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At least 271 records · Page 15Linked to original sources

USGS1990

Landslide processes in saprolitic soils of a tropical rain forest, Puerto Rico

Shallow soil slips, earth and debris slides appear to be a primary mechanism of hillslope denudation in the rainforest of eastern Puerto Rico. Annual rainfall in excess of 4,000 mm, and thick sequences (up to 20 m) of residual soils (saprolite) combine to produce these landslides. Shear strength testing and observatons of tension cracks indicate that landslides may start as tensile failure of saprolitic material. The tension cracks provide avenues for rapid infiltration of rainwater and saturation of the underlying soil. During or shortly after intense or prolonged precipitation, shear failure then occurs as a result of pore-pressure buildup along zones of low permeability within the saprolite. Tensile stresses in the unsaturated, low-density upper saprolite zone range from 3 to 10 kPa, and mean seismic refraction velocities are 476 +/- 127 m/s. Denser, clay-rich, less permeable saprolitic zones having mean seismic velocities of 1420 +/- 157 m/s represent zones that are commonly associated with perched ground water and are zones where exess pore-water pressure is most likely to trigger movement. These zones of translocated clay show marked density increases. Slickensides are present in the saprolite along relict fractures and joints derived from the parent rock; they are common in quartz-diorite bedrock, and less so in marine-deposited volcaniclastic bedrock. The failure planes of many landslides have exposed these relict fractures and joints as slickensides, and landslides appear to move on these pre-existing planes of weakness in the saprolite. The larges landslides (areas greater than 20,000 m 2 , however, are those that fail along saprolite-bedrock boundaries, which are zones of contrasting density and permeability within or at the base of the weathered profile.

Conference Paper↗

USGS1997

Synthesis of polycrystalline methane hydrate, and its phase stability and mechanical properties at elevated pressure

Test specimens of methane hydrate were grown under static conditions by combining cold, pressurized CH4 gas with H2O ice grains, then warming the system to promote the reaction CH4 (g) + 6H2O (s???l) ??? CH4??6H2O. Hydrate formation evidently occurs at the nascent ice/liquid water interface, and complete reaction was achieved by warming the system above 271.5 K and up to 289 K, at 25-30 MPa, for approximately 8 hours. The resulting material is pure methane hydrate with controlled grain size and random texture. Fabrication conditions placed the H2O ice well above its melting temperature before reaction completed, yet samples and run records showed no evidence for bulk melting of the ice grains. Control experiments using Ne, a non-hydrate-forming gas, verified that under otherwise identical conditions, the pressure reduction and latent heat associated with ice melting is easily detectable in our fabrication apparatus. These results suggest that under hydrate-forming conditions, H2O ice can persist metastably at temperatures well above its melting point. Methane hydrate samples were then tested in constant-strain-rate deformation experiments at T= 140-200 K, Pc= 50-100 MPa, and ????= 10-4-10-6 s-1. Measurements in both the brittle and ductile fields showed that methane hydrate has measurably different strength than H2O ice, and work hardens to a higher degree compared to other ices as well as to most metals and ceramics at high homologous temperatures. This work hardening may be related to a changing stoichiometry under pressure during plastic deformation; x-ray analyses showed that methane hydrate undergoes a process of solid-state disproportionation or exsolution during deformation at conditions well within its conventional stability field.

ACS Division of Fuel Chemistry, Preprints↗

USGS1989

Comparison of geoelectrical/tectonic models for suture zones in the western U.S.A. and eastern Europe: are black shales a possible source of high conductivities?

Large-scale geoelectrical anomalies have been mapped with geomagnetic depth sounding (GDS) and magnetotelluric (MT) surveys in the Carpathian Mountains region. These anomalies are associated with the zone of closure between stable Europe and a complex of microplates in front of the converging African plate. The zone of closure, or suture zone, is largely occupied by an extensive deformed flysch belt. The models derived to fit the observed geoelectrical data are useful in the study of other suture zones, and Carpathian structures have been compared with areas currently being studied in the western Cordillera of the U.S.A. Models derived for a smaller-scale suture zone mapped in western Washington State have features that are similar to the Carpathian models. The geoelectrical models for both the Carpathian and Washington anomalies require dipping conductive slabs of 1-5 ?? m material that extends to depths > 20 km. In both instances there is evidence that these materials may merge with lower crustal-mantle conductors along the down-dip margins of the slab. The main conductive units are interpreted to be sedimentary rocks that have been partially subducted due to collisional processes. Heat flow is low in both regions and it is difficult to explain fully the deep conduction mechanisms; however, evidence suggests that the conduction at depth may include electronic conduction in sulfide mineral or carbon films as well as ionic conduction in fluids or partial melt. ?? 1989.

