Graduation Year

2026

Document Type

Thesis

Degree

M.S.

Degree Name

Master of Science (M.S.)

Degree Granting Department

Geology

Major Professor

Ping Wang, Ph.D.

Committee Member

Kendal Jackson, Ph.D.

Committee Member

Yi Qiang, Ph.D.

Committee Member

David Tomasko, Ph.D.

Keywords

Barrier-Inlet Systems, Hurricanes, Morphologic Change, Wave-DOminated Inlet

Abstract

This study takes advantage of a rare opportunity provided by the reopening of Midnight Pass due to two consecutive hurricanes in 2024, to examine the morphologic evolution of a newly reopened inlet and subsequent beach-inlet interactions. Historical aerial photos since the 1940s were collected and analyzed to understand the last closure of Midnight Pass, and to gain knowledge on the future of the newly reopened inlet. Time-series topography and bathymetry survey of the beach-inlet system were conducted bimonthly to quarterly for the first year and a half after the reopening, with the goals of quantifying the morphologic changes and understanding sediment pathways towards predicting the long-term fate of Midnight Pass. Water level and tidal flow measurements were conducted to quantify the hydraulics of the inlet.

Midnight Pass was last opened in 1921 by a hurricane, and the inlet remained open for over 60 years, until it was closed in 1983 due to a combination of natural and anthropogenic factors from the 1960s to the early 1980s. The reopening of Midnight Pass was due to the impact of Hurricanes Helene and Milton in 2024. Hurricane Helene made the barrier island highly vulnerable to breaching. Two weeks after, Hurricane Milton significantly widened and deepened the small Helene breach, resulting in a reopened Midnight Pass that has a similar width to the inlet in the 1940s-1960s. Tidal flow through the main channel was stronger than 1 meter per second during most of flooding and ebbing tides. Peak tidal flow through the north and south channels can reach up to 1 meter per second. In the first 1.5 years, Midnight Pass demonstrated a seasonal pattern in sand bypassing. During the Winter season, southward growing sand spits, a southward skewed ebb tidal delta, and a southward pointing main inlet channel demonstrated southward sand bypassing. During the Summer season, northward growing spits, a northward skewed ebb tidal delta, and a northward pointing main inlet channel demonstrated northward sand bypassing.

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