Getting Ripped

MIT-WHOI Joint Program student Melissa Moulton and colleagues in the PV Lab at WHOI undertook an study recently to investigate where and how rip currents form on beaches. They used a landing craft to dredge a 150-foot long, 90-foot-wide channel in shallow water at a research beach in Duck, N.C., to induce the formation of rips. The research team then used a high-pressure hose (pictured) to fluidize sand on the seafloor, so that they could push pipes up to 8 feet into the seafloor. Once the sand re-settled, they attached sensors to the pipes to gather data tracking how rips form. (Photo by Evan Williams, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution)