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Search indexed USGS publications on groundwater, aquifers, geologic maps, mineral resources and earthquakes. Explore source records by subject and place.

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At least 451 records · Page 25Linked to original sources
USGS1987

The geologic story of Yosemite National Park

Within 150 years, Yosemite has moved from great obscurity to worldwide fame as one of the most visited of our national parks. As a remarkable place where people can enjoy unparalleled scenes of natural beauty and where many easily observed geologic features are concentrated, the park is rivaled by few other areas on the planet. The majesty and immense variety of these features have inspired artists and photographers, intrigued tourists, and stirred controversy among geologists. Field studies in the Yosemite area have contributed to the development of our ideas about geologic processes, including the different actions of streams and glaciers in the evolution of the landscape, and the formation of granite, the basic bedrock of much of the Earth's continents. The park's role as a natural laboratory for geologic research cannot be overemphasized, and its investigation has led to many landmark studies by U.S. Geological Survey geologists over the past 70 years. In 1913, the first detailed program of research on the geology of the park and the origin ofYosemite Valley was begun by Francois Matthes and Frank Calkins. Their work, along with that of later generations of Survey geologists, myself included, serves as the basis for our present understanding of the geologic history of Yosemite and of the processes that formed and continue to mold its landscape. This book, which makes available in one volume a comprehensive summary of the current geologic knowledge of Yosemite National Park, is an excellent example of the Survey's continuing effort to provide earth-science information in the public service.

California↗
USGS2003

Mineral Commodity Profiles -- Rubidium

Overview -- Rubidium is a soft, ductile, silvery-white metal that melts at 39.3 ?C. One of the alkali metals, it is positioned in group 1 (or IA) of the periodic table between potassium and cesium. Naturally occurring rubidium is slightly radioactive. Rubidium is an extremely reactive metal--it ignites spontaneously in the presence of air and decomposes water explosively, igniting the liberated hydrogen. Because of its reactivity, the metal and several of its compounds are hazardous materials, and must be stored and transported in isolation from possible reactants. Although rubidium is more abundant in the earth?s crust than copper, lead, or zinc, it forms no minerals of its own, and is, or has been, produced in small quantities as a byproduct of the processing of cesium and lithium ores taken from a few small deposits in Canada, Namibia, and Zambia. In the United States, the metal and its compounds are produced from imported raw materials by at least one company, the Cabot Corporation (Cabot, 2003). Rubidium is used interchangeably or together with cesium in many uses. Its principal application is in specialty glasses used in fiber optic telecommunication systems. Rubidium?s photoemissive properties have led to its use in night-vision devices, photoelectric cells, and photomultiplier tubes. It has several uses in medical science, such as in positron emission tomographic (PET) imaging, the treatment of epilepsy, and the ultracentrifugal separation of nucleic acids and viruses. A dozen or more other uses are known, which include use as a cocatalyst for several organic reactions and in frequency reference oscillators for telecommunications network synchronization. The market for rubidium is extremely small, amounting to 1 to 2 metric tons per year (t/yr) in the United States. World resources are vast compared with demand.

Open-File Report↗
USGS2009

Passive seismic monitoring of natural and induced earthquakes: Case studies, future directions and socio-economic relevance

An important discovery in crustal mechanics has been that the Earth’s crust is commonly stressed close to failure, even in tectonically quiet areas. As a result, small natural or man-made perturbations to the local stress field may trigger earthquakes. To understand these processes, Passive Seismic Monitoring (PSM) with seismometer arrays is a widely used technique that has been successfully applied to study seismicity at different magnitude levels ranging from acoustic emissions generated in the laboratory under controlled conditions, to seismicity induced by hydraulic stimulations in geological reservoirs, and up to great earthquakes occurring along plate boundaries. In all these environments the appropriate deployment of seismic sensors, i.e., directly on the rock sample, at the earth’s surface or in boreholes close to the seismic sources allows for the detection and location of brittle failure processes at sufficiently low magnitude-detection threshold and with adequate spatial resolution for further analysis. One principal aim is to develop an improved understanding of the physical processes occurring at the seismic source and their relationship to the host geologic environment. In this paper we review selected case studies and future directions of PSM efforts across a wide range of scales and environments. These include induced failure within small rock samples, hydrocarbon reservoirs, and natural seismicity at convergent and transform plate boundaries. Each example represents a milestone with regard to bridging the gap between laboratory-scale experiments under controlled boundary conditions and large-scale field studies. The common motivation for all studies is to refine the understanding of how earthquakes nucleate, how they proceed and how they interact in space and time. This is of special relevance at the larger end of the magnitude scale, i.e., for large devastating earthquakes due to their severe socio-economic impact.

Book chapter↗
USGS1974

Antiferromagnetic inclusions in lunar glass

The magnetic susceptibility of 11 glass spherules from the Apollo 15, 16, and 17 fines and two specimens of a relatively large glass spherical shell were studied as a function of temperature from room temperature to liquid helium temperatures. All but one specimen showed the presence of antiferromagnetic inclusions. Closely spaced temperature measurements of the magnetic susceptibility below 77 K on five of the specimens showed antiferromagnetic temperature transitions (Néel transitions). With the exception of ilmenite in one specimen, these transitions did not correspond to any transitions in known antiferromagnetic compounds.

Earth and Planetary Science Letters↗
USGS2010

Contamination of basaltic lava by seawater: Evidence found in a lava pillar from Axial Seamount, Juan de Fuca Ridge

A lava pillar formed during the 1998 eruption at Axial Seamount exhibits compositional and textural evidence for contamination by seawater under magmatic conditions. Glass immediately adjacent to anastomosing microfractures within 1 cm of the inner pillar wall is oxidized and significantly enriched in Na and Cl and depleted in Fe and K with respect to that in glassy selvages from the unaffected outer pillar wall. The affected glass contains up to 1 wt % Cl and is enriched by ∼2 wt % Na 2 O relative to unaffected glass, consistent with a nearly 1:1 (molar) incorporation of NaCl. Glass bordering the Cl‐enriched glass in the inner pillar wall is depleted in Na but enriched in K. The presence of tiny (<10 μ m) grains of Cu‐Fe sulfides and Fe sulfides as well as elemental Ni, Ag, and Au in the Na‐depleted, K‐enriched glass of the inner pillar wall implies significant reduction of this glass, presumably by hydrogen generated during seawater contamination and oxidation of lava adjacent to microfractures. We interpret the compositional anomalies we see in the glass of the interior pillar wall as caused by rapid incorporation of seawater into the still‐molten lava during pillar growth, probably on the time scale of seconds to minutes. Only one of seven examined lava pillars shows this effect, and we interpret that seawater has to be trapped in contact with molten lava (inside the lava pillar, in this case) to produce the effects we see. Thus, under the right conditions, seawater contamination of lavas during submarine eruptions is one means by which the oceanic crust can sequester Cl during its global flux cycle. However, since very few recent lava flows have been examined in similar detail, the global significance of this process in effecting Earth's Cl budget remains uncertain.

Geochemistry, Geophysics, Geosystems↗
USGS1961

An aeromagnetic profile from anchorage to Nome, Alaska

A total-intensity profile was obtained on a 500-mile flight by a U. S. Geological Survey airplane from Anchorage to Nome , Alaska , on May 4, 1954. The average flight altitude was 6,000 ft above sea level except over the Alaska Range where the flight altitude was 9,000 ft. This profile crossed eight of the major tectonic elements of Alaska at right angles to their trend and gives valuable regional information in an area where other geophysical and geological information is scarce or lacking. The profile has a net gradient downward to the northwest, most of which is ascribed to the component of the earth's main magnetic field along the flight traverse. The great variety of magnetic anomalies which are superimposed on this gradient originate from variations in lithology along the traverse. All the magnetic anomalies, except a large one over the Yukon River, are caused by magnetic rocks at or near the surface. The magnetic profile may be divided into four major segments and nine subsegments, each having a characteristic magnetic pattern. Most of these can be related to a tectonic unit. The large plutons of the Talkeetna geanticline are clearly defined by a group of anomalies having the highest amplitudes of any on the profile . The Matanuska geosyncline to the east is represented by a 25-mile section of sloping profile consistent with a thick sedimentary section but indicating that the geosyncline is comparatively narrow near Anchorage . The 200-mile central magnetic segment is relatively free from all but very minor anomalies. This segment includes the Alaska Range geosyncline, the Tanana geanticline, and the Kuskokwim geosyncline; showing only slight magnetic contrasts between each of these elements. The two geosynclines either have thick Mesozoic sedimentary sections or have underlying crystalline rocks which are low in magnetic susceptibility at shallow depths. The rocks of the geanticline have a low but not negligible magnetic susceptibility and are predominantly Paleozoic sedimentary rocks. A single 300-gamma anomaly on the west edge of the central segment is caused by a small, mafic intrusive body in the Paleozoic metamorphic rocks of Mt. Hurst. West of this anomaly the profile consists of a series of small sharp anomalies which are probably caused by Paleozoic metavolcanic rocks of the Ruby geanticline. The second largest anomaly on the profile is in the Koyukuk geosyncline over the Yukon River. The source is calculated to be more than a mile deep and may be an intrusive body at least 15 miles wide. This anomaly is flanked by 20-mile sections of flat or sloping profile which indicate areas of thick sedimentary rocks, particularly in the region west of the Yukon River. The 150-mile Norton Sound magnetic segment on the western end of the profile consists of many closely spaced anomalies produced by rocks which are either volcanic or similar to the Seward complex. Of the four Cenozoic basins or lowlands crossed by the profile , three are underlain by rocks of moderate to high magnetic susceptibility at shallow depths. These are the Cook Inlet basin, part of which overlaps rocks of the Talkeetna geanticline, the Innoko basin of central Alaska which overlies the rocks of the Ruby geanticline, and the Norton basin, in which sedimentary deposits are thin or absent. The fourth, the Minchumina basin, is underlain by the low-susceptibility rocks at the Tanana geanticline, which are also probably close to the surface.

