Advances in techniques for simulating decadal changes to barrier islands morphology

Abstract

We advanced an integrated framework for the analysis of decadal morphological changes in barrier islands. When applied to Taiwan's Waisanding Barrier Island, this refined methodology proved both precise and effective. Utilizing the Coastal Modeling System by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers for simulations, we sourced representative wave datasets from the European Centre's ERA5. By employing streamlined harmonic constituents, we distilled tidal characteristics, achieving a simplified representation of environmental parameters essential for morphological simulations. Throughout this process, we paired all conditions with morphology acceleration factors, optimizing computational demands. A critical observation was the contrasting time scales between wave activities and topographical evolutions. We delved into various wave representation techniques, including segmentations based on season, month, and height. Initial season-based categorizations overestimated erosion levels. In contrast, simulations factoring in diverse wave height configurations per interval aligned more congruently with empirical observations.