A geological synthesis of the Precambrian shield in Madagascar
Robert D. Tucker, J.Y. Roig, B. Moine, C. Delor, S. G. Peters
2014, Journal of African Earth Sciences (94) 9-30
Available U–Pb geochronology of the Precambrian shield of Madagascar is summarized and integrated into a synthesis of the region’s geological history. The shield is described in terms of six geodynamic domains, from northeast to southwest, the Bemarivo, Antongil–Masora, Antananarivo, Ikalamavony, Androyan–Anosyan, and Vohibory domains. Each domain is defined by distinctive...
Trails through time: A geologist's guide to Jefferson County open space parks
John C. Reed
2014, Book
Introduction Jefferson County straddles one of the most conspicuous and important geographic and geologic boundaries in westernNorth America, the eastern flank of the Rocky Mountains. To the east you can travel 1,100 miles across Great Plains andCentral Lowlands before you sight the western foothills of the Appalachians. If you...
Mars Global Digital Dune Database (MGD3): Global dune distribution and wind pattern observations
Rosalyn K. Hayward, Lori Fenton, Timothy N. Titus
2014, Icarus (230) 38-46
The Mars Global Digital Dune Database (MGD3) is complete and now extends from 90°N to 90°S latitude. The recently released south pole (SP) portion (MC-30) of MGD3 adds ∼60,000 km2 of medium to large-size dark dune fields and ∼15,000 km2 of sand deposits and smaller dune fields to the previously...
Influence of sex, migration distance, and latitude on life history expression in steelhead and rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss)
Haley A. Ohms, Matthew R. Sloat, Gordon H. Reeves, Chris E. Jordan, Jason B. Dunham
2014, Canadian Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences (71) 70-80
Abstract:In partially migratory species, such as Oncorhynchus mykiss, the emergence of life history phenotypes is often attributed to fitness trade-offs associated with growth and survival. Fitness trade-offs can be linked to reproductive tactics that vary between the sexes, as well as the influence of environmental conditions. We found that O....
Groundwater flow cycling between a submarine spring and an inland fresh water spring
J. Hal Davis, Richard Verdi
2014, Ground Water (52) 705-716
Spring Creek Springs and Wakulla Springs are large first magnitude springs that derive water from the Upper Floridan Aquifer. The submarine Spring Creek Springs are located in a marine estuary and Wakulla Springs are located 18 km inland. Wakulla Springs has had a consistent increase in flow from the 1930s to...
History of late Holocene earthquakes at the Willow Creek site on the Nephi segment, Wasatch fault zone, Utah
Anthony J. Crone, Stephen F. Personius, Christopher DuRoss, Michael N. Machette, Shannon A. Mahan
2014, Report
This 43-page report presents new data from the Willow Creek site that provides well-defined and narrow bounds on the times of the three youngest earthquakes on the southern strand of the Nephi segment, Wasatch Fault zone, and refines the time of the youngest earthquake to about 200 years ago. This...
Glyphosate and its degradation product AMPA occur frequently and widely in U.S. soils, surface water, groundwater, and precipitation
William A. Battaglin, Michael T. Meyer, Kathryn Kuivila, Julie E. Dietze
2014, Journal of the American Water Resources Association (50) 275-290
Glyphosate use in the United States increased from less than 5,000 to more than 80,000 metric tons/yr between 1987 and 2007. Glyphosate is popular due to its ease of use on soybean, cotton, and corn crops that are genetically modified to tolerate it, utility in no-till farming practices, utility in urban...
Macroinvertebrate community change associated with the severity of streamflow alteration
Daren M. Carlisle, Ken Eng, S. M. Nelson
2014, River Research and Applications (30) 29-39
Natural streamflows play a critical role in stream ecosystems, yet quantitative relations between streamflow alteration and stream health have been elusive. One reason for this difficulty is that neither streamflow alteration nor ecological responses are measured relative to their natural expectations. We assessed macroinvertebrate community condition in 25 mountain streams...