Alaska↗
USGS2005

Questa baseline and pre-mining ground-water quality investigation. 5. Well installation, water-level data, and surface- and ground-water geochemistry in the Straight Creek drainage basin, Red River Valley, New Mexico, 2001-03

The U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the New Mexico Environment Department, is investigating the pre-mining ground-water chemistry at the Molycorp molybdenum mine in the Red River Valley, northern New Mexico. The primary approach is to determine the processes controlling ground-water chemistry at an unmined, off-site, proximal analog. The Straight Creek drainage basin, chosen for this purpose, consists of the same quartz-sericite-pyrite altered andesitic and rhyolitic volcanic rock of Tertiary age as the mine site. The weathered and rugged volcanic bedrock surface is overlain by heterogeneous debris-flow deposits that interfinger with alluvial deposits near the confluence of Straight Creek and the Red River. Pyritized rock in the upper part of the drainage basin is the source of acid rock drainage (pH 2.8-3.3) that infiltrates debris-flow deposits containing acidic ground water (pH 3.0-4.0) and bedrock containing water of circumneutral pH values (5.6-7.7). Eleven observation wells were installed in the Straight Creek drainage basin. The wells were completed in debris-flow deposits, bedrock, and interfingering debris-flow and Red River alluvial deposits. Chemical analyses of ground water from these wells, combined with chemical analyses of surface water, water-level data, and lithologic and geophysical logs, provided information used to develop an understanding of the processes contributing to the chemistry of ground water in the Straight Creek drainage basin. Surface- and ground-water samples were routinely collected for determination of total major cations and selected trace metals; dissolved major cations, selected trace metals, and rare-earth elements; anions and alkalinity; and dissolved-iron species. Rare-earth elements were determined on selected samples only. Samples were collected for determination of dissolved organic carbon, mercury, sulfur isotopic composition (34S and 18O of sulfate), and water isotopic composition (2H and 18O) during selected samplings. One set of ground-water samples was collected for helium-3/tritium and chlorofluorocarbon (CFC) age dating. Several lines of evidence indicate that surface water is the primary input to the Straight Creek ground-water system. Straight Creek streamflow and water levels in wells closest to the apex of the Straight Creek debris fan and closest to Straight Creek itself appear to respond to the same seasonal inputs. Oxygen and hydrogen isotopic compositions in Straight Creek surface water and ground water are similar, and concentrations of most dissolved constituents in most Straight Creek surface-water and shallow (debris-flow and alluvial) aquifer ground-water samples correlate strongly with sulfate (concentrations decrease linearly with sulfate in a downgradient direction). After infiltration of surface water, dilution along the flow path is the dominant mechanism controlling ground-water chemistry. However, concentrations of some constituents can be higher in ground water than can be accounted for by concentrations in Straight Creek surface water, and additional sources of these constituents must therefore be inferred. Constituents for which concentrations in ground water can be high relative to surface water include calcium, magnesium, strontium, silica, sodium, and potassium in ground water from debris-flow and alluvial aquifers and manganese, calcium, magnesium, strontium, sodium, and potassium in ground water from the bedrock aquifer. All ground water is a calcium sulfate type, often at or near gypsum saturation because of abundant gypsum in the aquifer material developed from co-existing calcite and pyrite mineralization. Calcite dissolution, the major buffering mechanism for bedrock aquifer ground water, also contributes to relatively higher calcium concentrations in some ground water. The main source of the second most abundant cation, magnesium, is probably dissolution of magnesium-rich carbonates or silicates.

