Steady-state numerical groundwater flow model of the Great Basin carbonate and alluvial aquifer system
Lynette E. Brooks, Melissa D. Masbruch, Donald S. Sweetkind, Susan G. Buto
2014, Scientific Investigations Report 2014-5213
This report describes the construction, calibration, evaluation, and results of a steady-state numerical groundwater flow model of the Great Basin carbonate and alluvial aquifer system that was developed as part of the U.S. Geological Survey National Water Census Initiative to evaluate the nation’s groundwater availability. The study area spans 110,000...
Nitrogen speciation and trends, and prediction of denitrification extent, in shallow US groundwater
Stephen R. Hinkle, Anthony J. Tesoriero
2014, Journal of Hydrology (509) 343-353
Uncertainties surrounding nitrogen cycling complicate assessments of the environmental effects of nitrogen use and our understanding of the global carbon–nitrogen cycle. In this paper, we synthesize data from 877 ambient-monitoring wells across the US to frame broad patterns of nitrogen speciation and trends. At these sites, groundwater frequently contains substantial...
National assessment of hurricane-induced coastal erosion hazards: Northeast Atlantic Coast
Justin J. Birchler, Hilary F. Stockdon, Kara S. Doran, David M. Thompson
2014, Open-File Report 2014-1243
Beaches serve as a natural buffer between the ocean and inland communities, ecosystems, and natural resources. However, these dynamic environments move and change in response to winds, waves, and currents. During extreme storms, changes to beaches can be great, and the results are sometimes catastrophic. Lives may be lost, communities...
Predicting spatial and temporal distribution of Indo-Pacific lionfish (Pterois volitans) in Biscayne Bay through habitat suitability modeling
Nicholas A. Bernal, Donald L. DeAngelis, Pamela J. Schofield, Kathleen Sullivan Sealey
2014, Biological Invasions (17) 1603-1614
Invasive species may exhibit higher levels of growth and reproduction when environmental conditions are most suitable, and thus their effects on native fauna may be intensified. Understanding potential impacts of these species, especially in the nascent stages of a biological invasion, requires critical information concerning spatial and temporal distributions of...
A sight "fearfully grand": eruptions of Lassen Peak, California, 1914 to 1917
Michael A. Clynne, Robert L. Christiansen, Peter H. Stauffer, James W. Hendley II, Heather A. Bleick
2014, Fact Sheet 2014-3119
On May 22, 1915, a large explosive eruption at the summit of Lassen Peak, California, the southernmost active volcano in the Cascade Range, devastated nearby areas and rained volcanic ash as far away as 280 miles to the east. This explosion was the most powerful in a series of eruptions...
Mercury and halogens in coal
Allan Kolker, Jeffrey C. Quick
Evan J. Granite, Henry W. Pennline, Constance L. Senior, editor(s)
2014, Book chapter, Mercury control: For coal-derived gas streams
Apart from mercury itself, coal rank and halogen content are among the most important factors inherent in coal that determine the proportion of mercury captured by conventional controls during coal combustion. This chapter reviews how mercury in coal occurs, gives available concentration data for mercury in U.S. and international commercial...
Climate remains an important driver of post-European vegetation change in the eastern United States
Neil Pederson, Anthony W. D’Amato, James M. Dyer, David R. Foster, David Goldblum, Justin L. Hart, Amy E. Hessl, Louis R. Iverson, Stephen T. Jackson, Dario Martin-Benito, Brian C. McCarthy, Ryan W. McEwan, David J. Mladenoff, Albert J. Parker, Bryan Shuman, John W. Williams
2014, Global Change Biology (21) 2105-2110
The influence of climate on forest change during the past century in the eastern United States was evaluated in a recent paper (Nowacki & Abrams, 2014) that centers on an increase in ‘highly competitive mesophytic hardwoods’ (Nowacki & Abrams, <a class="link__reference js-link__reference" title="Link to...
Gravity changes and deformation at Kīlauea Volcano, Hawaii, associated with summit eruptive activity, 2009-2012
Marco Bagnardi, Michael P. Poland, Daniele Carbone, Scott Baker, Maurizio Battaglia, Falk Amelung
2014, Journal of Geophysical Research (119) 7288-7305
Analysis of microgravity and surface displacement data collected at the summit of Kīlauea Volcano, Hawaii (USA), between December 2009 and November 2012 suggests a net mass accumulation at ~1.5 km depth beneath the northeast margin of Halema‘uma‘u Crater, within Kīlauea Caldera. Although residual gravity increases and decreases are accompanied by periods...
Storm-surge flooding on the Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta, Alaska
John Terenzi, Craig R. Ely, M. Torre Jorgenson
2014, Arctic (67) 360-374
Coastal regions of Alaska are regularly affected by intense storms of ocean origin, the frequency and intensity of which are expected to increase as a result of global climate change. The Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta (YKD), situated in western Alaska on the eastern edge of the Bering Sea, is one of the...
