Search USGS⌕ Search

SEARCH · Search USGS

Results for “New Scientist”

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

Quote a phrase for an exact phrase match. Source license links do not imply unrestricted reuse.

At least 73 records · Page 4Linked to original sources

Western Mineral and Environmental Resources Science Center--providing comprehensive earth science for complex societal issues

Minerals in the environment and products manufactured from mineral materials are all around us and we use and come into contact with them every day. They impact our way of life and the health of all that lives. Minerals are critical to the Nation's economy and knowing where future mineral resources will come from is important for sustaining the Nation's economy and national security. The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) Mineral Resources Program (MRP) provides scientific information for objective resource assessments and unbiased research results on mineral resource potential, production and consumption statistics, as well as environmental consequences of mining. The MRP conducts this research to provide information needed for land planners and decisionmakers about where mineral commodities are known and suspected in the earth's crust and about the environmental consequences of extracting those commodities. As part of the MRP scientists of the Western Mineral and Environmental Resources Science Center (WMERSC or 'Center' herein) coordinate the development of national, geologic, geochemical, geophysical, and mineral-resource databases and the migration of existing databases to standard models and formats that are available to both internal and external users. The unique expertise developed by Center scientists over many decades in response to mineral-resource-related issues is now in great demand to support applications such as public health research and remediation of environmental hazards that result from mining and mining-related activities. Western Mineral and Environmental Resources Science Center Results of WMERSC research provide timely and unbiased analyses of minerals and inorganic materials to (1) improve stewardship of public lands and resources; (2) support national and international economic and security policies; (3) sustain prosperity and improve our quality of life; and (4) protect and improve public health, safety, and environmental quality. The MRP supports approximately 40 USGS research specialists who utilize cooperative agreements with universities, industry, and other governmental agencies to support their collaborative research and information exchange. Scientists of the WMERSC study how and where non-fuel mineral resources form and are concentrated in the earth's crust, where mineral resources might be found in the future, and how mineral materials interact with the environment to affect human and ecosystem health. Natural systems (ecosystems) are complex - our understanding of how ecosystems operate requires collecting and synthesizing large amounts of geologic, geochemical, biologic, hydrologic, and meteorological information. Scientists in the Center strive to understand the interplay of various processes and how they affect the structure, composition, and health of ecosystems. Such understanding, which is then summarized in publicly available reports, is used to address and solve a wide variety of issues that are important to society and the economy. WMERSC scientists have extensive national and international experience in these scientific specialties and capabilities - they have collaborated with many Federal, State, and local agencies; with various private sector organizations; as well as with foreign countries and organizations. Nearly every scientific and societal challenge requires a different combination of scientific skills and capabilities. With their breadth of scientific specialties and capabilities, the scientists of the WMERSC can provide scientifically sound approaches to a wide range of societal challenges and issues. The following sections describe examples of important issues that have been addressed by scientists in the Center, the methods employed, and the relevant conclusions. New directions are inevitable as societal needs change over time. Scientists of the WMERSC have a diverse set of skills and capabilities and are proficient in the collection and integration of

Circular↗

The Water-Quality Partnership for National Parks—U.S. Geological Survey and National Park Service, 1998–2016

The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) and the National Park Service (NPS) work together through the USGS–NPS Water-Quality Partnership to support a broad range of policy and management needs related to high-priority water-quality issues in national parks. The program was initiated in 1998 as part of the Clean Water Action Plan, a Presidential initiative to commemorate the 25th anniversary of the Clean Water Act. Partnership projects are developed jointly by the USGS and the NPS. Studies are conducted by the USGS and findings are used by the NPS to guide policy and management actions aimed at protecting and improving water quality. The National Park Service manages many of our Nation’s most highly valued aquatic systems across the country, including portions of the Great Lakes, ocean and coastal zones, historic canals, reservoirs, large rivers, high-elevation lakes and streams, geysers, springs, and wetlands. So far, the Water-Quality Partnership has undertaken 217 projects in 119 national parks. In each project, USGS studies and assessments ( http://water.usgs.gov/nps_partnership/pubs.php ) have supported science-based management by the NPS to protect and improve water quality in parks. Some of the current projects are highlighted in the NPS Call to Action Centennial initiative, Crystal Clear, which celebrates national park water-resource efforts to ensure clean water for the next century of park management ( http://www.nature.nps.gov/water/crystalclear/ ). New projects are proposed each year by USGS scientists working in collaboration with NPS staff in specific parks. Project selection is highly competitive, with an average of only eight new projects funded each year out of approximately 75 proposals that are submitted. Since the beginning of the Partnership in 1998, 189 publications detailing project findings have been completed. The 217 studies have been conducted in 119 NPS-administered lands, extending from Denali National Park and Preserve in Alaska to Everglades National Park in Florida, and from Acadia National Park in the Northeast to park lands in Hawaii and Pacific Island territories in the West. Project goals range from periodic stream monitoring, to determining the occurrence and concentrations of contaminants and the potential for them to exceed human health or aquatic life criteria, to conducting interpretive studies to evaluate the effect(s) on or vulnerability of national park resources to visitor usage and other natural and anthropogenic activities.

