
sediment Î relate transport to wave parameters

Shore normal, cross-shore transport

Short term response Î storm events, seasonal

Shore parallel, longshore transport or littoral drift (planform)

Long term response Î multiple year effect, structure life scale

**Notes have various formula, Dr. Dean's Littoral Processes class covers in much better
detail, will not cover here

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Water level Datum

the geodetic datum: "(1) A set of constants specifying the coordinate system used for
geodetic control, i.e., for calculating the coordinates of points on the
Earth.
(2) The datum … together with the coordinate system and the set of
all points and lines whose coordinates, lengths, and directions have
been determined by measurement or calculation."
The Geodetic Glossary (National Geodetic Survey, National Ocean Service, National
Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Rockville, MD, September 1986) pp. 54

• The first definition makes datum synonymous with the selection of a reference
coordinate system (origin and orientation).
• The second definition makes datum synonymous with a list of coordinates of the
control points.
• When the first definition is used, the published coordinates of control points can
change when better measurements allow better determinations.
• With the second definition, a change in coordinates should result in a new datum.
• NGS has used the first definition for NAD 1983.

Datum and Coordinate Systems used in the U.S.

Horizontal Datum
North American Datum of 1927 (NAD 27)
North American Datum of 1983 (NAD 83)
High Precision Geodetic Network (HPGN)

Horizontal Coordinate Systems

Universal Transverse Mercator (UTM)
Geographic Coordinates
State Plane Coordinates

Vertical Datum
National Geodetic Vertical Datum of 1929 (NGVD 29) … Sea Level
Datum of 1929
North American Vertical Datum of 1988 (NAVD 88)
Mean Lower Low Water (MLLW)
Mean Low Water (MLW)
Mean Tide Level (MTL)
Mean Sea Level (MSL)
Mean High Water (MHW)

• The North American Datum of 1927 (NAD 27) is the horizontal control datum for the
United States that was defined by a location and azimuth on the Clarke spheroid of
1866, with origin at (the survey station) Meades Ranch. The geoidal height at Meades
Ranch was assumed to be zero. Geodetic positions on the North American Datum of
1927 were derived from the coordinates of and an azimuth at Meades Ranch through

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a readjustment of the triangulation of the entire network in which Laplace azimuths

were introduced, and the Bowie method was used. (Geodetic Glossary, pp. 57)

• The North American Datum of 1983 (NAD 83) is the horizontal control datum for the
United States, Canada, Mexico, and Central America, based on a geocentric origin
and the Geodetic Reference System 1980. This datum is the new geodetic reference
system. ... NAD 83 is based on the adjustment of 250,000 points including 600
satellite Doppler stations which constrain the system to a geocentric origin. (Geodetic
Glossary, pp 57)

• NAD 83 was computed by the geodetic agencies of Canada (Federal and Provincial)
and the National Geodetic Survey because
o The horizontal control networks had expanded piecemeal since 1933 to cover
much more of the countries.
o It was very difficult to add new surveys to the network without altering large
areas of the previous network.
o Field observations had added thousands of accurate Electronic Distance
Measuring Instrument (EDMI) base lines, hundreds of additional points with
astronomic coordinates and azimuths, and hundreds of Doppler satellite
determined positions.
o It was recognized that the Clarke Ellipsoid of 1866 no longer served the needs
of a modern geodetic network.

(see NOAA Professional Paper NOS 2 "The North American Datum of 1983",
Charles R. Schwarz, Editor, National Geodetic Survey, Rockville, MD 20852,
December 1989. )

• The NAD 27 was based on the Clarke Ellipsoid of 1866 and the NAD 83 is based on
the Geodetic Reference System of 1980.
• The NAD 27 was computed with a single survey point, MEADES RANCH in
Kansas, as the datum point, while the NAD 83 was computed as a geocentric
reference system with no datum point.
• NAD 83 has been officially adopted as the legal horizontal datum for the United
States by the Federal government, and has been recognized as such in legislation in
44 of the 50 states.
• The computation of the NAD 83 removed significant local distortions from the
network which had accumulated over the years, using the original observations, and
made the NAD 83 much more compatible with modern survey techniques.

• A High Accuracy Reference Network (HARN) and a High Precision Geodetic

Network (HPGN) were two designations used for a statewide geodetic network
upgrade. The generic acronym HARN is now used for both HARN and HPGN and
was adopted to remove the confusion arising from the use of two acronyms.
o A HARN is a statewide or regional upgrade in accuracy of NAD 83
coordinates using Global Positioning System (GPS) observations.

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o HARNs were observed to support the use of GPS by Federal, state, and local
surveyors, geodesists, and many other applications.
o The cooperative network upgrading program began in Tennessee in 1986. The
last field observations were completed in Indiana in September 1997 after
horizontally upgrading some 16,000 survey stations to A-order or B-order
status. Horizontal A-order stations have a relative accuracy of 5 mm +/-
1:10,000,000 relative to other A-order stations. Horizontal B-order stations
have a relative accuracy of 8 mm +/- 1:1,000,000 relative to other A-order and
B-order stations Of these 16,000 stations, NGS has committed to maintaining
about 1,400 survey stations, named the Federal Base Network, and the various
states will maintain the remainder.

