Vectorized Marsh Shorelines for the Grand Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve in Mississippi and Alabama from 1848 to 2017

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Frequently anticipated questions:

What does this data set describe?

Title:
Vectorized Marsh Shorelines for the Grand Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve in Mississippi and Alabama from 1848 to 2017
Abstract:
This dataset represents a compilation of vector shorelines in the Grand Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve (Mississippi and Alabama) from 1848 to 2017. Shoreline data were obtained from multiple data sources, including the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), the Grand Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve (GBNERR), and the Mississippi Office of Geology (MOG). All shoreline data types have uncertainty associated with delineating the shoreline location, particularly with vegetated coastlines. For this study, the "apparent shoreline" was mapped for all data sources. The "apparent shoreline" is defined as "where the actual shoreline is obscured by marsh, mangrove, cypress, or other type of marine vegetation, the outer edge of the vegetation is mapped” (Shalowitz, 1964). In the case of aerial imagery, vegetation-water boundary was digitized. Field-surveys identified the edge of the dominate vegetation or the eroding scarp line. Shorelines were obtained from the original provider, or digitized, and merged into a single file, in order to conduct shoreline change analyses. Datasets were compiled and analyzed using the R package Analyzing Moving Boundaries Using R (AMBUR) program. Rates of shoreline change can be used for evaluating living shoreline resources, decision-making for future resource planning, and restoration of both protected and open-ocean shorelines. This data release contains shorelines from 1848-2017 along with transects with rates of change joined to the data table. This metadata record should be reviewed in its entirety to ensure specific data is suitable for other studies as some shorelines were specifically digitized for use with transects in this study. Shorelines from 1942, 1975, 1986, 1992, 2004, 2006, 2014 have limited spatial resolution. All shorelines labeled GBNERR in the “Source” field of the attribute table, and 2016 and 2017 GPS shorelines from the USGS, are previously unpublished data sets.
  1. How might this data set be cited?
    Terrano, Joseph F., Smith, Kathryn E.L., Pitchford, Jonathan, McIlwain, Julius, and Archer, Michael, 20180911, Vectorized Marsh Shorelines for the Grand Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve in Mississippi and Alabama from 1848 to 2017: U.S. Geological Survey Data Release doi:10.5066/P9JMA8WK, U.S. Geological Survey, St. Petersburg, FL.

    Online Links:

  2. What geographic area does the data set cover?
    West_Bounding_Coordinate: -88.524070
    East_Bounding_Coordinate: -88.299698
    North_Bounding_Coordinate: 30.426350
    South_Bounding_Coordinate: 30.316734
  3. What does it look like?
  4. Does the data set describe conditions during a particular time period?
    Beginning_Date:
    Ending_Date: 17-Oct-2017
    Currentness_Reference:
    ground condition
  5. What is the general form of this data set?
    Geospatial_Data_Presentation_Form: Vector Digital Data Set (Polyline)
  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.
    2. What coordinate system is used to represent geographic features?
      Grid_Coordinate_System_Name: Universal Transverse Mercator
      Universal_Transverse_Mercator:
      UTM_Zone_Number: 16
      Transverse_Mercator:
      Scale_Factor_at_Central_Meridian: 0.9996
      Longitude_of_Central_Meridian: -87.0
      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_North_American_1983.
      The ellipsoid used is GRS_1980.
      The semi-major axis of the ellipsoid used is 6378137.0.
      The flattening of the ellipsoid used is 1/298.257222101.
  7. How does the data set describe geographic features?
    Shorelines_1848_2017
    Table containing attribute information associated with the 1848 to 2017 Grand Bay MS/AL vectorized marsh shorelines. (Source: USGS)
    Date_
    Date imagery was collected for the Mississippi and Alabama coast using the "MM/DD/YYYY HH:MM:SS" format. Additional information can be found in the "Year" field. The HH:MM:SS was set at 3:00:00 PM for all shorelines as a general placeholder. (Source: USGS)
    Range of values
    Minimum:01/01/1848 3:00:00PM
    Maximum:10/17/2017 3:00:00 PM
    Year
    4-digit year in which the imagery was collected. (Source: USGS)
    Range of values
    Minimum:1848
    Maximum:2017
    Units:Year
    Accuracy
    A value representing the shoreline position uncertainty associated with the imagery type, aerial imagery, which was used in the shoreline change statistical computations reported by Hapke and other (2011). See cross reference section of this metadata for more information. As stated above, several factors may influence the accuracy and uncertainty of shoreline position for vegetated shorelines, such as water level. Water level at the time of imagery collection is largely unknown for most historical imagery, therefore we cannot account for shoreline positional errors associated with water level. Published uncertainty estimates in Hapke and other (2011) are for sandy shorelines, but were used for (1942, 1975, 1986, 1992, 2004, 2006, and 2014). These values should be regarded as less conservative than errors that may account for uncertainty in digitization of vegetated shorelines from aerial imagery. The 2017 USGS GPS shoreline accuracy was calculated based on the average positional error of the GPS points for each line segment. The MOG and GBNERR GPS data was assigned a 5 meter uncertainty value based on reported values in the MOG source metadata. The 2010 and 2012 uncertainty values were computed as the square root of the sum of squares of the image resolution, image uncertainty, and the maximum digitization error of 1 meter. For additional information see the source metadata. (Source: USGS)
    Range of values
    Minimum:0.0054
    Maximum:10.8
    Units:meters
    Source
    An identifier for the source of the vector shoreline data. (Source: USGS)
    ValueDefinition
    NOAANOAA digitized topographic sheet (t-sheet) shorelines.
    MOGMississippi Office of Geology digitized shorelines.
    GBNERRData from the Grand Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve.
    USGSData digitized by the USGS Coastal and Marine Science Center- St.Petersburg, FL.
    Orig_Name
    The original name of the downloaded file. (Source: USGS) A text string describing the name of the file as it was downloaded from the original source.
    Download
    The web link for the source of the original data. (Source: USGS) A text string describing the web address, if available at the time of publication.
    Notes
    Any data documentation notes. (Source: USGS) A text string describing the notation.
    Id
    Automatically generated number that ranges between 0 and 2251. (Source: AMBUR) Sequential, unique whole numbers that are automatically generated by AMBUR. Attribute is required by AMBUR program.
    SHAPE_Leng
    System-generated attribute field, which was automatically created by ArcGIS to indicate the feature length. (Source: ESRI)
    Range of values
    Minimum:0.0138841639081
    Maximum:108319.648526
    Units:Meters
    Entity_and_Attribute_Overview:
    The entity and attribute information provided here describes the tabular data associated with the dataset. Please review the detailed descriptions that are provided (the individual attribute descriptions) for information on the values that appear as fields/table entries of the dataset.
    Entity_and_Attribute_Detail_Citation:
    The entity and attribute information was generated by the individual and/or agency identified as the originator of the data-set. Please review the rest of the metadata record for additional details and information. For details on AMBUR fields and analysis requirements, see: Jackson, C.W., Jr., 2010. Basic User Guide for the AMBUR package for R, version 1.0a. http://ambur.r-forge.r-project.org/user/ambur%20basic%20user%20guide%201_0a.pdf.

Who produced the data set?

  1. Who are the originators of the data set? (may include formal authors, digital compilers, and editors)
    • Joseph F. Terrano
    • Kathryn E.L. Smith
    • Jonathan Pitchford
    • Julius McIlwain
    • Michael Archer
  2. Who also contributed to the data set?
    Acknowledgment of the U.S. Geological Survey, St. Petersburg Coastal and Marine Science Center, as a data source would be appreciated in products developed from these data, and such acknowledgment as is standard for citation and legal practices. Sharing of new data layers developed directly from these data would also be appreciated by the U.S. Geological Survey staff. Users should be aware that comparisons with other datasets for the same area from other time periods may be inaccurate due to inconsistencies resulting from changes in photointerpretation, mapping conventions, and digital processes over time. These data are not legal documents and are not to be used as such.
  3. To whom should users address questions about the data?
    U.S. Geological Survey St Petersburg Coastal and Marine Science Center
    Attn: Joseph F. Terrano
    Contractor
    600 4th Street South
    St. Petersburg, FL

    727-502-8047 (voice)
    727-502-8182 (FAX)
    terranoj@usgs.gov

Why was the data set created?

