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Shoreline monitoring program on the Upper Texas Coast utilizing a Real-Time Kinematic Differential Global Positioning System
Abstract
Due to shoreline erosion, approximately seventeen miles of Texas State Highway 87, located in Jefferson County Texas, have been repeatedly destroyed by storms and rebuilt. This thesis describes a shoreline monitoring program developed to obtain a comprehensive data set that will be used to define the coastal erosion problem and assist in the reconstruction of the roadway. An improved survey system similar to a concept developed by Beach et al. (1996) was designed and constructed for this project. This thesis discusses the improved survey system design and testing. The nearshore system utilizes a Real-Time Kinematic Differential Global Positioning System (RTK-DGPS) mounted on a personal watercraft and integrated with a survey quality echo sounder. The nearshore system was tested by repeating transects in the nearshore. The repeatability of the profiles demonstrated a standard deviation of 6.2 cm from the mean absolute difference of 8.0 cm. The beach survey utilizes RTK-DGPS equipment carried by the surveyor in a backpack. The maximum expected error for the beach survey is approximately []4 cm. The system is an accurate, mobile and efficient method to obtain beach profiles. Additional accuracy may be obtained by integrating a motion sensor and CTD profiler. The survey data are processed using commercially available software packages and programs developed for this project. The processed data is integrated and stored in a geographic information system (GIS). The data collected exemplify morphological features indicative of erosion due to overwash. This is consistent with visual observations and numerical model results provided by Howard (1999). The shoreline movement since 1996 is consistent with historical data and is related to storm events. The current research has provided a survey system capable of performing fast, accurate surveys in the nearshore and a baseline data set. The survey system is fully operational and will be instrumental in the ongoing research related to the Highway 87 reconstruction project. The baseline data set, together with sediment analyses data and water level predictions, provides the foundation from which further investigations will be conducted and will provide information that can be used for the design of the new highway.
Description
Due to the character of the original source materials and the nature of batch digitization, quality control issues may be present in this document. Please report any quality issues you encounter to digital@library.tamu.edu, referencing the URI of the item.Includes bibliographical references (leaves 73-74).
Issued also on microfiche from Lange Micrographics.
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Citation
Wamsley, Ty V (2000). Shoreline monitoring program on the Upper Texas Coast utilizing a Real-Time Kinematic Differential Global Positioning System. Master's thesis, Texas A&M University. Available electronically from https : / /hdl .handle .net /1969 .1 /ETD -TAMU -2000 -THESIS -W253.
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