• The National Geodetic Vertical Datum of 1929 (NGVD29) is the name (after May 10,
1973) of (the) Sea Level Datum of 1929.
o Sea Level Datum of 1929 is a vertical control datum established for vertical
control in the United States by the general adjustment of 1929.
o Mean sea level was held fixed at the sites of 26 tide gauges, 21 in the U.S.A.
and 5 in Canada. The datum is defined by the observed heights of mean sea
level at the 26 tide gauges and by the set of elevations of all bench marks
resulting from the adjustment. A total of 106,724 km of leveling was
involved, constituting 246 closed circuits and 25 circuits at sea level.
o The datum (was) not mean sea level, the geoid, or any other equipotential
surface. Therefore it was renamed, in 1973, the National Geodetic Vertical
Datum on 1929. (Geodetic Glossary, pp. 56)
• The North American Vertical Datum of 1988 (NAVD 88) is the vertical control
datum established in 1991 by the minimum-constraint adjustment of the Canadian-
Mexican-U.S. leveling observations.
o It held fixed the height of the primary tidal bench mark, referenced to the new
International Great Lakes Datum of 1985 local mean sea level height value, at
Father Point/Rimouski, Quebec, Canada.
o Additional tidal bench mark elevations were not used due to the demonstrated
variations in sea surface topography, i.e., the fact that mean sea level is not the
same equipotential surface at all tidal bench marks.
o ("Results of the General Adjustment of the North American Datum of 1988,"
Surveying and Land Information Systems Vol. 52, No. 3, 1992 pp. 133-149)
• NAVD 88 was computed for many of the same reasons as NAD 83.
o About 625,000 km of leveling had been added to the NGVD since 1929.
o Thousands of bench marks had been subsequently destroyed and many others
had been affected by crustal motion, postglacial rebound, and subsidence due
to the withdrawal of underground fluids.
o Distortions amounting to as much as 9 meters had been seen due to forcing the
new leveling to fit the NGVD 29 height values.
o ("Results of the General Adjustment of the North American Datum of 1988,"
Surveying and Land Information Systems Vol. 52, No. 3, 1992 pp. 133-149)

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• Between 1987 and 1997, the National Geodetic Survey, in cooperation with other
Federal, State and local surveying agencies conducted a resurvey of the United States
using Global Positioning System (GPS) observations often referred to as the High
Accuracy Reference Networks (HARNs).
• All 50 states, American Samoa, Guam, Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands were
connected with a network of A-order and B-order horizontal control points.
Continued improvements in GPS technology and requirements from users of spatial
data will eventually require a transition to an improved global reference frame based
on the International Terrestrial Reference Frame (ITRF).
• Positions relative to ITRF differ from the existing North American Datum of 1983
(NAD 83) by approximately 1 meter in horizontal position and 1 meter in ellipsoidal
height.
• NGS already publishes ITRF coordinates for all Continuously Operating Reference
Stations (CORS), and will implement an adjustment to include the HARNs and other
GPS data that have been submitted to NGS for adjustment and publication.
• NGS will continue to maintain and improve NAD 83 as the official datum of the
United States, until such time as it will no longer support requirements for surveying,
mapping and navigation.

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Sediment Transport and Coastal Processes Definitions

accretion - natural or artificial deposition of sediment in a particular location

barrier island - a deposit of sand, parallel to the shore and raised above sea level
beach nourishment - the restoration of a beach the mechanical placement of sand on the
beach for recreational and/ or shore protection purposes
berm - nearly horizontal portion of a beach with an abrupt face, formed from the
deposition of material by wave action at high tide
berm crest - ridge marking the seaward limit of the berm
biogeneous shoreline - shorelines formed by the deposition of calcareous sediment
derived from offshore coral reefs.
bulkhead - structure (like seawalls and revetments) built to separate the land from the
water to prevent erosion and other damage primarily due to wave action.
Bulkheads are typically smaller structures designed to retain shore material under
less severe wave conditions than seawalls.
cohesive sediment - sediment particles with small diameters (usually less than 0.02 mm)
and for which the attractive forces between particles are larger than gravitational
forces. These particles tend to cohere to one another forming flat plate-like
clumps called “flocs.”
cross shore transport - the displacement of sediment perpendicular to the shore (onshore
or offshore), usually into a berm (onshore) or into an offshore bar (offshore)
deltaic shoreline - shoreline formed by the deposition of sediment at the mouth of large
sediment-laden rivers
emergence shoreline - shoreline formed by sea level lowering or land rising (due to
tectonic change, for example), characterized by a straight shoreline and mild
beach profiles
erosion - the removal of sediment from a particular location by the action of wind or
water
estuary - semi-enclosed body of water having a free connection with the open ocean
where fresh water from land runoff mixes with sea water
groin - shore perpendicular structure, installed singly or as a field of groins, designed to
trap sand from the littoral drift system or to hold sand in place.
headland - rocky outcropping jutting from a shore; often perpendicular to the shore and
usually with an associated shoal
jetty - a shore perpendicular structure located near an inlet or harbor entrance to reduce
infilling of the inlet or channel and protect the entrance and provide vessel
sheltering from waves
longshore bar - offshore ridge or mound of sand, gravel or other loose material running
parallel to the shore which is submerged (at least at high tide) and located a short
distance from the shore.
longshore current - current produced in the surf zone by wave breaking at an angle to the
shore; it runs roughly parallel to the shoreline.
longshore transport (littoral drift) - the displacement of sediment down the shore (parallel
to the shore).
longshore trough - a long, wide, shallow depression on the seafloor running parallel to the
shore

