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USGS2012

Dissolved methane in New York groundwater, 1999-2011

New York State is underlain by numerous bedrock formations of Cambrian to Devonian age that produce natural gas and to a lesser extent oil. The first commercial gas well in the United States was dug in the early 1820s in Fredonia, south of Buffalo, New York, and produced methane from Devonian-age black shale. Methane naturally discharges to the land surface at some locations in New York. At Chestnut Ridge County Park in Erie County, just south of Buffalo, N.Y., several surface seeps of natural gas occur from Devonian black shale, including one behind a waterfall. Methane occurs locally in the groundwater of New York; as a result, it may be present in drinking-water wells, in the water produced from those wells, and in the associated water-supply systems (Eltschlager and others, 2001). The natural gas in low-permeability bedrock formations has not been accessible by traditional extraction techniques, which have been used to tap more permeable sandstone and carbonate bedrock reservoirs. However, newly developed techniques involving horizontal drilling and high-volume hydraulic fracturing have made it possible to extract previously inaccessible natural gas from low-permeability bedrock such as the Marcellus and Utica Shales. The use of hydraulic fracturing to release natural gas from these shale formations has raised concerns with water-well owners and water-resource managers across the Marcellus and Utica Shale region (West Virginia, Pennsylvania, New York and parts of several other adjoining States). Molofsky and others (2011) documented the widespread natural occurrence of methane in drinking-water wells in Susquehanna County, Pennsylvania. In the same county, Osborn and others (2011) identified elevated methane concentrations in selected drinking-water wells in the vicinity of Marcellus gas-development activities, although pre-development samples were not available for comparison. In order to manage water resources in areas of gas-well drilling and hydraulic fracturing in New York, the natural occurrence of methane in the State's aquifers needs to be documented. This brief report presents a compilation of data on dissolved methane concentrations in the groundwater of New York available from the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) National Water Information System (NWIS) (http://waterdata.usgs.gov/nwis).

New York↗

USGS1952

Progress report on geologic study of the Crosby and Ironton area of the Cuyuna Range, Crow Wing County, Minnesota

The detailed geology of part of the Guyana manganiferous iron-ore district was mapped during the summer and autumn of 1951. The only exposures of bedrock in or near this area are in the open-pit and underground mines where two or more layers of iron-formation and associated elastic sediments have been deformed into a complex fold system and have been intruded by large dikes. The accompanying maps and sections show the distribution of the several rock types exposed, brief descriptions of these materials, and data on the geologic structure. For the most part this structural and lithologic information has been generalized from much more detailed maps prepared in the field on scales of 30, 40, or 50 feet equal to one inch.

Minnesota↗

USGS2015

Geologic map of the Vashon 7.5' quadrangle and selected areas, King County, Washington

This map is an interpretation of a 6-ft-resolution lidar-derived digital elevation model combined with geology by Derek B. Booth and Kathy Goetz Troost. Field work by Booth and Troost was located on the 1:24,000-scale topographic map of the Vashon and Des Moines 7.5' quadrangles that were published in 1997 and 1995, respectively. Much of the geology was interpreted from landforms portrayed on the topographic maps, supplemented by field exposures, where available. In 2001, the Puget Sound Lidar Consortium (see http://pugetsoundlidar.org/) obtained a lidar-derived digital elevation model (DEM) for Vashon Island and the Des Moines quadrangle. For a brief description of lidar and this data acquisition program, see Haugerud and others (2003). This new DEM has a horizontal resolution of 6 ft (1.83 m) and mean vertical accuracy of about 1 ft (about 0.3 m). The greater resolution and accuracy of the lidar DEM facilitated a much-improved interpretation of many aspects of the surficial geology, especially the distribution and relative age of landforms and the materials inferred to comprise them. Booth and Troost were joined by Tabor to interpret the new lidar DEM but have done no futher field work for this map. This map, the Vashon quadrangle and selected adjacent areas, encompasses most of Vashon Island, Maury Island, and Three Tree Point in the south-central Puget Sound. One small area in the Vashon quadrangle on the east side of Puget Sound is excluded from this map but included on the adjacent Seattle quadrangle (Booth and others, 2005). The map displays a wide variety of surficial geologic deposits, which reflect many geologic environments and processes. Multiple ice-sheet glaciations and intervening nonglacial intervals have constructed a complexly layered sequence of deposits that underlie both islands to a depth of more than 300 m below sea level. These deposits not only record glacial and nonglacial history but also control the flow and availability of ground water, determine the susceptibility of the slopes to landslides, and provide economic reserves of sand and gravel. The islands are surrounded by channels of Puget Sound, some as deep as the islands are high (>600 ft (~200 m)). The shorelines provide many kilometers of well-exposed coastal outcrops that reveal abundant lithologic and stratigraphic details not ordinarily displayed in the heavily vegetated Puget Lowland.

