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USGS2022

Abundance and distribution of sea otters (Enhydra lutris) in the southcentral Alaska stock, 2014, 2017, and 2019

The Southcentral Alaska (SCAK) sea otter ( Enhydra lutris ) stock is the northernmost stock of sea otters, a keystone predator known for structuring nearshore marine ecosystems. We conducted aerial surveys within the range of the SCAK sea otter stock to provide recent estimates of sea otter abundance and distribution. We defined three survey regions: (1) Eastern Cook Inlet (2017), (2) Outer Kenai Peninsula (2019), and (3) Prince William Sound (2014 and 2017). Combined, the three regional estimates yielded an overall abundance estimate of 21,617 sea otters (standard error [SE] = 2,190) with an average density of 1.96 sea otters per square kilometer (km 2 ; SE = 0.55). Sea otters were distributed unevenly across the survey regions and densities varied from 0.52 sea otters/km 2 (SE = 0.18) in the deep rock-walled glacial fjords along parts of the Outer Kenai Peninsula to nearly 20 sea otters/km 2 (SE = 6.70) in shallow soft-bottom communities such as those in Orca Inlet and Kachemak Bay. These survey results represent the best available contemporary information concerning the distribution, density, and abundance of sea otters across the range of the SCAK stock. Survey data files have been standardized and formatted in data releases associated with this report so that they can be queried and displayed with standard geographic information system and database management software. In addition to providing contemporary information on sea otter populations, this report details how an observer-based aerial survey method has been applied in Alaska over 2 decades.

Alaska↗

USGS1998

Descriptions of selected digital spatial data for Ravenna Army Ammunition Plant, Ohio

Digital spatial data of Ravenna Army Ammunition Plant (RVAAP), in northeastern Ohio, were compiled or generated from existing maps for U.S. Army Industrial Operations Command. The data are in the Ohio north state-plane coordinate system (North American Datum of 1983) in an ARC/INFO geographic information system format. The data comprise 15 layers, which include boundaries, topography, and natural and cultural features. An additional layer comprises scanned and rectified aerial photographs of RVAAP.

Open-File Report↗

USGS1987

Overview of the land analysis system (LAS)

The Land Analysis System (LAS) is a fully integrated digital analysis system designed to support remote sensing, image processing, and geographic information systems research. LAS is being developed through a cooperative effort between the National Aeronautics and Space Administration Goddard Space Flight Center and the U. S. Geological Survey Earth Resources Observation Systems (EROS) Data Center. LAS has over 275 analysis modules capable to performing input and output, radiometric correction, geometric registration, signal processing, logical operations, data transformation, classification, spatial analysis, nominal filtering, conversion between raster and vector data types, and display manipulation of image and ancillary data. LAS is currently implant using the Transportable Applications Executive (TAE). While TAE was designed primarily to be transportable, it still provides the necessary components for a standard user interface, terminal handling, input and output services, display management, and intersystem communications. With TAE the analyst uses the same interface to the processing modules regardless of the host computer or operating system. LAS was originally implemented at EROS on a Digital Equipment Corporation computer system under the Virtual Memorial System operating system with DeAnza displays and is presently being converted to run on a Gould Power Node and Sun workstation under the Berkeley System Distribution UNIX operating system.

Conference Paper↗

USGS1974

Geochemical indicators of subsurface temperature: Part 1, basic assumptions

The chemical and isotopic compositions of hot-spring water and gas are used to estimate subsurface temperatures. The basic assumptions inherent in the methods are seldom stipulated. These assumptions include (1) a temperature-dependent reaction at depth, (2) a supply of the solid phase involved in the reaction to permit saturation of the constituent used for geothermometry, (3) water-rock equilibrium at depth, (4) negligible re-equilibration as the water flows to the surface, and (5) no dilution or mixing of hot and cold water. The first three assumptions are probably good for a few reactions that occur in many places. The last two assumptions probably are not valid for many hot-spring systems; information obtained is therefore for the shallower parts of those systems, or a limiting temperature (generally a minimum) is indicated.

Journal of Research of the U.S. Geological Survey↗

USGS2008

Bathymetric Survey and Storage Capacity of Upper Lake Mary near Flagstaff, Arizona

Upper Lake Mary is a preferred drinking-water source for the City of Flagstaff, Arizona. Therefore, storage capacity and sedimentation issues in Upper Lake Mary are of interest to the City. The U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the City of Flagstaff, collected bathymetric and land-survey data in Upper Lake Mary during late August through October 2006. Water-depth data were collected using a single-beam, high-definition fathometer. Position data were collected using real-time differential global position system receivers. Data were processed using commercial software and imported into geographic information system software to produce contour maps of lakebed elevations and for the computation of area and storage-capacity information. At full pool (spillway elevation of 6,828.5 feet above mean sea level), Upper Lake Mary has a storage capacity of 16,300 acre-feet, a surface area of 939 acres, a mean depth of 17.4 feet, and a depth near the dam of 39 feet. It is 5.6 miles long and varies in width from 308 feet near the central, narrow portion of the lake to 2,630 feet in the upper portion. Comparisons between this survey and a previous survey conducted in the 1950s indicate no apparent decrease in reservoir area or storage capacity between the two surveys.

