Historical shoreline positions for the coast of MA, from 1844 - 2014.

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Frequently anticipated questions:

What does this data set describe?

Title:
Historical shoreline positions for the coast of MA, from 1844 - 2014.
Abstract:
The Massachusetts Office of Coastal Zone Management (MA CZM) launched the Shoreline Change Project in 1989 to identify erosion-prone areas of the coast by compiling a database of historical (1800's-1989) shoreline positions and shoreline change maps. Trends of shoreline position over long and short-term timescales provide information to landowners, managers, and potential buyers about possible future impacts to coastal resources and infrastructure. In 2001, a 1994 shoreline was added to calculate both long- and short-term shoreline change rates at 40-meter intervals along ocean-facing sections of the Massachusetts coast. In 2013 two oceanfront shorelines for Massachusetts were added using 2008-2009 color aerial orthoimagery and 2007 topographic lidar datasets obtained from NOAA's Ocean Service, Coastal Services Center. The 2013 update also included a 2000 lidar shoreline covering most of the open-ocean coast, as well as a 2001 shoreline for the South Shore coastal region. In 2018, two new mean high water (MHW) shorelines for the Massachusetts coast extracted from lidar data collected between 2010-2014 were added to the dataset. This 2021 data release contains a compilation of previously published historical shoreline positions spanning 170 years (1844 to 2014), intended to be used as an authoritative shoreline database for the state. This dataset is an update to the Massachusetts Office of Coastal Zone Management Shoreline Change Project.
Supplemental_Information:
Cross-referenced citations are applicable to the entire dataset. Additional citations are located within individual process steps that pertain specifically to the method described in that step. The shoreline database contains both MHW and high-water line (HWL) shorelines, which can lead to incorrect estimates of rates of change since visually identified HWL-type proxy shorelines are virtually never coincident with datum-based MHW-type shorelines. For open-ocean sandy beaches, historical, proxy-based HWL shorelines tend to be landward of datum-based MHW shorelines. A proxy-datum bias (PDB) describes this unidirectional horizontal offset that occurs between the MHW shoreline and the HWL shoreline, and is stored as a line feature class appended to the reference baseline, with an attribute for the bias value as well as the bias uncertainty. The PDB is used in conjunction with the shoreline files to calculate rates of shoreline change.
  1. How might this data set be cited?
    U.S. Geological Survey, 20210831, Historical shoreline positions for the coast of MA, from 1844 - 2014.: data release doi:10.5066/P9O8QA8N, U.S. Geological Survey, Coastal and Marine Geology Program, Woods Hole Coastal and Marine Science Center, Woods Hole, MA.

    Online Links:

    This is part of the following larger work.

    Bartlett, Marie K., Farris, Amy S., Weber, Kathryn M., and Himmelstoss, Emily A., 2021, Massachusetts Shoreline Change Project: A GIS Compilation of Vector Shorelines (1844-2018): data release doi:10.5066/P9O8QA8N, U.S. Geological Survey, Reston, VA.

    Online Links:

