Ronadh Cox Awarded $75,000 from NSF to Study Coastal Erosion

WILLIAMSTOWN, Mass., August 5, 2014—The National Science Foundation has awarded Williams College geosciences professor Rónadh Cox $75,000 to study coastal erosion caused by severe storms that took place in western Europe between December 2013 and February 2014.

Cox is uniquely situated to study the effects of last winter’s storms. Since 2008, she and her students have been surveying boulder deposits on the Aran Islands and other locations in Ireland. She has a database of GPS-positioned photographs, topographic surveys, and measurements at 171 locations along the Irish west coast.

“We were extremely fortunate to be able to return to our field sites this summer, as it ensured that we were measuring the impacts of last winter’s storms,” she says. Seven Williams undergraduates accompanied Cox to Ireland to conduct field research for three weeks. Additional support for the fieldwork came from the Williams College Class of 1963 Sustainability Development Fund, and initial results will be presented at the Geological Society of America’s annual meeting in October.

“Students stood at the exact spots where photographs were taken as recently as last summer,” Cox says. “They were able to identify specific boulders that had been transported—many of which were tens of metric tons in weight—and measure how far they moved as a result of last winter’s storms. We also saw a lot of new bedrock erosion, with massive slabs that had been ripped up, broken into pieces, and scattered about.” Combining these data with wave heights measured by offshore buoys during the storms, Cox and her students will be able to determine the effects of strong storms on coastal regions.

“Data generated during this project will improve our ability to decipher short-term connections between storm waves and boulder transport, and long-term evolution of boulder ridges,” Cox says. “Our results will help with coastal risk assessments not only in this region but for coastal areas everywhere.”

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Founded in 1793, Williams College is the second-oldest institution of higher learning in Massachusetts. The college’s 2,000 students are taught by a faculty noted for the quality of their teaching and research, and the achievement of academic goals includes active participation of students with faculty in their research. Students’ educational experience is enriched by the residential campus environment in Williamstown, Mass., which provides a host of opportunities for interaction with one another and with faculty beyond the classroom. Admission decisions on U.S. applicants are made regardless of a student’s financial ability, and the college provides grants and other assistance to meet the demonstrated needs of all who are admitted.

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Published August 5, 2014