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At least 181 records · Page 10Linked to original sources
USGS2012

Geologic map of Three Sisters volcanic cluster, Cascade Range, Oregon

The cluster of glaciated stratovolcanoes called the Three Sisters—South Sister, Middle Sister, and North Sister—forms a spectacular 20-km-long reach along the crest of the Cascade Range in Oregon. The three eponymous stratocones, though contiguous and conventionally lumped sororally, could hardly display less family resemblance. North Sister (10,085 ft), a monotonously mafic edifice at least as old as 120 ka, is a glacially ravaged stratocone that consists of hundreds of thin rubbly lava flows and intercalated falls that dip radially and steeply; remnants of two thick lava flows cap its summit. Middle Sister (10,047 ft), an andesite-basalt-dacite cone built between 48 and 14 ka, is capped by a thick stack of radially dipping, dark-gray, thin mafic lava flows; asymmetrically glaciated, its nearly intact west flank contrasts sharply with its steep east face. Snow and ice-filled South Sister is a bimodal rhyolitic-intermediate edifice that was constructed between 50 ka and 2 ka; its crater (rim at 10,358 ft) was created between 30 and 22 ka, during the most recent of several explosive summit eruptions; the thin oxidized agglutinate that mantles its current crater rim protects a 150-m-thick pyroclastic sequence that helped fill a much larger crater. For each of the three, the eruptive volume is likely to have been in the range of 15 to 25 km³, but such estimates are fairly uncertain, owing to glacial erosion. The map area consists exclusively of Quaternary volcanic rocks and derivative surficial deposits. Although most of the area has been modified by glaciation, the volcanoes are young enough that the landforms remain largely constructional. Furthermore, twelve of the 145 eruptive units on the map are postglacial, younger than the deglaciation that was underway by about 17 ka. The most recent eruptions were of rhyolite near South Sister, about 2,000 years ago, and of mafic magma near McKenzie Pass, about 1,500 years ago. As observed by trailblazing volcanologist, Howel Williams, "For magnificence of glacial scenery, for wealth of recent lavas, and for graphic examples of dissected volcanoes, no part of this range surpasses the area embracing the Sisters and McKenzie Pass." Scientific and journalistic interest in the Three Sisters volcanic cluster was aroused a few years ago when ongoing uplift centered about 5 km west of South Sister was identified, first recognized by satellite imagery in 2001. Subsequent geodetic measurements and continuing satellite imagery analysis confirmed 3 to 4 cm/yr uplift during the interval from 1997 to 2004; the uplift has been modelled as inflation thought to be caused by an intracrustal intrusion, largely aseismic and plausibly involving mafic magma.

Oregon↗
USGS2005

Geologic map of the northern plains of Mars

The northern plains of Mars cover nearly a third of the planet and constitute the planet's broadest region of lowlands. Apparently formed early in Mars' history, the northern lowlands served as a repository both for sediments shed from the adjacent ancient highlands and for volcanic flows and deposits from sources within and near the lowlands. Geomorphic evidence for extensive tectonic deformation and reworking of surface materials through release of volatiles occurs throughout the northern plains. In the polar region, Planum Boreum contains evidence for the accumulation of ice and dust, and surrounding dune fields suggest widespread aeolian transport and erosion. The most recent regional- and global-scale maps describing the geology of the northern plains are largely based on Viking Orbiter image data (Dial, 1984; Witbeck and Underwood, 1984; Scott and Tanaka, 1986; Greeley and Guest, 1987; Tanaka and Scott, 1987; Tanaka and others, 1992a; Rotto and Tanaka, 1995; Crumpler and others, 2001; McGill, 2002). These maps reveal highland, plains, volcanic, and polar units based on morphologic character, albedo, and relative ages using local stratigraphic relations and crater counts. This geologic map of the northern plains is the first published map that covers a significant part of Mars using topography and image data from both the Mars Global Surveyor and Mars Odyssey missions. The new data provide a fresh perspective on the geology of the region that reveals many previously unrecognizable units, features, and temporal relations. In addition, we adapted and instituted terrestrial mapping methods and stratigraphic conventions that we think result in a clearer and more objective map. We focus on mapping with the intent of reconstructing the history of geologic activity within the northern plains, including deposition, volcanism, erosion, tectonism, impact cratering, and other processes with the aid of comprehensive crater-density determinations. Mapped areas include all plains regions within the northern hemisphere of Mars, as well as an approximately 300-km-wide strip of cratered highland and volcanic regions, which border the plains. Note that not all of the contiguous northern plains are mapped, because some minor parts of Elysium and Amazonis Planitiae lie south of the equator.

Scientific Investigations Map↗
USGS2007

Water, Ice, and Meteorological Measurements at South Cascade Glacier, Washington, Balance Years 2004 and 2005

Winter snow accumulation and summer snow and ice ablation were measured at South Cascade Glacier, Washington, to estimate glacier mass-balance quantities for balance years 2004 and 2005. The North Cascade Range in the vicinity of South Cascade Glacier accumulated smaller than normal winter snowpacks during water years 2004 and 2005. Correspondingly, the balance years 2004 and 2005 maximum winter snow balances of South Cascade Glacier, 2.08 and 1.97 meters water equivalent, respectively, were smaller than the average of such balances since 1959. The 2004 glacier summer balance (-3.73 meters water equivalent) was the eleventh most negative during 1959 to 2005 and the 2005 glacier summer balance (-4.42 meters water equivalent) was the third most negative. The relatively small winter snow balances and unusually negative summer balances of 2004 and 2005 led to an overall loss of glacier mass. The 2004 and 2005 glacier net balances, -1.65 and -2.45 meters water equivalent, respectively, were the seventh and second most negative during 1953 to 2005. For both balance years, the accumulation area ratio was less than 0.05 and the equilibrium line altitude was higher than the glacier. The unusually negative 2004 and 2005 glacier net balances, combined with a negative balance previously reported for 2003, resulted in a cumulative 3-year net balance of -6.20 meters water equivalent. No equal or greater 3-year mass loss has occurred previously during the more than 4 decades of U.S. Geological Survey mass-balance measurements at South Cascade Glacier. Accompanying the glacier mass losses were retreat of the terminus and reduction of total glacier area. The terminus retreated at a rate of about 17 meters per year during balance year 2004 and 15 meters per year during balance year 2005. Glacier area near the end of balance years 2004 and 2005 was 1.82 and 1.75 square kilometers, respectively. Runoff from the basin containing the glacier and from an adjacent nonglacierized basin was gaged during all or parts of water years 2004 and 2005. Air temperature, wind speed, precipitation, and incoming solar radiation were measured at selected locations on and near the glacier.