A stage-structured, spatially explicit migration model for Myotis bats: mortality location affects system dynamics
Richard A. Erickson, Wayne E. Thogmartin, Robin E. Russell, James E. Diffendorfer, Jennifer A. Szymanski
2014, Letters in Biomathematics (1) 157-172
Bats are ecologically and economically important species because they consume insects, transport nutrients, and pollinate flowers. Many species of bats, including those in the Myotis genus, are facing population decline and increased extinction risk. Despite these conservation concerns, few models exist for providing insight into the population dynamics of bats in a...
Historic and contemporary mercury exposure and potential risk to yellow-billed loons (Gavia adamsii) breeding in Alaska and Canada
David C. Evers, Joel A. Schmutz, Niladri Basu, Christopher R. DeSorbo, Jeff Fair, Carrie E. Gray, James D. Paruk, Marie Perkins, Kevin Regan, Brian D. Uher-Koch, Kenneth G. Wright
2014, Waterbirds (37) 147-159
The Yellow-billed Loon (Gavia adamsii) is one of the rarest breeding birds in North America. Because of the small population size and patchy distribution, any stressor to its population is of concern. To determine risks posed by environmental mercury (Hg) loads, we captured 115 Yellow-billed Loons between 2002 and 2012...
Generalized surficial geologic map of the Fort Irwin Area, San Bernardino County, California
David M. Miller, Christopher M. Menges, David J. Lidke
David C. Buesch, editor(s)
2014, Open-File Report 2013-1024-B
The geology and landscape of the Fort Irwin area, typical of many parts of the Mojave Desert, consist of rugged mountains separated by broad alluviated valleys that form the main coarse-resolution features of the geologic map. Crystalline and sedimentary rocks, Mesozoic and older in age, form most of the mountains...
Estimates of groundwater recharge rates and sources in the East Mountain area, Eastern Bernalillo County, New Mexico, 2005-12
Steven E. Rice, Dianna M. Crilley
2014, Scientific Investigations Report 2014-5181
The U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the Bernalillo County Public Works Division, has conducted a monitoring program in the East Mountain area of eastern Bernalillo County, New Mexico, since 2000 to better define the hydrogeologic characteristics of the East Mountain area and to provide scientific information that will assist...
Why the New Madrid earthquakes are M 7–8 and the Charleston earthquake is ∼M 7
Chris H. Cramer, Oliver S. Boyd
2014, Bulletin of the Seismological Society of America (104) 2884-2903
Estimates of magnitudes of large historical earthquakes are an essential input to and can seriously affect seismic‐hazard estimates. The earthquake‐intensity observations, modified Mercalli intensities (MMI), and assigned magnitudes Mof the 1811–1812 New Madrid events have been reinterpreted several times in the last decade and have been a source of controversy...
Eruptions at Lone Star geyser, Yellowstone National Park, USA: 2. Constraints on subsurface dynamics
Jean Vandemeulebrouck, Robert A. Sohn, Maxwell L. Rudolph, Shaul Hurwitz, Michael Manga, Malcolm J.S. Johnston, S. Adam Soule, Darcy McPhee, Jonathan M. G. Glen, Leif Karlstrom, Fred Murphy
2014, Journal of Geophysical Research B: Solid Earth (119) 8688-8707
We use seismic, tilt, lidar, thermal, and gravity data from 32 consecutive eruption cycles of Lone Star geyser in Yellowstone National Park to identify key subsurface processes throughout the geyser's eruption cycle. Previously, we described measurements and analyses associated with the geyser's erupting jet dynamics. Here we show that seismicity...
Arthropods of Rose Atoll with special reference to ants and Pulvinaria Urbicola Scales (Hempitera Coccidae) on Pisonia Grandis trees
Paul C. Banko, Robert W. Peck, Frank Pendleton, Mark Schmaedick, Kelsie Ernsberger
2014, Technical Report HCSU-057
Rose Atoll, at the eastern end of the Samoan Archipelago, is a small but important refuge for seabirds, shorebirds, and sea turtles. While the vertebrate community is relatively well-studied, the terrestrial arthropod fauna, and its role in ecosystem function, are poorly known. Arthropods may be influencing the decline of Pisonia...
Genetic structure of Florida green turtle rookeries as indicated by mitochondrial DNA control region sequences
Brian M. Shamblin, Dean A. Bagley, Llewellyn M. Ehrhart, Nicole A. Desjardin, R. Erik Martin, Kristen M. Hart, Eugenia Naro-Maciel, Kirt Rusenko, John C. Stiner, Debra Sobel, Chris Johnson, Thomas Wilmers, Laura J. Wright, Campbell J. Nairn
2014, Conservation Genetics (16) 673-685
Green turtle (Chelonia mydas) nesting has increased dramatically in Florida over the past two decades, ranking the Florida nesting aggregation among the largest in the Greater Caribbean region. Individual beaches that comprise several hundred kilometers of Florida’s east coast and Keys support tens to thousands of nests annually. These beaches...