From streets to streams: Assessing the toxicity potential of urban sediment by particle size
William R. Selbig, Roger T. Bannerman, Steven Corsi
2014, Science of the Total Environment (444) 381-391
Urban sediment can act as a transport mechanism for a variety of pollutants to move towards a receiving water body. The concentrations of these pollutants oftentimes exceed levels that are toxic to aquatic organisms. Many treatment structures are designed to capture coarse sediment but do not work well to similarly...
A method for estimating spatially variable seepage and hydrualic conductivity in channels with very mild slopes
Margaret Shanafield, Richard G. Niswonger, David E. Prudic, Greg Pohll, Richard Susfalk, Sorab Panday
2014, Hydrological Processes (28) 51-61
Infiltration along ephemeral channels plays an important role in groundwater recharge in arid regions. A model is presented for estimating spatial variability of seepage due to streambed heterogeneity along channels based on measurements of streamflow-front velocities in initially dry channels. The diffusion-wave approximation to the Saint-Venant equations, coupled with Philip's...
Palila abundance estimates and trends
Paul C. Banko, Kevin W. Brink, Richard Camp
2014, Technical Report HCSU-053
The palila (Loxioides bailleui) population was surveyed annually during 1998−2014 on Mauna Kea Volcano to determine abundance, population trend, and spatial distribution. In the latest surveys, the 2013 population was estimated at 1,492−2,132 birds (point estimate: 1,799) and the 2014 population was estimated at 1,697−2,508 (point estimate: 2,070). Similar numbers...
Molecular epidemiology and evolution of fish Novirhabdoviruses
Gael Kurath
2014, Book chapter, Rhabdoviruses: Molecular taxonomy, Evolution, Genomics, Ecology, Cytopathology, and Control
The genus Novirhabdoviridae contains several of the important rhabdoviruses that infect fish hosts. There are four established virus species: Infectious hematopoietic necrosis virus (IHNV), Viral hemorrhagic septicemia virus (VHSV), Hirame rhabdovirus(HIRRV), and Snakehead rhabdovirus (SHRV). Viruses of these species vary in host and geographic range, and they have all been studied at the molecular and genomic level. As globally...
Relation of landslides triggered by the Kiholo Bay earthquake to modeled ground motion
Edwin L. Harp, Stephen H. Hartzell, Randall W. Jibson, L. Ramirez-Guzman, Robert G. Schmitt
2014, Bulletin of the Seismological Society of America (104) 2529-2540
The 2006 Kiholo Bay, Hawaii, earthquake triggered high concentrations of rock falls and slides in the steep canyons of the Kohala Mountains along the north coast of Hawaii. Within these mountains and canyons a complex distribution of landslides was triggered by the earthquake shaking. In parts of the area, landslides...
Widespread loess-like deposit in the Martian northern lowlands identifies Middle Amazonian climate change
James A. Skinner, Kenneth L. Tanaka, Thomas Platz
2014, Geology (40) 1127-1130
Consistently mappable units critical to distinguishing the style and interplay of geologic processes through time are sparse in the Martian lowlands. This study identifies a previously unmapped Middle Amazonian (ca. 1 Ga) unit (Middle Amazonian lowland unit, mAl) that postdates the Late Hesperian and Early Amazonian lowland plains by >2...
Sources of global climate data and visualization portals
David C. Douglas
2014, Conference Paper, Gyrfalcons and Ptarmigan in a Changing World, Conference Proceedings
Climate is integral to the geophysical foundation upon which ecosystems are structured. Knowledge about mechanistic linkages between the geophysical and biological environments is essential for understanding how global warming may reshape contemporary ecosystems and ecosystem services. Numerous global data sources spanning several decades are available that document key geophysical metrics...
LANDFIRE 2001 and 2008 refresh: geographic area report: Alaska
Joel A. Connot
2014, Report
The LANDFIRE National Project (LF_1.0.0) was successfully completed in 2009. The goal of LANDFIRE National was to generate consistent 2001 vintage 30 meter spatial data sets for all 50 States for fire and other natural resource applications. This report highlights results from the continuation of LANDFIRE as a program to update the spatial...