The purpose of these data is for the calculation of shoreline change for marsh shorelines of the GBNERR from 1848 to 2017.

How was the data set created?

  1. From what previous works were the data drawn?
    T10743, T10744, T10745, T10746, T10752 T03702, T10753, T10754, T10755 and T00273. (source 1 of 6)
    National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Unknown, Vectorized Shorelines of Mississippi and Alabama coastlines for 1848, 1917 and 1957– Shorelines derived from NOAA NOS Coastal Survey Maps: U.S. Department of Commerce, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, National Ocean Service, Silver Spring, Maryland.

    Online Links:

    Type_of_Source_Media: digital data
    Source_Contribution: Historical shoreline data source
    transect based shorelines (source 2 of 6)
    Paul R. Nelson, Craig Felson, and Joseph F. Terrano, 20180911, Vectorized transect based shorelines of Mississippi and Alabama coastlines for 1942, 1975, 1986, 1992, 2004, 2006, and 2014: U.S. Geological Survey Coastal and Marine Science Center, Saint Petersburg, FL.

    Online Links:

    Type_of_Source_Media: digital data
    Source_Contribution:
    Shorelines were digitized based on transect/shoreline intersect locations and are published as part of this data release (https://doi.org/10.5066/P9JMA8WK)
    1993_MS_Coastline, 1995_MS_Coastline, 1999_MS_Coastline, 2001_MS_Coastline (source 3 of 6)
    Mississippi Office of Geology, 20030501, Vectorized Shoreline of the GBNERR derived from MOG GPS shorelines for 1993, 1995, 1999, and 2001: Mississippi Office of Geology, Jackson, Mississippi.

    Online Links:

    Type_of_Source_Media: digital data
    Source_Contribution: Historical GPS shoreline data source
    GrandBay_2010_Shoreline.shp and GrandBay_2012_Shoreline.shp (source 4 of 6)
    Paul R. Nelson, Stephen T. Bosse, and Christopher G. Smith, 20180518, A GIS Compilation of Vector Shorelines Derived from Aerial Imagery for the Grand Bay Region of Mississippi and Alabama: 2010 and 2012: U.S. Geological Survey Coastal and Marine Science Center, Saint Petersburg, FL.

    Online Links:

    Type_of_Source_Media: digital data
    Source_Contribution: Historical shoreline data source
    erosion_20130919.shp, erosion_20140313.shp, erosion_20140520.shp, erosion_20140910.shp, erosion_20141117.shp, erosion_20150224.shp, erosion_20150608.shp, erosion_20150611.shp, erosion_20150922.shp, erosion_20151210.shp, erosion_20160301.shp, erosion_20160512.shp, erosion_20160815.shp, erosion_20161107.shp, erosion_20170208.shp, erosion_20170501.shp, erosion_20170814.shp, and erosion_20171108.shp (source 5 of 6)
    Jonathan Pichford, Julius McIlwain, and Michael Archer, 20180911, Historical GPS Shorelines the Grand Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve from 2013 to 2017: U.S. Geological Survey, St Petersburg, Florida.

    Online Links:

    Other_Citation_Details:
    Shorelines were published with permission from the Grand Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve. Data contact for all GBNERR shorelines is Jonathan Pitchford (jonathan.pitchford@dmr.ms.gov).
    Type_of_Source_Media: digital data
    Source_Contribution:
    Historical GPS shoreline data source- provided by the GBNERR staff and published as part of this study (https://doi.org/10.5066/P9JMA8WK)
    GPS_Shorelines_2017_USGS (source 6 of 6)
    Joseph F. Terrano, Kathryn E.L. Smith, Nicole Khan, and Chelsea Stalk, 20180911, 2017 GPS shorelines for the Grand Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve: U.S. Geological Coastal and Marine Science Center, Saint Petersburg, FL.