New Mexico↗
USGS2016

Viral lysis of photosynthesizing microbes as a mechanism for calcium carbonate nucleation in seawater

Removal of carbon through the precipitation and burial of calcium carbonate in marine sediments constitutes over 70% of the total carbon on Earth and is partitioned between coastal and pelagic zones. The precipitation of authigenic calcium carbonate in seawater, however, has been hotly debated because despite being in a supersaturated state, there is an absence of persistent precipitation. One of the explanations for this paradox is the geochemical conditions in seawater cannot overcome the activation energy barrier for the first step in any precipitation reaction; nucleation. Here we show that virally induced rupturing of photosynthetic cyanobacterial cells releases cytoplasmic-associated bicarbonate at concentrations ~23-fold greater than in the surrounding seawater, thereby shifting the carbonate chemistry toward the homogenous nucleation of one or more of the calcium carbonate polymorphs. Using geochemical reaction energetics, we show the saturation states (Ω) in typical seawater for calcite (Ω = 4.3), aragonite (Ω = 3.1), and vaterite (Ω = 1.2) are significantly elevated following the release and diffusion of the cytoplasmic bicarbonate (Ω calcite = 95.7; Ω aragonite = 68.5; Ω vaterite = 25.9). These increases in Ω significantly reduce the activation energy for nuclei formation thresholds for all three polymorphs, but only vaterite nucleation is energetically favored. In the post-lysis seawater, vaterite's nuclei formation activation energy is significantly reduced from 1.85 × 10 −17 J to 3.85 × 10 −20 J, which increases the nuclei formation rate from highly improbable (<<1.0 nuclei cm −3 s −1 ) to instantaneous (8.60 × 10 25 nuclei cm −3 s −1 ). The proposed model for homogenous nucleation of calcium carbonate in seawater describes a mechanism through which the initial step in the production of carbonate sediments may proceed. It also presents an additional role of photosynthesizing microbes and their viruses in marine carbon cycles and reveals these microorganisms are a collective repository for concentrated and reactive dissolved inorganic carbon (DIC) that is currently not accounted for in global carbon budgets and carbonate sediment diagenesis models.

Frontiers in Microbiology↗
USGS2007

First stereoscopic radar images of Titan

Saturn's giant, cloud-covered satellite Titan, larger than the planet Mercury, is the last major piece of unexplored real estate in the Solar system. The NASA/ESA Cassini spacecraft carries a variety of instruments that are being used to map the surface of Titan, including optical instruments that provide a global synoptic view and spectroscopic information, and microwave imager (Cassini Titan RADAR) that can produce a 5000-km long 300- 1400 m resolution image that covers ~1% of Titan during a flyby encounter with the satellite. The first 7 such images, obtained between October 2004 and July 2006, covered nonoverlapping areas and revealed a diverse (and surprisingly Earth-like, despite the very cold temperature and different chemistry of the surface) set of geologic features, including volcanos, dune fields, channels, mountains, and impact craters. Beginning with the T18 encounter in September 2006, all but one of the dozen RADAR images obtained during the remainder of Cassini's prime mission will overlap with previous coverage. The repeat coverage has numerous cartographic and scientific applications, including serving as the basis for the most accurate geodetic control network of Titan, providing information about the surface materials as revealed by their angle-dependent microwave-scattering properties, allowing comparisons to look for temporal changes, and providing information about surface relief that can be exploited by radar-stereogrammetric mapping. We report the initial results of automated and manual stereo elevation measrurements at the USGS and JPL. These reveal local relief of several hundred to a thousand meters, associated with a canyon system and probable lakes in the northern hemisphere, a result that is consistent with the available topographic information about other parts of Titan from altimetry and radar shape-from-shading. Work is underway to develop more rigorous and efficient stereomapping tools at both institutions, based on those originally designed for the Magellan radar imagery of Venus, and to apply these to the extended stereo coverage that will become available over the next few years.