Washington↗

USGS2015

Porphyry copper assessment of the Central Asian Orogenic Belt and eastern Tethysides: China, Mongolia, Russia, Pakistan, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan, and India: Chapter X in Global mineral resource assessment

The U.S. Geological Survey collaborated with international colleagues to assess undiscovered resources in porphyry copper deposits in the Central Asian Orogenic Belt and eastern Tethysides. These areas host 20 known porphyry copper deposits, including the world class Oyu Tolgoi deposit in Mongolia that was discovered in the late 1990s. The study area covers major parts of the world’s largest orogenic systems. The Central Asian Orogenic Belt is a collage of amalgamated Precambrian through Mesozoic terranes that extends from the Ural Mountains in the west nearly to the Pacific Coast of Asia in the east and records the evolution and final closure of the Paleo-Asian Ocean in Permian time. The eastern Tethysides, the orogenic belt to the south of the Central Asian Orogenic Belt, records the evolution of another ancient ocean system, the Tethys Ocean. The evolution of these orogenic belts involved magmatism associated with a variety of geologic settings appropriate for formation of porphyry copper deposits, including subduction-related island arcs, continental arcs, and collisional and postconvergent settings. The original settings are difficult to trace because the arcs have been complexly deformed and dismembered by younger tectonic events. Twelve mineral resource assessment tracts were delineated to be permissive for the occurrence of porphyry copper deposits based on mapped and inferred subsurface distributions of igneous rocks of specific age ranges and compositions. These include (1) nine Paleozoic tracts in the Central Asian Orogenic Belt, which range in area from about 60,000 to 800,000 square kilometers (km 2 ); (2) a complex area of about 400,000 km 2 on the northern margin of the Tethysides, the Qinling-Dabie tract, which spans central China and areas to the west, encompassing Paleozoic through Triassic igneous rocks that formed in diverse settings; and (3) assemblages of late Paleozoic and Mesozoic rocks that define two other tracts in the Tethysides, the 100,000 km 2 Jinsajiang tract and the 300,000 km 2 Tethyan-Gangdese tract. Assessment participants evaluated applicable grade and tonnage models and estimated numbers of undiscovered deposits at different confidence levels for each permissive tract. The estimates were then combined with the selected grade and tonnage models using Monte Carlo simulations to generate probabilistic estimates of undiscovered resources. Additional resources in extensions of deposits with identified resources were not specifically evaluated. Assessment results, presented in tables and graphs, show amounts of metal and rock in undiscovered deposits at selected quantile levels of probability (0.95, 0.9, 0.5, 0.1, and 0.05 confidence levels), as well as the arithmetic mean and associated standard deviations and variances for each tract. This assessment estimated a total of 97 undiscovered porphyry copper deposits within the assessed permissive tracts. This represents nearly five times the 20 known deposits. Predicted mean resources that could be associated with these undiscovered deposits are about 370,000,000 metric tons (t) of copper, 10,000 t of gold, 7,700,000 t of molybdenum, and 120,000 t of silver. The assessment area is estimated to contain about five times as much copper in undiscovered deposits as has been identified to date. This report includes a summary of the data used in the assessment, a brief overview of the geologic framework of the area, descriptions of permissive tracts and known deposits, maps, and tables. A geographic information system database that accompanies this report includes the tract boundaries and known porphyry copper deposits, significant prospects, and prospects. Assessments of overlapping younger rocks and adjacent areas are included in separate reports available on-line at http://minerals.usgs.gov/global/ .