    Online Links:

    Type_of_Source_Media: digital data
    Source_Contribution: GPS shoreline data for select areas of Grand Bay
  2. How were the data generated, processed, and modified?
    Date: 2018 (process 1 of 5)
    Shorelines for 1942, 1975, 1986, 1992, 2004, 2006, and 2014 were downloaded from various internet sources and digitized within ArcGIS 10.5.1 at locations where the transects (also available at, https://doi.org/10.5066/P9JMA8WK) and shorelines intersected. Using XTools Pro (v.17) "polylines from points" tool, vector shorelines were created. The location between each point was interpolated so the specific shoreline location between each point might not represent the actual shoreline position. To see the transect intersection locations, the ArcGIS editor toolbar can be used. Shorelines are not previously published and are available through this data release webpage (https://doi.org/10.5066/P9JMA8WK). Person who carried out this activity:
    Joseph Terrano
    Researcher III
    600 4th Street South
    St.Petersburg, FL
    USA

    727-502-8047 (voice)
    jterrano@usgs.gov
    Data sources used in this process:
    • Vectorized transect based shorelines for 1942, 1975, 1986, 1992, 2004, 2006, and 2014.
    Date: 2018 (process 2 of 5)
    GPS shorelines from various dates in 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, and 2017 were generated by the Grand Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve Staff. Shoreline locations were derived by walking along the shoreline with a GPS unit. GPS points were processed by the GBNERR staff and converted to vector lines by the USGS using XTools Pro (v.17) "polylines from points" tool. The location between each point was interpolated so the specific shoreline location between each point might not represent the actual shoreline position. To see the transect intersection locations, the ArcGIS editor toolbar can be used. Shorelines are not previously published and are available through this data release webpage (https://doi.org/10.5066/P9JMA8WK). Person who carried out this activity:
    Jonathan Pitchford
    Stewardship Coordinator
    6005 Bayou Heron Road
    Moss Point, MS
    USA

    228-523-4009 (voice)
    jonathan.pitchford@dmr.ms.gov
    Date: 2018 (process 3 of 5)
    GPS shorelines were generated by the U.S. Geological Survey using Ashtech Z-Xtreme DGPS units from various collection dates in 2017. Shorelines were collected by walking along the shoreline with a GPS receiver at roughly 1-meter intervals and taking measurements along the marsh scarp. GPS points were processed and turned into an ArcGIS shapefile. The points were converted into vector shorelines using XTools Pro (v.17) "polylines from points" tool. The location between each point was interpolated so the specific shoreline location between each point might not represent the actual shoreline position. To see the transect intersection locations, the ArcGIS editor toolbar can be used. Shorelines are not previously published and are available through this data release webpage (https://doi.org/10.5066/P9JMA8WK). Person who carried out this activity:
    Joseph Terrano
    Researcher III
    600 4th Street South
    St.Petersburg, FL
    USA

    727-502-8047 (voice)
    jterrano@usgs.gov
    Date: 2018 (process 4 of 5)
    Shorelines were compiled from all available data sources as both previously published shorelines or ones created for this study. Reguardless of the data source, shorelines were edited in ArcGIS (version 10.5) so that only the desired shorelines were included in the final dataset. For example, historical shorelines derived from T-sheets included lines for map boundaries and features not designated as shorelines. These features were deleted. Once shorelines were edited and checked, all dated shorelines were merged into a single dataset. Attributes were edited to include information regarding the date and source of the original data. Compiled shorelines were processed using the AMBUR (Analyzing Moving Boundaries Using R) statistical package for R (version 3.4.3) tool to add required missing attributes. AMBUR performs shoreline change analysis on vector digital shorelines. All necessary attribute fields must be present in order to run various AMBUR functions; the following fields are required for boundaries: "Id", "DATE_", "ACCURACY", "SHORE_LOC", "CLASS_1", "CLASS_2", "CLASS_3", and "GROUP". In order to determine if all the required fields were present in the merged boundary datasets, an AMBUR sub-routine (ambur.check) was used to check all shoreline shapefiles for missing attribute fields. For more information about the AMBUR shoreline requirements see the AMBUR user manual at http://ambur.r-forge.r-project.org/user/ambur%20basic%20user%20guide%201_0a.pdf. After the AMBUR analysis was finished, extra fields ("SHORE_LOC", "CLASS_1", "CLASS_2", "CLASS_3", and "GROUP") were removed as they were not necessary. Person who carried out this activity:
    Joseph Terrano
    Researcher III
    600 4th Street South
    St.Petersburg, FL
    USA