Conference Paper↗
USGS2023

Assessment of resource potential from mine tailings using geostatistical modeling for compositions: A methodology and application to Katherine Mine site, Arizona, USA

The mining industry, in most cases, targets a specific valuable commodity that is present in small quantities within large volumes of extracted material. After milling and processing, most of the extracted material and the effluents are stored as waste (tailings) in impoundments, such as dams or waste dumps, or are backfilled into underground mines. In time, tailing materials may become an issue of environmental and health concern due to the hazardous elements, ions, and oxides contained within the waste material. In addition, handling and storage of such waste in dams may pose the risk of dam failure with catastrophic consequences to nature and nearby communities. On the other hand, tailings may offer potential as secondary sources of critical elements (CEs), including rare earth elements (REEs), which may have been overlooked during primary production and processing. Therefore, treating mine tailings as a resource has economic and environmental benefits by reducing the waste from new and historical mine sites through remining. One of the critical steps for taking advantage of these benefits is to spatially quantify the resources and the pollutants, which require the application of adequate data analysis and modeling methods, often to compositional geochemical data. Utilizing adequate methods is especially important for correctly quantifying resource potential, as the quantities will often be at low concentrations. This work presents quantification of resource potential (Au, Ag, Cu, Zn, Pb) and elements of environmental concern (Hg and As) from the tailings of a historic mine site, Katherine Mine, AZ, USA. Data reported by the U.S. Bureau of Mines (USBM) after extensive field campaigns in the 1990s, including sampling from tailing impoundment and surrounding areas for geochemical characterization and geophysical surveys, were used. First, compositional data (CoDa) analysis was employed to explore associations of sampling locations, geochemical parts, and the clustering of samples. Next, sequential Gaussian simulation (SGSIM) was applied to samples that showed a genetic link to tailing material after isometric log-ratio transformation (ilr) and mix/max autocorrelation factor (MAF) transformation for spatial modeling and uncertainty evaluation. Geostatistical results revealed spatial variability of concentrations within the tailing area. Uncertainty evaluation based on realizations indicated that Cu (14.27–20.01 t), Zn (44.23–76.23 t), and Pb (22.56–38.28 t) are the most abundant elements within a 5 %–95 % interval, followed by Ag and Au (~5.3 and 0.18 t, at 50th percentile), respectively. Of the elements of health concern, As was found to be ~4.8 t (50th percentile) in the tailing area. The work also showed that ~0.51 t As, 0.005 t Hg, 0.020 t of Au, and 0.62 t of Ag were carried to Lake Mohave by an ephemeral stream called Katherine Wash, which transects the tailings.

Arizona↗
USGS1992

A sharp and flat section of the core-mantle boundary

The transition zone between the Earth's core and mantle plays an important role as a boundary layer for mantle and core convection 1 . This zone conducts a large amount of heat from the core to the mantle, and contains at least one thermal boundary layer 2,3 ; the proximity of reactive silicates and molten iron leads to the possibility of zones of intermediate composition 4 . Here we investigate one region of the core–mantle boundary using seismic waves that are converted from shear to compressional waves by reflection at the boundary. The use of this phase (known as ScP), the large number of receiving stations, and the large aperture of our array all provide higher resolution than has previously been possible 5–7 . For the 350-km-long section of the core–mantle boundary under the northeast Pacific sampled by the reflections, the local boundary topography has an amplitude of less than 500 m, no sharp radial gradients exist in the 400 km above the boundary, and the mantle-to-core transition occurs over less than 1 km. The simplicity of the structure near and above the core–mantle boundary argues against chemical heterogeneity at the base of the mantle in this location.

Nature↗
USGS1991

Earthquakes

One of the most frightening and destructive phenomena of nature that man experiences is a severe earthquake and its terrible aftereffects. Since long before man existed, probably for more than 4 billion years, the forces within the Earth that produce earthquakes have played an active role in shaping the Earth's surface. These unpredictable catastrophic movements of the Earth have caused a great number of human casualties and extensive property damage. Today man is challenging the assumption that earthquakes must present an uncontrollable and unpredictable hazard to life and property. Scientists have begun to explore the means of predicting earthquakes. Sites of greatest hazard are being identified, and definite progress is being made in designing structures that will withstand the effects of earthquakes.