Scientific Investigations Report↗

USGS2013

Determination of flow losses in the Cape Fear River between B. Everett Jordan Lake and Lillington, North Carolina, 2008-2010

During 2008-2010, the U.S. Geological Survey conducted a hydrologic investigation in cooperation with the Triangle J Council of Governments Cape Fear River Flow Study Committee and the North Carolina Division of Water Resources to collect hydrologic data in the Cape Fear River between B. Everett Jordan Lake and Lillington in central North Carolina to help determine if suspected flow losses occur in the reach. Flow loss analyses were completed by summing the daily flow releases at Jordan Lake Dam with the daily discharges at Deep River at Moncure and Buckhorn Creek near Corinth, then subtracting these values from the daily discharges at Cape Fear River at Lillington. Examination of long-term records revealed that during 10,227 days of the 1983-2010 water years, 408 days (4.0 percent) had flow loss when conditions were relatively steady with respect to the previous day's records. The flow loss that occurred on these 40 days ranged from 0.49 to 2,150 cubic feet per second with a median flow loss of 37.2 cubic feet per second. The months with the highest number of days with flow losses were June (16. percent), September (16.9 percent), and October (19.4 percent). A series of synoptic discharge measurements made on six separate days in 2009 provided "snapshots" of overall flow conditions along the study reach. The largest water diversion is just downstream from the confluence of the Haw and Deep Rivers, and discharges substantially decrease in the main stem downstream from the intake point. Downstream from Buckhorn Dam, minimal gain or loss between the dam and Raven Rock State Park was noted. Analyses of discharge measurements and ratings for two streamgages-one at Deep River at Moncure and the other at Cape Fear River at Lillington-were completed to address the accuracy of the relation between stage and discharge at these sites. The ratings analyses did not indicate a particular time during the 1982-2011 water years in which a consistent bias occurred in the computations of discharge records that would indicate false flow losses. A total of 34 measured discharges at a streamgage on the Haw River below B. Everett Jordan Lake near Moncure were compared with the reported hourly flow releases from Jordan Lake Dam. Because 28 of 34 measurements were within plus or minus 10 percent of the hourly flow releases reported by the U.S Army Corps of Engineers, use of the current discharge computation tables for reporting Jordan Lake Dam flow releases is generally supported. A stage gage was operated on the Cape Fear River at Buckhorn Dam near Corinth to collect continuous stage-only records. Throughout the study period, flow over the dam was observed along its length, and flow loss within the study reach is not attributed to river-level fluctuations at the dam. Water-use information and (or) data were obtained for five industrial facilities, a regional power utility, two municipalities, one small hydropower facility on the Deep River, and one quarry operation also adjacent to the Deep River. The largest water users are the regional power producer, a small hydropower operation, and the two municipalities. The total water-use diversions for these facilities range from almost 25.5 to 38.5 cubic feet per second (39.5 to 59.5 million gallons per day) during the winter and summer periods, respectively. This range is equivalent to 69 to 104 percent of the 37 cubic feet per second median flow loss. The Lockville hydropower station is on the Deep River about 1 mile downstream from the streamgage near Moncure. Run-of-river operations at the facility do not appear to affect flow losses in the study reach. The largest water user in the study area is a regional power producer at a coal-fired power-generation plant located immediately adjacent to the Cape Fear River just downstream from the confluence of the Haw an Deep Rivers. Comparisons of daily water withdrawals, sup-plied by the regional power producer, and discharge records at a streamgage on the diversion canal indicated many days when consumption