Scientific Investigations Report↗
USGS2013

Hydrogeology of the Susquehanna River valley-fill aquifer system and adjacent areas in eastern Broome and southeastern Chenango Counties, New York

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 pauses in the retreat of glacial ice from the region, favored the accumulation of coarse-grained deposits whereas more steady or rapid ice retreat between these positions favored deposition of fine-grained lacustrine deposits with limited coarse-grained deposits at depth. Unconfined aquifers with thick saturated coarse-grained deposits are the most favorable settings for water-resource development, and three several-mile-long sections of valley were identified (mostly in Broome County) as potentially favorable: (1) the southernmost valley section, which extends from the New York–Pennsylvania border to about 1 mile north of South Windsor, (2) the valley section that rounds the west side of the umlaufberg (an isolated bedrock hill within a valley) north of Windsor, and (3) the east–west valley section at the Broome County–Chenango County border from Nineveh to East of Bettsburg (including the lower reach of the Cornell Brook valley). Fine-grained lacustrine deposits form extensive confining units between the unconfined areas, and the water-resource potential of confined aquifers is largely untested. Recharge, or replenishment, of these aquifers is dependent not only on infiltration of precipitation directly on unconfined aquifers, but perhaps more so from precipitation that falls in adjacent upland areas. Surface runoff and shallow groundwater from the valley walls flow downslope and recharge valley aquifers. Tributary streams that drain upland areas lose flow as they enter main valleys on permeable alluvial fans. This infiltrating water also recharges valley aquifers. Current (2012) use of water resources in the area is primarily through domestic wells, most of which are completed in fractured bedrock in upland areas. A few villages in the Susquehanna River valley have supply wells that draw water from beneath alluvial fans and near the Susquehanna River, which is a large potential source of water from induced infiltration.

New York↗
USGS2007

Ground-water resources and the hydrologic effects of petroleum occurrence and development, Warren County, Northwestern Pennsylvania

Most of the northern half of Warren County is in the Northwestern Glaciated Plateau Section of the Appalachian Plateaus Physiographic Province. The remainder of the county is in the High Plateau Section. The glacial outwash sand and gravel hydrogeologic unit is the most extensively used unconsolidated unit for water supply in Warren County because it is capable of yielding large amounts of water to wells and it is situated in populated valleys. The median well yield for 47 specific-capacity tests was 25 gal/min (gallons per minute); well yields ranged from 2 to 1,600 gal/min. Acceptable well yields for domestic supply also are available from other unconsolidated hydrogeologic units including alluvium, colluvium, glacial drift, ice-contact stratified sand and gravel, and undifferentiated alluvium and glacial lacustrine. The median well yields during specific-capacity tests of wells in these five hydrogeologic units ranged from 8 to 18 gal/min. A comparison of the median specific capacities for wells in the unconsolidated and bedrock hydrogeologic units indicates that wells completed in the outwash sand and gravel hydrogeologic unit had the highest median specific capacity of 6.0 (gal/min)/ft (gallons per minute per foot); specific capacities for wells completed in the outwash sand and gravel unit ranged from 0.14 to 300 (gal/min)/ft. For wells completed in the bedrock hydrogeologic units, their corresponding median specific capacities are Pottsville Group, 0.5 (gal/min)/ft; Shenango Formation, 0.44 (gal/min)/ft; Cuyahoga Formation, 0.24 (gal/min)/ft; Knapp Formation, 0.45 (gal/min)/ft; Corry Sandstone through Riceville Formation, 0.67 (gal/min)/ft; Riceville Formation, 1.5 (gal/min)/ft; Oswayo Formation, 0.07 (gal/min)/ft; Venango Formation, 1.0 (gal/min)/ft; and Chadakoin Formation, 0.71 (gal/min)/ft. Annual precipitation at Warren for the years 1984-87 was above the long-term mean. The 4-year average of the annual hydrologic balance for 1984 indicated 40 percent of the precipitation was lost to evapotranspiration. Ground-water discharge, commonly defined as base flow, accounted for about 29 percent of precipitation, and surface runoff made up 31 percent. During 1984-87, ground-water discharge made up from 47 to 50 percent of total runoff or streamflow. In 1990, ground-water withdrawals made up only 1.3 percent [13.8 Mgal/d (million gallons per day)] of the total withdrawals for the county. However, ground water is the predominant source for domestic, municipal, and industrial water supplies in Warren County outside of the larger cities.

Pennsylvania↗
USGS2007

Hydrology and glacier-lake-outburst floods (1987-2004) and water quality (1998-2003) of the Taku River near Juneau, Alaska