General Information Product↗
USGS1998

Land and people: finding a balance

Land and People: Finding a Balance is an environmental study project that engages high school students in studying earth science resource issues. The project focuses on the interaction between people and the environment in three regions of the United States: Cape Cod, Los Angeles, and the Everglades. Each section of this project is devoted to one of the three regions.

General Information Product↗
USGS2005

Preliminary geologic map of the Los Angeles 30' x 60' quadrangle, Southern California

This data set maps and describes the geology of the Los Angeles 30? x 60? quadrangle, southern California. Compilation of the Los Angeles quadrangle is based upon published mapping at scales of 1:12,000 and smaller, unpublished mapping at scales of 1:12,000 and smaller, with reconnaissance mapping by the compilers to resolve some edge-matching problems. The Los Angeles 30' x 60' quadrangle covers approximately 5,000 km2 including some of the most densely populated urban and suburban areas of the southern California megalopolis. It extends about 90 km E-W and about 55 km N-S, from Fillmore and Thousand Oaks in the west to Vincent in the northeast and Montebello in the southeast, and includes urban San Gabriel Valley and San Gabriel Mountain foothill communities from Monrovia to Pasadena, as well as Glendale, downtown Los Angeles, Hollywood, Santa Monica, Malibu, in addition to all the communities in the San Fernando Valley, Simi Valley, and the upper Santa Clara River Valley. From the 2000 Census, the population of these urban and suburban areas totals approximately 5.6 million, and estimates of property value total hundreds of billions of dollars. Residents and transient visitors are subject to potential hazards from earthquakes, debris flows and other landslides, floods, wildfires, subsidence from ground water and petroleum withdrawal, and swelling soils; and coastal areas are exposed to flooding and erosion by storm and tsunami waves. Topographic relief ranges from about one hundred meters sub sea (in Santa Monica Bay) to more than 2,000 meters above sea level at Pacifico Mountain in the high San Gabriel Mountains. In addition to the populated area, the quadrangle includes significant areas of wilderness in the Angeles and Los Padres National Forests, in the Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area, and the Sespe Condor Sanctuary. The geologic map illustrates the general distribution of the rocks and surficial deposits in the area and their structural and stratigraphic relations to one another. The principal characteristics of the map units are described and are part of the database. The map provides a regional geologic framework as an aid to better evaluations of the potential for hazard from active earth processes. It synthesizes and combines studies by many earth scientists. Most of the source maps are at more detailed scales than 1:100,000, and we utilized the most detailed source materials available. We have not attempted to resolve all problems of stratigraphic correlation and nomenclature. In most areas we have retained the unit designations of source-map authors, but in some areas, particularly in the igneous-metamorphic complex of the San Gabriel Mountains, some unit designations have been changed. Hopefully, this map will stimulate further work to describe and correlate the many units within the scope of a more coherent, more accurate geologic history.

California↗
USGS2010

Using Selective Drainage Methods to Extract Continuous Surface Flow from 1-Meter Lidar-Derived Digital Elevation Data

Digital elevation data commonly are used to extract surface flow features. One source for high-resolution elevation data is light detection and ranging (lidar). Lidar can capture a vast amount of topographic detail because of its fine-scale ability to digitally capture the surface of the earth. Because elevation is a key factor in extracting surface flow features, high-resolution lidar-derived digital elevation models (DEMs) provide the detail needed to consistently integrate hydrography with elevation, land cover, structures, and other geospatial features. The U.S. Geological Survey has developed selective drainage methods to extract continuous surface flow from high-resolution lidar-derived digital elevation data. The lidar-derived continuous surface flow network contains valuable information for water resource management involving flood hazard mapping, flood inundation, and coastal erosion. DEMs used in hydrologic applications typically are processed to remove depressions by filling them. High-resolution DEMs derived from lidar can capture much more detail of the land surface than courser elevation data. Therefore, high-resolution DEMs contain more depressions because of obstructions such as roads, railroads, and other elevated structures. The filling of these depressions can significantly affect the DEM-derived surface flow routing and terrain characteristics in an adverse way. In this report, selective draining methods that modify the elevation surface to drain a depression through an obstruction are presented. If such obstructions are not removed from the elevation data, the filling of depressions to create continuous surface flow can cause the flow to spill over an obstruction in the wrong location. Using this modified elevation surface improves the quality of derived surface flow and retains more of the true surface characteristics by correcting large filled depressions. A reliable flow surface is necessary for deriving a consistently connected drainage network, which is important in understanding surface water movement and developing applications for surface water runoff, flood inundation, and erosion. Improved methods are needed to extract continuous surface flow features from high-resolution elevation data based on lidar.