Physics of the Earth and Planetary Interiors↗

USGS2021

Brittle fragmentation by rapid gas separation in a Hawaiian fountain

Brittle fragmentation, generating small pyroclasts from magma, is a key process determining eruptive style. How low-viscosity magma fragments within a rising fountain in a brittle manner, however, is not well understood. Here we describe a fragmentation process in Hawaiian fountains on the basis of observations from the 2018 lower East Rift Zone eruption of Kīlauea Volcano, Hawai’i. The dominant fragmentation mechanism is inertia driven and produces a population of large fluidal pyroclasts. However, when sufficient volcanic gas is released in the fountain, a subpopulation of smaller and more vesicular pyroclasts is generated and entrained into the gas-dominant convective plume. The size distribution of these pyroclasts is similar to that of brittlely fragmented solid materials. The erupted high-vesicularity pyroclasts sometimes preserve a deformed shape. These observations suggest that late-stage rapid expansion lowers the gas temperature adiabatically and cools the outer surface of liquid pyroclasts below the glass transition temperature. The rigid crust fragments as the hot interior attempts to expand due to further volatile diffusion from the melt into bubbles. Adiabatic expansion of volcanic gas occurs in all eruptions. Brittle fragmentation induced by rapid adiabatic cooling may be a widespread process, although of varying importance, in explosive eruptions.

Hawaii↗

USGS1977

Mechanical and hydraulic properties of rocks related to induced seismicity

Witherspoon, P.A. and Gale, J.E., 1977. Mechanical and hydraulic properties of rocks related to induced seismicity. Eng. Geol., 11(1): 23-55. The mechanical and hydraulic properties of fractured rocks are considered with regard to the role they play in induced seismicity. In many cases, the mechanical properties of fractures determine the stability of a rock mass. The problems of sampling and testing these rock discontinuities and interpreting their non-linear behavior are reviewed. Stick slip has been proposed as the failure mechanism in earthquake events. Because of the complex interactions that are inherent in the mechanical behavior of fractured rocks, there seems to be no simple way to combine the deformation characteristics of several sets of fractures when there are significant perturbations of existing conditions. Thus, the more important fractures must be treated as individual components in the rock mass. In considering the hydraulic properties, it has been customary to treat a fracture as a parallel-plate conduit and a number of mathematical models of fracture systems have adopted this approach. Non-steady flow in fractured systems has usually been based on a two-porosity model, which assumes the primary (intergranular) porosity contributes only to storage and the secondary (fracture) porosity contributes only to the overall conductivity. Using such a model, it has been found that the time required to achieve quasi-steady state flow in a fractured reservoir is one or two orders of magnitude greater than it is in a homogeneous system. In essentially all of this work, the assumption has generally been made that the fractures are rigid. However, it is clear from a review of the mechanical and hydraulic properties that not only are fractures easily deformed but they constitute the main flow paths in many rock masses. This means that one must consider the interaction of mechanical and hydraulic effects. A considerable amount of laboratory and field data is now available that clearly demonstrates this stress-flow behavior. Two approaches have been used in attempting to numerically model such behavior: (1) continuum models, and (2) discrete models. The continuum approach only needs information as to average values of fracture spacing and material properties. But because of the inherent complexity of fractured rock masses and the corresponding decrease in symmetry, it is difficult to develop an equivalent continuum that will simulate the behavior of the entire system. The discrete approach, on the other hand, requires details of the fracture geometry and material properties of both fractures and rock matrix. The difficulty in obtaining such information has been considered a serious limitation of discrete models, but improved borehole techniques can enable one to obtain the necessary data, at least in shallow systems. The possibility of extending these methods to deeper fracture systems needs more investigation. Such data must be considered when deciding whether to use a continuum or discrete model to represent the interaction of rock and fluid forces in a fractured rock system, especially with regard to the problem of induced seismicity. When one is attempting to alter the pressure distribution in a fault zone by injection or withdrawal of fluids, the extent to which this can be achieved will be controlled in large measure by the behavior of the fractures that communicate with the borehole. Since this is essentially a point phenomenon, i.e., the changes will propagate from a relatively small region around the borehole, the use of a discrete model would appear to be preferable.