exceeded the producer's estimates for the cooling towers. Uncertainty surrounding reasonable estimates of consumption remained in effect at the end of the study. Data concerning evaporative losses were compiled using two approaches-an analysis of available pan-evaporation data from a National Weather Service cooperative observer station in Chapel Hill, North Carolina; and a compilation of reference open-water evaporation computed by the State Climate Office of North Carolina. The potential flow loss by evaporation from the main stem and the Deep River was estimated to be in the range of 4 to 14 cubic feet per second during May through October, equivalent to 10 to 38 percent of the 37 cubic feet per second median flow loss. Daily water-use diversions and evaporation losses were compared to flow-loss occurrences during the period April 2008 through September 2010. In comparing the surface-water, water-use, and evaporation data compiled for 2008-2010, it is evident that documented water diversions combined with flow losses by open-water evaporation can exceed the net flow gain in the study area and result in flow losses from the reach. Analysis of data from a streamgage downstream from the regional power plant on the diversion canal adjacent to the Cape Fear River provided insight into the occurrence of an apparent flow loss at the streamgage at Lillington. Assessment of the daily discharges and subsequent hydrographs for the canal streamgage indicated at least 24 instances during the study when the flows suddenly changed by magnitudes of 100 to more that 200 cubic feet per second, resulting in a noted time-lag effect on the downstream discharges at the Lillington streamgage, beginning 8 to 16 hours after the sudden flow change. A fiber-optic distributed temperature-sensing survey was conducted on the Cape Fear River at the Raven Rock State Park reach August 12-14, 2009, to determine if the presence of diabase dikes were preferentially directing groundwater discharge. No temperature anomalies of colder water were measured during the survey, which indicated that at the time of the survey that particular reach of the Cape Fear River was a "no-flow" or losing stream. An aerial thermal-infrared survey was conducted on the Haw and Cape Fear Rivers on February 27, 2010, from Jordan Lake Dam to Lillington to qualitatively delineate areas of groundwater discharge on the basis of the contrast between warm groundwater discharge and cold surface-water temperatures. Dis-charge generally was noted as diffuse seepage, but in a few cases springs were detected as inflow at a discrete point of discharge. Two reaches of the Cape Fear River (regional power plant and Bradley Road reaches) were selected for groundwater monitoring with a transect of piezometers installed within the flood plain. Groundwater-level altitudes at these reaches were analyzed for 1 water year (October 1, 2009, to September 30, 2010). Data collected as part of this study represent only a brief period of time and may not represent all conditions and all years; however, the data indicate that, during the dry summer months, the Cape Fear River within the study area is losing an undetermined quantity of water through seepage. Analyses completed during this investigation indicate a study reach with complex flow patterns affected by numerous concurrent factors resulting in flow losses. The causes of flow loss could not be solely attributed to any one factor. Among the factors considered, the occurrences of water diversions and evaporative losses were determined to be sufficient on some days (particularly during the base-flow period) to exceed the net gain in flows between the upstream and downstream ends of the study area. Losses by diversions and evaporation can exceed the median flow loss of 3 cubic feet per second, which indicates that flow loss from the study reach is real. Groundwater data collected during 2009-2010 indicate the possibility of localized flow loss during the summer, particularly in the impounded reach above Buckhorn Dam. However, no indication of unusual patterns was noted that would cause substantial flow loss by groundwater and surface-water interaction at the river bottom.