    Other_Citation_Details:
    Suggested citation: Bartlett, M.K., Farris, A.S., Weber, K.M., and Himmelstoss, E.A., 2021, Massachusetts shoreline change project—A GIS compilation of vector shorelines for the 2021 update: U.S. Geological Survey data release, https://doi.org/10.5066/P9O8QA8N
  2. What geographic area does the data set cover?
    West_Bounding_Coordinate: -71.1231
    East_Bounding_Coordinate: -69.9258
    North_Bounding_Coordinate: 42.8943
    South_Bounding_Coordinate: 41.2374
  3. What does it look like?
    https://www.sciencebase.gov/catalog/file/get/6102d53ed34ef8d7055e79dc?name=MA_historical_shorelines_browse.PNG (PNG)
    Map view of data
  4. Does the data set describe conditions during a particular time period?
    Beginning_Date:
    Ending_Date: 2014
    Currentness_Reference:
    ground condition of the data these shorelines are based on
  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):
      • String (5402)
    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 0.0197393747. Longitudes are given to the nearest 0.0264611291. Latitude and longitude values are specified in Decimal seconds. The horizontal datum used is WGS_1984.
      The ellipsoid used is WGS_84.
      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?
    MA_Historical_Shorelines_all.shp
    This dataset includes polyline shorelines from 170 years ranging from 1844 to 2014 for the coastal region of Massachusetts. (Source: Producer Defined)
    FID
    Internal feature number. (Source: ESRI) Sequential unique whole numbers that are automatically generated.
    Shape
    Feature geometry. These shorelines are polyline shapefiles. (Source: ESRI) Coordinates defining the features.
    Contour
    The height of MHW was determined from vdatum provided by NOAA. (https://vdatum.noaa.gov/). One MHW value was used for a continuous section of coast (as opposed to using a continuously varying value). This contour attribute value is reported in meters and is always within 15 cm of the value returned by vdatum at any point along the coast. This dataset combines two methods of shoreline extraction, profile and contour. A value of zero in this field indicates the profile method of extraction was used. (Source: USGS)
    Range of values
    Minimum:0.2
    Maximum:1.44
    Date_
    Date of shoreline position; date of survey as indicated on source material in month/day/year (mm/dd/yyyy) format. A default date of 07/01 was assigned to shorelines where only the year was known (month and day unknown). Using July, the mid-point month of the calendar year, minimizes the potential offset to the actual shoreline date by a maximum of six months. (Source: USGS) Character string of length 10
    Uncy
    Estimate of shoreline position uncertainty in meters. Actual shoreline position is within the range of this value (plus or minus, meters). Methods used to calculate the uncertainty are listed in the process steps. (Source: USGS)
    Range of values
    Minimum:1
    Maximum:11.6
    Source
    Agency that provided shoreline feature or the data source used (e.g. T-sheet) to digitize shoreline feature. (Source: USGS) Character string of length 25
    Source_b
    Method of deriving shoreline feature, if known. (Source: USGS) Character string of length 25
    Default_D
    Differentiates between shorelines that have known month and day attributes and those that use the default value of 07/01 when only the year is known. (Source: USGS)
    ValueDefinition
    0Shoreline month and day are known.
    1Shoreline month and day are unknown and default value of 07/01 was used.
    Region
    Subregion of Massachusetts coast where shoreline data are located. Other shoreline files extracted from different methods required that the data be split into regions and this field correlates to those extents. Shoreline change rates were calculated by region and in some cases, regions were further split into “sheltered”, “exposed”, “or headland” to accommodate baseline orientation requirements. (Source: USGS) Character string of length 25
    Year_
    Four-digit year of shoreline (Source: USGS)
    Range of values
    Minimum:1844
    Maximum:2014
    Type
    The vertical shoreline reference. (Source: USGS)
    ValueDefinition
    MHWmean high water - a datum-based reference
    HWLHigh water line - a proxy-based historical shoreline
    Shape_Leng
    Length of feature/transect in meter units (WGS 1984 UTM Zone 19N) (Source: USGS)
    Range of values
    Minimum:0
    Maximum:unlimited

Who produced the data set?

  1. Who are the originators of the data set? (may include formal authors, digital compilers, and editors)
    • U.S. Geological Survey
  2. Who also contributed to the data set?
  3. To whom should users address questions about the data?
    U.S. Geological Survey
    Attn: Marie K. Bartlett
    384 Woods Hole Road
    Woods Hole, MA
    USA

    508-548-8700 x2262 (voice)
    508-547-2310 (FAX)
    mbartlett@usgs.gov

Why was the data set created?

Shoreline positions serve as easily understood features that can be used to describe the movement of beaches through time. This dataset includes shorelines from 170 years ranging from 1844 to 2014 for the coastal region of Massachusetts. Historical shorelines were compiled from a variety of methods including T-sheets, orthophotos, and lidar data. These data are used to calculate rates of shoreline change for the MA CZM Shoreline Change Project. Rates of long-term and short-term shoreline change were generated in a GIS using the Digital Shoreline Analysis System (DSAS) version 5.1. DSAS uses a measurement baseline method to calculate rate-of-change statistics. Transects are cast from the reference baseline to intersect each shoreline, establishing measurement points used to calculate shoreline change rates.

How was the data set created?

  1. From what previous works were the data drawn?
    MA Historical Shorelines 1 (source 1 of 4)
    Thieler, E. Robert, O'Connell, James F., and Schupp, Courtney A., 2001, The Massachusetts Shoreline Change Project: 1800s to 1994 Technical Report: U.S. Geological Survey, Coastal and Marine Geology Program, Woods Hole Coastal and Marine Science Center, Woods Hole, MA.

    Online Links:

    Type_of_Source_Media: vector digital data
    Source_Contribution:
    Historical shorelines were imported to combine with other shorelines for the new historical shoreline database for MA.
    MA historical shorelines 2 (source 2 of 4)
    Himmelstoss, Emily A., Kratzmann, Meredith G., Hapke, Cheryl J., Thieler, E. Robert, and List, Jeffrey, 20110119, The National Assessment of Shoreline Change: A GIS Compilation of Vector Shorelines and Associated Shoreline Change Data for the New England and Mid-Atlantic Coasts: Open-File Report 2010-1119, U.S. Geological Survey, Reston, VA.

