Coastal Circulation and Sediment Dynamics in Hanalei Bay, Kauai. PART I: Measurements of waves, currents, temperature, salinity and turbidity: June-August, 2005

High-resolution measurements of waves, currents, water levels, temperature,
salinity and turbidity were made in Hanalei Bay, northern Kauai, Hawaii, during
the summer of 2005 to better understand coastal circulation and sediment
dynamics in coral reef habitats. A series of bottom-mounted instrument packages
were deployed in water depths of 10 m or less to collect long-term,
high-resolution measurements of waves, currents, water levels, temperature,
salinity and turbidity. These data were supplemented with a series of vertical
instrument casts to characterize the vertical and spatial variability in water
column properties within the bay. The purpose of these measurements was to
collect hydrographic data to learn how waves, currents and water column
properties vary spatially and temporally in an embayment that hosts a nearshore
coral reef ecosystem adjacent to a major river drainage. These measurements
support the ongoing process studies being conducted as part of the U.S.
Geological Survey (USGS) Coastal and Marine Geology Program's Coral Reef
Project; the ultimate goal is to better understand the transport mechanisms of
sediment, larvae, pollutants and other particles in coral reef settings. This
report, the first part in a series, describes data acquisition, processing and
analysis.

[Summary provided by the USGS.]