Sediments of Western Mass Bay acquired in 1976 (MEISBURGER76 shapefile)

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Frequently anticipated questions:


What does this data set describe?

Title:
Sediments of Western Mass Bay acquired in 1976 (MEISBURGER76 shapefile)
Abstract:
A seismic reflection survey with concurrent bottom sampling was conducted in western Massachusetts Bay to obtain information on bottom topography and sediments, subbottom structure and composition, and the location of sand deposits potentially usable for restoration and nourishment of nearby beaches. Primary sediment data was derived from 43 cores. The predominant sediments of the surface and shallow subsurface deposits in the study area are fine sand, sand and gravel, and clayey silt. Sand suitable for beach restoration and nourishment on the contiguous coast occurs only locally and in generally small quantity relative to other sediments of the study area.
  1. How might this data set be cited?
    Poppe, Lawrence J., 2003, Sediments of Western Mass Bay acquired in 1976 (MEISBURGER76 shapefile): Open-File Report 03-001, 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.

    Poppe, L.J., Paskevich, V.F., Williams, S.J., Hastings, M.E., Kelley, J.T., Belknap, D.F., Ward, L.G., Fitzgerald, D.M., and Larsen, P.F., 2003, Surficial Sediment Data from the Gulf of Maine, Georges Bank, and vicinity: a GIS Compilation: Open-File Report 03-001, U. S. Geological Survey, Reston, VA.

    Online Links:

    Other_Citation_Details: 1 CD-ROM
  2. What geographic area does the data set cover?
    West_Bounding_Coordinate: -70.960700
    East_Bounding_Coordinate: -70.676300
    North_Bounding_Coordinate: 42.600130
    South_Bounding_Coordinate: 42.168040
  3. What does it look like?
    http://pubs.usgs.gov/of/2003/of03-001/data/seddata/meisburger76/meisburger76-thumb.gif (GIF)
    Thumbnail image showing extent and distribution of data layer coverage.
    http://pubs.usgs.gov/of/2003/of03-001/data/seddata/meisburger76/meisburger76.gif (GIF)
    Image map showing extent and distribution of data layer coverage.
  4. Does the data set describe conditions during a particular time period?
    Calendar_Date: 1976
    Currentness_Reference:
    publication date
  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):
      • Entity point (42)
    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 0.00001. Longitudes are given to the nearest 0.00001. Latitude and longitude values are specified in Decimal degrees. The horizontal datum used is North American Datum of 1927.
      The ellipsoid used is Clarke 1866.
      The semi-major axis of the ellipsoid used is 6378206.400000.
      The flattening of the ellipsoid used is 1/294.978698.
  7. How does the data set describe geographic features?
    meisburger76.dbf
    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.
    PROJECTID
    Name assigned to the data for future identification. (Source: Compiler)
    ValueDefinition
    MEISBURGER1976Information unavailable from original metadata.
    DEVICE
    Equipment used to collect samples (Source: Scientist)
    ValueDefinition
    VIBRACOREVibracore device
    CORE_ID_
    Numeric identifier assigned to each core (Source: Scientist)
    Range of values
    Minimum:151
    Maximum:193
    Units:integer count
    Resolution:1
    LATITUDE
    Latitude coordinate of sample location (Source: Scientist)
    Range of values
    Minimum:42.16804
    Maximum:42.60013
    Units:Decimal Degrees
    Resolution:0.00001
    LONGITUDE
    Longitude coordinate of sample location (Source: Scientist)
    Range of values
    Minimum:-70.96070
    Maximum:-70.67630
    Units:Decimal Degrees
    Resolution:0.00001
    DESCRIPTIO
    Lithologic description of the surficial sediment (Source: Scientist)
    ValueDefinition
    SILTY SAND AND GRAVELsilty sand and gravel content
    SILTY MEDIUM SANDsilty medium sand content
    SILTY FINE SANDsilty fine sand content
    SILTY FINE COARSE SANDsilty fine coarse sand content
    SILTY CLAYsilty clay content
    SILT, SHELLS, AND GRAVELsilt, shells, and gravel conent
    SILT, SAND AND GRAVELsilt, sand and gravel content
    SILTsilt content
    SAND, SHELLS, AND GRAVELsand, shells, and gravel content
    SAND AND GRAVELsand and gravel content
    MEDIUM SAND AND GRAVELmedium sand and gravel content
    MEDIUM SANDmedium sand content
    FINE SAND AND SHELLSfine sand and shells content
    FINE SAND AND GRAVELfine sand and gravel content
    FINE SANDfine sand content
    FINE COARSE SANDfine coarse sand content
    COARSE SAND AND GRAVELcoarse sand and gravel content
    Character string containing verbal description of the sediment
    MEDIAN_PHI
    50th percentile of the grain size distribution in phi units (Source: Scientist)
    Range of values
    Minimum:0.31
    Maximum:2.95
    Units:phi
    Resolution:0.01
    MEAN_PHI
    Mean grain size in phi units (Source: Scientist)
    Range of values
    Minimum:0.37
    Maximum:2.57
    Units:phi
    Resolution:0.01
    STDEV_PHI
    Standard deviation of the grain size distribution in phi units (Source: Scientist)
    Range of values
    Minimum:0.4
    Maximum:1.08
    Units:phi
    Resolution:0.01

Who produced the data set?

