Abstract:
Our ability to capture coastal processes and landforms has progressed immensely in the last several decades. Satellite-based, drone-based, surface vessel-based, and underwater vehicle-based platforms carrying sensors like multispectral cameras, LiDAR, and sonar allow us to image the texture and topography of the subaerial and subaqueous coastal landscape at high resolution and accuracy. Consequently, our improvements in data collection have exceeded our ability to analyze and discern patterns from said datasets. In this seminar, I will discuss my research on developing data-driven methods for analyzing coastal processes and landforms. This includes the detection and characterization of widespread sandy depressions on the Atlantic coastal plain (Carolina Bays), satellite-based analysis of shoreline change, and the detection and characterization of seabed fluid-escape depressions on the continental shelf (pockmarks).