Hydrologic investigations and a preliminary conceptual model of the groundwater system at North Penn Area 1 Superfund Site, Souderton, Montgomery County, Pennsylvania
Lisa A. Senior, Dennis W. Risser, Daniel J. Goode, Philip H. Bird
2024, Open-File Report 2024-1080
The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) conducted hydrogeologic investigations, reviewed existing data, and developed a preliminary conceptual model of the groundwater system as part of technical support of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) at the North Penn Area 1 Superfund Site (hereafter, the NP1 Site) located within the Borough of...
Layered intrusions in the Precambrian: Observations and perspectives
William D. Smith, Michael Jenkins, Claudia T. Augustin, Ville J. Virtanen, Zoja Vukmanovic, Brian O'Driscoll
2024, Precambrian Research (415)
Layered intrusions are plutonic bodies of cumulates that form by the crystallization of mantle-derived melts. These intrusions are characterized by igneous layering distinguishable by shifts in mineralogy, texture, or composition. Layered intrusions have been fundamental to our understanding of igneous petrology; however, it is their status as important repositories of...
Water-quality comparisons in the Greater Mooses Tooth unit of the National Petroleum Reserve in Alaska, 2010 and 2023
Brent M. Hall
2024, Scientific Investigations Report 2024-5098
The United States has long held oil reserves in the National Petroleum Reserve in Alaska (NPR–A), but oil production did not begin until 2015. The waters of the NPR–A are generally considered “pristine,” but water quality has not been characterized temporally or spatially in a rigorous manner. In 2010 and...
Quality of groundwater used for domestic supply in the eastern Sacramento Valley and adjacent foothills, California
George L. Bennett V
2024, Open-File Report 2024-1061
SummaryMore than 2 million Californians rely on groundwater from privately owned domestic wells for drinking-water supply. This report summarizes a water-quality survey of domestic and small-system drinking-water supply wells in the eastern Sacramento Valley and adjacent foothills where more than 25,000 residents are estimated to use privately owned domestic wells....
Streams, springs, and volcanic lakes for volcano monitoring
Steven E. Ingebritsen, Shaul Hurwitz
2024, Scientific Investigations Report 2024-5062-F
IntroductionVolcanic unrest can trigger appreciable change to surface waters such as streams, springs, and volcanic lakes. Magma degassing produces gases and soluble salts that are absorbed into groundwater that feeds streams and lakes. As magma ascends, the amount of heat and degassing will increase, and so will any related geochemical...
Volcanic gas monitoring
Jennifer L. Lewicki, Christoph Kern, Peter J. Kelly, Patricia A. Nadeau, Tamar Elias, Laura E. Clor
2024, Scientific Investigations Report 2024-5062-E
IntroductionAs magma rises through the crust, decreasing pressure conditions allow volatiles to exsolve from the magma. These volatiles then migrate upward through the crust, where they can be stored at shallower levels or escape to the atmosphere. Rising magma also heats rock masses beneath volcanic centers, causing water in shallow...
A comparison of CO2 seasonal activity in Mars' northern and southern hemispheres
Candice J. Hansen, Shane Byrne, Wendy M. Calvin, Serina Diniega, Colin M. Dundas, Paul O. Hayne, Alfred S. McEwen, Lauren E McKeown, Sylvain Piqueux, Ganna Portyankina, Meg E Schwamb, Timothy N. Titus, Jacob M Widmer
2024, Icarus (419)
Carbon dioxide is Mars' most active volatile. The seasonal and diurnal processes of when and where it condenses and sublimates are determined by energy balance between the atmosphere and surface ice in Mars' vapor pressure equilibrium climate. Mars' current obliquity ensures that the polar caps are stable locations for seasonal condensation. The eccentricity of...
Polar science results from Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter: Multiwavelength, multiyear insights
Margaret E. Landis, P. J. Acharya, N. R. Alsaeed, C. Andres, Patricio Becerra, Wendy M. Calvin, E. M. Cangi, S. F. A. Cartwright, M. S. Chaffin, Serina Diniega, Colin M. Dundas, Candice J. Hansen, Paul O. Hayne, Kenneth E. Herkenhoff, David M. Kass, Aditya R. Khuller, Lauren McKeown, Patrich S. Russell, Isaac B. Smith, Sarah S. Sutton, J. M. Widmer, Jennifer L Whitten
2024, Icarus (419)
Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO), with its arrival in 2006 and nearly continuous operation since, has provided data for the study of martian polar processes spanning nine Mars years. Mars' polar deposits have long been thought to preserve records of past climates, potentially readable like terrestrial ice cores. However, unraveling millions of...
Environmental monitoring of groundwater, surface water, and soil at the Ammonium Perchlorate Rocket Motor Destruction Facility at the Letterkenny Army Depot, Chambersburg, Pennsylvania, 2021
Daniel G. Galeone, Shaun J. Donmoyer
2024, Open-File Report 2024-1031
Letterkenny Army Depot in Chambersburg, Pennsylvania, built an Ammonium Perchlorate Rocket Motor Destruction (ARMD) Facility in 2016 to centralize rocket motor destruction and contain all waste during the destruction process. The U.S. Geological Survey has collected environmental samples from groundwater, surface water, and soils at ARMD since 2016.During 2021, samples...
