Beach Morphology Modeling (XBeach)

Description

XBeach is a process-based model for storm-driven beach and dune morphodynamics — simulating wave, current, and sediment-transport processes at the event scale to predict how a beach and dune system erodes during a storm. I run it nested inside a regional storm-surge and wave hindcast or forecast (e.g. SCHISM-WWM), which supplies the offshore water-level and wave boundary conditions the local XBeach domain needs.

• Storm-driven beach and dune erosion simulation, event by event
• Nested regional-to-local modeling: a regional storm hindcast/forecast feeding the high-resolution XBeach domain
• Validation against pre- and post-storm topographic surveys (e.g. airborne lidar)
• Shoreline and dune-erosion risk assessment for coastal engineering and resilience planning

Example

Shoreline modeling for Hurricane Ike in Bolivar Peninsula

Thumbnail: Bolivar Peninsula, TX, before/after Hurricane Ike (2008) — public domain (USGS).