North Carolina↗

USGS2011

Landsat science team meeting summary

The Landsat Science Team sponsored by the U.S. Geo- logical Survey (USGS) and NASA met in Mesa, AZ, from March 1-3, 2011. The team met in Mesa so that they could receive briefings and tours of the Landsat Data Continuity Mission (LDCM) spacecraft that is being developed by Orbital Sciences Corporation in nearby Gilbert, AZ.

The Earth Observer↗

USGS1984

Habitat Suitability Index Models and Instream Flow Suitability Curves: Spotted bass

The Habitat Suitability Index (HSI) models presented in this publication aid in identifying habitat variable important to the growth and survival of spotted bass (Micropterus punctulatus). Facts, ideas, and concepts obtained from the research literature and expert reviews are synthesized and presented in a format that can be used for impact assessment. The models are hypotheses of species-habitat relationships, and model users should recognize that the degree of veracity of the HSI model, SI graphs, and assumptions will vary according to geographical area and the extent of the data base for individual variables. A brief discussion of selected Suitability Index (SI) curves as used in the Instream Flow Incremental Methodology (IFIM), and a discussion of SI curves available for the IFIM analysis of Spotted bass habitat are also included.

FWS/OBS↗

USGS1972

Water-temperature data acquisition activities in the United States

Along with the growing interest in water quality during the last decade, the need for data on all types of water-quality parameters has also increased. One parameter of particular interest, because of its many ramifications, is temperature. It influences many of the chemical and physical processes that take place in water. The solubility of gases--for example, oxygen and carbon dioxide--and the solution of mineral matter in water are functions of temperature. Such physical properties as density and viscosity vary with temperature. Oxidation of organic materials, as well as algal and bacterial growth, is promoted or retarded by favorable or unfavorable temperatures. Further, temperature bears on the utility of water: as a source of public water supplies; for industrial use, particularly if the water is used for cooling; and in the field of recreation involving contact sports, fishing, and fish culture. In recent years, temperature changes resulting from inflow of heated industrial waste, particularly effluent from power generating plants, have increased the need for temperature data to determine the degree of change, its effect on ecology, and the effect of any remedial action. Thus, because of the many extensive and intensive effects, a large amount of temperature data is collected on surface and ground waters by many agencies throughout the country. Moreover, because of its importance, there is a widespread interest in temperature even by those who are not active collectors of the data themselves. The industrialist, the manager, the public official, and others at one time or another may have need for temperature data and may well raise the questions: Who is collecting temperature data? What is the extent of the activity? Where are the data being collected? The purpose of this report is to answer these questions. The information in the report is confined to the activities of Federal and non-Federal agencies. It is based on information furnished to the Office of Water Data Coordination, U.S. Geological Survey, and published in the "Catalog of Information on Water Data, Index to Water Quality Section, Edition 1970." This is one of four indexes, each of which is a separate section of the Catalog. Three of the indexes, "Index to Water-Quality Section," "Index to Surface-Water Section," and "Index to Ground-.Water Stations," contain information on data acquired on a recurrent basis at specific locations for a period of 3 years or more. The fourth section, "Index to Areal Investigations and Miscellaneous Activities," is concerned with specific projects or shorter-term data activities that involve field or laboratory measurements or observations not included in any other section of the Catalog. The Catalog is a record of activities throughout the country (and in some places along the international border between the United States and Canada) conducted by Federal and non-Federal agencies engaged in the acquisition of water data and who furnish such information for presentation in the Catalog. The Catalog itself is an outgrowth of an assignment to the Department of the Interior and in turn to the Geological Survey, by the Office of Management and Budget, through the medium of OMB Circular A-67. This Circular states in part that one of the assigned responsibilities will be maintenance of a "central catalog of information on...water data and on Federal activities being planned or conducted to acquire such data." As an extension of this activity, non-Federal agencies are solicited to participate in the program. In this report, information is presented by means of tables and illustrations preceded by brief explanations. It includes the agencies collecting the data, the number of stations located on surface and ground waters where temperature measurements are made, the distribution of stations by States and by the 21 regions of the Water Resources Council (WRC) (a Federal agency created in accordance with the Water Resources Planning Act of 1965), and the frequency of measurements. Acquisition activities were not reported for those areas left blank on some illustrations. The report does not contain the actual temperature data. For this information, the particular agency, Federal or non-Federal, acquiring the data will have to be contacted. However, a bibliography at the end of this report lists 194 references which contain temperature data. Many of these references, especially the publications of the Geological Survey, may be available in major public and university libraries and libraries of Federal and non-Federal agencies.

Water-Resources Investigations Report↗

USGS2013

Status of a reconnaissance field study of the Susitna basin, 2011

The Alaska Division of Geological & Geophysical Surveys (DGGS) and Alaska Division of Oil and Gas (DOG), in collaboration with the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) performed reconnaissance field studies for ten days in late June 2011, in the Susitna basin, directly north of Cook Inlet, south-central Alaska (fig. 1). The purpose of our investigation was to reconnoiter outcrops in the basin and along its periphery to gather new information towards understanding the basin formation history and stratigraphy. This reconnaissance data represents the first step toward better understanding the basin’s hydrocarbon potential, a key component of DGGS’s multi-year In- State Gas Program. This program is focused on collecting baseline geologic information from potential frontier gas basins to encourage new exploration to help, in part, reduce the high cost of energy in rural Alaska. Our work represents the first season of this three-year project. Preliminary results from year two, a companion project within the Nenana and Tanana basins in interior Alaska, are described by Wartes and others (2013). DGGS plans to return to the Susitna basin for follow-up fieldwork during the third and final year of the program. The motivation for developing a better understanding of the Susitna basin stems from the recognition that the Susitna basin shares similar age coal-bearing strata with the adjacent, petroliferous Cook Inlet forearc basin (Barnes, 1966; Reed and Nelson, 1980) and with exhumed strata in the Matanuska Valley forearc basin (Trop and others, 2003) (figs. 1 and 2). Cook Inlet basin has eight producing oil fields, more than 25 producing gas fields, and likely contains many additional undiscovered oil and gas accumulations (LePain and others, in press). Most of the Cook Inlet gas is of microbial origin and apparently was sourced from abundant coalbeds of primarily Miocene age in the Tyonek, Beluga, and Sterling Formations (Claypool and others, 1980; Magoon, 1994). If the biogenic gas model for Cook Inlet is applicable to the Susitna basin, then the latter may be a viable source for Alaska Railbelt and rural energy needs. This brief overview report summarizes the reconnaissance field data collected in the Susitna basin during the first summer of the program. As the data are developed, this report will be followed by interpretive technical reports addressing the stratigraphy, reservoir quality, coal quality and gas potential, hydrocarbon seal integrity, subsurface structure, and uplift history of the basin and sub-basin margins.