    727-502-8047 (voice)
    jterrano@usgs.gov
    Date: 13-Oct-2020 (process 5 of 5)
    Added keywords section with USGS persistent identifier as theme keyword. Person who carried out this activity:
    U.S. Geological Survey
    Attn: VeeAnn A. Cross
    Marine Geologist
    384 Woods Hole Road
    Woods Hole, MA

    508-548-8700 x2251 (voice)
    508-457-2310 (FAX)
    vatnipp@usgs.gov
  3. What similar or related data should the user be aware of?
    Hapke, C.J., Himmelstoss, E.A., Kratzmann, M.G., List, J.H. and Thieler, E.R., 2011, National assessment of shoreline change: Historical shoreline change along the New England and Mid-Atlantic coasts: U.S Geological Survey Open-File Report 2010-1118, U.S. Geological Survey, St.Petersburg.

    Online Links:

    Jackson, C.W., Jr., 2010, Basic User Guide for the AMBUR package for R, version 1.0a.: Unknown, Unknown.

    Online Links:

    Other_Citation_Details:
    User guide includes requirements for shorelines that are to be run through AMBUR
    Shalowitz, Aaron L., 1964, Shore and Sea Boundries (Volume 2): US Government Printing Office., Washington D.C..

    Online Links:

    Other_Citation_Details: Defines an "apparent shoreline" on page 177.

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

  1. How well have the observations been checked?
    No formal attribute accuracy tests were conducted.
  2. How accurate are the geographic locations?
    A formal accuracy assessment of the horizontal positional information in the dataset has not been conducted. Elevation and water levels were not addressed in this study. For additional information on data collection techniques see the source metadata.
  3. How accurate are the heights or depths?
    Several factors may influence the accuracy and uncertainty of shoreline position for vegetated shorelines, such as water level. Water level at the time of imagery collection is largely unknown for most historical imagery, therefore we cannot account for shoreline positional errors associated with water level. Published uncertainty estimates for sandy shorelines were used for all shorelines in this study, with the exception of 1993, 1995, 1999, 2001, 2010, 2012, and 2017. Shorelines in this study, with the exception of the dates above, should be regarded as less conservative than errors that may account for uncertainty in digitization of vegetated shorelines from aerial imagery. For additional information on data collection techniques see the source metadata.
  4. Where are the gaps in the data? What is missing?
    Dataset is considered complete for the information presented. Some dated shorelines do not have complete coverage over the entire study area (for example, 2017 shorelines were collected using a GPS system and are only available for select study areas); however, this was acceptable as the analysis method accounts for the available dates only. In addition, select shoreline dates (1848, 1942, 1975, 1986, 1992, 2004, 2006, and 2014) were created using a point intersection of shoreline and transect, and are intended for use only with the transects also published in this data release. 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?
    Vector shoreline features and attributes were checked for completeness and accuracy.

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:
The U.S. Geological Survey requests to be acknowledged as originator of the data in future products or derivative research. This metadata record should be reviewed in its entirety to ensure specific data is suitable for other studies as some shorelines (1942, 1975, 1986, 1992, 2004, 2006, and 2014) were specifically digitized for use with transects in this study.
  1. Who distributes the data set? (Distributor 1 of 1)
    U.S. Geological Survey St Petersburg Coastal and Marine Science Center
    Attn: Joseph F. Terrano
    Contractor
    600 4th Street South
    St. Petersburg, FL

    727-502-8047 (voice)
    727-502-8182 (FAX)
    jterrano@usgs.gov
  2. What's the catalog number I need to order this data set? Shorelines_1848_2017.shp
  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: 13-Oct-2020
Metadata author:
U.S. Geological Survey St Petersburg Coastal and Marine Science Center
Attn: Joseph F. Terrano
Contractor
600 4th Street South
St. Petersburg, FL

727-502-8047 (voice)
727-502-8182 (FAX)
jterrano@usgs.gov
Metadata standard:
Content Standard for Digital Geospatial Metadata (FGDC-STD-001-1998)
This page is <https://cmgds.marine.usgs.gov/catalog/spcmsc/Shorelines_1848_2017_metadata.faq.html>
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