Engineering Geology↗

USGS1971

C13 and O18 compositions in some fresh-water carbonates associated with ultramafic rocks and serpentinites: Western United States

All carbonates associated with the ultramafic rocks and serpentinites of the western United States are shown by their stable isotope ratios to be of near-surface, low-temperature origin. These include vein materials that have been previously classified as hydrothermal. New laboratory and natural data were obtained on the equilibrium isotope relations between hydromagnesite and water. The origins of travertines in the ultramafic area are easily distinguished on the basis of their stable isotope ratios. The extremely heavy isotope ratios of nesquehonites suggest an intricate evaporating-film mechanism of formation.

Geochimica et Cosmochimica Acta↗

USGS2016

Can pore-clogging by ash explain post-fire runoff?

Ash plays an important role in controlling runoff and erosion processes after wildfire and has frequently been hypothesised to clog soil pores and reduce infiltration. Yet evidence for clogging is incomplete, as research has focussed on identifying the presence of ash in soil; the actual flow processes remain unknown. We conducted laboratory infiltration experiments coupled with microscope observations in pure sands, saturated hydraulic conductivity analysis, and interaction energy calculations, to test whether ash can clog pores (i.e. block pores such that infiltration is hampered and ponding occurs). Although results confirmed previous observations of ash washing into pores, clogging was not observed in the pure sands tested, nor were conditions found for which this does occur. Clogging by means of strong attachment of ash to sand was deemed unlikely given the negative surface charge of the two materials. Ponding due to washing in of ash was also considered improbable given the high saturated conductivity of pure ash and ash–sand mixtures. This first mechanistic step towards analysing ash transport and attachment processes in field soils therefore suggests that pore clogging by ash is unlikely to occur in sands. Discussion is provided on other mechanisms by which ash can affect post-fire hydrology.

International Journal of Wildland Fire↗

USGS2010

Chemical fate and transport of atrazine in soil gravel materials at agrichemical distribution facilities

The gravel commonly used to cover parking lots and roadways at retail agrichemical facilities may contain relatively large concentrations of pesticides that resulted from past management problems. These pesticides may threaten groundwater quality. Previous studies, however, suggested that the pesticides had not moved from the gravel in several sample profiles. Excavations at a closed facility revealed tremendous variability in pesticide distribution within the site. Pesticides were present below the gravel in two profiles, but the mechanism(s) for their movement were not clear. The objectives of this study were to investigate how the physical and chemical properties of the gravel influence the environmental fate of atrazine. All of the gravel samples collected and characterized contained atrazine and sufficient organic C to adsorb significant amounts of atrazine, thus retarding its movement through the gravel. Laboratory column leaching experiments, however, suggested that much of the atrazine should leach from the gravel within a year or two. A field-scale test plot was constructed to study how atrazine moves through the gravel under controlled conditions. Atrazine was “spilled” in the test plot. Atrazine moved from the gravel both vertically and horizontally. It appears that formulated product spilled on gravel will leach. A single discrete spill can give rise to phantom spills whose occurrence and distribution is not related to any specific pesticide-management practice. The apparent lack of atrazine leaching from gravel appeared to be a transient phenomenon and/or the result of sampling limitations in previous studies. The contaminated gravel clearly poses a risk to groundwater quality.

Soil and Sediment Contamination↗

USGS2015

Summary of oceanographic and water-quality measurements in Rachel Carson National Wildlife Refuge, Wells, Maine, in 2013

Suspended-sediment transport is a critical element controlling the geomorphology of tidal wetland complexes. Wetlands rely on organic material and inorganic sediment deposition to maintain their elevation relative to sea level. The U.S. Geological Survey performed observational deployments to measure suspended-sediment concentration and water flow rates in the tidal channels of the wetlands in the Rachel Carson National Wildlife Refuge in Wells, Maine. The objective was to characterize the sediment-transport mechanisms that contribute to the net sediment budget of the wetland complex. We deployed a meteorological tower, optical turbidity sensors, and acoustic velocity meters at sites on Stephens Brook and the Ogunquit River between March 27 and December 9, 2013. This report presents the time-series oceanographic and atmospheric data collected during those field studies. The oceanographic parameters include water velocity, depth, turbidity, salinity, temperature, and pH. The atmospheric parameters include wind direction, speed, and gust; air temperature; air pressure; relative humidity; short wave radiation; and photosynthetically active radiation.

