Effect of Storms on Barrier Island Dynamics, Core Banks, Cape Lookout National Seashore, North Carolina, 1960−2001
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Prepared in cooperation with the National Park Service and East Carolina University Effect of Storms on Barrier Island Dynamics, Core Banks, Cape Lookout National Seashore, North Carolina, 1960−2001 Scientific Investigations Report 2006−5309 U.S. Department of the Interior U.S. Geological Survey COVER: A 1943 aerial photograph showing Old Drum Inlet. The inlet separates North and South Core Banks and exhibits spectacular ebb- and flood-tidal deltas. This inlet provides an excellent example of island building, as the flood-tidal delta adds width and sediment volume to the back side of the barrier island. This is a crucial process for island evolution as sea-level rises and storms cause ongoing ocean shoreline recession. Department of Geology, East Carolina University, Greenville, NC 27858 Telephone: 252-328-6015 E-mail: [email protected] Effect of Storms on Barrier Island Dynamics, Core Banks, Cape Lookout National Seashore, North Carolina, 1960–2001 By Stanley R. Riggs and Dorothea V. Ames Prepared in cooperation with the National Park Service and East Carolina University Scientific Investigations Report 2006–5309 U.S. Department of the Interior U.S. Geological Survey U.S. Department of the Interior DIRK KEMPTHORNE, Secretary U.S. Geological Survey Mark D. Myers, Director U.S. Geological Survey, Reston, Virginia: 2007 For product and ordering information: World Wide Web: http://www.usgs.gov/pubprod Telephone: 1-888-ASK-USGS For more information on the USGS—the Federal source for science about the Earth, its natural and living resources, natural hazards, and the environment: World Wide Web: http://www.usgs.gov Telephone: 1-888-ASK-USGS Any use of trade, product, or firm names is for descriptive purposes only and does not imply endorsement by the U.S. Government. Although this report is in the public domain, permission must be secured from the individual copyright owners to reproduce any copyrighted materials contained within this report. Suggested citation: Riggs, S.R., and Ames, D.V., 2007, Effect of storms on barrier island dynamics, Core Banks, Cape Lookout National Seashore, North Carolina, 1960–2001: U.S. Geological Survey Scientific Investigations Report 2006–5309, 73 p. vi Contents Abstract ...........................................................................................................................................................1 Introduction.....................................................................................................................................................2 Purpose and Scope ..............................................................................................................................3 Previous Core Banks Surveys ............................................................................................................3 U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Surveys ....................................................................................3 Godfrey and Godfrey Survey ......................................................................................................4 East Carolina University Geology Department Survey ..........................................................4 North Carolina Division of Coastal Management Data Sets ................................................4 Description of Core Banks............................................................................................................................4 The Barrier Islands ...............................................................................................................................4 Inlet History ............................................................................................................................................8 Ocracoke Inlet ..............................................................................................................................9 Barden Inlet ..................................................................................................................................9 The Drum Inlets ............................................................................................................................9 Ephemeral Inlets ........................................................................................................................10 North Carolina Storm History ............................................................................................................10 Active Storm Period: 1940–1962 ..............................................................................................11 Low Storm Activity Period: 1963–1970 ....................................................................................12 Moderate Storm Activity Period: 1971–1990 .........................................................................12 Most Active Storm Period in Recorded N.C. History: 1991–2005 .......................................12 Methods of Data Collection and Analysis ...............................................................................................13 Effect of Storms on Barrier Island Dynamics ..........................................................................................19 Shoreline and Elevation Changes on Core Banks .........................................................................19 U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Data Sets ...............................................................................19 Godfrey and Godfrey Data Sets ...............................................................................................24 East Carolina University Data Sets .........................................................................................28 North Carolina Division of Coastal Management Data Sets ..............................................33 Patterns of Shoreline Change Along Core Banks .........................................................................35 Elevation Changes on Core Banks Through Time .........................................................................38 Summary and Conclusions .........................................................................................................................42 Acknowledgments .......................................................................................................................................44 References Cited..........................................................................................................................................45 Appendixes ...................................................................................................................................................47 vii Figures 1. A regional satellite image showing the location of the Core Banks study area in the North Carolina coastal system ...................................................................................................5 2 –4 Aerial photos of — 2. A four-part, georeferenced aerial photograph time series (A, 1940; B, 1962; C, 1998; and D, 2003) showing the evolution of Old Drum Inlet, New Drum Inlet, and New-Old Drum Inlet, Cape Lookout National Seashore, North Carolina ...................6 3. A three-part aerial photograph time series (A, 1940; B, 1962; and C, 1983) showing the Portsmouth Village Overwash Plain with Whalebone and Swash Inlets on the southwestern part of the photographs, Core Banks, Cape Lookout National Seashore, North Carolina ...................................................................................................7 4. A five-part aerial photograph time series (A, 1866; B, 1933–1937; C, 1940; D, 1962; and E, 1998) showing Cape Lookout, Cape Lookout Bight, and Barden Inlet, North Carolina ......................................................................................................................8 5. Graph showing total number of hurricane strikes in North Carolina by decade for the period from 1900 to 1999 ............................................................................................................11 6. Diagrams showing the 77 profiles and associated topographic and bathymetric surveys done from 1960 to 1962 by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) on North Core Banks (A), and South Core Banks (B), Cape Lookout National Seashore, North Carolina .............................................................................................................................14 7. Diagrams showing the layout of reference markers (RMs) developed for the (A) 1960 to 1962 surveys and (B) 2001 survey of North and South Core Banks, Cape Lookout National Seashore, North Carolina and the methods used in 2001 to determine shoreline and elevation changes .............................................................................................15 8. Photographs showing relocated U.S. Army Corps of Engineers 1960–1962 reference markers (RM) on Core Banks, Cape Lookout National Seashore, North Carolina ..........16 9. Diagram showing the 57 profiles located by the 2001 East Carolina University survey of the original 77 profiles established by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers on North and South Core Banks, Cape Lookout National Seashore, North Carolina ......................18 10. Schematic diagrams showing the method used by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Godfrey and Godfrey, and East Carolina University to determine shoreline changes in their 1960 (A) 1961, 1962 (B) 1971, and 2001 (C), shoreline surveys, Core Banks, Cape Lookout National Seashore, North Carolina ..........................................................................19