Modeling Nearshore, Barrier, Cliff, and Coastline Morphodynamics
Researchers use models to understand and forecast morphodynamic evolution in a variety of coastal contexts: surf zone dynamics including the short-term evolution of the nearshore seabed and shoreline; the longer-term evolution of coastline planview shapes, and associated shoreline change; and the evolution of the cross-shore profiles of barrier and cliffed coastlines. Most models represent processes and interactions between processes in some way, with approaches ranging from simple analytical or geometric treatments to highly detailed numerical models that explicitly simulate fluid dynamics. Many numerical models fall in between these end members, synthesizing the effects that waves and currents have on sediment transport without explicitly simulating the fluid dynamics. In contrast to all these process-based modeling approaches, data-driven, phenomenological modeling approaches—including statistical and machine learning techniques—are increasingly being used to forecast morphological responses, such as shoreline changes related to wave or sea-level forcing scenarios. Important current developments and opportunities in coastal modeling include addressing couplings between planview and cross-shore-profile morphodynamics, couplings between ecological and physical processes, and couplings between human and natural coastal dynamics.