Open-File Report↗

USGS1995

Database of well and areal data, South San Francisco Bay and Peninsula area, California

A database was developed to organize and manage data compiled for a regional assessment of geohydrologic and water-quality conditions in the south San Francisco Bay and Peninsula area in California. Available data provided by local, State, and Federal agencies and private consultants was utilized in the assessment. The database consists of geographicinformation system data layers and related tables and American Standard Code for Information Interchange files. Documentation of the database is necessary to avoid misinterpretation of the data and to make users aware of potential errors and limitations. Most of the data compiled were collected from wells and boreholes (collectively referred to as wells in this report). This point-specific data, including construction, water-level, waterquality, pumping test, and lithologic data, are contained in tables and files that are related to a geographic information system data layer that contains the locations of the wells. There are 1,014 wells in the data layer and the related tables contain 35,845 water-level measurements (from 293 of the wells) and 9,292 water-quality samples (from 394 of the wells). Calculation of hydraulic heads and gradients from the water levels can be affected adversely by errors in the determination of the altitude of land surface at the well. Cation and anion balance computations performed on 396 of the water-quality samples indicate high cation and anion balance errors for 51 (13 percent) of the samples. Well drillers' reports were interpreted for 762 of the wells, and digital representations of the lithology of the formations are contained in files following the American Standard Code for Information Interchange. The usefulness of drillers' descriptions of the formation lithology is affected by the detail and thoroughness of the drillers' descriptions, as well as the knowledge, experience, and vocabulary of the individual who described the drill cuttings. Additional data layers were created that contain political, geohydrologic, and other geographic data. These layers contain features represented by areas and lines rather than discrete points. The layers consist of data representing the thickness of alluvium, surficial geology, physiographic subareas, watershed boundaries, land use, water-supply districts, wastewater treatment districts, and recharge basins. The layers manually digitizing paper maps, acquisition of data already in digital form, or creation of new layers from available layers. The scale of the source data affects the accurate representation of real-world features with the data layer, and, therefore, the scale of the source data must be considered when the data are analyzed and plotted.

Water-Resources Investigations Report↗

USGS2002

Geologic information for aggregate resource planning

Construction and maintenance of the infrastructure is dependent on such raw materials as aggregate (crushed stone, sand, and gravel). Despite this dependence, urban expansion often works to the detriment of the production of those essential raw materials. The failure to plan for the protection and extraction of aggregate resources often results in increased consumer cost, environmental damage, and an adversarial relation between the aggregate industry and the community. As an area grows, the demand for aggregate resources increases, and industries that produce these materials are established. Aggregate is a low-cost commodity, and to keep hauling costs at a minimum, the operations are located as close to the market as possible. As metropolitan areas grow, they encroach upon established aggregate operations. New residents in the vicinity of pits and quarries object to the noise, dust, and truck traffic associated with the aggregate operation. Pressure is applied to the local government to limit operation hours and truck traffic. In addition to encroaching on established aggregate operations, urban growth commonly covers unmined aggregate resources. Frequently urban growth occurs without any consideration of the resource or an analysis of the impact of its loss. The old idea that aggregate resources can be found anywhere is false. New aggregate operations may have to be located long distances from the markets. The additional expense of the longer transport of resources must be passed on to consumers in the community. In many instances, the new deposit is of inferior quality compared with the original source, yet it is used to avoid the expense of importing high-quality material from a more-distant source. Some governmental, including city, provincial or state, and national, agencies, have enacted regulations to help maintain access to prime aggregate resources. Although regulations have met with variable success, some policy or regulation to protect aggregate resources is worth consideration. A basic requirement of any aggregate resource policy or regulation is the knowledge of the geographic distribution, volumes, and quality of aggregate resources. This knowledge commonly is obtained through geologic mapping and characterization of aggregate resources. Geographic Information Systems (GIS) and Decision Support Systems (DSS) provide excellent tools to help present and evaluate the information in a manner that is understandable by public decisionmakers.