Maine↗

USGS2010

In-situ arsenic remediation in Carson Valley, Douglas County, west-central Nevada

Conventional arsenic remediation strategies primarily involve above-ground treatment that include costs involved in the disposal of sludge material. The primary advantages of in-situ remediation are that building and maintaining a large treatment facility are not necessary and that costs associated with the disposal of sludge are eliminated. A two-phase study was implemented to address the feasibility of in-situ arsenic remediation in Douglas County, Nevada. Arsenic concentrations in groundwater within Douglas County range from 1 to 85 micrograms per liter. The primary arsenic species in groundwater at greater than 250 ft from land surface is arsenite; however, in the upper 150 ft of the aquifer arsenate predominates. Where arsenite is the primary form of arsenic, the oxidation of arsenite to arsenate is necessary. The results of the first phase of this investigation indicated that arsenic concentrations can be remediated to below the drinking-water standard using aeration, chlorination, iron, and pH adjustment. Arsenic concentrations were remediated to less than 10 micrograms per liter in groundwater from the shallow and deep aquifer when iron concentrations of 3-6 milligrams per liter and pH adjustments to less than 6 were used. Because of the rapid depletion of dissolved oxygen, the secondary drinking-water standards for iron (300 micrograms per liter) and manganese (100 micrograms per liter) were exceeded during treatment. Treatment was more effective in the shallow well as indicated by a greater recovery of water meeting the arsenic standard. Laboratory and field tests were included in the second phase of this study. Laboratory column experiments using aquifer material indicated the treatment process followed during the first phase of this study will continue to work, without exceeding secondary drinking-water standards, provided that groundwater was pre-aerated and an adequate number of pore volumes treated. During the 147-day laboratory experiment, no decrease in flow through the column was observed. The primary mechanism of arsenic removal is through coprecipitation with iron oxide. Calculations based on the results of the column experiments and assuming 10 and 30 percent porosity indicated that treatment of approximately 237,000-714,000 gallons of water would be required in order to remediate arsenic concentrations to less than 10 micrograms per liter. During the first second-phase field experiment, effective injection of treated groundwater back into the aquifer was prevented due to clogging likely caused by entrained gases and the fine texture (sand, clay, and gravel) of the aquifer sediments. Because of the overflow of treated water from the injection wells, only 3,760 gallons of treated water were injected. Immediately upon terminating this first experiment, no arsenic remediation was apparent. However, approximately 24 hours after terminating the experiment arsenic concentrations in groundwater collected from one of the injection wells showed a decrease from about 30 to 15 micrograms per liter, indicating that some remediation had taken place. In agreement with the laboratory-column experiments, pre-aeration prevented the exceedence of the secondary drinking-water standards for iron and manganese. Because of complications associated with system hydraulics, no additional experiments were performed.

Scientific Investigations Report↗

USGS2020

Detection and measurement of land subsidence and uplift using Global Positioning System surveys and interferometric synthetic aperture radar, Coachella Valley, California, 2010–17