Scientific Investigations Report↗
USGS2002

Establishment of woody riparian species from natural seedfall at a former gravel pit

Establishment of native riparian communities through natural seedfall may be a viable reclamation alternative at some alluvial sand and gravel mines where water level can be controlled in the abandoned pit. We experimented with this approach at a pit in Fort Collins, Colorado, where a drain culvert equipped with a screw gate allows water levels to be manipulated. From 1994 to 1996 we conducted a series of annual drawdowns during the period of natural seedfall of Populus deltoides subsp. monilifera (plains cottonwood), Salix amygdaloides (peachleaf willow), and S. exigua (sand-bar willow), thus providing the bare, moist substrate conducive to establishment of these species. Establishment was highly variable from year to year; in the fall following establishment, frequency of occurrence on 0.5-m2 sample plots ranged from 8.6% to 50.6% for cottonwood, 15.9% to 22.0% for peachleaf willow, and 21.7% to 50.0% for sandbar willow. Mean densities, however, were comparable to those reported for other locations. Concurrent establishment of the undesirable exotic Tamarix ramosissima (saltcedar) was a problem, but we were able to eradicate most saltcedar seedlings by reflooding the lower elevations of the annual drawdown zones each fall. At the end of the 3-year period, at least one of the three native woody species survived on 41.1% of the plots, while saltcedar was present on only 6.1%. In addition to the potential for establishing valuable native habitats, adaptations of the techniques described may require less earth moving than other reclamation approaches.

Restoration Ecology↗
USGS1976

Man against volcano: The eruption on Heimaey, Vestmann Islands, Iceland

The U.S. Geological Survey carries out scientific studies in the geological, hydrological, and cartographic sciences generally within the 50 states, but also in cooperation with scientific organizations in many foreign countries for the investigation of unusual earth science phenomena throughout the world. The following material discusses the impact of the 1973 volcanic eruption of Eldfell on the fishing port of Vestmannaeyjar on the island of Heimaey, Iceland. Before the eruption was over, approximately one-third of the town of Vestmannaeyjar had been obliterated but, more importantly, the potential damage had been reduced markedly by the spraying of seawater onto the advancing lava flows, causing them to be slowed, stopped, or diverted from the undamaged portion of the town. The Survey's interest and involvement in the Heimaey eruption in Iceland was occasioned by the possibility that the procedures used to control the course of the flowing lava and to reduce the damage in a modern town may some day be needed in Hawaii and possibly even in the continental United States. This publication is based on the observations of two USGS geologists, Richard S. Williams, Jr. and James G. Moore, as well as on information from the Icelandic Ministry for Foreign Affairs, Icelandic scientists' reports through the Center for Short-Lived Phenomena, and other published scientific reports. A number of Icelandic scientists studied the scientific aspects of the eruption and the engineering aspects of the control of lava flows, in particular, Professors Thorbjb'rn Sigurgeirsson and Sigurdur Thorarinsson of the University of Iceland Science Institute. Also, Icelandic governmental officials provided logistical and other support, in particular, Mr. Steingnmur Hermannsson, Director, Icelandic National Research Council and Professor Magnus Magnusson, Director, University of Iceland Science Institute.

Vestmannaeyjar↗
USGS2008

Advanced Spaceborne Thermal Emission and Reflection Radiometer (ASTER) Overview

The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) launched Terra, the Earth Observing System's (EOS) flagship satellite platform on December 18, 1999. The polar-orbiting Terra contains five remote sensing instruments, which enable the scientific study and analyses of global terrestrial processes and manifestations of global change. One of the five instruments is the multispectral Advanced Spaceborne Thermal Emission and Reflection Radiometer (ASTER), which is built in Japan by a consortium of government, industry, and research groups. It has three spectral bands in the visible near-infrared region (VNIR), six bands in the shortwave infrared region (SWIR), and five bands in the thermal infrared region (TIR), with 15-, 30-, and 90-meter ground resolutions, respectively. This combination of wide spectral coverage and high spatial resolution allows ASTER to discriminate among a wide variety of surface materials. The VNIR subsystem also has a backward-viewing telescope for high-resolution (15-meter) stereoscopic observation in the along-track direction, which facilitates the generation of digital elevation models (DEM).

Fact Sheet↗