DESI-Detection of early-season invasives (software-installation manual and user's guide version 1.0)
Raymond F. Kokaly
2011, Open-File Report 2010-1302
This report describes a software system for detecting early-season invasive plant species, such as cheatgrass. The report includes instructions for installing the software and serves as a user's guide in processing Landsat satellite remote sensing data to map the distributions of cheatgrass and other early-season invasive plants. The software was...
Water-quality in the North Santiam River Basin, Oregon— Comparison of water-quality data for water year 2007 with the preceding period of record
David R. Piatt, Matthew W. Johnston, Heather M. Bragg, Amy M. Brooks, Steven Sobieszczyk, Mark A. Uhrich
2011, Open-File Report 2011-1008
Water-quality data have been collected in the North Santiam River basin since 1998. During water year 2007, eight monitoring stations were operated throughout the basin. Streamflow data were collected at all but one of these sites. This report presents a comparison of the water-quality and streamflow data collected at each...
Nutrient Enrichment Study Data from the Upper, Middle, and Lower Sections of the Non-Tidal Delaware River, 2009
Robin A. Brightbill, Robert Limbeck, Erik Silldorff, Heather L. Eggleston
2011, Data Series 555
The Delaware River Basin Commission is charged with establishing water-quality objectives for the tidal and non-tidal portions of the Delaware River, which include developing nutrient standards that are scientifically defensible. The U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the Delaware River Basin Commission and the Academy of Natural Sciences, studied the...
U.S. Geological Survey Near Real-Time Dst Index
J.L. Gannon, J.J. Love, P.A. Friberg, D.C. Stewart, S.W. Lisowski
2011, Open-File Report 2011-1030
The operational version of the United States Geological Survey one-minute Dst index (a global geomagnetic disturbance-intensity index for scientific studies and definition of space-weather effects) uses either four- or three-station input (including Honolulu, Hawaii; San Juan, Puerto Rico; Hermanus, South Africa; and Kakioka, Japan; or Honolulu, San Juan and Guam)...
Breccia-pipe uranium mining in northern Arizona: Estimate of resources and assessment of historical effects
Donald J. Bills, Kristin M. Brown, Andrea E. Alpine, James K. Otton, Bradley S. Van Gosen, Jo Ellen Hinck, Fred D. Tillman
2011, Fact Sheet 2010-3050
About 1 million acres of Federal land in the Grand Canyon region of Arizona were temporarily withdrawn from new mining claims in July 2009 by the Secretary of the Interior because of concern that increased uranium mining could have negative impacts on the land, water, people, and wildlife. During a...
Assessing carbon stocks, carbon sequestration, and greenhouse-gas fluxes in ecosystems of the United States under present conditions and future scenarios
Zhi-Liang Zhu, Sarah Stackpoole
2011, Fact Sheet 2011-3007
The Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007 (EISA) requires the U.S. Department of the Interior (DOI) to develop a methodology and conduct an assessment of carbon storage, carbon sequestration, and greenhouse-gas (GHG) fluxes in the Nation's ecosystems. The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) has developed and published the methodology (U.S....
Analysis of change in marsh types of coastal Louisiana, 1978-2001
Robert G. Linscombe, Stephen B. Hartley
2011, Open-File Report 2010-1282
Scientists and geographers have provided multiple datasets and maps to document temporal changes in vegetation types and land-water relationships in coastal Louisiana. Although these maps provide useful historical information, technological limitations prevented these and other mapping efforts from providing sufficiently detailed calculations of areal changes and shifts in habitat coverage....
Coal-tar-based pavement sealcoat, polycyclic aromatic Hydrocarbons (PAHs), and environmental health
B.J. Mahler, P. C. Van Metre
2011, Fact Sheet 2011-3010
Studies by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) have identified coal-tar-based sealcoat-the black, viscous liquid sprayed or painted on asphalt pavement such as parking lots-as a major source of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon (PAH) contamination in urban areas for large parts of the Nation. Several PAHs are suspected human carcinogens and are...
Astronomy: Martian illusions
Michael H. Carr
2011, Nature (470) 172-173
The Mars canal controversy is a reminder to be cautious when interpreting alien worlds, notes Michael Carr....