Fate of injected CO2 in the Wilcox Group, Louisiana, Gulf Coast Basin: Chemical and isotopic tracers of microbial–brine–rock–CO2 interactions
Jenna L. Shelton, Jennifer C. McIntosh, Peter D. Warwick, Amelia Lee Zhi Yi
2014, Applied Geochemistry (51) 155-169
The “2800’ sandstone” of the Olla oil field is an oil and gas-producing reservoir in a coal-bearing interval of the Paleocene–Eocene Wilcox Group in north-central Louisiana, USA. In the 1980s, this producing unit was flooded with CO2 in an enhanced oil recovery (EOR) project, leaving ∼30% of the injected CO2 in the...
Coastal tectonics on the eastern margin of the Pacific Rim: Late Quaternary sea-level history and uplift rates, Channel Islands National Park, California, USA
Daniel R. Muhs, Kathleen R. Simmons, R. Randall Schumann, Lindsey T. Groves, Stephen B. DeVogel, Scott A. Minor, Deanna Laurel
2014, Quaternary Science Reviews (105) 209-238
The Pacific Rim is a region where tectonic processes play a significant role in coastal landscape evolution. Coastal California, on the eastern margin of the Pacific Rm, is very active tectonically and geomorphic expressions of this include uplifted marine terraces. There have been, however, conflicting estimates of the rate of...
U.S. Geological Survey unconventional petroleum systems research in south Mississippi: Observations on burial history and thermal maturity in the Cretaceous
Paul C. Hackley, Brett J. Valentine, Catherine B. Enomoto, James L. Coleman
2014, Mississippi Geological Society Bulletin (63) 9-15
Shale hydrocarbon ‘resource’ plays have revolutionized the United States energy mix over the last 5 years. These plays are diverse in lithology and age but share the common feature of occurring in ‘tight’ formations which require hydraulic (hydro-) fracturing for economic flow rates. In general, economic success requires an organic-rich reservoir with a...
Shale: an overlooked option for US nuclear waste disposal
Christopher E. Neuzil
2014, Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists
Toss a dart at a map of the United States and, more often than not, it will land where shale can be found underground. A drab, relatively featureless sedimentary rock that historically attracted little interest, shale (as used here, the term includes clay and a range of clay-rich rocks) is...
Characterizing phosphorus dynamics in tile-drained agricultural fieldsof eastern Wisconsin
Allison Madison, Matthew Ruark, Todd D. Stuntebeck, Matthew J. Komiskey, Laura W. Good, Nancy Drummy, Eric Cooley
2014, Journal of Hydrology (519 A) 892-901
Artificial subsurface drainage provides an avenue for the rapid transfer of phosphorus (P) from agricultural fields to surface waters. This is of particular interest in eastern Wisconsin, where there is a concentrated population of dairy farms and high clay content soils prone to macropore development. Through collaboration with private landowners,...
Seismic instrumentation plan for the Hawaiian Volcano Observatory
Weston A. Thelen
2014, Scientific Investigations Report 2014-5179
The seismic network operated by the U.S. Geological Survey’s Hawaiian Volcano Observatory (HVO) is the main source of authoritative data for reporting earthquakes in the State of Hawaii, including those that occur on the State’s six active volcanoes (Kīlauea, Mauna Loa, Hualālai, Mauna Kea, Haleakalā, Lō‘ihi). Of these volcanoes, Kīlauea...
Public-supply water use in Kansas, 1990-2012
Joan F. Kenny
2014, Fact Sheet 2014-3116
This fact sheet describes water-use data collection and quantities of surface water and groundwater diverted for public supply in Kansas for the years 1990 through 2012. Data used in this fact sheet are from the Kansas Department of Agriculture’s Division of Water Resources and the Kansas Water Office. Water used...
Occurrence model for magmatic sulfide-rich nickel-copper-(platinum-group element) deposits related to mafic and ultramafic dike-sill complexes
Klaus J. Schulz, Laurel G. Woodruff, Suzanne W. Nicholson, Robert R. Seal II, Nadine M. Piatak, Val W. Chandler, John L. Mars
2014, Scientific Investigations Report 2010-5070-I
Magmatic sulfide deposits containing nickel (Ni) and copper (Cu), with or without (±) platinum-group elements (PGE), account for approximately 60 percent of the world’s nickel production. Most of the remainder of the Ni production is derived from lateritic deposits, which form by weathering of ultramafic rocks in humid tropical conditions....