    Online Links:

    Type_of_Source_Media: online
    Source_Contribution:
    Historical shorelines were imported to combine with other shorelines for the new historical shoreline database for MA.
    MA historical shorelines 3 (source 3 of 4)
    Smith, Theresa L., Himmelstoss, Emily A., and Thieler, E. Robert, 2013, Massachusetts Shoreline Change Project: A GIS Compilation of Vector Shorelines and Associated Shoreline Change Data for the 2013 update: Open-File Report 2012-1183, U.S. Geological Survey, Reston, VA.

    Online Links:

    Type_of_Source_Media: Digital and/or Hardcopy
    Source_Contribution:
    Historical shorelines were imported to combine with other shorelines for the new historical shoreline database for MA.
    MA historical shorelines 4 (source 4 of 4)
    Himmelstoss, Emily A., Farris, Amy S., and Weber, Kathryn M., 20181126, Massachusetts Shoreline Change Project: A GIS Compilation of Vector Shorelines for the 2018 update: U.S. Geological Survey, https://www.sciencebase.gov.

    Online Links:

    Type_of_Source_Media: Digital and/or Hardcopy
    Source_Scale_Denominator: 5000
    Source_Contribution:
    Shorelines published for 2010-2014 were imported into the new historical shoreline database for MA.
  2. How were the data generated, processed, and modified?
    Date: 2020 (process 1 of 5)
    Shoreline data were sought in an effort to compile as many quality shorelines as possible for the region. Historic shoreline positions (1844-2014) were compiled and projected to the same coordinate system using Esri's ArcToolbox (v.10.7.1)> Data Management Tools > Projections and Transformations > Feature > Project. Parameters: input projection = Geographic Coordinate System (NAD_1983); output projection = WGS 1984 UTM 19N ; transformation = NAD_1983_To_WGS_1984_1. Shorelines were imported into a personal geodatabase in ArcMap v10.7.1 by right-clicking on the geodatabase > Import > feature class (multiple). This process step and all subsequent process steps were performed by the same person: Marie K. Bartlett Person who carried out this activity:
    Marie K. Bartlett
    U.S. Geological Survey
    Geologist
    384 Woods Hole Rd
    Woods Hole, MA
    USA

    508-548-8700 x2306 (voice)
    508-547-2310 (FAX)
    mbartlett@usgs.gov
    Data sources used in this process:
    • MA historical shorelines 1
    • MA historical shorelines 2
    • MA historical shorelines 3
    • MA historical shorelines 4
    Data sources produced in this process:
    • MA Historical Shoreline Database
    Date: 2020 (process 2 of 5)
    A rigorous QA/QC analysis was performed on all existing shorelines in the database. Some sections of historical shorelines (1845-1862, 1962-1963) that were not accurately representing the past shoreline positions were eliminated from the appended dataset in ArcMap v10.7.1 by selecting the segment and deleting. Shoreline features were checked for overlapping data and segmentation of adjacent shoreline segments with coincident vertices. Shoreline segments of the same calendar date and year were merged to form a single polyline feature by selecting all continuos shoreline segments within an ArcMap Edit session > Start Editing < Merge. Non-adjacent, compounded shoreline segments were broken back into individual features using Advanced Editing > Explode Multipart Feature in ArcMap v10.7.1. Data sources used in this process:
    • MA Historical Shoreline Database
    Data sources produced in this process:
    • MA Historical Shorelines QAQC
    Date: 2021 (process 3 of 5)
    After all shorelines were edited in a personal geodatabase and used to compute shoreline change rates, the shoreline feature class was exported from the personal geodatabase back to a shapefile in ArcMap v.10.7.1 by right-clicking on the shoreline file > Export > To Shapefile (single). Data sources used in this process:
    • MA Historical Shorelines QAQC
    Data sources produced in this process:
    • MA Historical Shorelines shapefile
    Date: 2021 (process 4 of 5)
    The exported shoreline shapefiles were projected in Esri's ArcToolbox (v7.1) > Data Management Tools > Projections and Transformations > Project. Input projection = UTM zone 19N (WGS84); output projection = geographic coordinates (WGS84); transformation = none. Data sources used in this process:
    • MA Historical Shorelines shapefile
    Data sources produced in this process:
    • MA Historical Shorelines 1844 - 2014
    Date: 17-Nov-2021 (process 5 of 5)
    Tweaked a thesaurus name (20211117). 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?
    Weber, Kathryn M., List, Jeffrey H., and Morgan, Karen L.M., 2005, An operational mean high water datum for determination of shoreline position from topographic lidar data: Open-File Report 2005-1027, U.S. Geological Survey, Reston, VA.

    Online Links:

    Himmelstoss, Emily A., Farris, Amy S., Henderson, Rachel E., Kratzmann, Meredith G., Ergul, Ayhan, Zhang, Ouya, and Zichichi, Jessica L., 2018, Digital Shoreline Analysis System (version 5.0): U.S. Geological Survey software: software release version 5.0, U.S. Geological Survey, Reston, VA.

    Online Links:

    Ruggiero, Peter, and List, Jeffrey H., 200909, Improving Accuracy and Statistical Reliability of Shoreline Position and Change Rate Estimates: Journal of Coastal Research vol. 255, Coastal Education and Research Foundation, n/a.

    Online Links:

    Other_Citation_Details: ppg. 1069-1081

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

  1. How well have the observations been checked?
    The data provided here are a compilation of shorelines from multiple sources, spanning 170 years. The attributes are based on the requirements of the Digital Shoreline Analysis System (DSAS) software and have gone through a series of quality assurance procedures.
  2. How accurate are the geographic locations?
    Shoreline data have been acquired from 1844 to 2014, the horizontal accuracy of which varies with respect to data source from which the shorelines were digitized and the time period. Shorelines prior to 1938 have an estimated positional uncertainty of plus or minus 11.6 meters. Air photo-derived shorelines from 1969-1994 have an estimated positional uncertainty of plus or minus 6.7 meters. Shorelines derived from 15cm 2008 orthophotos have an estimated positional uncertainty of plus or minus 4.4 meters. Shorelines derived from 30cm 2008 orthophotos have an estimated positional uncertainty of plus or minus 4.9 meters. Positional uncertainty associated with shorelines extracted from lidar data (2000, 2010-2014) was calculated at each transect and includes three components: 1) the 95% confidence interval on the linear regression estimate of the shoreline position; 2) the uncertainty associated with the elevation of the raw lidar data which is stated as 0.1 m RMS in the lidar metadata; 3) the uncertainty due to extrapolation if the shoreline point was determined by extrapolation. The uncertainty for each lidar survey is the spatial average over all transects in each region.
    Along with the uncertainty associated with shorelines extracted using this method, there is also a horizontal offset between the datum-based lidar MHW shorelines and the proxy-based historical shorelines such as those derived from NOAA T-sheets and aerial photos. This offset nearly always acts in one direction and these uncertainties and offsets are accounted for in the associated data release containing shoreline changes rates and a proxy-datum bias feature.
  3. How accurate are the heights or depths?
  4. Where are the gaps in the data? What is missing?
    This shoreline file is complete and contains all historical shoreline segments used to calculate shoreline change rates along sections of the Massachusetts coastal region where shoreline position data were available. These data adequately represented the shoreline position at the time of the survey. Remaining gaps in these data, if applicable, are a consequence of non-existing data or existing data that did not meet quality assurance standards.
  5. How consistent are the relationships among the observations, including topology?
    Adjacent shoreline segments do not overlap and are not necessarily continuous. Shorelines were quality checked for accuracy. Any slight offsets between adjacent segments due to georeferencing and digitizing error are considered in the uncertainty calculations included in the attribute table. These data contain some short line segments (less than 30 meters) that were part of how the data were originally compiled and are in fact continuous with other segments of a given shoreline.

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. Please recognize the U.S. Geological Survey as the originator of the dataset.
  1. Who distributes the data set? (Distributor 1 of 1)
    U.S. Geological Survey - ScienceBase
    Federal Center, Building 810, MS 302
    Denver, CO
    USA

    1-888-275-8747 (voice)
    sciencebase@usgs.gov
  2. What's the catalog number I need to order this data set? The dataset contains polyline shapefiles of shoreline data derived from a profile or contour method, (MA_historical_shorelines.shp and other shapefile components), browse graphic (MA_historical_shorelines_browse), and the FGDC CSDGM metadata in XML format.
  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.
    Any use of trade, product, or firm names is for descriptive purposes only and does not imply endorsement by the U.S. Government.
  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 a polyline shapefile format. The user must have software to read and process the data components of a shapefile.

Who wrote the metadata?

Dates:
Last modified: 17-Nov-2021
Metadata author:
Marie K. Bartlett
U.S. Geological Survey
384 Woods Hole Road
Woods Hole, MA
USA

508-548-8700 X2306 (voice)
mbartlett@usgs.gov
Metadata standard:
FGDC Content Standards for Digital Geospatial Metadata (FGDC-STD-001-1998)
This page is <https://cmgds.marine.usgs.gov/catalog/whcmsc/SB_data_release/DR_P9O8QA8N/MA_historical_shorelines_meta.faq.html>
Generated by mp version 2.9.50 on Thu Nov 18 14:49:53 2021