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https://hdl.handle.net/11681/12909| Title: | Beach changes at Virginia Beach, Virginia |
| Authors: | U.S. Coast and Geodetic Survey Virginia Institute of Marine Science Powell Laboratories Harrison, Wyman, 1931- Wagner, Kenneth A. |
| Keywords: | Shore Processes Virginia Beach, Virginia Beaches Beach Profiles |
| Publisher: | Coastal Engineering Research Center (U.S.) Engineer Research and Development Center (U.S.) |
| Series/Report no.: | Miscellaneous paper (Coastal Engineering Research Center (U.S.)) ; no. 6-64. |
| Description: | Miscellaneous Paper Abstract: This descriptive report summarizes the results of repeated profiles taken daily, weekly, or (rarely) monthly along four transects. Seven topographic maps of the nearshore bottom, based on detailed soundings to depths of 15-24 feet below MLW off Camp Pendleton, are also presented. One of the profiles and one of the maps show the effects of waves from the violent storm of 7-8 March 1962. Weekly and monthly observations at 61st Street, repeated for a continuous 23-month period, showed that the greatest vertical changes of the foreshore profile amounted to 6.6 feet. This maximum variation was entered in the vertical zone on the foreshore coinciding with the interval between mean tide level and mean high water. An unknown amount of change in altitude along the profile, for about 17 months, is believed to be related to artificial beach nourishment in progress nearby at the time the profiles were run. Minor changes were noted in weekly profiles across the dune at 61st Street from November 1956-June 1957, the greatest horizontal change (2.8 feet) occurring near the dune crest on the seaward facing slope where it was stabilized by vegetation, Approximately one-half of the dune was lost during the storm of March 7-8, 1962. Twenty-five profiles at Camp Pendleton, taken on consecutive days at low tide, yield a rhythmic pattern when superimposed. The bottom changes could be qualitatively related to changes in the wave regime, but were not always dependent upon breaking waves for their formation or dissolution. Magnitudes of daily cut and fill of the foreshore face approximated a few tenths of a foot. The greatest daily change of the nearshore bottom, 2.5 feet, occurred 225 feet from the MLW shoreline. Three of the seven maps of the nearshore bottom exhibit undulations that are likely correlative with the longshore bar and trough "rhythms" described from Japanese coastal waters by Hom-ma and Sonu (1963). The maps show accuate bar units whose feet correspond to shoal areas and aspices to troughs. The significance of bar-trough rhythms to coastal engineering is stressed, their importance to expectable ranges of cut-and-fill being considerable . Maximum ranges of cut-and-fill noted at points out from the MLW shoreline at Camp Pendleton for months from April through October (during normal weather) are: 50 yards-6 feet; 100 yards-8 feet; 200 yards-9 feet; and 300 yards-12 feet. An increase in the range at the 50-yard point, from 6 to 8 feet, is required if the March 7, 1962 storm topography is considered. |
| Rights: | Approved for Public Release, Distribution is Unlimited |
| URI: | http://hdl.handle.net/11681/12909 |
| Appears in Collections: | Miscellaneous Paper |
Files in This Item:
| File | Description | Size | Format | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| MP-CERC-64-6.pdf | 9.72 MB | Adobe PDF |  View/Open |