Origins and nature of large explosive eruptions in the lower East Rift Zone of Kīlauea volcano, Hawaii: Insights from ash characterization and geochemistry
Richard W. Hazlett, Johanne Schmith, Allan Lerner, Drew T. Downs, Erin P. Fitch, Carolyn E. Parcheta, Cheryl A. Gansecki, Sarah Spaulding
2024, Journal of Volcanology and Geothermal Research (452)
Several powerful explosive eruptions have taken place in the populated lower East Rift Zone of Kīlauea within the past ∼750 years. These have created distinctive landforms, including a tephra rim enclosing Puʻulena Crater immediately south of the Puna Geothermal Venture power station, a tuff cone at Kapoho Crater near the eastern...
Status and understanding of groundwater quality in the Mojave Basin Domestic-Supply Aquifer study unit, 2018—California GAMA Priority Basin Project
Krishangi D. Groover, Miranda S. Fram, Zeno F. Levy
2024, Scientific Investigations Report 2024-5019
Groundwater quality in the western part of the Mojave Desert in San Bernardino County, California, was investigated in 2018 as part of the California State Water Resources Control Board Groundwater Ambient Monitoring and Assessment Program Priority Basin Project. The Mojave Basin Domestic-Supply Aquifer study unit (MOBS) region was divided into...
Anaerobic biodegradation of perfluorooctane sulfonate (PFOS) and microbial community composition in soil amended with a dechlorinating culture and chlorinated solvents
Michelle Lorah, Ke He, Lee Blaney, Denise M. Akob, Cassandra Rashan Harris, Andrea K. Tokranov, Zachary Ryan Hopkins, Brian Shedd
2024, Science of the Total Environment (932)
Perfluorooctane sulfonate (PFOS), one of the most frequently detected per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) occurring in soil, surface water, and groundwater near sites contaminated with aqueous film-forming foam (AFFF), has proven to be recalcitrant to many destructive remedies, including chemical oxidation. We investigated the potential...
Chemistry, growth, and fate of the unique, short-lived (2019–2020) water lake at the summit of Kīlauea Volcano, Hawaii
Patricia A. Nadeau, Shaul Hurwitz, Sara Peek, Allan Lerner, Edward F. Younger, Matthew R. Patrick, David Damby, R. Blaine McCleskey, Peter J. Kelly
2024, Geochemistry, Geophysics, Geosystems (25)
Less than a year after the 2018 Kīlauea caldera collapse and eruption, water appeared in newly deepened Halemaʻumaʻu crater. The lake—unprecedented in the written record—grew to a depth of ∼50 m before lava from the December 2020 eruption boiled it away. Surface water heightened concerns of potential phreatic...
Trace silicon determination in biological samples by inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS): Insight into volatility of silicon species in hydrofluoric acid digests for optimal sample preparation and introduction to ICP-MS
Zikri Arslan, Heather A. Lowers
2024, Minerals (14)
A method for the determination of trace levels of silicon from biological materials by inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS) has been developed. The volatility of water-soluble silicon species, hexafluorosilicic acid (H2SiF6), and sodium metasilicate (Na2SiO3) was investigated by evaporating respective solutions (50 µg/mL silicon) in nitric acid (HNO3),...
Predicting redox conditions in groundwater at a national scale using random forest classification
Anthony J. Tesoriero, Susan Wherry, Danielle Dupuy, Tyler D. Johnson
2024, Environmental Science and Technology (58) 5079-5092
Redox conditions in groundwater may markedly affect the fate and transport of nutrients, volatile organic compounds, and trace metals, with significant implications for human health. While many local assessments of redox conditions have been made, the spatial variability of redox reaction rates makes the determination of redox conditions at regional...
An update of hydrologic conditions and distribution of selected constituents in water, eastern Snake River aquifer and perched groundwater zones, Idaho National Laboratory, Idaho, emphasis 2019–21
Kerri C. Treinen, Allison R. Trcka, Jason C. Fisher
2024, Scientific Investigations Report 2023-5128
Since 1952, wastewater discharged to infiltration ponds (also called “percolation ponds”) and disposal wells at the Idaho National Laboratory (INL) has affected water quality in the eastern Snake River Plain (ESRP) aquifer and perched groundwater zones underlying the INL. The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), in cooperation with the U.S. Department...
Analyzing spatial distributions and alignments of pitted cone features in Utopia Planitia on Mars
Mackenzie M. Mills, Alfred S. McEwen, Amanda N. Hughes, Ji-Eun Kim, Chris Okubo
2024, Icarus (408)
Martian geomorphology and surface features provide links to understanding past geologic processes such as fluid movement, local and regional tectonics, and feature formation mechanisms. Pitted cones are common features in the northern plains basins of Mars. They have been proposed to have formed from upwelling volatile-rich fluids, such as magma or water-sediment slurries. In...
