Physiography

The following online resources describe and discuss the geology and geography of the areas affected by Hurricane Katrina.

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Satellite image of Mississippi River Delta. Image courtesy of NASA Visible Earth. Details

• Coastal Storms. This online article is part of the USGS Exploring Earth Hazards site. The article highlights the causes of coastal storms like hurricanes and northeasters, and the hazards associated with them. The website also includes links to the USGS Coastal and Marine Geology Center and NOAA’s National Hurricane Center. (more info)
  
• Geologic History of the Southeastern United States and Its Effects on Soils of the Region . This article is part of a larger report describing the water and chemical transport in soils of the Southeastern USA. This site describes the geologic history of the southeastern United States as a framework to explain the distribution of rock and sediment in the region and the evolution of the landscape, and provides a useful overview of the geology and geologic history of the region. (more info)
  
• Gulf Coast Geology. This website is part of the Environmental Protection Agency's Gulf of Mexico Program. The program includes projects encompassing everything from improving septic systems to planting seagrass to protecting habitats. All projects aim to improve the ecological and economical health of the region. The site provides information about Gulf Coast geology as well as links to information about the Ice Age. (more info)
  
• Gulf Coast Geology Online Interactive Mapping System. This interactive mapping system is one component of the U. S. Geological Survey's Framework Studies and Assessment of the Gulf Coast Project. This project provides the geologic, geophysical, and geochemical framework for the region. The mapping system displays different aspects of the energy resources which reside in the Gulf of Mexico Basin, one of the major hydrocarbon producing areas of the world. (more info)
  
• Sea level rise and subsidence: Implications for Flooding in New Orleans, Louisiana. This 2003 article describes the potential problems associated with sea level rise and subsidence in New Orleans. The article forewarns of serious losses in property in New Orleans unless flood-control levees and pumping stations are upgraded. (more info)
  
• Water and Chemical Transport in Soils of the Southeastern USA. This online document describes the water and chemical transport in soils of the southeastern USA. Contents include a geologic history of the southern United States, climate overview, land resources, land-use and land-cover, soils, flow and transport processes and examples of water and chemical transport in different parts of the southeastern USA. (more info)
  
• Western & Central Gulf of Mexico. This website houses a collection of online publications from the Coastal and Marine Geology Program in the United States Geological Survey. The collection topic is coastal and marine geology in the western and central Gulf of Mexico. Publications include maps, research projects, hazard assessments, open file reports, resource assessments, and digital datasets. The collection may be searched by topic and/or content type. Users may also follow links to other regional collections within the Coastal and Marine Geology Program. (more info)