Groundwater has been a major source of agricultural, recreational, municipal, and domestic supply in the Coachella Valley of California since the early 1920s. Pumping of groundwater resulted in groundwater-level declines as large as 50 feet (ft) or 15 meters (m) by the late 1940s. Because of concerns that the declines could cause land subsidence, the Coachella Valley Water District (CVWD) and the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) have cooperatively investigated subsidence in the Coachella Valley since 1996. Importation of Colorado River water to the southern Coachella Valley began in 1949, resulting in a reduction in groundwater pumping and a recovery of groundwater levels during the 1950s through the 1970s. Since the late 1970s, the demand for water in the valley increased to the point that groundwater levels again declined in response to increased pumping and, consequently, increased the potential for land subsidence caused by aquifer-system compaction. Several management actions to increase recharge or to reduce reliance on groundwater have been implemented since as early as 1973 to address overdraft in the Coachella Valley. The implementation of three particular projects has markedly improved groundwater conditions in some of the historically most overdrafted areas of the valley: (1) groundwater substitution with surface-water imports since 2006 using Colorado River water through the Mid-Valley Pipeline project, which was expanded through 2017; (2) budget-based, tiered rates since 2009; and (3) managed aquifer recharge at the Thomas E. Levy Groundwater Replenishment Facility since 2009. Global Positioning System (GPS) surveying and interferometric synthetic aperture radar (InSAR) methods were used to determine the location, extent, and magnitude of the vertical land-surface changes in the Coachella Valley during 2010–17, updating 1993–2010 information presented in previous USGS reports. The GPS measurements taken at 24 geodetic monuments in August 2010 and September 2015 indicated that the land-surface elevation was stable at 17 monuments but changed at seven monuments during the 5-year period. Subsidence ranged from 0.17 to 0.43 ±0.09 ft (52 to 132 ±28 millimeters, or mm) at three monuments, and uplift ranged from 0.11 to 0.18 ±0.09 ft (33 to 54 ±28 mm) at four monuments between 2010 and 2015. At two of the monuments that subsided, the subsidence rates decreased between 2010 and 2015 from those computed between 2005 and 2010. Data prior to 2010 were not available for the third monument that subsided; thus, the 2010–15 subsidence rate could not be compared to an earlier period. At three of the monuments that uplifted between 2010 and 2015, data collected in 2005 and 2010 indicated stability. Data prior to 2010 were not available for the fourth monument that uplifted; thus, the 2010–15 uplift rate could not be compared to an earlier period. InSAR analyses for December 28, 2014–June 27, 2017, indicated that the land surface uplifted as much as about 0.20 ft (60 mm) near the Whitewater River Groundwater Replenishment Facility in the northern Coachella Valley and subsided as much as about 0.26 ft (80 mm) in the La Quinta area and less in Palm Desert, Indian Wells, and other localized areas in the southern Coachella Valley. These areas were identified as subsidence areas in previous reports covering periods during 1993–2010. The comparison of 2014–17 subsidence rates with those derived for 1995–2010 generally indicated a substantial slowing of subsidence, however. Analyses of deformation in the northern Coachella Valley were not included in the previous reports, so a comparison to deformation during the earlier period could not be made. Water levels in wells near the subsiding geodetic monuments, in and near the three subsiding areas shown by InSAR, and throughout the valley generally indicated seasonal fluctuations and longer-term stability or rising groundwater levels since about 2010. These results mark a reversal in trends of groundwater-level declines during the preceding decades. This trend reversal provides new insights into aquifer-system mechanics. Although many areas have stopped subsiding, and a few have even uplifted, the few areas that did subside during 2010–17—albeit at a slower rate—indicate a mixed aquifer-system response. Subsidence when groundwater levels are stable or recovering indicates that residual compaction may have occurred. At the same time, coarse-grained materials and thin aquitards may have expanded as groundwater levels recovered. The continued valley-wide stabilization and recovery of groundwater levels since 2010 likely is a result of various projects designed to increase recharge or to reduce reliance on groundwater.

California↗

USGS2017

Tracer-based evidence of heterogeneity in subsurface flow and storage within a boreal hillslope

Runoff from boreal hillslopes is often affected by distinct soil boundaries, including the frozen boundary and the organic – mineral boundary (OMB), where highly porous and hydraulically-conductive organic material overlies fine-grained mineral soils. Viewed from the surface, ground cover appears as a patchwork on sub-meter scales, with thick, moss mats interspersed with lichen-covered, silty soils with gravel inclusions. We conducted a decameter-scale subsurface tracer test on a boreal forest hillslope in interior Alaska to quantify locations and mechanisms of transport and storage in these soils, focusing on the OMB. A sodium bromide tracer was added as a slug addition to a pit and sampled at 40 down-gradient wells, screened primarily at the OMB and within a 7 by 12 m well field. We maintained an elevated head in the injection pit for 8.5 h to simulate a storm. Tracer breakthrough velocities ranged from < 0.12 to 0.93 m hr-1, with the highest velocities in lichen-covered soils. After 12 hours and cessation of the elevated head, the tracer coalesced and was only detected in thick mosses at a trough in the OMB. By 24 hours, approximately 17% of the tracer mass could be accounted for. The majority of the mass loss occurred between 4 and 12 hours, while the tracer was in contact with lichen-covered soils, which is consistent with tracer transport into deeper flow paths via preferential flow through discrete gravelly areas. Slow breakthroughs suggest that storage and exchange also occurred in shallow soils, likely related to saturation and drainage in fine-grained mineral soils caused by the elevated hydraulic head. These findings highlight the complex nature of storage and transmission of water and solutes from boreal hillslopes to streams, and are particularly relevant given rapid changes to boreal environments related to climate change, thawing permafrost and increasing fire severity.