The Taku River Basin originates in British Columbia, Canada, and drains an area of 6,600 square miles at the U.S. Geological Survey's Taku River gaging station. Several mines operated within the basin prior to 1957, and mineral exploration has resumed signaling potential for future mining developments. The U.S. Geological Survey in cooperation with the Douglas Indian Association, Alaska Department of Environmental Conservation, and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency conducted a water-quality and flood-hydrology study of the Taku River. Water-quality sampling of the Taku River from 1998 through 2003 established a baseline for assessing potential effects of future mining operations on water quality. The annual mean discharge of the Taku River is 13,700 cubic feet per second. The monthly mean discharge ranges from a minimum of 1,940 cubic feet per second in February to a maximum of 34,400 cubic feet per second in June. Nearly 90 percent of the annual discharge is from May through November. The highest spring discharges are sourced primarily from snowmelt and moderate discharges are sustained throughout the summer by glacial meltwaters. An ice cover usually forms over the Taku River in December persisting through the winter into March and occasionally into April. Glacier-lake-outburst floods originating from two glacier-dammed lakes along the margin of the Tulsequah Glacier in British Columbia, Canada, are the source of the greatest peak discharges on the Taku River. The largest flood during the period of record was 128,000 cubic feet per second on June 25, 2004, resulting from an outburst of Lake No Lake. Lake No Lake is the larger of the two lakes. The outburst-flood contribution to peak discharge was 80,000 cubic feet per second. The volume discharged from Lake No Lake is relatively consistent indicating drainage may be triggered when the lake reaches a critical stage. This suggests prediction of the timing of these outburst floods might be possible if lake-stage data were available. Further increases in the volume of Lake No Lake are unlikely as all tributary glaciers have retreated out of the lake basin. Decreasing outburst-flood volumes from Tulsequah Lake suggests a continued decline in the volume of this lake. Physical and chemical parameters and concentrations of basic water-quality constituents indicate good water quality. Samples collected at the Taku River gaging station contained low concentrations of trace elements in the dissolved phase. Trace elements sampled were within acceptable limits when compared with the Alaska Department of Environmental Conservation aquatic-life criteria for fresh waters. The highest concentrations of total trace elements sampled were collected during glacial-outburst floods and likely are associated with suspended sediments. Total trace-element concentrations generally increase with increasing water discharge, although a high correlation for all constituents sampled does not always exist.

Alaska↗
USGS2018

Geologic field-trip guide of volcaniclastic sediments from snow- and ice-capped volcanoes—Mount St. Helens, Washington, and Mount Hood, Oregon

This field guide for the International Association of Volcanology and Chemistry of the Earth’s Interior (IAVCEI) Scientific Assembly 2017 focuses on volcaniclastic sediments from Mount St. Helens in Washington and Mount Hood in Oregon. The trip spends four days in the field and includes nine stops at each volcano. For completeness, this guidebook also includes sixteen optional stops in the Mount St. Helens area and three in the Mount Hood area. These two volcanoes provide excellent depositional records of the broad spectrum of volcanic hazards that involve the flow or fall of volcaniclastic particles. At the field-trip stops we will contrast and compare the different types of deposits—sediments that can be frustratingly difficult to distinguish from one another. Correct identification of deposit origin leads to a better understanding of hazards that can impact vulnerable communities at particular volcanoes. During this four-day field trip, we will spend two days in the Mount St. Helens area and two days near Mount Hood. On the first day, we will visit debris-avalanche and lahar deposits in the Toutle River valley in Washington. The second day will focus on pyroclastic density current, pyroclastic-fall, lahar, and volcano-fluvial deposits in the Lewis River drainage system near Mount St. Helens. On the third day, we will visit hyaloclastites, glacial tills, and other diamicts in the Hood River and Sandy River basins near Mount Hood. The fourth and final day will focus on distal lahar and volcano-fluvial deposits downstream of Mount Hood. What follows is an in-depth introduction to the deposits studied on this field trip. We provide criteria that are observable in the field to aid in differentiating between pyroclastic density current, pyroclastic-fall, debris-avalanche, lahar, water-flood, and glacial deposits. We also introduce the Holocene eruptive histories of Mount St. Helens and Mount Hood and discuss the processes responsible for deposit emplacement. Field-trip stops and features of interest along the route are described in detail in a road log that provides daily cumulative mileage.

Oregon, Washington↗
USGS2010

Delineation and Prediction Uncertainty of Areas Contributing Recharge to Selected Well Fields in Wetland and Coastal Settings, Southern Rhode Island

Areas contributing recharge to four well fields in two study sites in southern Rhode Island were delineated on the basis of steady-state groundwater-flow models representing average hydrologic conditions. The wells are screened in sand and gravel deposits in wetland and coastal settings. The groundwater-flow models were calibrated by inverse modeling using nonlinear regression. Summary statistics from nonlinear regression were used to evaluate the uncertainty associated with the predicted areas contributing recharge to the well fields. In South Kingstown, two United Water Rhode Island well fields are in Mink Brook watershed and near Worden Pond and extensive wetlands. Wetland deposits of peat near the well fields generally range in thickness from 5 to 8 feet. Analysis of water-level drawdowns in a piezometer screened beneath the peat during a 20-day pumping period indicated vertical leakage and a vertical hydraulic conductivity for the peat of roughly 0.01 ft/d. The simulated area contributing recharge for average withdrawals of 2,138 gallons per minute during 2003-07 extended to groundwater divides in mostly till and morainal deposits, and it encompassed 2.30 square miles. Most of a sand and gravel mining operation between the well fields was in the simulated contributing area. For the maximum pumping capacity (5,100 gallons per minute), the simulated area contributing recharge expanded to 5.54 square miles. The well fields intercepted most of the precipitation recharge in Mink Brook watershed and in an adjacent small watershed, and simulated streams ceased to flow. The simulated contributing area to the well fields included an area beneath Worden Pond and a remote, isolated area in upland till on the opposite side of Worden Pond from the well fields. About 12 percent of the pumped water was derived from Worden Pond. In Charlestown, the Central Beach Fire District and the East Beach Water Association well fields are on a small (0.85 square mile) peninsula in a coastal setting. The wells are screened in a coarse-grained, ice-proximal part of a morphosequence with saturated thicknesses generally less than 30 feet on the peninsula. The simulated area contributing recharge for the average withdrawal (16 gallons per minute) during 2003-07 was 0.018 square mile. The contributing area extended southwestward from the well fields to a simulated groundwater mound; it underlay part of a small nearby wetland, and it included isolated areas on the side of the wetland opposite the well fields. For the maximum pumping rate (230 gallons per minute), the simulated area contributing recharge (0.26 square mile) expanded in all directions; it included a till area on the peninsula, and it underlay part of a nearby pond. Because the well fields are screened in a thin aquifer, simulated groundwater traveltimes from recharge locations to the discharging wells were short: 94 percent of the traveltimes were 10 years or less, and the median traveltime was 1.3 years. Model-prediction uncertainty was evaluated using a Monte Carlo analysis; the parameter variance-covariance matrix from nonlinear regression was used to create parameter sets for the analysis. Important parameters for model prediction that could not be estimated by nonlinear regression were incorporated into the variance-covariance matrix. For the South Kingstown study site, observations provided enough information to constrain the uncertainty of these parameters within realistic ranges, but for the Charlestown study site, prior information on parameters was required. Thus, the uncertainty analysis for the South Kingstown study site was an outcome of calibrating the model to available observations, but the Charlestown study site was also dependent on information provided by the modeler. A water budget and model-fit statistical criteria were used to assess parameter sets so that prediction uncertainty was not overestimated. For the scenarios using maximum pumping rates at both study