Late quaternary climate variations reflected in Baltic Sea sediments
Jan Harff, R. Endler, Emel Emelyanov, S. Kotov, Thomas Leipe, M. Moros, Ricardo A. Olea, Michal Tomczak, Andrzej Witkowski
Jan Harff, S. Bjorck, P. Hoth, editor(s)
2011, Book chapter, The Baltic Sea basin: Central and Eastern European development studeis
Late Pleistocene to Holocene climate change of the Atlantic and the northern European realm is reflected by the facies of sediments in the Baltic Sea. The sedimentary sequence have been subdivided into zones reflecting the main postglacial stages of the Baltic Sea basin development according to sediment echosounder profiling and...
Effects of three high-flow experiments on the Colorado River ecosystem downstream from Glen Canyon Dam, Arizona
Theodore S. Melis
2011, Circular 1366
Three high-flow experiments (HFEs) were conducted by the U.S. Department of the Interior at Glen Canyon Dam, Arizona, in March 1996, November 2004, and March 2008. These experiments, also known as artificial or controlled floods, were large-volume, scheduled releases of water from Glen Canyon Dam that were designed to mimic...
Evaluation of long-term gas hydrate production testing locations on the Alaska North Slope
Timothy Collett, Ray Boswell, Myung W. Lee, Brian J. Anderson, Kelly K. Rose, Kristen A. Lewis
2011, Conference Paper, OTC Arctic Technology Conference 2011
The results of short duration formation tests in northern Alaska and Canada have further documented the energy resource potential of gas hydrates and justified the need for long-term gas hydrate production testing. Additional data acquisition and long-term production testing could improve the understanding of the response of naturally-occurring gas hydrate...
Three experimental high-flow releases from Glen Canyon Dam, Arizona— Effects on the downstream Colorado River ecosystem
Theodore S. Melis, Paul E. Grams, Theodore A. Kennedy, Barbara E. Ralston, Christopher T. Robinson, John C. Schmidt, Lara M. Schmit, Richard A. Valdez, Scott Wright
2011, Fact Sheet 2011-3012
Three high-flow experiments (HFEs) were conducted by the U.S. Department of the Interior at Glen Canyon Dam, Arizona, in March 1996, November 2004, and March 2008. Also known as artificial or controlled floods, these scheduled releases of water above the dam's powerplant capacity were designed to mimic pre-dam seasonal flooding...
Effects of climate change and land use on water resources in the Upper Colorado River Basin
Jayne Belnap, K. Campbell
2011, Fact Sheet 2010-3123
The health of the Colorado River watershed is critical to the socioeconomic and ecosystem well-being of the Southwestern United States. Water in springs, streams, and rivers supports a range of aquatic and riparian ecosystems that contain many endangered species. Terrestrial habitats support a wide array of plants and wildlife. In...
Digital signal processing and interpretation of full waveform sonic log for well BP-3-USGS, Great Sand Dunes National Park and Preserve, Alamosa County, Colorado
Lauri Burke
2011, Scientific Investigations Report 2010-5258
Along the Great Sand Dunes National Park and Preserve boundary (fig. 1), 10 monitoring wells were drilled by the National Park Service in order to monitor water flow in an unconfined aquifer spanning the park boundary. Adjacent to the National Park Service monitoring well named Boundary Piezometer Well No. 3,...
The effects of Glen Canyon Dam operations on early life stages of rainbow trout in the Colorado River
Josh Korman, Theodore S. Melis
2011, Fact Sheet 2011-3002
The Lees Ferry reach of the Colorado River-a 16-mile segment from Glen Canyon Dam to the confluence with the Paria River-supports an important recreational rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss) fishery. In Grand Canyon, nonnative rainbow trout prey on and compete for habitat and food with native fish, such as the endangered...