Fact Sheet↗

Speeding earthquake disaster relief

In coping with recent multibillion-dollar earthquake disasters, scientists and emergency managers have found new ways to speed and improve relief efforts. This progress is founded on the rapid availability of earthquake information from seismograph networks.

California↗

Geographic information system as country-level development and monitoring tool, Senegal example

Geographic information systems (GIS) allow an investigator the capability to merge and analyze numerous types of country-level resource data. Hypothetical resource analysis applications in Senegal were conducted to illustrate the utility of a GIS for development planning and resource monitoring. Map and attribute data for soils, vegetation, population, infrastructure, and administrative units were merged to form a database within a GIS. Several models were implemented using a GIS to: analyze development potential for sustainable dryland agriculture; prioritize where agricultural development should occur based upon a regional food budget; and monitor dynamic events with remote sensing. The steps for implementing a GIS analysis are described and illustrated, and the use of a GIS for conducting an economic analysis is outlined. Using a GIS for analysis and display of results opens new methods of communication between resource scientists and decision makers. Analyses yielding country-wide map output and detailed statistical data for each level of administration provide the advantage of a single system that can serve a variety of users.

Conference Paper↗

Using terrestrial light detection and ranging (lidar) technology for land-surface analysis in the Southwest

Emerging technologies provide scientists with methods to measure Earth processes in new ways. One of these technologies--ultra-high-resolution, ground-based light detection and ranging (lidar)--is being used by USGS Western Geographic Science Center scientists to characterize the role of wind and fire processes in shaping desert landscapes of the Southwest United States.

Fact Sheet↗

Education and training of future wetland scientists and managers

Wetland science emerged as a distinct discipline in the 1980s. In response, courses addressing various aspects of wetland science and management were developed by universities, government agencies, and private firms. Professional certification of wetland scientists began in the mid-1990s to provide confirmation of the quality of education and experience of persons involved in regulatory, management, restoration/construction, and research involving wetland resources. The education requirements for certification and the need for persons with specific wetland training to fill an increasing number of wetland-related positions identified a critical need to develop curriculum guidelines for an undergraduate wetland science and management major for potential accreditation by the Society of Wetland Scientists. That proposed major contains options directed toward either wetland science or management. Both options include required basic courses to meet the general education requirements of many universities, required upper-level specialized courses that address critical aspects of physical and biological sciences applicable to wetlands, and a minimum of four additional upper-level specialized courses that can be used to tailor a degree to students' interests. The program would be administered by an independent review board that would develop guidelines and evaluate university applications for accreditation. Students that complete the required coursework will fulfill the education requirements for professional wetland scientist certification and possess qualifications that make them attractive candidates for graduate school or entry-level positions in wetland science or management. Universities that offer this degree program could gain an advantage in recruiting highly qualified students with an interest in natural resources. Alternative means of educating established wetland scientists are likewise important, especially to provide specialized knowledge and experience or updates related to new management discoveries, policies, and regulations. ?? 2008 The Society of Wetland Scientists.

Wetlands↗

Earthquake hazard in the New Madrid Seismic Zone remains a concern

There is broad agreement in the scientific community that a continuing concern exists for a major destructive earthquake in the New Madrid seismic zone. Many structures in Memphis, Tenn., St. Louis, Mo., and other communities in the central Mississippi River Valley region are vulnerable and at risk from severe ground shaking. This assessment is based on decades of research on New Madrid earthquakes and related phenomena by dozens of Federal, university, State, and consulting earth scientists. Considerable interest has developed recently from media reports that the New Madrid seismic zone may be shutting down. These reports stem from published research using global positioning system (GPS) instruments with results of geodetic measurements of strain in the Earth's crust. Because of a lack of measurable strain at the surface in some areas of the seismic zone over the past 14 years, arguments have been advanced that there is no buildup of stress at depth within the New Madrid seismic zone and that the zone may no longer pose a significant hazard. As part of the consensus-building process used to develop the national seismic hazard maps, the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) convened a workshop of experts in 2006 to evaluate the latest findings in earthquake hazards in the Eastern United States. These experts considered the GPS data from New Madrid available at that time that also showed little to no ground movement at the surface. The experts did not find the GPS data to be a convincing reason to lower the assessment of earthquake hazard in the New Madrid region, especially in light of the many other types of data that are used to construct the hazard assessment, several of which are described here.

