H11322ENVIRONS: Interpretation of the Sedimentary Environments of National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Survey H11322, Western Rhode Island Sound (Geographic)

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Frequently-anticipated questions:

What does this data set describe?

Title:
H11322ENVIRONS: Interpretation of the Sedimentary Environments of National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Survey H11322, Western Rhode Island Sound (Geographic)
Abstract:
The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) is working cooperatively with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) to interpret the surficial geology in estuaries along the coast of the northeastern United States. The purpose of our present study is to define the sea floor morphology and sedimentary environments in an area of Rhode Island Sound using sidescan-sonar and bathymetric data collected onboard the NOAA Ship RUDE, as well as historic seismic records. The mosaic, bathymetry, and their interpretations serve many purposes, including: (1) defining the geological variability of the sea floor, which is one of the primary controls of benthic habitat diversity; (2) improving our understanding of the processes that control the distribution and transport of bottom sediments and the distribution of benthic habitats and associated infaunal community structures; and (3) providing a detailed framework for future research, monitoring, and management activities. The sidescan-sonar mosaics and bathymetry images also serve as base maps for subsequent sedimentological, geochemical, and biological observations, because precise information on environmental setting is important for selection of sampling sites and for accurate interpretations of point measurements.
  1. How should this data set be cited?

    McMullen, K.Y., 2009, H11322ENVIRONS: Interpretation of the Sedimentary Environments of National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Survey H11322, Western Rhode Island Sound (Geographic): Open-File Report 2008-1181, U.S. Geological Survey, Coastal and Marine Geology Program, Woods Hole Science Center, Woods Hole, MA.

    Online Links:

    This is part of the following larger work.

    McMullen, K.Y., Poppe, L.J., Haupt, T.A., and Crocker, J.M., 2009, Sidescan-Sonar Imagery and Surficial Geologic Interpretations of the Sea Floor in Western Rhode Island Sound: Open-File Report 2008-1181, U.S. Geological Survey, Coastal and Marine Geology Program, Woods Hole Science Center, Woods Hole, MA.

    Online Links:

    Other_Citation_Details: 1 DVD-ROM

  2. What geographic area does the data set cover?

    West_Bounding_Coordinate: -71.437526
    East_Bounding_Coordinate: -71.324151
    North_Bounding_Coordinate: 41.328080
    South_Bounding_Coordinate: 41.254770

  3. What does it look like?

    <http://pubs.usgs.gov/of/2008/1181/data/interpretation/h11322environs/h11322environs.gif> (GIF)
    Overview image showing the interpretation of the sedimentary environments of NOAA H11322 sidescan-sonar mosaic and bathymetry image.

  4. Does the data set describe conditions during a particular time period?

    Beginning_Date: 06-Jul-2004
    Ending_Date: 16-Jul-2004
    Currentness_Reference: ground condition

  5. What is the general form of this data set?

    Geospatial_Data_Presentation_Form: vector digital data

  6. How does the data set represent geographic features?

    1. How are geographic features stored in the data set?

      This is a Vector data set. It contains the following vector data types (SDTS terminology):

      • G-polygon (21)

    2. What coordinate system is used to represent geographic features?

      Horizontal positions are specified in geographic coordinates, that is, latitude and longitude. Latitudes are given to the nearest 0.000001. Longitudes are given to the nearest 0.000001. Latitude and longitude values are specified in Decimal degrees.

      The horizontal datum used is D_WGS_1984.
      The ellipsoid used is WGS_1984.
      The semi-major axis of the ellipsoid used is 6378137.000000.
      The flattening of the ellipsoid used is 1/298.257224.

  7. How does the data set describe geographic features?

    h11322environs
    Shapefile Attribute Table (Source: ESRI)

    FID
    Internal feature number. (Source: ESRI)

    Sequential unique whole numbers that are automatically generated.

    Shape
    Feature geometry. (Source: ESRI)

    Coordinates defining the features.