Occurrence of mixed organic and inorganic chemicals in groundwater and tapwater, town of Campbell, Wisconsin, 2021–22
Kristin M. Romanok, Shannon M. Meppelink, Paul M. Bradley, Sara E. Breitmeyer, Lee Donahue, Mark P. Gaikowski, Randy K. Hines, Kelly L. Smalling
2023, Open-File Report 2023-1088
In response to previous reports of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) contamination in French Island’s (located in the Mississippi River within the town of Campbell, Wisconsin) primary source of drinking water, 11 locations were sampled by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) in October 2021 to assess the potential presence of...
Editorial: Remote sensing of volcanic gas emissions from the ground, air, and space
Christoph Kern, Santiago Arellano, Robin Campion, Silvana Hidalgo, Ryunosuke Kazahaya
2023, Frontiers in Earth Science (11)
When magma rises in volcanic systems, volatile species exsolve from the melt and are outgassed to the atmosphere. The melt composition and temperature, depth at which degassing occurs, extent of gas-water-rock interactions, and volume of ascending magma are all factors that determine the composition and rate of gas emissions at...
Geology, hydrology, and groundwater contamination in the vicinity of Central Chemical facility, Hagerstown, Maryland
Trevor P. Needham, Alex R. Fiore, Scott W. Ator, Jeff P. Raffensperger, Madison B. Smith, Nicole M. Bellmyer, Caitlyn M. Dugan, Carol J. Morel
2023, Scientific Investigations Report 2022-5011
The soil and groundwater at the Central Chemical facility, Hagerstown, Maryland, are contaminated due to the blending and production of pesticides and fertilizers during much of the 20th century. Remedial investigations focus on two operable units (OU) consisting of the surface soils and waste disposal lagoon (OU-1) and the groundwater...
Pre-eruptive outgassing and pressurization, and post-fragmentation bubble nucleation, recorded by vesicles in breadcrust bombs from vulcanian activity at Guagua Pichincha Volcano, Ecuador
Mathieu Colombier, Michael Manga, Heather M. Wright, Benjamin Bernard, Rebecca deGraffenried, Francisco Caceres, Pablo Samaniego, Jeremie Vasseur, K Jakata, Paul Cook, Donald B. Dingwell
2023, Journal of Geophysical Research - Solid Earth (128)
Breadcrust bombs formed during Vulcanian eruptions are assumed to originate from the shallow plug or dome. Their rim to core texture reflects the competition between cooling and degassing timescales, which results in a dense crust with isolated vesicles contrasting with a highly vesicular vesicle network in the...
Earth’s mantle composition revealed by mantle plumes
Dominique Weis, Karen Harpp, Lauren N Harrison, Maud Boyet, Catherine Chauvel, Cinzia Farnetani, Val Finlayson, Kanai Lee, Rita Paraï, Anat Shahar, Nicole Williamson
2023, Nature Reviews in Earth and Environment (4) 604-625
Mantle plumes originate at depths near the core−mantle boundary (~2,800 km). As such, they provide invaluable information about the composition of the deep mantle and insight into convection, crustal formation, and crustal recycling, as well as global heat and volatile budgets. In this Review, we discuss the effectiveness and challenges...
Photochemical mobilization of dissolved hydrocarbon oxidation products from petroleum contaminated soil into a shallow aquifer activate human nuclear receptors
Phoebe Zito, Barbara A. Bekins, Dalma Martinović-Weigelt, Maxwell L. Harsha, Katherine E. Humpal, Jared J. Trost, Isabelle M. Cozzarelli, Lynn R. Mazzoleni, Simeon K. Schum, David C. Podgorski
2023, Journal of Hazardous Materials (459)
Elevated non-volatile dissolved organic carbon (NVDOC) concentrations in groundwater monitoring wells under oil-contaminated hydrophobic soils originating from a pipeline rupture at the National Crude Oil Spill & Natural Attenuation Research Site near Bemidji, MN are documented.. We hypothesized the elevated NVDOC is comprised of water-soluble photooxidation products transported from the...
A Monte-Carlo chemical budget approach to assess ambient groundwater flow in bedrock open boreholes
Philip Harte
2023, Groundwater Monitoring and Remediation (44) 57-71
In low-permeability rocks, ambient groundwater flow in open boreholes may go undetected using conventional borehole-flowmeter tools and alternative approaches may be needed to identify flow. Understanding ambient flow in open boreholes is important for tracking of cross contamination in groundwater. Chlorinated volatile organic compound (CVOC)...
Viscous relaxation of Oort and Edgeworth craters on Pluto: Possible indicators of an epoch of early high heat flow
W. B. McKinnon, Michael T. Bland, K. Singer, P. M. Schenk, S. Robbins
2023, Journal of Geophysical Research: Planets (128)
Impact craters, with their well-defined initial shapes, have proven useful as heat flow probes of a number of icy bodies, provided characteristics of viscous relaxation can be identified. For Pluto's numerous craters, such identifications are hampered/complicated by infilling and erosion by mobile volatile ices, but not in...