Alaska↗

USGS2017

Groundwater-quality data for the Madera/Chowchilla–Kings shallow aquifer study unit, 2013–14: Results from the California GAMA Program

Groundwater quality in the 2,390-square-mile Madera/Chowchilla–Kings Shallow Aquifer study unit was investigated by the U.S. Geological Survey from August 2013 to April 2014 as part of the California State Water Resources Control Board Groundwater Ambient Monitoring and Assessment Program’s Priority Basin Project. The study was designed to provide a statistically unbiased, spatially distributed assessment of untreated groundwater quality in the shallow aquifer systems of the Madera, Chowchilla, and Kings subbasins of the San Joaquin Valley groundwater basin. The shallow aquifer system corresponds to the part of the aquifer system generally used by domestic wells and is shallower than the part of the aquifer system generally used by public-supply wells. This report presents the data collected for the study and a brief preliminary description of the results. Groundwater samples were collected from 77 wells and were analyzed for organic constituents, inorganic constituents, selected isotopic and age-dating tracers, and microbial indicators. Most of the wells sampled for this study were private domestic wells. Unlike groundwater from public-supply wells, the groundwater from private domestic wells is not regulated for quality in California and is rarely analyzed for water-quality constituents. To provide context for the sampling results, however, concentrations of constituents measured in the untreated groundwater were compared with regulatory and non-regulatory benchmarks established for drinking-water quality by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, the State of California, and the U.S. Geological Survey. Of the 319 organic constituents assessed in this study (90 volatile organic compounds and 229 pesticides and pesticide degradates), 17 volatile organic compounds and 23 pesticides and pesticide degradates were detected in groundwater samples; concentrations of all but 2 were less than the respective benchmarks. The fumigants 1,2-dibromo-3-chloropropane (DBCP) and 1,2-dibromoethane (EDB) were detected at concentrations above their respective regulatory benchmarks in samples from a total of four wells. Most detections of inorganic constituents were at concentrations or activities less than the respective benchmark levels. Five inorganic constituents were detected in groundwater samples from one or more wells at concentrations or activities greater than their respective regulatory, health-based benchmarks: arsenic, uranium, nitrate, adjusted gross alpha particle activity, and gross beta particle activity. Four inorganic constituents were detected in samples from one or more wells at concentrations or activities greater than their respective non-regulatory, health-based benchmarks: manganese, molybdenum, vanadium, and radon-222. Three inorganic constituents were detected in groundwater samples from one or more wells at concentrations greater than their respective non-regulatory, aesthetic-based benchmarks: iron, sulfate, and total dissolved solids. Microbial indicators ( Escherichia coli , total coliform, and enterococci) were analyzed for presence or absence. The presence of Escherichia coli ( E. coli ) was not detected; the presence of total coliform was detected in samples from 10 of the 72 grid wells for which it was analyzed, and the presence of enterococci was detected in samples from 5 of the 73 grid wells analyzed.

California↗

USGS2000

Results of the Galileo solid state imaging (SSI) experiment

We present a brief synopsis of the nature of SSI data that was taken during the nominal Galileo mission. Significant results are briefly described. These include evidence for geologic activity on Europa that supports the hypothesis of liquid water under a thin ice shell; a demonstration of the ubiquitous presence of a thick crust and high temperature silicate volcanism on Io; a demonstration that, together with results from other experiments, the molecular composition in Jupiter's atmosphere depends on local meteorology; the resolution of lightning flashes and their association with cloud type; the identification of cloud structures at or below the 4-bar level that are presumably composed of water; the location and morphology of visible aurorae in Jupiter's Northern hemisphere; improved geodetic control nets for the Galilean satellites; measurement of the sizes and shapes of Metis, Adrastea and Amalthea; new features of the main and gossamer rings; discovery of visible Io-glow and surface hotspots especially at the sub- and anti-jove regions on Io; evidence for solid state convection in Europa's ice shell and its probable non-synchronous rotation; the discovery of visible Europa-glow; evidence that tectonism has dominated the resurfacing of bright grooved terrain on Ganymede; the discovery of a thick blanket of dark material on Callisto's surface and that mass-wasting and sublimation are significant degradation processes on this satellite.

