Sea-level change and subsidence in the Delaware Estuary during the last ~2200 years

Daria Nikitina; Andrew C. Kemp; Simon E. Engelhart; Benjamin P. Horton; David F. Hill; Robert E. Kopp

doi:10.1016/j.ecss.2015.08.012

Sea-level change and subsidence in the Delaware Estuary during the last ~2200 years

Daria Nikitina^*, Andrew C. Kemp, Simon E. Engelhart, Benjamin P. Horton, David F. Hill, Robert E. Kopp

^*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Journal Publications and Reviews › RGC 21 - Publication in refereed journal › peer-review

15 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

We produced eight new sea-level index points that reconstruct a ~2.5 m relative sea-level (RSL) rise at Sea Breeze in the Delaware Bay from ~200 BCE to 1800 CE. The precision of our reconstruction improved upon existing data by using high-resolution surveying methods, AMS radiocarbon dating of in-situ plant macrofossils collected immediately above the basal contact between pre-Holocene sand and salt-marsh sediments, foraminifera as sea-level indicators, and by accounting for tidal range changes through time. Our new data were combined with a database of 65 sea-level index points available for the Delaware Bay to estimate the rate of RSL rise in the upper (1.26 ± 0.33 mm/yr) and lower bay (1.30 ± 0.36 mm/yr) using a spatial-temporal model. Correction for changes in tidal range through time removed the disparity in rate between the upper and lower Delaware Bay that had previously been postulated. After paleotidal correction, the rates of RSL rise estimated for the Delaware Bay (1.25 ± 0.27 mm/yr) correlate with the ~1.3 mm/yr rate reported for New Jersey, Maryland, and Virginia, and confirm that the maximal ongoing forebulge collapse along the U.S. Atlantic coast is focused on the mid-Atlantic. © 2015 Elsevier Ltd.

Original language	English
Pages (from-to)	506-519
Journal	Estuarine, Coastal and Shelf Science
Volume	164
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecss.2015.08.012
Publication status	Published - 5 Oct 2015
Externally published	Yes

Bibliographical note

Publication details (e.g. title, author(s), publication statuses and dates) are captured on an “AS IS” and “AS AVAILABLE” basis at the time of record harvesting from the data source. Suggestions for further amendments or supplementary information can be sent to [email protected].

Funding

We thank Chris Vane, West Chester University and Earthwatch students for valuable field assistance. Funding for this study was provided by EPA grant 96284800 , NICRR grant DE-FC02-06ER64298 , National Science Foundation awards EAR 1052848 , 1402017 , OCE 1458904 , 1458903 and ARC 1203415 , NOAA grants NA11OAR4310101 and NA10OAR4170075 , and New Jersey Sea Grant Consortium project 6410-0012, and USDA National Institute of Food and Agriculture , Hatch funding and the Rhode Island Agricultural Experiment Station contribution 5432 . This paper is a contribution to PALSEA 2.

Research Keywords

Glacial-isostatic adjustment
New Jersey
Peat
Salt marsh
The U.S. Atlantic coast
Tidal range

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title = "Sea-level change and subsidence in the Delaware Estuary during the last ~2200 years",

abstract = "We produced eight new sea-level index points that reconstruct a ~2.5 m relative sea-level (RSL) rise at Sea Breeze in the Delaware Bay from ~200 BCE to 1800 CE. The precision of our reconstruction improved upon existing data by using high-resolution surveying methods, AMS radiocarbon dating of in-situ plant macrofossils collected immediately above the basal contact between pre-Holocene sand and salt-marsh sediments, foraminifera as sea-level indicators, and by accounting for tidal range changes through time. Our new data were combined with a database of 65 sea-level index points available for the Delaware Bay to estimate the rate of RSL rise in the upper (1.26 ± 0.33 mm/yr) and lower bay (1.30 ± 0.36 mm/yr) using a spatial-temporal model. Correction for changes in tidal range through time removed the disparity in rate between the upper and lower Delaware Bay that had previously been postulated. After paleotidal correction, the rates of RSL rise estimated for the Delaware Bay (1.25 ± 0.27 mm/yr) correlate with the ~1.3 mm/yr rate reported for New Jersey, Maryland, and Virginia, and confirm that the maximal ongoing forebulge collapse along the U.S. Atlantic coast is focused on the mid-Atlantic. {\textcopyright} 2015 Elsevier Ltd.",

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AU - Hill, David F.

AU - Kopp, Robert E.

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AB - We produced eight new sea-level index points that reconstruct a ~2.5 m relative sea-level (RSL) rise at Sea Breeze in the Delaware Bay from ~200 BCE to 1800 CE. The precision of our reconstruction improved upon existing data by using high-resolution surveying methods, AMS radiocarbon dating of in-situ plant macrofossils collected immediately above the basal contact between pre-Holocene sand and salt-marsh sediments, foraminifera as sea-level indicators, and by accounting for tidal range changes through time. Our new data were combined with a database of 65 sea-level index points available for the Delaware Bay to estimate the rate of RSL rise in the upper (1.26 ± 0.33 mm/yr) and lower bay (1.30 ± 0.36 mm/yr) using a spatial-temporal model. Correction for changes in tidal range through time removed the disparity in rate between the upper and lower Delaware Bay that had previously been postulated. After paleotidal correction, the rates of RSL rise estimated for the Delaware Bay (1.25 ± 0.27 mm/yr) correlate with the ~1.3 mm/yr rate reported for New Jersey, Maryland, and Virginia, and confirm that the maximal ongoing forebulge collapse along the U.S. Atlantic coast is focused on the mid-Atlantic. © 2015 Elsevier Ltd.

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JO - Estuarine, Coastal and Shelf Science

JF - Estuarine, Coastal and Shelf Science

ER -

Sea-level change and subsidence in the Delaware Estuary during the last ~2200 years

Abstract

Bibliographical note

Funding

Research Keywords

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