Arkansas, Illinois, Kentucky, Missouri, Tennessee↗

A conceptual life-history model for pallid and shovelnose sturgeon

Intensive management of the Missouri and Mississippi Rivers has resulted in dramatic physical changes to these rivers. These changes have been implicated as causative agents in the decline of pallid sturgeon. The pallid sturgeon, federally listed as endangered, is endemic to the turbid waters of the Missouri River and the Lower Mississippi River. The sympatric shovelnose sturgeon historically was more common and widespread than the pallid sturgeon. Habitat alteration, river regulation, pollution, and over-harvest have resulted in the now predictable patterns of decline and localized extirpation of sturgeon across species and geographic areas. Symptomatic of this generalized pattern of decline is poor reproductive success, and low or no recruitment of wild juveniles to the adult population. The purpose of this report is to introduce a conceptual life-history model of the factors that affect reproduction, growth, and survival of shovelnose and pallid sturgeons. The conceptual model provided here was developed to organize the understanding about the complex life history of Scaphirhynchus sturgeons. It was designed to be used for communication, planning, and to provide the structure for a population-forecasting model. These models are intended to be dynamic and responsive to new information and changes in river management, thereby providing scientists, stakeholders, and managers with ways to improve understanding of the effects of management actions on the ecological requirements of Scaphirhynchus sturgeons. As new scientific knowledge becomes available, it could be included in the model in many ways at various integration levels.

Circular↗

Southwest Caves Reveal New Forms of Life

Caves in northern Arizona and western New Mexico are being researched and inventoried by scientists with the U.S. Geological Survey and cooperating agencies. Southwestern caves have been little studied, and scientists are now finding that these lightless and nutrient-poor natural systems are home to life forms found nowhere else on Earth. This research has identified unique communities of arthropods (insects, arachnids, and crustaceans) that include 3 new genera, or groups of species, and at least 15 new species - some only known to exist in a single cave. This exciting research is yielding information that will be used by resource managers to better understand and protect fragile and important Southwestern cave ecosystems.

Fact Sheet↗

Development of a volcanic risk management system at Mount St. Helens—1980 to present

Here, we review volcanic risk management at Mount St. Helens from the perspective of the US Geological Survey’s (USGS) experience over the four decades since its 18 May 1980 climactic eruption. Prior to 1980, volcano monitoring, multidisciplinary eruption forecasting, and interagency coordination for eruption response were new to the Cascade Range. A Mount St. Helens volcano hazards assessment had recently been published and volcanic crisis response capabilities tested during 1975 thermal unrest at nearby Mount Baker. Volcanic unrest began in March 1980, accelerating the rate of advance of volcano monitoring, prompting coordinated eruption forecasting and hazards communication, and motivating emergency response planning. The destruction caused by the 18 May 1980 eruption led to an enormous emergency response effort and prompted extensive coordination and planning for continuing eruptive activity. Eruptions continued with pulsatory dome growth and explosive eruptions over the following 6 years and with transport of sediment downstream over many more. In response, USGS scientists and their partners expanded their staffing, deployed new instruments, developed new tools (including the first use of a volcanic event tree) for eruption forecasting, and created new pathways for agency internal and external communication. Involvement in the Mount St. Helens response motivated the establishment of response measures at other Cascade Range volcanoes. Since assembly during the early and mid-1990s, volcano hazard working groups continue to unite scientists, emergency and land managers, tribal nations, and community leaders in common cause for the promotion of risk reduction. By the onset of renewed volcanic activity in 2004, these new systems enabled a more efficient response that was greatly facilitated by the participation of organizations within volcano hazard working groups. Although the magnitude of the 2004 eruptive sequence was much smaller than that of 1980, a new challenge emerged focused on hazard communication demands. Since 2008, our understanding of Mount St. Helens volcanic system has improved, helping us refine hazard assessments and eruption forecasts. Some professions have worked independently to apply the Mount St. Helens story to their products and services. Planning meetings and working group activities fortify partnerships among information disseminators, policy and decision-makers, scientists, and communities. We call the sum of these pieces the Volcanic Risk Management System (VRMS). In its most robust form, the VRMS encompasses effective production and coordinated exchange of volcano hazards and risk information among all interested parties.