Book chapter↗

USGS2016

Improving the effectiveness of ecological site descriptions: General state-and-transition models and the Ecosystem Dynamics Interpretive Tool (EDIT)

State-and-transition models (STMs) are useful tools for management, but they can be difficult to use and have limited content. STMs created for groups of related ecological sites could simplify and improve their utility. The amount of information linked to models can be increased using tables that communicate management interpretations and important within-group variability. We created a new web-based information system (the Ecosystem Dynamics Interpretive Tool) to house STMs, associated tabular information, and other ecological site data and descriptors. Fewer, more informative, better organized, and easily accessible STMs should increase the accessibility of science information.

Rangelands↗

USGS2009

Database of the geologic map of North America— Adapted from the map by J.C. Reed, Jr. and others (2005)

Introduction The Geological Society of America's (GSA) Geologic Map of North America (Reed and others, 2005a; 1:5,000,000) shows the geology of a significantly large area of the Earth, centered on North and Central America and including the submarine geology of parts of the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans. This map is now converted to a Geographic Information System (GIS) database that contains all geologic and base-map information shown on the two printed map sheets and the accompanying explanation sheet. We anticipate this map database will be revised at some unspecified time in the future, likely through the actions of a steering committee managed by the GSA and staffed by scientists from agencies including those responsible for the original map compilation. Regarding the use of this product, as noted by the map's compilers: “The Geologic Map of North America is an essential educational tool for teaching the geology of North America to university students and for the continuing education of professional geologists in North America and elsewhere. In addition, simplified maps derived from the Geologic Map of North America are useful for enlightening younger students and the general public about the geology of the continent.” With publication of this database, the preparation of any type of simplified map is made significantly easier. More important perhaps, the database provides a more accessible means to explore the map information and to compare and analyze it in conjunction with other types of information (for example, land use, soils, biology) to better understand the complex interrelations among factors that affect Earth resources, hazards, ecosystems, and climate.

Data Series↗

USGS2014

Water resources of De Soto Parish, Louisiana

Information concerning the availability, use, and quality of water in De Soto Parish, Louisiana, is critical for proper water-supply management. The purpose of this fact sheet is to present information that can be used by water managers, parish residents, and others for stewardship of this vital resource. Information on the availability, past and current use, use trends, and water quality from groundwater and surface-water sources in the parish is presented. Previously published reports and data stored in the U.S. Geological Survey’s National Water Information System (http://waterdata. usgs.gov/nwis) are the primary sources of the information presented here.

Louisiana↗

USGS2001

Spatial variability of sediment erosion processes using GIS analysis within watersheds in a historically mined region, Patagonia Mountains, Arizona

In this study, a geographic information system (GIS) is used to integrate and accurately map field studies, information from remotely sensed data, watershed models, and the dispersion of potentially toxic mine waste and tailings. The purpose of this study is to identify erosion rates and net sediment delivery of soil and mine waste/tailings to the drainage channel within several watershed regions to determine source areas of sediment delivery as a method of quantifying geo-environmental analysis of transport mechanisms in abandoned mine lands in arid climate conditions. Users of this study are the researchers interested in exploration of approaches to depicting historical activity in an area which has no baseline data records for environmental analysis of heavily mined terrain.

Arizona↗

USGS2000

Geographic Information for Analysis of Highway Runoff-Quality Data on a National or Regional Scale in the Conterminous United States

Spatial data are important for interpretation of water-quality information on a regional or national scale. Geographic information systems (GIS) facilitate interpretation and integration of spatial data. The geographic information and data compiled for the conterminous United States during the National Highway Runoff Water-Quality Data and Methodology Synthesis project is described in this document, which also includes information on the structure, file types, and the geographic information in the data files. This 'geodata' directory contains two subdirectories, labeled 'gisdata' and 'gisimage.' The 'gisdata' directory contains ArcInfo coverages, ArcInfo export files, shapefiles (used in ArcView), Spatial Data Transfer Standard Topological Vector Profile format files, and meta files in subdirectories organized by file type. The 'gisimage' directory contains the GIS data in common image-file formats. The spatial geodata includes two rain-zone region maps and a map of national ecosystems originally published by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency; regional estimates of mean annual streamflow, and water hardness published by the Federal Highway Administration; and mean monthly temperature, mean annual precipitation, and mean monthly snowfall modified from data published by the National Climatic Data Center and made available to the public by the Oregon Climate Service at Oregon State University. These GIS files were compiled for qualitative spatial analysis of available data on a national and(or) regional scale and therefore should be considered as qualitative representations, not precise geographic location information.