USGS global change science strategy: A framework for understanding and responding to climate and land-use change
Virginia R. Burkett, Ione L. Taylor, Jayne Belnap, Thomas M. Cronin, Michael D. Dettinger, Eldrich L. Frazier, John W. Haines, David A. Kirtland, Thomas R. Loveland, Paul C.D. Milly, Robin O'Malley, Robert S. Thompson
2011, Open-File Report 2011-1033
This U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) Global Change Science Strategy expands on the Climate Variability and Change science component of the USGS 2007 Science Strategy, “Facing Tomorrow’s Challenges: USGS Science in the Coming Decade” (U.S. Geological Survey, 2007). Here we embrace the broad definition of global change provided in the U.S....
Population and business exposure to twenty scenario earthquakes in the State of Washington
Nathan Wood, Jamie Ratliff
2011, Open-File Report 2011-1016
This report documents the results of an initial analysis of population and business exposure to scenario earthquakes in Washington. This analysis was conducted to support the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) Pacific Northwest Multi-Hazards Demonstration Project (MHDP) and an ongoing collaboration between the State of Washington Emergency Management Division (WEMD) and...
Documentation for a web site to serve ULF-EM (Ultra-Low Frequency Electromagnetic) data to the public
Danny A. Neumann, Selwyn McPherson, Simon L. Klemperer, Jonathan M. G. Glen, Darcy McPhee, Karl Kappler
2011, Open-File Report 2010-1321
The Stanford Ultra-Low Frequency Electromagnetic (ULF-EM) Monitoring Project is recording naturally varying electromagnetic signals adjacent to active earthquake faults, in an attempt to establish whether there is any variation in these signals associated with earthquakes. Our project is collaborative between Stanford University, the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), and UC Berkeley....
Detecting Cheatgrass on the Colorado Plateau using Landsat data: A tutorial for the DESI software
Raymond F. Kokaly
2011, Open-File Report 2010-1327
Invasive plant species disrupt native ecosystems and cause economic harm to public lands. In this report, an example of applying the Detection of Early Season Invasives software to mapping cheatgrass infestations is given. A discussion of each step of the DESI process is given, including selection of Landsat images. Tutorial...
Understanding risk and resilience to natural hazards
Nathan Wood
2011, Fact Sheet 2011-3008
Natural hazards threaten the safety and economic wellbeing of communities. These hazards include sudden-onset hazards, such as earthquakes, and slowly emerging, chronic hazards, such as those associated with climate change. To help public officials, emergency and other managers, the business community, and at-risk individuals reduce the risks posed by such...
Biological dimensions of tern management-a case study of the least tern in Sonora, Mexico, and a comparative analysis of reproductive investment in terns
Alyssa Rosemartin, Charles van Riper III
2011, Open-File Report 2010-1085
Least terns (Sternula antillarum) are threatened by rapid human development on the northern coast of Sonora, Mexico. Terns are bellwethers for changes along the world's coastlines, as their coastal breeding habitat is vulnerable to flooding and development. We conducted targeted ground and aerial surveys for least tern colonies along 160...
Low flow of streams in the Susquehanna River basin of New York
Allan D. Randall
2011, Scientific Investigations Report 2010-5063
The principal source of streamflow during periods of low flow in the Susquehanna River basin of New York is the discharge of groundwater from sand-and-gravel deposits. Spatial variation in low flow is mostly a function of differences in three watershed properties: the amount of water that is introduced to the...
Water availability and use pilot: A multiscale assessment in the U.S. Great Lakes Basin
Howard W. Reeves
2011, Professional Paper 1778
Beginning in 2005, water availability and use were assessed for the U.S. part of the Great Lakes Basin through the Great Lakes Basin Pilot of a U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) national assessment of water availability and use. The goals of a national assessment of water availability and use are to...
Bathymetric and sediment facies maps for China Bend and Marcus Flats, Franklin D. Roosevelt Lake, Washington, 2008 and 2009
Rhonda J. Weakland, Ryan L. Fosness, Marshall L. Williams, Gary J. Barton
2011, Scientific Investigations Map 3150
The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) created bathymetric and sediment facies maps for portions of two reaches of Lake Roosevelt in support of an interdisciplinary study of white sturgeon (Acipenser transmontanus) and their habitat areas within Franklin D. Roosevelt Lake, Washington. In October 2008, scientists from the USGS used a boat-mounted...
