The UNC Coastal Studies Institute's newest program, Coastal Engineering, will investigate coastal processes that potentially have a significant effect on residents of Northeastern North Carolina.  The barrier islands that make up the Outer Banks are both dynamic and complex systems which can be greatly affected by storm events and erosion.  As our natural environment continues to change, new challenges arise for existing and future infrastructure along the economically important and developing coastline. 

This program will investigate the effect of sea level rise on NC coastlines through applied research.  The sustainability of the infrastructure and the long term effects of sea level rise on construction will be a major component of the engineering studies.

It will be closely integrated with the existing ecology, environment and maritime components of the Institute.  Applied research on these important issues will help policy and decision makers gain a clear understanding of what is happening to our dynamic coastal environment, and support thier decision basis with meaningful engineering and science. 

2009 November Nor'easter

Shortly after a powerful Nor'easter hit the North Carolina Coast in mid November, the Coastal Engineering department of UNC CSI worked with RENCI and Duck Rescue to gather images of some of the areas of the outer banks that were affected by the high winds and waves.  A special camera, the immersive media camera system, was used to capture 360-degree high definition images.  The camera was mounted on the roof of a Duck Surf Rescue truck and Merrick Dabrowski safely drove the beaches of Nags Head as well as some locations in Rodanthe. 

The data collected will provide an opportunity to get a complete view of the beach, berms and dunes.  The images will be spliced together providing a composite video that one can “drive through.”  This video will provide an opportunity to correlate the damages from the storm with the performance of the beach.  It will also be used to compare with ground videography, aerial photography and LIDAR data being prepared by US Geological Survey(USGS).  The creation of this video will be a major step forward in understanding coastal processes and anthropogenic opportunities.

This camera could be an invaluable tool for surveying coastal infrastructure, and documenting the influence that storms may have on its longevity.