Hydrological Processes↗

USGS1977

Earthquake stress drops, ambient tectonic stresses and stresses that drive plate motions

A variety of geophysical observations suggests that the upper portion of the lithosphere, herein referred to as the elastic plate, has long-term material properties and frictional strength significantly greater than the lower lithosphere. If the average frictional stress along the non-ridge margin of the elastic plate is of the order of a kilobar, as suggested by the many observations of the frictional strength of rocks at mid-crustal conditions of pressure and temperature, the only viable mechanism for driving the motion of the elastic plate is a basal shear stress of several tens of bars. Kilobars of tectonic stress are then an ambient, steady condition of the earth's crust and uppermost mantle. The approximate equality of the basal shear stress and the average crustal earthquake stress drop, the localization of strain release for major plate margin earthquakes, and the rough equivalence of plate margin slip rates and gross plate motion rates suggest that the stress drops of major plate margin earthquakes are controlled by the elastic release of the basal shear stress in the vicinity of the plate margin, despite the existence of kilobars of tectonic stress existing across vertical planes parallel to the plate margin. If the stress differences available to be released at the time of faulting are distributed in a random, white fasbion with a mean-square value determined by the average earthquake stress drop, the frequency of occurrence of constant stress drop earthquakes will be proportional to reciprocal faulting area, in accordance with empirically known frequency of occurrence statistics. ?? 1977 Birkha??user Verlag.

Pure and Applied Geophysics PAGEOPH↗

USGS1976

A note on the effect of fault gouge thickness on fault stability

At low confining pressure, sliding on saw cuts in granite is stable but at high pressure it is unstable. The pressure at which the transition takes place increases if the thickness of the crushed material between the sliding surfaces is increased. This experimental result suggests that on natural faults the stability of sliding may be affected by the width of the fault zone. ?? 1976.

International Journal of Rock Mechanics and Mining↗

USGS2012

Local gravity anomalies produced by dislocation sources

Rundle (1978) and Walsh and Rice (1979) have shown that the change in the vertical component of gravity is proportional to uplift for a spherical source of dilatation and for slip on an infinitely long dip-slip fault. In the first case, no free air gravity anomaly is produced and in the second case no Bouguer gravity anomaly. Gravity anomalies due to other dislocation sources in three dimensions are as follows: For strike-slip faulting the ratio of the gravity change to uplift depends upon position; however, the gravity change contours are roughly similar to those corresponding to a zero free air gravity anomaly. Nor is the ratio constant for dip-slip faulting except for the two special cases of dip slip on a vertical fault and horizontal slip on a horizontal fault, neither of which produce a Bouguer anomaly. The Bouguer anomaly produced by an open horizontal crack is the same as would be produced had the material within the crack been mined out without deforming the solid. If the horizontal crack were filled with material of density equal to the host rock (a good approximation to sill formation), no Bouguer anomaly is produced. For cracks of other inclinations the ratio of gravity change to uplift is not constant. Thus, dilatancy, in general, does not correspond to the absence of a free air anomaly, as might be suggested by the special case of a spherical source of dilatation. For two-dimensional models a cylindrical source of dilatation produces no free air gravity anomaly, dip-slip faulting produces no Bouguer anomaly, and open cracks produce a Bouguer anomaly equal to that which would be produced had the material within the crack been mined out without deforming the solid. A two-dimensional crack filled with material of density equal to that of the host rock would produce no Bouguer anomaly. Jachens et al. (1983) have reported temporal changes in gravity, elevation, and area strain along the San Andreas fault in southern California such that the Bouguer anomaly apparently remains unchanged and the uplift-to-strain ratio is about −100 km. Several dislocation mechanisms are proposed that fulfill these constraints, but these mechanisms appear to be rather contrived and are not regarded as satisfactory explanations.

Journal of Geophysical Research Solid Earth↗

USGS2008

Ethoxyresorufin-O-deethylase (EROD) activity in fish as a biomarker of chemical exposure