Scientific Investigations Report↗
USGS2014

Deposit model for heavy-mineral sands in coastal environments

This report provides a descriptive model of heavy-mineral sands, which are sedimentary deposits of dense minerals that accumulate with sand, silt, and clay in coastal environments, locally forming economic concentrations of the heavy minerals. This deposit type is the main source of titanium feedstock for the titanium dioxide (TiO 2 ) pigments industry, through recovery of the minerals ilmenite (Fe 2+ TiO 3 ), rutile (TiO 2 ), and leucoxene (an alteration product of ilmenite). Heavy-mineral sands are also the principal source of zircon (ZrSiO 4 ) and its zirconium oxide; zircon is often recovered as a coproduct. Other heavy minerals produced as coproducts from some deposits are sillimanite/kyanite, staurolite, monazite, and garnet. Monazite [(Ce,La,Nd,Th)PO 4 ] is a source of rare earth elements as well as thorium, which is used in thorium-based nuclear power under development in India and elsewhere. The processes that form coastal deposits of heavy-mineral sands begin inland. High-grade metamorphic and igneous rocks that contain heavy minerals weather and erode, contributing detritus composed of sand, silt, clay, and heavy minerals to fluvial systems. Streams and rivers carry the detritus to the coast, where they are deposited in a variety of coastal environments, such as deltas, the beach face (foreshore), the nearshore, barrier islands or dunes, and tidal lagoons, as well as the channels and floodplains of streams and rivers in the coastal plain. The sediments are reworked by waves, tides, longshore currents, and wind, which are effective mechanisms for sorting the mineral grains on the basis of differences in their size and density. The finest-grained, most dense heavy minerals are the most effectively sorted. The result is that heavy minerals accumulate together, forming laminated or lens-shaped, heavy-mineral-rich sedimentary packages that can be several meters and even as much as tens of meters thick. Most economic deposits of heavy-mineral sands are Paleogene, Neogene, and Quaternary in age; some are modern coastal deposits. Superimposed on these basic processes of ore formation are a multitude of contributing and modifying factors, such as the following: Strong, sustained wave action moves sand from offshore to the shore, where the sand and heavy minerals are sorted by size and density. Mineral sorting occurs mainly on the upper part of the hightide swash (wave) zone. Fine-grained sands and heavy minerals on the foreshore can be remobilized by winds, forming heavy mineral-rich sand dunes behind the beach. Longshore drift combined with the geomorphology of the coast exert strong influence on the location of the heavy-mineral sands deposits. Sea level changes are a function of climatic changes, such as ice ages. Rises in regional sea level (transgression) and lowering of sea level (regression) strongly influence the deposition and preservation of heavy-mineral sands. The majority of heavy-mineral sands accumulation appears related to seaward progradation of the shore during regression events. Local faulting may affect the geomorphology of the coast, which controls the distribution of heavy mineral deposition in a coastal basin. Heavy mineral grains appear to weather primarily after their deposition in the coastal plain; this weathering is caused by groundwaters, humic acids, and other intrabasinal fluids. This weathering can enhance the TiO 2 content of ilmenite. Iron is leached from ilmenite during weathering, which thereby upgrades the TiO 2 content of the ilmenite, forming leucoxene. The resulting deposits of heavy-mineral sands can be voluminous. Individual bodies of heavy mineral-rich sands are typically about 1 kilometer wide and more than 5 kilometers long. Many heavy-mineral sands districts extend for more than 10 kilometers and contain several individual deposits that are spread along an ancient or modern strandline. Reported thicknesses of economic deposits range from 3 to 45 meters. Individual ore deposits typically comprise at least 10 megatonnes of ore (the total size of the individual sand-silt body), whose overall heavy-mineral content is 2 to greater than 10 percent. Heavy-mineral sands deposits are relatively easy to mine because they are weakly to poorly consolidated, and they are relatively easy to process. From a geoenvironmental standpoint, mining of heavy mineral-sands generates little or no acid or solubilized metals. However, environmental and human health concerns related to such mining include potential effects on indigenous flora and fauna, effects on local hydrology, and issues related to processing and storing thorium-bearing monazite, owing to its radioactivity. Regional exploration for deposits of heavy-mineral sands can utilize the analyses of stream sediment samples for Ti, Hf, the rare earth elements, Th, and U, and geophysical surveys, particularly radiometric (gamma-ray spectrometry for K, U, and Th) and magnetic methods. Geophysical anomalies may be small, and surveys are generally more successful when conducted close to sources of interest.

Scientific Investigations Report↗
USGS2012

Seasonal patterns in nutrients, carbon, and algal responses in wadeable streams within three geographically distinct areas of the United States, 2007-08