Advances in Space Research↗

USGS2014

Arsenic speciation in solids using X-ray absorption spectroscopy

Synchrotron-based X-ray absorption spectroscopy (XAS) is an in situ , minimally-destructive, element-specific, molecular-scale structural probe that has been employed to study the chemical forms (species) of arsenic (As) in solid and aqueous phases (including rocks, soils, sediment, synthetic compounds, and numerous types of biota including humans) for more than 20 years. Although several excellent reviews of As geochemistry and As speciation in the environment have been published previously (including recent contributions in this volume), the explosion of As-XAS studies over the past decade (especially studies employing microfocused X-ray beams) warrants this new review of the literature and of data analysis methods. This review has two main sections. The first is a presentation of methods for sample preparation and for the collection, processing and analysis of As-XAS spectra. Since several more comprehensive reviews of the X-ray absorption theory and data collection methodology exist, this section is brief and focused specifically on As. The second section is a critical review of the As-XAS literature, arranged by sample type and accompanied by summary tables (collected as appendices at the end of the chapter). One of the most important aims of this review is to clarify the different types of analysis that are performed on As-XAS spectra, and to describe the benefits, drawbacks, and limitations of each. Arsenic XAS spectra are analyzed to obtain one or more of the following types of information (in increasing order of sophistication):

Reviews in Mineralogy and Geochemistry↗

USGS1987

Tetlin National Wildlife Refuge land cover mapping project users guide

Title III of the Alaska National Interest Lands Conservation Act of 1980 (ANILCA, 1980) established the Tetlin National Wildlife Refuge (TNWR). Section 304 of the Act requires the Secretary of Interior to "prepare, and from time to time revise, a comprehensive conservation plan" for the refuge. Before developing a plan for the refuge, the Secretary shall identify and describe--a) the populations and habitats of the fish and wildlife resources of the refuge; b) the special values of the refuge as well as any other archeological, cultural, ecological, geological, historical, palentological, scenic, or wilderness value of the refuge; c) areas within the refuge that are suitable for use as administrative sites or visitor facilities… ; d) present the potential requirements for access with respect to the refuge… ; and e) significant problems which may adversely affect the populations and habitats of fish and wildlife identified and described... (ANILCA, 1980). Vegetation, water, and terrain (elevation, slope, and aspect) are the components of habitat and can be used in the determination of the above requirements. The U. S. Fish & Wildlife Service (USFWS) has the responsibility for collecting the resource information to address the research, management, development and planning requirements identified in Section 304. Because of the brief period provided by the Act for data collection, habitat mapping, and habitat assessment, the USFWS in cooperation with the U.S. Geological Survey's EROS Field Office, used digital Landsat multispectral scanner data (MSS) and digital terrain data to produce land cover and terrain maps. A computer assisted digital analysis of Landsat MSS data was used because coverage by aerial photographs was incomplete for much of the refuge and because the level of detail, obtained from the analysis of Landsat data, is adequate to meet most USFWS research, management and planning needs. Relative cost and time requirements were also factors in the decision to use the digital analysis approach.

Alaska↗

USGS1988

Selawik National Wildlife Refuge land cover mapping project users guide

Title III of the Alaska National Interest Lands Conservation Act (ANILCA, 1980) established the Selawik National Wildlife Refuge (SNWR). Section 304 of the Act requires the Secretary of Interior to "prepare, and from time to time revise, a comprehensive conservation plan" for the refuge. Before developing a plan for the refuge, the Secretary shall "identify and describe--a) the populations and habitats of the fish and wildlife resources of the refuge; b) the special values of the refuge as well as any other archeological, cultural, ecological, geological, historical, palentological, scenic, or wilderness value of the refuge; c) areas within the refuge that are suitable for use as administrative sites or visitor facilities...; d) present the potential requirements for access with respect to the refuge...; and e) significant problems which may adversely affect the populations and habitats of fish and wildlife identified and described..." (ANILCA, 1980). Vegetation, water, and terrain (elevation, slope, and aspect) are the components of habitat and can be used in the determination of the above requirements. The U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service (USFWS) has the responsibility for collecting the resource information to address the research, management, development and planning requirements identified in Section 304. Because of the brief period provided by the Act for data collection, habitat mapping, and habitat assessment, the USFWS in cooperation with the U.S. Geological Survey's EROS Field Office, used digital Landsat multispectral scanner (MSS) data and digital terrain data to produce land cover and terrain maps. A computer assisted digital analysis of Landsat MSS data was used because coverage by aerial photographs was incomplete for the refuge and because the level of detail obtained from Landsat data was adequate to meet most USFWS research, management and planning needs. Relative cost and time requirements were also factors in the decision to use the digital analysis approach.