    ID
    Internal feature number. (Source: ESRI)

    LABEL
    Interpretation of sedimentary environments based on the sidescan-sonar mosaic and bathymetry (Source: compiler)

    ValueDefinition
    Erosionerosion or nondeposition characterized by high backscatter in the sidescan-sonar image and clusters of boulders indicating coarser grained sediment reflective of higher energy environments
    Sort_reworksorting and reworking characterized by moderate backscatter in the sidescan-sonar imagery and the sea floor tends to be relatively smooth
    CgbtCoarse-grained bedload transport characterized by bathymetric highs and where there are sand waves
    Depositionfine-grained deposition characterized by low backscatter in the sidescan-sonar imagery and typically occurring in part of the channel and bathymetric lows

    Entity_and_Attribute_Overview:
    Polygons are attributed as features based on the interpretation of the sidescan-sonar mosaic and multibeam bathymetry sedimentary environments (erosion or nondeposition, sorting and reworking, deposition, and coarse-grained bedload transport).

Who produced the data set?

  1. Who are the originators of the data set? (may include formal authors, digital compilers, and editors)

  2. Who also contributed to the data set?

  3. To whom should users address questions about the data?

    Katherine McMullen
    U.S. Geological Survey
    Sediment Lab Technician
    384 Woods Hole Road
    Woods Hole, MA 02543
    USA

    (508) 548-8700 X2277 (voice)
    (508) 457-2310 (FAX)
    kmcmullen@usgs.gov

Why was the data set created?

This data layer is a component of the H11322 Survey, GIS database and represents an interpretation of the sidescan-sonar mosaic for the study area. The interpretation can be used as an overlay for the mosaic image and shows the sedimentary environments of the study area such as erosion or nondeposition, sorting and reworking, deposition, and coarse-grained bedload transport.

How was the data set created?

  1. From what previous works were the data drawn?

    h11322_1m_sss_geo_str.tif (source 1 of 2)
    U.S. Geological Survey, and National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration, 2008, h11322_1m_sss_geo_str.tif.

    Type_of_Source_Media: DVD-ROM
    Source_Contribution:
    Stretched sidescan-sonar mosaic at 1-meter resolution. The sonar image was visually interpreted to create this data layer.

    h11322_geo.tif (source 2 of 2)
    U.S. Geological Survey, and National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, 2008, h11322_geo.tif.

    Type_of_Source_Media: DVD-ROM
    Source_Scale_Denominator: 45-meter resolution
    Source_Contribution:
    Modified bathymetry image. The bathymetry image was visually interpreted to create this layer.

  2. How were the data generated, processed, and modified?

    Date: 2008 (process 1 of 3)
    The sidescan-sonar imagery and interpolated bathymetry were interpreted to create the shapefiles representing the sedimentary environments (erosion or nondeposition, sorting and reworking, deposition, and coarse-grained bedload transport). ArcView 3.3.

    Person who carried out this activity:

    Katherine McMullen
    U.S. Geological Survey
    Sediment Lab Technician
    384 Woods Hole Road
    Woods Hole, MA 02543
    USA

    (508) 548-8700 x2277 (voice)
    (508) 457-2310 (FAX)
    kmcmullen@usgs.gov

    Data sources used in this process:
    • h11322_1m_sss_geo_str.tif
    • h11322_geo.tif

    Data sources produced in this process:

    • erosion.shp
    • sortrework.shp
    • cgbt.shp
    • deposition.shp

    Date: 2008 (process 2 of 3)
    The shapefiles were copied and pasted into one shapefile in ArcView and polygons were attributed. The general snapping environment was set and verticies were adjusted so that intersections of polygons shared verticies and line segments. ArcView 3.3.

    Person who carried out this activity:

    Katherine McMullen
    U.S. Geological Survey
    Sediment Lab Technician
    384 Woods Hole Road
    Woods Hole, MA 02543
    USA

    (508) 548-8700 x2277 (voice)
    (508) 457-2310 (FAX)
    kmcmullen@usgs.gov

    Data sources used in this process:
    • erosion.shp
    • sortrework.shp
    • cgbt.shp
    • deposition.shp

    Data sources produced in this process:

    • h11322environs.shp

    Date: 2008 (process 3 of 3)
    The projection was defined as geographic WGS84 in ArcGIS 9.2 using the Define Projection Tool.

