Digital Bathymetric Grid and Associated Spatial Data Files for USGS Cruise 07CCT01

The Gulf Islands National Seashore (GUIS) is composed of a series of barrier islands along the Mississippi - Alabama coastline. Historically these islands have been undergoing long-term change. The devastation of Hurricane Katrina in 2005 prompted questions about the stability of the barrier islands and their potential response against future storm impacts. Additionally, there was concern from the National Park Service (NPS) about the preservation of the historical Fort Massachusetts, located on West Ship Island. Prior to 1969, Ship Island was an individual island. In 1969 Hurricane Camille breached Ship Island, widening the cut and splitting it into what is now known as West Ship Island and East Ship Island. In July of 2007, the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) was able to provide the NPS with a small bathymetry survey of Camille Cut using high-resolution single-beam bathymetry. This provided the GUIS with a post-Katrina assessment of the bathymetry in Camille Cut and along the northern shoreline directly in front of Fort Massachusetts. Ultimately, this survey became an initial bathymetry dataset toward a larger USGS effort included in the Northern Gulf of Mexico (NGOM) Ecosystem Change and Hazard Susceptibility Project.