Delineated Coastal Cliff Transects Derived from Post-Hurricane Maria Lidar Elevation Data Collected from Puerto Rico: 2018

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Frequently anticipated questions:

What does this data set describe?

Title:
Delineated Coastal Cliff Transects Derived from Post-Hurricane Maria Lidar Elevation Data Collected from Puerto Rico: 2018
Abstract:
The National Assessment of Coastal Change Hazards project aims to understand and forecast coastal landscape change. This dataset consists of delineated coastal cliff transects that may be used to assess the hazard posed by eroding coastal cliffs on the islands of Puerto Rico, Culebra, and Vieques. The delineation of cliff tops and toes can be used as an input into cliff hazard metrics and to measure overall cliff changes over time. Cliff tops and cliff toes were identified along three-dimensional (3D) transects using the Cliff Feature Delineation Tool (Seymour and others, 2020), which assigned coordinate locations (X, Y, Z) of cliff features over a 140,244-meter (m) stretch of the Puerto Rican coastline at 10-m intervals and output them as either polyline (cliff transects) or point (cliff top or toe) shapefiles. Feature delineation was preformed using post-Hurricane Maria (landfall was September 20, 2017) rasterized topobathy lidar elevation data collected by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and published by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration National Centers for Environmental Information (2018) as bare earth digital elevation model (DEM) files. The delineation tool (Seymour and others, 2020) was used to generate 3D point features in Esri ArcGIS shapefile format representing the cliff transects, these files should be opened in a 3D geographic information system (GIS) viewer.
  1. How might this data set be cited?
    Bendik, Kirsten J., Seymour, Alexander C., and Doran, Kara S., 20210121, Delineated Coastal Cliff Transects Derived from Post-Hurricane Maria Lidar Elevation Data Collected from Puerto Rico: 2018: U.S. Geological Survey Data Release doi:10.5066/F7610XCX, U.S. Geological Survey, St. Petersburg, FL.

    Online Links:

  2. What geographic area does the data set cover?
    West_Bounding_Coordinate: -67.275125
    East_Bounding_Coordinate: -65.239545
    North_Bounding_Coordinate: 18.545633
    South_Bounding_Coordinate: 17.919774
  3. What does it look like?
  4. Does the data set describe conditions during a particular time period?
    Beginning_Date: 03-Jul-2018
    Ending_Date: 17-Aug-2018
    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 Point data set. It contains the following vector data types (SDTS terminology):
      • Point (12,918)
    2. What coordinate system is used to represent geographic features?
      Grid_Coordinate_System_Name: Universal Transverse Mercator
      Universal_Transverse_Mercator:
      UTM_Zone_Number: 20
      Transverse_Mercator:
      Scale_Factor_at_Central_Meridian: 0.9996
      Longitude_of_Central_Meridian: -63.0
      Latitude_of_Projection_Origin: 0.0
      False_Easting: 500000.0
      False_Northing: 0.0
      Planar coordinates are encoded using coordinate pair
      Abscissae (x-coordinates) are specified to the nearest 0.6096
      Ordinates (y-coordinates) are specified to the nearest 0.6096
      Planar coordinates are specified in Meter
      The horizontal datum used is D WGS 1984.
      The ellipsoid used is WGS 1984.
      The semi-major axis of the ellipsoid used is 6378137.0.
      The flattening of the ellipsoid used is 1/298.257223563.
  7. How does the data set describe geographic features?
    CliffTransects_PuertoRico.shp
    Shapefile and associated attribute table comprised of cliff transect features delineated from post-Hurricane Maria topobathy lidar elevation data acquired on the islands of Puerto Rico, Culebra, and Vieques in 2018. (Source: USGS)
    FID
    The ObjectID field created by default by ArcGIS. Establishes a unique ID for each shapefile feature or table entry. (Source: ESRI)
    Range of values
    Minimum:0
    Maximum:12,917
    Shape
    Shape geometry field created by default by ArcGIS. Labels features' geometry type. (Source: ESRI)
    ValueDefinition
    Polyline ZMCliff Transect
    FMF
    The unique identifier per each processing run for the transect and also records the distance along the offshore baseline at which the transect was generated. (Source: USGS)
    Range of values
    Minimum:10
    Maximum:10960
    Shape_Leng
    The planar transect length. (Source: USGS)
    Range of values
    Minimum:26
    Maximum:305
    Units:meters
    Start_Elev
    The elevation at the seaward start of the transect, referenced to PRVD02. (Source: USGS)
    Range of values
    Minimum:-13.3656
    Maximum:21.2998
    Units:meters
    END_ELEV
    The elevation at the landward end of the transect, referenced to PRVD02. (Source: USGS)
    Range of values
    Minimum:-4.3418
    Maximum:76.1735
    Units:meters
    BEARING
    The compass bearing of the transect, measured from seaward start to landward end. (Source: USGS)
    Range of values
    Minimum:0.0509
    Maximum:359.9179
    Units:meters
    Run
    Records the processing region as well as the processing settings used in the Cliff Feature Delineation Tool to generate the transects. (Source: USGS) Values recorded reflect multiple processing regions and various settings associated with numerous runs of the Cliff Feature Delineation Tool (Seymour and others, 2020). Different iterations correspond to particular sections of coastline and are recorded in text format.
    TranLink
    References transect line, which corresponds to generated cliff tops and toes. (Source: USGS) Values recorded reflect the transect numbers and regional names that coincide with multiple processing regions and settings associated with numerous runs of the Cliff Feature Delineation Tool (Seymour and others, 2020). Different iterations correspond to particular sections of coastline and are recorded in text format.