    Person who carried out this activity:

    Katherine McMullen
    U.S. Geological Survey
    Sediment Lab Technician
    384 Woods Hole Road
    Woods Hole, MA 02543
    USA

    (508) 548-8700 x2277 (voice)
    (508) 457-2310 (FAX)
    kmcmullen@usgs.gov

    Data sources used in this process:
    • h11322environs.shp

    Data sources produced in this process:

    • h11322environs.prj

  3. What similar or related data should the user be aware of?

    McMullen, K.Y., Poppe, L.J., Twomey, E.R., Danforth, W.W., Haupt, T.A., and Crocker, J.M., 2007, Sidescan-Sonar Imagery, Multibeam Bathymetry, and Surficial Geologic Interpretations of the Sea Floor in Rhode Island Sound, off Sakonnet Point, Rhode Island: Open-File Report 2007-1150, U.S. Geological Survey, Coastal and Marine Geology Program, Woods Hole Science Center, Woods Hole, MA.

    Online Links:

    McMullen, K.Y., Poppe, L.J., Denny, J.F., Haupt, T.A., and Crocker, J.M., 2008, Sidescan-Sonar Imagery and Surficial Geologic Interpretations of the Sea Floor in Central Rhode Island Sound: Open-File Report 2007-1366, U.S. Geological Survey, Coastal and Marine Geology Program, Woods Hole Science Center, Woods Hole, MA.

    Online Links:

How reliable are the data; what problems remain in the data set?

  1. How well have the observations been checked?

    Attributes have been visually checked by the compilers.

  2. How accurate are the geographic locations?

    Navigation was by differential GPS.

  3. How accurate are the heights or depths?

  4. Where are the gaps in the data? What is missing?

    Layer is complete as interpreted for these features.

  5. How consistent are the relationships among the observations, including topology?

    Several shapefiles representing various features identified on the mosaic were combined to create this data layer. The layers were edited and processed in a consistent manner.

How can someone get a copy of the data set?

Are there legal restrictions on access or use of the data?

Access_Constraints: None
Use_Constraints:
Public domain data are freely redistributable with proper metadata and source attribution. Please recognize the U.S. Geological Survey as the originator of this dataset.

  1. Who distributes the data set? (Distributor 1 of 1)

    Lawrence Poppe
    U.S. Geological Survey
    Geologist
    384 Woods Hole Road
    Woods Hole, MA 02543
    USA

    (508) 548-8700 x2314 (voice)
    (508) 457-2310 (FAX)
    lpoppe@usgs.gov

  2. What's the catalog number I need to order this data set?

    Downloadable Data: Sedimentary environments of NOAA Survey H11322 in Rhode Island Sound

  3. What legal disclaimers am I supposed to read?

    Neither the U.S. Government, the Department of the Interior, nor the USGS, nor any of their employees, contractors, or subcontractors, make any warranty, express or implied, nor assume any legal liability or responsibility for the accuracy, completeness, or usefulness of any information, apparatus, product, or process disclosed, nor represent that its use would not infringe on privately owned rights. The act of distribution shall not constitute any such warranty, and no responsibility is assumed by the USGS in the use of these data or related materials.

  4. How can I download or order the data?

  5. What hardware or software do I need in order to use the data set?

    These data are available in Environmental Systems Research Institute (ESRI) shapefile format. The user must have ArcGIS or ArcView 3.0 or greater software to read and process the data file. In lieu of ArcView or ArcGIS, the user may utilize another GIS application package capable of importing the data. A free data viewer, ArcExplorer, capable of displaying the data is available from ESRI at www.esri.com.

Who wrote the metadata?

Dates:
Last modified: 16-Jan-2009
Metadata author:
U.S. Geological Survey
c/o Katherine McMullen
Sediment Lab Technician
384 Woods Hole Road
Woods Hole, MA 02543
USA

(508) 548-8700 x2277 (voice)
(508) 457-2310 (FAX)
kmcmullen@usgs.gov

Metadata standard:
FGDC Content Standards for Digital Geospatial Metadata (FGDC-STD-001-1998)
Metadata extensions used:

Generated by mp version 2.8.25 on Fri Jan 16 11:50:13 2009