Alaska↗

USGS2016

Gallery of melt textures developed in Westerly Granite during high-pressure triaxial friction experiments

Introduction Melting occurred during stick-slip faulting of granite blocks sheared at room-dry, room-temperature conditions in a triaxial apparatus at 200–400 megapascals (MPa) confining pressure. Petrographic examinations of melt textures focused largely on the 400-MPa run products. This report presents an overview of the petrographic data collected on those samples, followed by brief descriptions of annotated versions of all the images. Scanning electron microscope (SEM) images of the starting materials and the three examined 400-MPa samples are presented in this report. Secondary-electron (SE) and backscattered-electron (BSE) imaging techniques were used on different samples. The SE images look down on the sawcut surfaces, yielding topographic and three-dimensional textural information. The BSE imaging was done on samples cut to provide cross-sectional views of the glass-filled shear band (or zone) that developed along the sawcut. Brightness in the BSE images increases with increasing mean atomic number of the material. Additional chemical information about the quenched melt and adjoining minerals was obtained using the energy dispersive system of the SEM during BSE examinations. However, the very narrow shear-band thicknesses and common occurrence of very fine lamellar compositional layering limited the usefulness of this technique for estimating melt chemistry.

Open-File Report↗

USGS1987

Floods of October 1986 in southcentral Alaska

Heavy precipitation associated with a large storm system resulted in major flooding in several areas of south-central Alaska during October 10-12, 1986. Flooding was particularly severe in the Seward area of the Kenai Peninsula and in tributaries to Susitna River from Telkeetna downstream. Flood damage has been estimated at $20 million and the region was declared a Federal disaster area. The report includes a brief discussion of meteorological conditions that caused the unusual amounts of precipitation, a summary of flood stages and discharges, a comparison to prior floods, flood-frequency estimates, a brief description of flood areas, and hydrologic data for each area.

Alaska↗

USGS2019

Three-dimensional geologic map of the southern Carson Sink, Nevada, including the Fallon FORGE area

The three-dimensional (3–D) geologic map characterizes the subsurface in the southern Carson Sink region. We created the 3–D map by integrating the results from seismic-reflection, potential-field-geophysical, and lithologic well-logging investigations completed in and around the Fallon FORGE site as part of the U.S. Department of Energy Frontier Observatory for Research in Geothermal Energy (FORGE) initiative from 2015–2018. The FORGE initiative was part of an effort to develop the technologies, techniques, and knowledge needed to make enhanced geothermal systems a commercially viable electricity-generation option for the United States. Geologic units and structures mapped during the Fallon FORGE study, which particularly focused on the Mesozoic basement, were extrapolated to create the 3–D map of the southern Carson Sink area. The 3–D map area is 10 km wide along the east-west and north-south axes and extends 2.5 km below sea level, ~3.7 km below the land surface. Views of the map include horizontal and vertical sections and oblique perspective views from several angles. We describe the geologic units and structures and discuss the methods used to integrate the geologic and geophysical information in a 3–D geologic interpretation. We provide digital data for elements of the map, such as individual 3–D fault and stratigraphic surfaces and surface-fault traces. Input data are available from various data repositories through cited web links. A brief movie displaying the 3–D map is available at https://doi.org/10.3133/sim3437 .

Nevada↗

USGS1925

The artesian water supply of the Dakota sandstone in North Dakota, with special reference to the Edgeley quadrangle

The Dakota sandstone and the overlying dense plastic shales form the most remarkable artesian basin in the United States with respect to its great extent, the long distances through which its water has percolated from the outcrops of the sandstone in the western mountains to the areas of artesian flow, and especially the tremendous pressure under which the water in the sandstone was originally by thick and continuous cover of impermeable shales. In 1882 a well was drilled to the Dakota sandstone at Aberdeen, S. Dak., by the Chicago, Milwaukee & St. Paul Railway Co. This well was reported by Nettleton 1 to have been "the first bore put down which reached the artesian basin of the Dakotas." In 1896 Darton 2 estimated that about 400 artesian wells had been drilled to the Dakota sandstone, presumably in South Dakota and adjacent parts of the artesian basin in North Dakota which he investigated. 3 The strongest of these wells had pressures ranging from 100 to more than 200 pounds to the square inch and flows ranging from 1,000 to more than 4,000 gallons a minute. The present brief paper is based chiefly on the data that have been obtained in the successive surveys in regard to about 230 artesian wells in or near the Edgeley quadrangle. A table of these well data is on file in the United States Geological Survey and is to be published in the detailed report on the geology and hydrology of the Edgeley and La Moure quadrangles that has been prepared by Mr. Hard. The well data obtained by Mr. Hard have already been published in a report prepared by him in his capacity as State flood-control engineer.

North Dakota↗