Who produced the data set?

  1. Who are the originators of the data set? (may include formal authors, digital compilers, and editors)
    • Kirsten J. Bendik
    • Alexander C. Seymour
    • Kara S. Doran
  2. Who also contributed to the data set?
  3. To whom should users address questions about the data?
    U.S. Geological Survey
    Attn: Alexander Seymour
    600 4th Street South
    Saint Petersburg, FL
    UNITED STATES

    727-502-8122 (voice)
    727-502-8001 (FAX)
    aseymour@usgs.gov

Why was the data set created?

To provide data on the morphology of coastal cliffs in Puerto Rico and surrounding islands offshore of the east coast. Additional survey and data details are available from the U.S. Geological Survey Coastal and Marine Geoscience Data System (CMGDS) at https://cmgds.marine.usgs.gov/fan_info.php?fan=2018-307-DD.

How was the data set created?

  1. From what previous works were the data drawn?
    2018-307-DD (source 1 of 1)
    National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE), and Joint Airborne Lidar Bathymetry Technical Center of Expertise (JALBTCX), 20180828, 2018 USACE FEMA Topobathy Lidar DEM: Main Island, Culebra, and Vieques, Puerto Rico.

    Online Links:

    Type_of_Source_Media: Online digital data
    Source_Contribution:
    A lidar survey that was used to estimate cliff morphology variables.
  2. How were the data generated, processed, and modified?
    Date: 19-Oct-2020 (process 1 of 1)
    The Cliff Feature Delineation Tool (Seymour and others, 2020) was used to extract cliff top and toe points at 10-m alongshore intervals wherever coastal cliffs were present along the Puerto Rico coastline. For more information on how cliff top and toe features were extracted, please see USGS Open-File Report 2020–1070 (Seymour and others, 2020). The process of delineating the cliff transect features began by using a 2018 post-Maria bare earth topobathy lidar DEM as the elevation input. The DEM downloaded from the NOAA NCEI site was a 32-bit GeoTiff raster image with a 1-m grid spacing. Horizontal positions were provided in geographic coordinates referenced to the World Geodetic System of 1984 (WGS84) Universal Transverse Mercator (UTM) Zone 20 North (20N) and vertical positions were referenced to the Puerto Rico Vertical Datum of 2002 (PRVD02). Baseline inputs were represented by Esri ArcGIS shoreline vectors or generated by the Cliff Feature Delineation Tool. A user parameterized tool iterated separately for regions of a cliff that had relatively similar morphology, in all cases following rules outlined in the Seymour and others (2020) user guide. The final file, CliffTransects_PuertoRico.shp, was output with horizontal positions and elevations remaining in their native projected coordinate reference systems. Outputs went through a QA/QC process in ArcGIS Pro and were edited, if needed.
  3. What similar or related data should the user be aware of?
    Seymour, A.C., Hapke, C.J., and Warrick, J., 2020, Cliff Feature Delineation Tool and Baseline Builder Version 1.0: U.S. Geological Survey Open File Report 2020-1070, 54p. doi:10.3133/ofr20201070, U.S. Geological Survey - St. Petersburg Coastal and Marine Science Center, St.Petersburg, Florida.