This review compiles and evaluates existing scientific information on the use, limitations, and procedural considerations for EROD activity (a catalytic measurement of cytochrome P4501A induction) as a biomarker in fish. A multitude of chemicals induce EROD activity in a variety of fish species, the most potent inducers being structural analogs of 2,3,7,8-tetracholordibenzo- p -dioxin. Although certain chemicals may inhibit EROD induction/activity, this interference is generally not a drawback to the use of EROD induction as a biomarker. The various methods of EROD analysis currently in use yield comparable results, particularly when data are expressed as relative rates of EROD activity. EROD induction in fish is well characterized, the most important modifying factors being fish species, reproductive status and age, all of which can be controlled through proper study design. Good candidate species for biomonitoring should have a wide range between basal and induced EROD activity (e.g., common carp, channel catfish, and mummichog). EROD activity has proven value as a biomarker in a number of field investigations of bleached kraft mill and industrial effluents, contaminated sediments, and chemical spills. Research on mechanisms of CYP1A-induced toxicity suggests that EROD activity may not only indicate chemical exposure, but also may also precede effects at various levels of biological organization. A current research need is the development of chemical exposure-response relationships for EROD activity in fish. In addition, routine reporting in the literature of EROD activity in standard positive and negative control material will enhance confidence in comparing results from different studies using this biomarker.

Critical Reviews in Toxicology↗

USGS2004

Complex proximal deposition during the Plinian eruptions of 1912 at Novarupta, Alaska

Proximal (<3 km) deposits from episodes II and III of the 60-h-long Novarupta 1912 eruption exhibit a very complex stratigraphy, the result of at least four transport regimes and diverse depositional mechanisms. They contrast with the relatively simple stratigraphy (and inferred emplacement mechanisms) for the previously documented, better known, medial-distal fall deposits and the Valley of Ten Thousand Smokes ignimbrite. The proximal products include alternations and mixtures of both locally and regionally dispersed fall ejecta, and numerous thin complex deposits of pyroclastic density currents (PDCs) with no regional analogs. The locally dispersed component of the fall deposits forms sector-confined wedges of material whose thicknesses halve radially from and concentrically about the vent over distances of 100-300 m (cf. several kilometers for the medial-distal fall deposits). This locally dispersed fall material (and many of the associated PDC deposits) is rich in andesitic and banded pumices and richer in shallow-derived wall-rock lithics in comparison with the coeval medial fall units of almost entirely dacitic composition. There are no marked contrasts in grain size in the near-vent deposits, however, between locally and widely dispersed beds, and all samples of the proximal fall deposits plot as a simple continuation of grain size trends for medial-distal samples. Associated PDC deposits form a spectrum of facies from fines-poor, avalanched beds through thin-bedded, landscape-mantling beds to channelized lobes of pumice-block-rich ignimbrite. The origins of the Novarupta near-vent deposits are considered within a spectrum of four transport regimes: (1) sustained buoyant plume, (2) fountaining with co-current flow, (3) fountaining with counter-current flow, and (4) direct lateral ejection. The Novarupta deposits suggest a model where buoyant, stable, regime-1 plumes characterized most of episodes II and III, but were accompanied by transient and variable partitioning of clasts into the other three regimes. Only one short period of vent blockage and cessation of the Plinian plume occurred, separating episodes II and III, which was followed by a single PDC interpreted as an overpressured "blast" involving direct lateral ejection. In contrast, regimes 2 and 3 were reflected by spasmodic sedimentation from the margins of the jet and perhaps lower plume, which were being strongly affected by short-lived instabilities. These instabilities in turn are inferred to be associated with heterogeneities in the mixture of gas and pyroclasts emerging from the vent. Of the parameters that control explosive eruptive behavior, only such sudden and asymmetrical changes in the particle concentration could operate on time scales sufficiently short to explain the rapid changes in the proximal 1912 products. Springer-Verlag 2003.

Alaska↗

USGS1978

A large landslide on Mars

A large landslide deposit on the south wall of Gangis Chasma contains at least 100 billion m 3 of material that moved 60 km across the trough floor at a speed of more than 100 km/hr. The deposit consists of slump blocks at the head, hummocky material farther out, and a vast apron of longitudinally ridged material extending to the toe. The landslide deposit resembles many terrestrial ones but is much larger, and differs from most in having longitudinal rather than transverse ridges on its surface. However, some terrestrial landslides also have longitudinal ridges, particularly those in Alaska that traveled long distances over glacial ice and thus were highly efficient. In order to explain this high efficiency, two possible mechanisms of emplacement are singled out. The first involves a sliding motion on a cushion of air; on Mars, this implies a once much denser atmosphere, or the release of a gas, possibly steam. The second mechanism involves a flow motion of debris that is lubricated by some water; on Mars, the water may have come from ice in the source rock. An analysis of the possible causes for the Martian slide shows that the Martian trough walls are highly susceptible to sliding, and that the landslide may have been triggered by a Mars quake.

GSA Bulletin↗