The U.S. Geological Survey determined seasonal variability in nutrients, carbon, and algal biomass in 22 wadeable streams over a 1-year period during 2007 or 2008 within three geographically distinct areas in the United States. The three areas are the Upper Mississippi River Basin (UMIS) in Minnesota, the Ozark Plateaus (ORZK) in southern Missouri and northern Arkansas, and the Upper Snake River Basin (USNK) in southern Idaho. Seasonal patterns in some constituent concentrations and algal responses were distinct. Nitrate concentrations were greatest during the winter in all study areas potentially because of a reduction in denitrification rates and algal uptake during the winter, along with reduced surface runoff. Decreases in nitrate concentrations during the spring and summer at most stream sites coincided with increased streamflow during the snowmelt runoff or spring storms indicating dilution. The continued decrease in nitrate concentrations during summer potentially is because of a reduction in nitrate inputs (from decreased surface runoff) or increases in biological uptake. In contrast to nitrate concentrations, ammonia concentrations varied among study areas. Ammonia concentration trends were similar at UMIS and USNK sampling sites with winter peak concentrations and rapid decreases in ammonia concentrations by spring or early summer. In contrast, ammonia concentrations at OZRK sampling sites were more variable with peak concentrations later in the year. Ammonia may accumulate in stream water in the winter under ice and snow cover at the UMIS and USNK sites because of limited algal metabolism and increased mineralization of decaying organic matter under reducing conditions within stream bottom sediments. Phosphorus concentration patterns and the type of phosphorus present changes with changing hydrologic conditions and seasons and varied among study areas. Orthophosphate concentrations tended to be greater in the summer at UMIS sites, whereas total phosphorus concentrations at most UMIS and USNK sites peaked in the spring during runoff and then decreased through the remainder of the sampling period. Total phosphorus and orthophosphate concentrations in OZRK streams peaked during summer indicating a runoff-based source of both nutrients. Orthophosphate concentrations may increase in streams in the late summer when surface runoff composes less of total streamflow, and when groundwater containing orthophosphate becomes a more dominant source in streams during lower flows. Seston chlorophyll a concentrations were greatest early in the growing season (spring), whereas the spring runoff events coincided with reductions in benthic algal chlorophyll a biomass likely because of scour of benthic algae from the channel bottom that are entrained in the water column during that period. Nitrate, ammonia, and orthophosphate concentrations also decreased during that same period, indicating dilution in the spring during runoff events. The data from this study indicate that the source of water (surface runoff or groundwater) to a stream and the intensity of major runoff events are important factors controlling instream concentrations. Biological processes appear to affect nutrient concentrations during more stable lower flow periods in later summer, fall, and winter when residence time of water in a channel is longer, which allows more time for biological uptake and transformations. Management of nutrient conditions in streams is challenging and requires an understanding of multiple factors that affect in-stream nutrient concentrations and biological uptake and growth.

Scientific Investigations Report↗
USGS2021

Solar-system-wide significance of Mars polar science

1. The North Polar Layered Deposits contain thousands of ice layers that record accumulation and climate history for at least several million years, making the most accessible and most complete climate record aside from the Earth’s – and the only one to record the impact of large obliquity shifts. 2. Mars Polar Science is a diverse and integrated system spanning much of the planet, above and below the surface: geographic poles, mid- and high-latitudes, numerous active volatile processes that interact with the near-surface, and the lower and middle atmosphere circulations, even influencing the upper atmosphere and atmospheric escape. 3. Mars polar processes serves as an analogue and scientific link to numerous solar system bodies. Mars has two volatile cycles that influence surface processes, atmospheric processes, and climate cycles. Mars, with many data sets and observations, serves as a proxy for outer planets and moons that undergo the same physics but with other volatile species. Additionally, technology designed for Mars polar exploration benefits exploration elsewhere. 4. Mars Polar and Atmospheric Science results are critical for future human exploration and in situ resources and the study of planetary habitability.

Bulletin of the AAS↗
USGS2010

Geohydrology of the stratified-drift aquifer system in the lower Sixmile Creek and Willseyville Creek trough, Tompkins County, New York

In 2002, the U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the Tompkins County Planning Department began a series of studies of the stratified-drift aquifers in Tompkins County to provide geohydrologic data for planners to develop a strategy to manage and protect their water resources. This aquifer study in lower Sixmile Creek and Willseyville Creek trough is the second in a series of aquifer studies in Tompkins County. The study area is within the northern area of the Appalachian Plateau and extends about 9 miles from the boundary between Tompkins County and Tioga County in the south to just south of the City of Ithaca in the north. In lower Sixmile Creek and Willseyville Creek trough, confined sand and gravel aquifers comprise the major water-bearing units while less extensive unconfined units form minor aquifers. About 600 people who live in lower Sixmile Creek and Willseyville Creek trough rely on groundwater from the stratified-drift aquifer system. In addition, water is used by non-permanent residents such as staff at commercial facilities. The estimated total groundwater withdrawn for domestic use is about 45,000 gallons per day (gal/d) or 0.07 cubic foot per second (ft3/s) based on an average water use of 75 gal/d per person for self-supplied water systems in New York. Scouring of bedrock in the preglacial lower Sixmile Creek and Willseyville Creek valleys by glaciers and subglacial meltwaters truncated hillside spurs, formed U-shaped, transverse valley profiles, smoothed valley walls, and deepened the valleys by as much as 300 feet (ft), forming a continuous trough. The unconsolidated deposits in the study area consist mostly of glacial drift, both unstratified drift (till) and stratified drift (laminated lake, deltaic, and glaciofluvial sediments), as well as some post-glacial stratified sediments (lake-bottom sediments that were deposited in reservoirs, peat and muck that were deposited in wetlands, and alluvium deposited by streams). Multiple advances and retreats of the ice in the study area resulted in several sequences of various types of glacial deposits. A large moraine (Valley Heads Moraine) dominates the southern part of the study area, a large delta dominates the central part, and ground moraine (mostly till) dominates the northern part. Glacial sediments in the center of the lower Sixmile Creek and Willseyville Creek trough typically range from 150 to 200 ft but can be greater than 300 ft in some places. Where the sediments are composed of sand and gravel they form aquifers. In most parts of the lower Sixmile Creek and Willseyville Creek trough, there is an upper and a basal confined aquifer. However, underlying the central parts of the Brooktondale delta, there are as many as four confined aquifers, whereas in the northern part of the study area, only one extensive confined aquifer is present. The major sources of recharge to these confined aquifers are (1) direct infiltration of precipitation where confined aquifers crop out at land surface (mostly along the western trough wall in the southern and central parts of the study area and, to a lesser degree, along the eastern trough wall); (2) unchanneled surface and subsurface runoff from adjacent upland areas that seeps into the aquifer along the western trough walls; (3) subsurface flow from underlying till or bedrock at the lateral contacts at trough walls; (4) adjacent fine-grained stratified drift, especially when the aquifer is pumped; and (5) discharge from bedrock at the bottom and sides of the trough. In the central part of the study area, the surficial coarse-grained sediments (sand and gravel) comprise a delta near Brooktondale and form a small unconfined aquifer (0.3 square mile). Although much of the upper part of the delta has been removed by several aggregate mining operations, sufficient amounts of sand and gravel remain in most places to form a thin unconfined aquifer. The major sources of recharge to the unconfined aquifer are (1)