  1. Who are the originators of the data set? (may include formal authors, digital compilers, and editors)
    • Lawrence J. Poppe
  2. Who also contributed to the data set?
    Please view the cross reference information for the original data set credit to Meisburger (1976). Larry Poppe for creating the shapefile.
  3. To whom should users address questions about the data?
    Lawrence J. Poppe
    U.S. Geological Survey
    Geologist
    384 Woods Hole Road
    Woods Hole, MA
    USA

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

Why was the data set created?

The purpose of this data layer is to release a digital version of the sediment data published by Meisburger (1976).

How was the data set created?

  1. From what previous works were the data drawn?
    Information unavailable from original metadata. (source 1 of 1)
    Meisburger, E.P., 1976, Geomorphology and Sediments of Western Massachusetts Bay: Technical Paper 76-3, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Coastal Engineering Research Center, Fort Belvoir, VA.

    Type_of_Source_Media: paper
    Source_Contribution: Information unavailable from original metadata.
  2. How were the data generated, processed, and modified?
    Date: 13-Sep-2002 (process 1 of 5)
    The source information was imported from an ASCII text file to an ArcView table. The table was later converted to an event theme in ArcView and saved as the final shapefile. Person who carried out this activity:
    Lawrence J. Poppe
    U.S. Geological Survey
    Geologist
    384 Woods Hole Road
    Woods Hole, MA
    USA

    (508) 548-8700 x2314 (voice)
    (508) 457-2310 (FAX)
    lpoppe@usgs.gov
    Data sources used in this process:
    • meisburger76.txt
    Data sources produced in this process:
    • meisburger76.shp
    • meisburger76.dbf
    • meisburger76.shx
    Date: 02-Dec-2015 (process 2 of 5)
    Edits to the metadata were made to fix any errors that MP v 2.9.32 flagged. This is necessary to enable the metadata to be successfully harvested for various data catalogs. In some cases, this meant adding text "Information unavailable" or "Information unavailable from original metadata" for those required fields that were left blank. Other minor edits were probably performed (title, publisher, publication place, etc.). Minor fixes to the attribute format for some attributes was needed. The metadata date (but not the metadata creator) was edited to reflect the date of these changes. The metadata available from a harvester may supersede metadata bundled within a download file. Compare the metadata dates to determine which metadata file is most recent. Person who carried out this activity:
    U.S. Geological Survey
    Attn: VeeAnn A. Cross
    Marine Geologist
    384 Woods Hole Rd.
    Woods Hole, MA

    508-548-8700 x2251 (voice)
    508-457-2310 (FAX)
    vatnipp@usgs.gov
    Date: 20-Jul-2018 (process 3 of 5)
    USGS Thesaurus keywords added to the keyword section. 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
    Date: 18-Nov-2019 (process 4 of 5)
    Crossref DOI link was added as the first link in the metadata. 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
    Date: 08-Sep-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?
    Meisburger, E.P., 1976, Geomorphology and Sediments of Western Massachusetts Bay: Technical Paper 76-3, 78 p., U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Fort Belvoir, VA.


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

  1. How well have the observations been checked?
    All attributes were checked by the compilers in a consistent manner.
  2. How accurate are the geographic locations?
    Original report did not discuss navigational methods. Navigational accuracy is unknown.
  3. How accurate are the heights or depths?
  4. Where are the gaps in the data? What is missing?
    Sediment descriptions, grain-size distribution statistics, and sample identifiers are provided for 42 cores.
  5. How consistent are the relationships among the observations, including topology?
    No additional checks for topological consistency were performed on this data.

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 (USGS) as the source of this information.
  1. Who distributes the data set? (Distributor 1 of 1)
    Lawrence J. Poppe
    U.S. Geological Survey
    Geologist
    384 Woods Hole Road
    Woods Hole, MA
    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
  3. What legal disclaimers am I supposed to read?
    Although these data have been used by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), U.S. Department of the Interior (DOI), no warranty expressed or implied is made by the U.S. Geological Survey as to the accuracy of the data. 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?
    • Availability in digital form:
      Data format: Five files (meisburger76.shp, meisburger76.dbf, meisburger76.shx, meisburger76.sbx, meisburger76.sbn) comprising the ArcView point shapefile components, 'prj' and 'avl' files, metadata text file and browse graphic. in format SHP (version 3.2) ESRI point shapefile Size: 0.01
      Network links: http://pubs.usgs.gov/of/2003/of03-001/data/seddata/meisburger76/meisburger76.zip
      Media you can order: CD-ROM (Density 650 Mbytes) (format ISO 9660)
      Note: The user must have a computer system with a CD-ROM available. To browse the information contained on this CD-ROM, the user must have a current WWW browser available. The user must also have software installed on their computer to unzip the archived file.
    • Cost to order the data: None

  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-Nov-2021
Metadata author:
Lawrence J. Poppe
U.S. Geological Survey
Geologist
384 Woods Hole Road
Woods Hole, MA
USA

(508) 548-8700 x2314 (voice)
(508) 457-2310 (FAX)
whsc_data_contact@usgs.gov
Contact_Instructions:
The metadata contact email address is a generic address in the event the metadata contact is no longer with the USGS or the email is otherwise invalid.
Metadata standard:
FGDC Content Standards for Digital Geospatial Metadata (FGDC-STD-001-1998)

This page is <https://cmgds.marine.usgs.gov/catalog/whcmsc/open_file_report/ofr2003-001/meisburger76.shp.faq.html>
Generated by mp version 2.9.50 on Tue Nov 16 10:06:29 2021