Impacts of Hurricane Andrew on carbonate platform environments, northern Great Bahama Bank

Research Article| October 01, 1993 Impacts of Hurricane Andrew on carbonate platform environments, northern Great Bahama Bank Stephen K. Boss; Stephen K. Boss 1Curriculum in Marine Sciences, 12-5 Venable Hall CB 3300, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, North Carolina 27599 Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar A. Conrad Neumann A. Conrad Neumann 1Curriculum in Marine Sciences, 12-5 Venable Hall CB 3300, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, North Carolina 27599 Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar Author and Article Information Stephen K. Boss 1Curriculum in Marine Sciences, 12-5 Venable Hall CB 3300, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, North Carolina 27599 A. Conrad Neumann 1Curriculum in Marine Sciences, 12-5 Venable Hall CB 3300, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, North Carolina 27599 Publisher: Geological Society of America First Online: 02 Jun 2017 Online ISSN: 1943-2682 Print ISSN: 0091-7613 Geological Society of America Geology (1993) 21 (10): 897–900. https://doi.org/10.1130/0091-7613(1993)021<0897:IOHAOC>2.3.CO;2 Article history First Online: 02 Jun 2017 Cite View This Citation Add to Citation Manager Share Icon Share Facebook Twitter LinkedIn MailTo Tools Icon Tools Get Permissions Search Site Citation Stephen K. Boss, A. Conrad Neumann; Impacts of Hurricane Andrew on carbonate platform environments, northern Great Bahama Bank. Geology 1993;; 21 (10): 897–900. doi: https://doi.org/10.1130/0091-7613(1993)021<0897:IOHAOC>2.3.CO;2 Download citation file: Ris (Zotero) Refmanager EasyBib Bookends Mendeley Papers EndNote RefWorks BibTex toolbar search Search Dropdown Menu toolbar search search input Search input auto suggest filter your search All ContentBy SocietyGeology Search Advanced Search Abstract The northern (most energetic) quadrant of Hurricane Andrew (August 1992) passed over leeward-margin sand waves, bank-top sand shoals, reefs, and low islands of Great Bahama Bank for which an extensive prestorm data base exists. A reconnaissance survey seven weeks after Hurricane Andrew evaluated storm impacts on these bank-top settings. Resurveyed seismic profiles showed that positions, dimensions, and orientations of platform sand bodies were unchanged relative to fixed bedrock features. Surveys of reef communities indicated only minor storm-related disturbance. Coral bleaching may be due to storm-induced environmental stress. In addition, storm-wave plucking of boulders from emergent rocky cays resulted in localized crushing of reef biota. On low islands, beach erosion and storm surge were insignificant, and storm damage to Casuarina forests was minor and substrate-specific. Observed minimal hurricane impacts on northern Great Bahama Bank environments lying 10-75 km from the hurricane eye are reconciled by analysis of meteorological data, which show significant weakening of the storm (expressed as a rise in central barometric pressure of ∼20 mbar) during passage across the bank-top. This study demonstrates the importance of specific dynamic aspects of hurricanes (e.g., varying intensity, strength, size, forward speed, duration) which influence their geologic potential, even over relatively short distances along the storm track of an individual hurricane. This content is PDF only. Please click on the PDF icon to access. First Page Preview Close Modal You do not have access to this content, please speak to your institutional administrator if you feel you should have access.