Scientific Investigations Report↗
USGS2010

Geologic Map of MTM -40277, -45277, -40272, and -45272 Quadrangles, Eastern Hellas Planitia Region of Mars

Hellas Planitia comprises the floor deposits of the Hellas basin, more than 2,000 km across and 8 km deep, which is located in the southern hemisphere's cratered highlands and is the largest well-preserved impact structure on the Martian surface. The circum-Hellas highlands represent a significant percentage of the southern hemisphere of Mars and have served as a locus for volcanic and sedimentary activity throughout Martian geologic time. Hellas basin topography has had a long-lasting influence, acting as Mars' deepest and second largest depositional sink, as a source for global dust storms, and as a forcing agent on southern hemisphere atmospheric circulation. The region lies in the Martian mid-latitude zone where geomorphic indicators of past, and possibly contemporary, ground ice are prominent. The highlands north of the basin show concentrations of Noachian valley networks, and those to the east show prominent lobate debris aprons that are considered to be geomorphic indicators of ground ice. Several studies have proposed that Hellas itself was the site of extensive glacial and lacustrine activity. Recent analyses of mineralogical information from Mars Express' OMEGA (Observatoire pour la Mineralogie, l'Eau les Glaces et l'Activite) and Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter's CRISM (Compact Reconnaissance Imaging Spectrometer for Mars) reveal outcrops of hydrated phyllosilicates in the region, strengthening an already strong case for past aqueous activity in and around Hellas basin. Our mapping and evaluation of landforms and materials of the Hellas region from basin rim to floor provides further insight into Martian global climate regimes and into the abundance, distribution, and flux of volatiles through history. Mars Transverse Mercator (MTM) quadrangles -40277, -45277, -45272, and -40272 (lat 37.5 degrees S.-47.5 degrees S., long 270 degrees W.-280 degrees W.) cover the eastern portion of the Hellas basin including the boundary between its floor and rim, the distal portions of Dao and Harmakhis Valles, and the deposits of eastern Hellas Planitia. The geologic mapping, at 1:1,000,000-scale from Viking Orbiter, Thermal Emission Imaging System (THEMIS) infrared (IR) and visible (VIS) wavelength, and Mars Orbiter Camera (MOC) narrow-angle images, combined with Mars Orbiter Laser Altimeter (MOLA) topographic data, characterizes the geologic materials and processes that have shaped this region. In particular, the mapping helps to evaluate landforms and deposits resulting from modification of highland terrains by volatile-driven degradation. This mapping study builds on previous mapping in Hellas Planitia and to the east and facilitates comparisons between the geologic history of the east rim, the remainder of the rim, and Hellas Planitia. Specific objectives of our mapping are (1) to reconstruct fluvial systems that dissect the Hellas rim, (2) to characterize the extensions of Dao and Harmakhis Valles onto the basin floor and to identify, if present, sediments these canyons contributed to Hellas Planitia from the rim, and (3) to investigate the mode of origin, age, and history of modification of the boundary between the east rim and Hellas Planitia.

Scientific Investigations Map↗
USGS2006

Geologic map of the Wrangell-Saint Elias National Park and Preserve, Alaska

Wrangell-Saint Elias National Park and Preserve, the largest national park within the U.S. National Park Service system, extends from the northern Pacific Ocean to beyond the eastern Alaska Range into interior Alaska. It features impressively spectacular scenery such as high and craggy mountains, active and ancient volcanoes, expansive ice fields, immense tidewater glaciers, and a myriad of alpine glaciers. The park also includes the famous Kennecott Mine, a world-class copper deposit that was mined from 1911 to 1938, and remnant ghost town, which is now a National Historic Landmark. Geologic investigations encompassing Wrangell-Saint Elias National Park and Preserve began in 1796, with Dmitriv Tarkhanov, a Russian mining engineer, who unsuccessfully ventured up the Copper River in search of rumored copper. Lieutenant H.T. Allen (1897) of the U.S. Army made a successful epic summer journey with a limited military crew up the Copper River in 1885, across the Alaska Range, and down the Tanana and Yukon Rivers. Allen?s crew was supported by a prospector named John Bremner and local Eyak and Ahtna native guides whose tribes controlled access into the Copper River basin. Allen witnessed the Ahtnas? many uses of the native copper. His stories about the copper prompted prospectors to return to this area in search of the rich copper ore in the years following his journey. The region boasts a rich mining and exploration history prior to becoming a park in 1980. Several U.S. Geological Survey geologists have conducted reconnaissance surveys in the area since Allen?s explorations. This map is the result of their work and is enhanced by more detailed investigations, which began in the late 1950s and are still continuing. For a better understanding of the processes that have shaped the geology of the park and a history of the geologic investigations in the area, we recommend U.S. Geological Survey Professional Paper 1616, ?A Geologic Guide to Wrangell-Saint Elias National Park and Preserve, Alaska,? an exceptionally well illustrated and informative book by Gary R. Winkler, 2000. Geologically, the park consists of a collage of seven tectonostratigraphic terranes that formed south in the equatorial Pacific Ocean and rafted northward on oceanic plates, eventually accreting to Alaska and the North American continent. Each terrane features a distinct stratigraphy and is separated from neighboring terranes by major strike-slip or thrust faults.

