In preparation for land-based sensor deployments during the 2022 Hurricane season, scientists from the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) conducted field tests at the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) Field Research Facility (FRF) in Duck, North Carolina in late March 2022. This included:
The USACE FRF research pier was an ideal structure to test the deployment of a cross-shore transect of structure-mounted sensors to measure water levels and waves, as it extends well offshore beyond the typical surf zone extent, and it parallels a cross-shore transect of bottom-mounted oceanographic sensors that can be used for data validation.
At the end of the pier, a contactless, narrow beam Geolux water level radar sensor was deployed to measure the water level surface and estimate wave parameters; this sensor will be used to collect novel storm measurements offshore of the beach.
At the shoreline, a compact, in-situ RBR solo D|wave16 depth logger was deployed near the sand bed within a protective housing to measure water levels; different hardware brackets were tested on various pier piling types/sizes to secure the sensor housings to withstand storm forces.
These field tests provided a good opportunity to prepare for rapid deployments of cross-shore water level and wave sensor transects at any pier infrastructure along the U.S. Atlantic and Gulf of Mexico coastlines ahead of extreme storms. The field team would like to thank Pat Dickhudt and others at the USACE FRF for their assistance.
A StoryMap describing key aspects of the NHCI project and how they contribute to advancing scientists' ability to predict storm impacts.
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