Open-File Report↗

USGS2004

NADM Conceptual Model 1.0 -- A Conceptual Model for Geologic Map Information

Executive Summary -- The NADM Data Model Design Team was established in 1999 by the North American Geologic Map Data Model Steering Committee (NADMSC) with the purpose of drafting a geologic map data model for consideration as a standard for developing interoperable geologic map-centered databases by state, provincial, and federal geological surveys. The model is designed to be a technology-neutral conceptual model that can form the basis for a web-based interchange format using evolving information technology (e.g., XML, RDF, OWL), and guide implementation of geoscience databases in a common conceptual framework. The intended purpose is to allow geologic information sharing between geologic map data providers and users, independent of local information system implementation. The model emphasizes geoscience concepts and relationships related to information presented on geologic maps. Design has been guided by an informal requirements analysis, documentation of existing databases, technology developments, and other standardization efforts in the geoscience and computer-science communities. A key aspect of the model is the notion that representation of the conceptual framework (ontology) that underlies geologic map data must be part of the model, because this framework changes with time and understanding, and varies between information providers. The top level of the model distinguishes geologic concepts, geologic representation concepts, and metadata. The geologic representation part of the model provides a framework for representing the ontology that underlies geologic map data through a controlled vocabulary, and for establishing the relationships between this vocabulary and a geologic map visualization or portrayal. Top-level geologic classes in the model are Earth material (substance), geologic unit (parts of the Earth), geologic age, geologic structure, fossil, geologic process, geologic relation, and geologic event.

Open-File Report↗

USGS1996

Digital data set of volcano hazards for active Cascade Volcanos, Washington

Scientists at the Cascade Volcano Observatory have completed hazard assessments for the five active volcanos in Washington. The five studies included Mount Adams (Scott and others, 1995), Mount Baker (Gardner and others, 1995), Glacier Peak (Waitt and others, 1995), Mount Rainier (Hoblitt and others, 1995) and Mount St. Helens (Wolfe and Pierson, 1995). Twenty Geographic Information System (GIS) data sets have been created that represent the hazard information from the assessments. The twenty data sets have individual Open File part numbers and titles

Open-File Report↗

USGS2012

Bathymetry of Groundhog Reservoir, Dolores County, Colorado, 2011

In order to better characterize the water supply capacity of Groundhog Reservoir, Dolores County, Colorado, the U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the Dolores Water Conservancy District, conducted a bathymetric survey of Groundhog Reservoir. The study was performed in June 2011 using a man-operated boat-mounted multibeam echo sounder integrated with a global positioning system and a terrestrial real-time kinematic global positioning system. The two collected datasets were merged and imported into geographic information system software. A bathymetric map of the reservoir was generated in addition to plots for the stage-area and the stage-volume relations.

Colorado↗

USGS2012

Bathymetry of Totten Reservoir, Montezuma County, Colorado, 2011

In order to better characterize the water supply capacity of Totten Reservoir, Montezuma County, Colorado, the U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the Dolores Water Conservancy District, conducted a bathymetric survey of Totten Reservoir. The study was performed in June 2011 using a man-operated boat-mounted multibeam echo sounder integrated with a global positioning system and a terrestrial real-time kinematic global positioning system. The two collected datasets were merged and imported into geographic information system software. A bathymetric map of the reservoir was generated in addition to plots for the stage-area and the stage-volume relations.

Colorado↗

USGS2017

Bathymetry of Clear Creek Reservoir, Chaffee County, Colorado, 2016

To better characterize the water supply capacity of Clear Creek Reservoir, Chaffee County, Colorado, the U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the Pueblo Board of Water Works and Colorado Mountain College, carried out a bathymetry survey of Clear Creek Reservoir. A bathymetry map of the reservoir is presented here with the elevation-surface area and the elevation-volume relations. The bathymetry survey was carried out June 6–9, 2016, using a man-operated boat-mounted, multibeam echo sounder integrated with a Global Positioning System and a terrestrial survey using real-time kinematic Global Navigation Satellite Systems. The two collected datasets were merged and imported into geographic information system software. The equipment and methods used in this study allowed water-resource managers to maintain typical reservoir operations, eliminating the need to empty the reservoir to carry out the survey.

Colorado↗

USGS1984

RESEARCH FOR THE USGS DIGITAL CARTOGRAPHY PROGRAM.

The U. S. Geological Survey National Mapping Division (NMD) has been conducting research and development in digital cartography since the early seventies. Since 1977 there has been an acceleration of activities associated with establishing a National Digital Cartographic Data Base (NDCDB). The NMD Office of Research is primarily responsible for fundamental and applied research together with systems development and technical standards to support the digital cartographic program. Three phases of development have been defined - the current system, an optimum system that can be built with current technology, and a future system that could be defined after some basic research is completed. Some of the current projects related to automated data capture, editing, coding, and structuring are described together with a perspective on future directions. The overall rationale is to develop a very large integrated system that will support a NDCDB and lead toward operational geographic information systems.

Conference Paper↗