Alaska↗
USGS2007

Surficial sediment character of the New York-New Jersey offshore continental shelf region: A GIS compilation

Broad continental shelf regions such as the New York Bight are the product of a complex geologic history and dynamic oceanographic processes, dominated by the Holocene marine transgression (>100 m sea-level rise) following the end of the last Pleistocene ice advance ~ 20,000 years ago. The area of the U.S. Exclusive Economic Zone (U.S. EEZ) territory, extending 200 nautical miles seaward from the coast, is larger than the continental U.S. and contains submerged landforms that provide a variety of natural functions and societal benefits, such as: critical habitats for fisheries, ship navigation and homeland security, and engineering activities (i.e. oil and gas platforms, pipeline and cable routes, potential wind-energy-generation sites). Some parts of the continental margins, particularly inner-continental shelf regions, also contain unconsolidated hard-mineral deposits such as sand and gravel that are regarded as potential aggregate resources to meet or augment needs not met by onshore deposits (Williams, 1992). The present distribution of surficial sediment off the northeastern United States is shaped from the deposits left by the last glaciation and reflects the cumulative effects of sediment erosion, transport, sorting, and deposition by storm and tidal processes during the Holocene rise in sea level. As a result, the sediments on the sea floor represent both an historical record of former conditions and a guide to possible future sedimentary environments. The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) through the Coastal and Marine Geology Program, in cooperation with the University of Colorado and other partners, has compiled extant sediment character and textural data as well as other geologic information on the sea floor from all regions around the U.S. into the usSEABED data system (Reid and others, 2005; Buczkowski and others, 2006; Reid and others, 2006). The usSEABED system, which contains information on sediment grain size and lithology for more than 340,500 stations within the U.S. EEZ. has been developed and populated with data as part of the USGS Marine Aggregate Resources and Processes and the National Benthic Habitats projects in order to provide the base-line data needed to update the current maps of offshore surficial geologic character and sediment distribution. The maps are also used to characterize benthic sea floor environments important for marine ecosystems. U.S. Geological Survey, Data Series 118 (Reid and others, 2005), of the usSEABED data release series, represents the combined efforts of the USGS and several other government agencies to provide a unified resource for accessing and preserving records of U.S. east coast sea floor geologic information and sediment texture data. For this present report, we have chosen to focus on the New York-New Jersey region, an area that has been intensely studied by the USGS for many years to address many complex issues. This report illustrates the uses of the usSEABED database for GIS applications, while offering additional insight into the resources and data available from the USGS and its collaborative institutions. This report is based on data contained in U.S. Geological Survey Data Series 118 (Reid and others, 2005) and shows an assortment of example GIS products that are possible using usSEABED. All data are intended to be GIS-ready and should not require any additional cleanup, formatting, or renaming of fields in order to use the data in a Geographic Information System. This project employs the Environmental Systems Research Institute's (ESRI) ArcView™ software. Many of these maps were made as part of the ongoing USGS study to assess marine aggregate resources offshore New York and New Jersey, but these maps can serve many other purposes. The marine science community, educators, students and others are encouraged to use these data to generate GIS products for their own purposes. The objectives of the Marine Aggregate Resources and Processes project are to produce a series of new geologic maps and reports of the sea floor that will provide scientific insights into the character and geologic development of U.S. continental margins and to use these maps and information to assess the potential availability of offshore sand and gravel resources. The mapping and aggregate resource assessments are being conducted on a national scale using the usSEABED data base as described in Williams and others (2003). Potential uses for these data include: (1) defining the geological variability of the sea floor in relation to benthic habitat diversity; (2) improving our understanding of the processes that control the distribution and transport of bottom sediments and benthic habitats; (3) locating aggregate resources for beach nourishment and industrial applications; and (4) providing a detailed geospatial framework for future marine science research, monitoring, and management activities. The initial assessments are in progress for the New York Bight and Louisiana offshore areas.

New Jersey, New York↗
USGS2018

Quaternary sediment thickness and bedrock topography of the glaciated United States east of the Rocky Mountains

Beginning roughly 2.6 million years ago, global climate entered a cooling phase known as the Pleistocene Epoch. As snow in northern latitudes compacted into ice several kilometers thick, it flowed as glaciers southward across the North American continent. These glaciers extended across the northern United States, dramatically altering the landscape they covered. East of the Rocky Mountains, the ice coalesced into continental glaciers (called the Laurentide Ice Sheet) that at times blanketed much of the north-central and northeastern United States. To the west of the Laurentide Ice Sheet, glaciers formed in the mountains of western Canada and the United States and coalesced into the Cordilleran ice sheet; this relatively smaller ice mass extended into the conterminous United States in the northernmost areas of western Montana, Idaho, and Washington. Throughout the Pleistocene, landscape alteration occurred by (1) glacial erosion of the rocks and sediments; (2) redeposition of the eroded earth materials in a form substantially different from their source rocks, in terms of texture and overall character; and (3) disruption of preexisting drainage patterns by the newly deposited sediments. In many cases, pre-glacial drainage systems (including, for example, the Mississippi River) were rerouted because their older drainage courses became blocked with glacial sediment. The continental glaciers advanced and retreated many times across those areas. During each ice advance, or glaciation, erosion and deposition occurred, and the landscape was again altered. Through successive glaciations, the landscape and the bedrock surface gradually came to resemble their present configurations. As continental ice sheets receded and the Pleistocene ended, erosion and deposition of sediment (for example in stream valleys) continued to shape the landscape up to the present day (albeit to a lesser extent than during glaciation). The interval of time since the last recession of the glaciers is called the Holocene and, together with the Pleistocene, constitutes the Quaternary Period of geologic time; this publication characterizes the three-dimensional geometry of the Quaternary sediments and the bedrock surface that lies beneath. The pre-glacial landscape was underlain mostly by weathered bedrock generally similar in nature to that found in many areas of the non-glaciated United States. Glacial erosion and redeposition of earth materials produced a young, mineral-rich soil that formed the basis for the highly productive agricultural economy in the U.S. midcontinent. Extensive buried sands and gravels within the glacial deposits also provided a stimulus to other economic sectors by serving as high-quality aquifers supplying groundwater to the region’s industry and cities. An understanding of the three-dimensional distribution of these glacial sediments has direct utility for addressing various societal issues including groundwater quality and supply, and landscape and soil response to earthquake-induced shaking. The Quaternary sediment thickness map and bedrock topographic map shown here provide a regional overview and are intended to supplement the more detailed work on which they are based. Detailed mapping is particularly useful in populated areas for site-specific planning. In contrast, regional maps such as these serve to place local, detailed mapping in context; to permit the extrapolation of data into unmapped areas; and to depict large-scale regional geologic features and patterns that are beyond the scope of local, detailed mapping. They also can enhance the reader’s general understanding of the region’s landscape and geologic history and provide a source of information for regional decision making that could benefit by improved predictability of bedrock depth beneath the unconsolidated Quaternary sediments. To enable these maps to be analyzed in conjunction with other types of information, this publication also includes the map data in GIS compatible format.