Washington↗

Trenching in the New Madrid seismic zone

Trenching studies of the San Andreas fault have been of great value to geologists in California for determining not only the prehistoric occurrences of earthquakes on the fault bu also the age of these movements. In the New Madrid seismic zone, U.S Geological Survey scientists have been trenching across suspected faults to try to assess earthquake frequency in the Central U.S. The following photographs document these trenching studies.

New Madrid fault zone↗

Connecting diverse disciplines to improve understanding of surface water-groundwater interactions

Laura K. Lautz is a premier mentor, collaborator, and researcher at the intersection of natural hydrologic systems and humans. Her research has shifted the paradigm around measuring and understanding the impacts of surface water and groundwater interactions across spatial and temporal scales. She has done this by testing and refining new methods and by collaborating with, training, supporting, and mentoring diverse scientists. Here, we review her research across five themes, summarizing the prior status of the field, what Lautz contributed, as well as new directions in the field inspired by her work. Lautz’s research expanded our understanding of the impacts of stream restoration on surface water-groundwater interactions, where she tested new field methods and showed that restoration structures increase hyporheic exchange, locally altering biogeochemical function of the streambed. She refined novel methods for measuring surface water-groundwater exchanges and worked to make these methods easily accessible through freely available software. Her research group greatly expanded the use of heat as a quantitative tracer of hydrologic processes via the well-used VFLUX and HFLUX programs. Her research evaluated the impacts of surface water-groundwater interactions in urban streams, showing the substantial fluxes of nutrients and chloride that can move through those exchanges and the potential for groundwater to help buffer contamination. To assess groundwater impacts on streamflow below tropical glaciers, she used a wide range of field methods to reveal the sensitivity of these systems to climate change. Finally, she built tools to quantify natural brine contamination of drinking water wells in areas that may later be subject to high-volume hydraulic fracturing, creating a needed ‘pre-fracking’ dataset. Through this process, she identified multiple sources of salinity that are already reaching wells in these systems. Overall, this research has been done with a focus on mentoring and training the next generation of hydrologists, including work to specifically train for careers beyond academia, and facilitating early career scientists to realize their innate potentials. With former trainees in careers across industry, government, and academia, Dr. Laura K. Lautz is now working to build cross-disciplinary research at even larger scales, across federal research units, guaranteeing that an even larger impact on hydrology is still to come.

Journal of Hydrology X↗

Potential for new nickel-copper sulfide deposits in the Lake Superior region

Scientists from the U.S. Geological Survey are evaluating the potential for undiscovered sulfide deposits containing varying amounts of nickel, copper, platinum-group metals, and cobalt in the Lake Superior region as part of an ongoing effort to assess the mineral potential of the United States. Similarities between rocks of the Midcontinent rift and rocks that host the Voisey Bay nickel-copper-cobalt deposit in Labrador, Canada, and the Noril'sk nickel-copper-platinum-group-metals deposits in Russia suggest a high potential for such sulfide deposits in rocks associated with the 1.1-billion-year-old Midcontinent rift in the Lake Superior region.

Lake Superior↗

Optimization of salt marsh management at the Long Island National Wildlife Refuge Complex, New York, through use of structured decision making

Structured decision making is a systematic, transparent process for improving the quality of complex decisions by identifying measurable management objectives and feasible management actions; predicting the potential consequences of management actions relative to the stated objectives; and selecting a course of action that maximizes the total benefit achieved and balances tradeoffs among objectives. The U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, applied an existing, regional framework for structured decision making to develop a prototype tool for optimizing tidal marsh management decisions at the Long Island National Wildlife Refuge Complex in New York. Refuge biologists, refuge managers, and research scientists identified multiple potential management actions to improve the ecological integrity of five marsh management units within the refuge complex and estimated the outcomes of each action in terms of performance metrics associated with each management objective. Value functions previously developed at the regional level were used to transform metric scores to a common utility scale, and utilities were summed to produce a single score representing the total management benefit that could be accrued from each potential management action. Constrained optimization was used to identify the set of management actions, one per marsh management unit, that could maximize total management benefits at different cost constraints at the refuge-complex scale. Results indicated that, for the objectives and actions considered here, total management benefits may increase consistently up to about $24,000 , but that further expenditures may yield diminishing return on investment. Potential management actions in optimal portfolios at total costs less than $24,000 consistently included approaches for increasing drainage from the marsh surface within the marsh management units. The potential management benefits were derived from expected improvements in surface-water drainage and capacity for marsh elevation to keep pace with sea-level rise, and presumed increases in numbers of spiders (as an indicator of trophic health) and tidal marsh obligate birds. The prototype presented here does not resolve management decisions; rather, it provides a framework for decision making at the Long Island National Wildlife Refuge Complex that can be updated as new data and information become available. Insights from this process may also be useful to inform future habitat management planning at the refuges.