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non-cohesive sediment - sediment particles with large diameters (usually greater than
0.02 mm) and for which the attractive forces between particles are less than
gravitational forces.
offshore breakwater - a structure, usually shore parallel, composed of rocks and designed
to protect a shore area, harbor, anchorage or basin from waves.
offshore current - any current flowing away from the shore
offshore transport - movement of sediment or water away from the shore
onshore current - any current flowing toward the shore
onshore transport - movement of sediment or water toward the shore
revetments - structure (like seawalls and bulkheads) built to separate the land from the
water to prevent erosion and other damage. Revetments are designed to protect
shorelines and waterways from erosion by currents and small waves.
salt water wedge - intrusion of salt water along the bottom in an estuary; the wedge
moves upstream on high tide and down stream on low tide.
sand spit - low tongue of land or a relatively long, narrow shoal extending from the land.
scarp - elongated and comparatively steep slope separating flat or gently sloping areas on
the seafloor or on a beach
scour - erosion of sediment near a structure due to increased flow velocities, increased
turbulence and/ or secondary flows near the structure.
sea level rise - apparent rise in average sea level of the ocean measured relative to a land
mass. Can be the result of ice cap melting but also may be the result of land
submergence. Current global rate is 11 cm/ 100 years.
seawall - structure (like bulkheads and revetments) built to separate the land from the
water to prevent erosion and other damage primarily due to wave action.
Seawalls are typically large and designed to withstand the full force of storm
waves.
shoal - elevation of the sea bottom comprising and material except rock or coral (in
which case it is a reef) and which may endanger surface navigation
submergence shoreline - shoreline formed by sea level rise or land subsidence,
characterized by irregular features and steep beach profiles
swash zone - that region on the beach face delineated at the upper level by the maximum
uprush of the wave and at its lower extremity by the maximum downrush
tidal prism - the quantity of water that moves into and out of a bay during a
(astronomical) tidal cycle. Approximately equal to the bay area times the tide
range.
tombolo - the combination of an offshore rock or island which is connected to the beach
by a sand spit.

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Online Resources
Course Notes:
http://www.coastal.ufl.edu/~sheppard/eoc6340.htm

NOAA
Ocean Products and Services
Observation Data and benchmark info
National Ocean Service
National Geodetic Survey
Coastal Services Center, OPIS
http://www.noaa.gov
http://co-ops.nos.noaa.gov
http://140.90.78.170/data_res.html
http://www.nos.noaa.gov
http://www.ngs.noaa.gov
http://www.csc.noaa.gov

USGS http://www.usgs.gov
Earth Explorer satellite images,
aerial photographs, and
cartographic products http://edcsns17.cr.usgs.gov/EarthExplorer/

US Army Corps of Engineers http://www.usace.army.mil

Coastal Engineering Manual Index http://bigfoot.wes.army.mil/cem001.html
Waterways Experiment Station http://www.wes.army.mil
Coastal & Hydraulics Laboratory http://chl.wes.army.mil
(formerly CERC)
CHL Publications http://chl.wes.army.mil/library/publications/
USACE Engineering Manuals
http://www.usace.army.mil/inet/usace-docs/eng-manuals/em.htm
CorpsCon Software
http://crunch.tec.army.mil/software/corpscon/corpscon.html

Florida DEP
Land Boundary Information System http://www.labins.org

Data Available Online:

Certified Corner Records
US Coast & Geodetic Survey Historical Horz & Vert 3rd Order Data
US Geological Survey Historical Vert 3rd Order Data
Interactive Map / NGS Horz & Vert Data
from LABINS database
National Geodetic Survey Horizontal and Vertical Data
from NGS database
National Geodetic Survey Horizontal and Vertical Data
from LABINS database
Original General Land Office Township Plats &
GLO Field Survey Notes Index
Published Tide Station Reports
from LABINS database
FLDEP/BSM Mean High Water Survey File Index
FLDEP/Bureau of Beaches & Coastal Systems Coastal Construction Control Line

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