Scientific Investigations Map↗
USGS2014

Monitoring recharge in areas of seasonally frozen ground in the Columbia Plateau and Snake River Plain, Idaho, Oregon, and Washington

Seasonally frozen ground occurs over approximately one‑third of the contiguous United States, causing increased winter runoff. Frozen ground generally rejects potential groundwater recharge. Nearly all recharge from precipitation in semi-arid regions such as the Columbia Plateau and the Snake River Plain in Idaho, Oregon, and Washington, occurs between October and March, when precipitation is most abundant and seasonally frozen ground is commonplace. The temporal and spatial distribution of frozen ground is expected to change as the climate warms. It is difficult to predict the distribution of frozen ground, however, because of the complex ways ground freezes and the way that snow cover thermally insulates soil, by keeping it frozen longer than it would be if it was not snow covered or, more commonly, keeping the soil thawed during freezing weather. A combination of satellite remote sensing and ground truth measurements was used with some success to investigate seasonally frozen ground at local to regional scales. The frozen-ground/snow-cover algorithm from the National Snow and Ice Data Center, combined with the 21-year record of passive microwave observations from the Special Sensor Microwave Imager onboard a Defense Meteorological Satellite Program satellite, provided a unique time series of frozen ground. Periodically repeating this methodology and analyzing for trends can be a means to monitor possible regional changes to frozen ground that could occur with a warming climate. The Precipitation-Runoff Modeling System watershed model constructed for the upper Crab Creek Basin in the Columbia Plateau and Reynolds Creek basin on the eastern side of the Snake River Plain simulated recharge and frozen ground for several future climate scenarios. Frozen ground was simulated with the Continuous Frozen Ground Index, which is influenced by air temperature and snow cover. Model simulation results showed a decreased occurrence of frozen ground that coincided with increased temperatures in the future climate scenarios. Snow cover decreased in the future climate scenarios coincident with the temperature increases. Although annual precipitation was greater in future climate scenarios, thereby increasing the amount of water available for recharge over current (baseline) simulations, actual evapotranspiration also increased and reduced the amount of water available for recharge over baseline simulations. The upper Crab Creek model shows no significant trend in the rates of recharge in future scenarios. In these scenarios, annual precipitation is greater than the baseline averages, offsetting the effects of greater evapotranspiration in future scenarios. In the Reynolds Creek Basin simulations, precipitation was held constant in future scenarios and recharge was reduced by 1.0 percent for simulations representing average conditions in 2040 and reduced by 4.3 percent for simulations representing average conditions in 2080. The focus of the results of future scenarios for the Reynolds Creek Basin was the spatial components of selected hydrologic variables for this 92 square mile mountainous basin with 3,600 feet of relief. Simulation results from the watershed model using the Continuous Frozen Ground Index provided a relative measure of change in frozen ground, but could not identify the within-soil processes that allow or reject available water to recharge aquifers. The model provided a means to estimate what might occur in the future under prescribed climate scenarios, but more detailed energy-balance models of frozen-ground hydrology are needed to accurately simulate recharge under seasonally frozen ground and provide a better understanding of how changes in climate may alter infiltration.

Idaho;Oregon;Washington↗
USGS2021

Geohydrology and water quality of the stratified-drift aquifers in West Branch Cayuga Inlet and Fish Kill Valleys, Newfield, Tompkins County, New York

From 2011 to 2016, the U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the Town of Newfield and the Tompkins County Planning Department, performed a study of the stratified-drift aquifers in the West Branch Cayuga Inlet and Fish Kill Valleys in Newfield, Tompkins County, New York. Both confined and unconfined aquifers were identified, mostly in the valleys. The confined aquifer consists of a discontinuous sand and gravel layer that overlies bedrock and is commonly confined by overlying fine-grained sediments. The unconfined aquifer consists of surficial ice contact sand and gravel, alluvial silt, sand and gravel, and areas where several large tributary streams deposited alluvial fans in the valley, all of which were deposited during and after the last glacial recession. The unconfined aquifers are primarily recharged by direct infiltration of precipitation at the land surface, by surface runoff and shallow subsurface flow from adjacent hillsides, and by seepage loss from streams crossing the aquifer, especially on alluvial fans. The confined aquifers are primarily recharged by groundwater stored in the overlying sand and gravel aquifer that slowly seeps downward through the underlying confining layer. Other sources of recharge are precipitation that falls directly on the surficial confining unit and adjacent valley walls, which then slowly seeps downward and enters the confined aquifer, and groundwater flow from bordering till and bedrock and from bedrock below the valley. There may also be some recharge where confining units are absent or where parts of the confining units contain sediments with moderate permeability. The groundwater naturally discharges to the Fish Kill and West Branch Cayuga Inlet streams and to wetlands overlying the aquifer boundaries, with additional losses due to evapotranspiration. Groundwater is pumped from the aquifers by domestic, municipal, and agricultural wells. Approximately 57.9 million gallons per year was withdrawn from the stratified-drift (sand and gravel) aquifers. Groundwater samples were collected from 11 wells, and surface water samples were collected at 2 sites, one each from Fish Kill and West Branch Cayuga Inlet. None of the common ions (for example, sodium, chloride, and magnesium) exceeded existing drinking water standards at either surface water site. The concentration of nitrate plus nitrite detected was 0.4 milligram per liter as nitrogen in the West Branch Cayuga Inlet site. Total phosphorus was detected at 0.01 milligram per liter as phosphate for both sites. Of the 11 wells sampled, 8 were finished in confined sand and gravel aquifers, 1 was finished in unconfined sand and gravel, and 2 were finished in shale bedrock. Groundwater quality in the study area generally met Federal and State drinking-water standards. However, of the 11 samples taken, 2 exceeded the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency drinking water advisory taste threshold of 20 milligrams per liter for sodium, 8 exceeded the secondary maximum contaminant level of 300 micrograms per liter for iron, and 9 exceeded the secondary maximum contaminant level of 50 micrograms per liter for manganese.

New York↗