Standard for the U.S. Geological Survey Historical Topographic Map Collection
Gregory J. Allord, Kristin A. Fishburn, Jennifer L. Walter
2014, Techniques and Methods 11-B3
This document defines the digital map product of the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) Historical Topographic Map Collection (HTMC). The HTMC is a digital archive of about 190,000 printed topographic quadrangle maps published by the USGS from the inception of the topographic mapping program in 1884 until the last paper topographic...
Vibrational, X-ray absorption, and Mössbauer spectra of sulfate minerals from the weathered massive sulfide deposit at Iron Mountain, California
Juraj Majzlan, Charles N. Alpers, Christian Bender Koch, R. Blaine McCleskey, Satish B.C. Myneni, John M. Neil
2014, Chemical Geology (284) 296-305
The Iron Mountain Mine Superfund site in California is a prime example of an acid mine drainage (AMD) system with well developed assemblages of sulfate minerals typical for such settings. Here we present and discuss the vibrational (infrared), X-ray absorption, and Mössbauer spectra of a number of these phases, augmented...
Kaolin
Robert L. Virta
2014, Mining Engineering (62)
The article reports on the market performance of kaolin in the U.S. in 2009 and presents an outlook for its 2010 performance. There was a decline in the domestic sales of kaolin from 6.74 measurement ton (Mt) to 5.2 Mt. Companies in the country engaged in kaolin production include Advanced...
Chapter A2. Selection of equipment for water sampling
Franceska D. Wilde, Mark W. Sandstrom, Stanley C. Skrobialowski
2014, Techniques of Water-Resources Investigations 09-A2
The National Field Manual for the Collection of Water-Quality Data (National Field Manual) describes protocols and provides guidelines for U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) personnel who collect data used to assess the quality of the Nation's surface-water and ground-water resources. This chapter of the manual addresses the selection of equipment commonly...
Chapter A7. Section 7.1. Fecal indicator bacteria
Donna N. Myers, Marc A. Sylvester
2014, Techniques of Water-Resources Investigations 09-A7.1
Fecal indicator bacteria are used to assess the microbiological quality of water because, although not typically disease causing, they are correlated with the presence of several waterborne disease-causing organisms. The concentration of indicator bacteria is a measure of water safety for body-contact recreation or for consumption. This report provides information...
A manual for remote sensing of Maine lake clarity
Ian M. McCullough, Cyndy Loftin, Steven A. Sader
2013, Technical Bulletin of the Maine Agricultural & Forest Experiment Station 207
The purpose of this manual is to support use of satellite-based remote sensing for statewide lake water-quality monitoring in Maine. The authors describe step-by-step methods that combine Landsat and MODIS satellite data with field-collected Secchi disk data for statewide assessment of lake water clarity. Landsat can be simultaneously used to...
Coal fields of the conterminous United States—National Coal Resource Assessment updated version
Joseph A. East
2013, Open-File Report 2012-1205
This map sheet with accompanying Geographic Information System (GIS) project is an update of the existing U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) Conterminous U.S. Coal Fields map. This update was compiled using data primarily from the USGS National Coal Resource Assessment (NCRA) and information from other published maps. The five regions examined...
Hydrogeology of the Susquehanna River valley-fill aquifer system and adjacent areas in eastern Broome and southeastern Chenango Counties, New York
Paul M. Heisig
2013, Scientific Investigations Report 2012-5282
The hydrogeology of the valley-fill aquifer system along a 32-mile reach of the Susquehanna River valley and adjacent areas was evaluated in eastern Broome and southeastern Chenango Counties, New York. The surficial geology, inferred ice-marginal positions, and distribution of stratified-drift aquifers were mapped from existing data. Ice-marginal positions, which represent...
Supporting data for the U.S. Geological Survey 2012 world assessment of undiscovered oil and gas resources
USGS World Conventional Resources Assessment Team
2013, Data Series 69-FF
This report provides information pertaining to the 2012 U.S. Geological Survey assessment of undiscovered, technically recoverable conventional oil and gas resources of the world, exclusive of the United States. Some of the results were previously published, mostly in USGS fact sheet series....