    Online Links:

    Seymour, A.C., Hapke, C.J., and Warrick, J., 2020, Cliff Feature Delineation Tool and Baseline Builder Version 1.0: U.S. Geological Survey Software Release doi:10.5066/P9UKW7PO, U.S. Geological Survey - St. Petersburg Coastal and Marine Science Center, St. Petersburg, Florida.

    Online Links:

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

  1. How well have the observations been checked?
  2. How accurate are the geographic locations?
    Horizontal accuracy of the cliff toe is represented only by the published horizontal error estimate (1 meter) of the lidar-derived DEM that was used to generate cliff features.
  3. How accurate are the heights or depths?
    Vertical accuracy of the cliff toe is represented only by the published vertical error estimate (0.196 meters) of the lidar-derived DEM that was used to generate cliff features.
  4. Where are the gaps in the data? What is missing?
    This dataset is considered complete for the information presented as described in the abstract section. Users are advised to read the rest of the metadata record carefully for additional details.
  5. How consistent are the relationships among the observations, including topology?
    Morphologic features were checked for Quality Assurance/Quality Control (QA/QC) in ArcGIS Pro.

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 from the U.S. Government are freely redistributable with proper metadata and source attribution. The U.S. Geological Survey requests to be acknowledged as originators of the data in future products or derivative research.
  1. Who distributes the data set? (Distributor 1 of 1)
    U.S. Geological Survey
    Attn: Kara S. Doran
    600 4th Street South
    Saint Petersburg, FL

    727-502-8117 (voice)
    727-502-8001 (FAX)
    kdoran@usgs.gov
  2. What's the catalog number I need to order this data set?
  3. What legal disclaimers am I supposed to read?
    This digital publication was prepared by an agency of the United States Government. Although these data have been processed successfully on a computer system at the U.S. Geological Survey, no warranty expressed or implied is made regarding the display or utility of the data on any other system, nor shall the act of distribution imply any such warranty. The U.S. Geological Survey shall not be held liable for improper or incorrect use of the data described and (or) contained herein. Reference herein to any specific commercial product, process, or service by trade name, trademark, manufacturer, or otherwise does not constitute or imply its endorsement, recommendation, or favoring by the United States Government or any agency thereof.
  4. How can I download or order the data?

Who wrote the metadata?

Dates:
Last modified: 30-Nov-2020
Metadata author:
U.S. Geological Survey
Attn: Kirsten J. Bendik
600 4th Street South
Saint Petersburg, FL
UNITED STATES

727-502-8034 (voice)
727-502-8001 (FAX)
kbendik@contractor.usgs.gov
Metadata standard:
Content Standard for Digital Geospatial Metadata (FGDC-STD-001-1998)
This page is <https://cmgds.marine.usgs.gov/catalog/spcmsc/CliffTransects_metadata.faq.html>
Generated by mp version 2.9.50 on Tue Sep 21 18:18:43 2021