Beach profiles provide important information concerning the temporal (time) and spatial (cross-shore) variability of the shape of a section of beach. The information derived from these 'repeated' surveys provide a measure of the response of the beach to variations in the offshore wave energy (e.g. winter versus summer wave conditions), which is reflected in accretion of the beach during the summer and erosion in winter.

Since 1998, PRISM has conducted cruises to ~40 stations within greater Puget Sound, including each of its major sub-regions (Central Basin, South Sound, Hood Canal, Whidbey Basin, Admiralty Inlet, Strait of Juan de Fuca). The cruises are designed to collect a synoptic snapshot of the oceanographic conditions in Puget Sound in early summer (June) and winter (December).

Daily Observations and Seasonal Cycle Estimates