New York↗

Optimization of tidal marsh management at the Cape May and Supawna Meadows National Wildlife Refuges, New Jersey, through use of structured decision making

Structured decision making is a systematic, transparent process for improving the quality of complex decisions by identifying measurable management objectives and feasible management actions; predicting the potential consequences of management actions relative to the stated objectives; and selecting a course of action that maximizes the total benefit achieved and balances tradeoffs among objectives. The U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, applied an existing, regional framework for structured decision making to develop a prototype tool for optimizing tidal marsh management decisions at the Cape May and Supawna Meadows National Wildlife Refuges in New Jersey. Refuge biologists, refuge managers, and research scientists identified multiple potential management actions to improve the ecological integrity of 13 marsh management units within the refuges and estimated the outcomes of each action in terms of performance metrics associated with each management objective. Value functions previously developed at the regional level were used to transform metric scores to a common utility scale, and utilities were summed to produce a single score representing the total management benefit that would be accrued from each potential management action. Constrained optimization was used to identify the set of management actions, one per marsh management unit, that would maximize total management benefits at different cost constraints at the refuge scale. Results indicated that, for the objectives and actions considered here, total management benefits may increase consistently up to approximately $ 785,000, but that further expenditures may yield diminishing return on investment. Management actions in optimal portfolios at total costs less than $ 785,000 included applying sediment to the marsh surface (thin layer deposition) in seven marsh management units, controlling the invasive reed Phragmites australis in four marsh management units, remediating hydrologic alterations in two marsh management units, and planting native vegetation in one marsh management unit. The management benefits were derived from expected improvements in the capacity for marsh elevation to keep pace with sea-level rise, increases in numbers of spiders (as an indicator of trophic health) and tidal marsh obligate birds, and increased cover of native vegetation. The prototype presented here provides a framework for decision making at the Cape May and Supawna Meadows National Wildlife Refuges that can be updated as new data and information become available. Insights from this process may also be useful to inform future habitat management planning at the refuges.

New Jersey↗

Optimization of salt marsh management at the Edwin B. Forsythe National Wildlife Refuge, New Jersey, through use of structured decision making

Structured decision making is a systematic, transparent process for improving the quality of complex decisions by identifying measurable management objectives and feasible management actions; predicting the potential consequences of management actions relative to the stated objectives; and selecting a course of action that maximizes the total benefit achieved and balances tradeoffs among objectives. The U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, applied an existing, regional framework for structured decision making to develop a prototype tool for optimizing tidal marsh management decisions at the Edwin B. Forsythe National Wildlife Refuge in New Jersey. Refuge biologists, refuge managers, and research scientists identified multiple potential management actions to improve the ecological integrity of 23 marsh management units within the refuge and estimated the outcomes of each action in terms of performance metrics associated with each management objective. Value functions previously developed at the regional level were used to transform metric scores to a common utility scale, and utilities were summed to produce a single score representing the total management benefit that could be accrued from each potential management action. Constrained optimization was used to identify the set of management actions, one per marsh management unit, that could maximize total management benefits at different cost constraints at the refuge scale. Results indicated that, for the objectives and actions considered here, total management benefits may increase consistently up to about \$980,000, but that further expenditures may yield diminishing return on investment. Potential management actions in optimal portfolios at total costs less than \$980,000 included applying sediment to the marsh surface to increase elevation in five marsh management units, digging runnels on the marsh surface to improve drainage in five marsh management units, and breaching roads and berms to improve tidal flow in five marsh management units. The potential management benefits were derived from expected reduction in the duration of surface flooding, improved capacity for marsh elevation to keep pace with sea-level rise and increases in numbers of spiders (as an indicator of trophic health), tidal marsh obligate birds, and wintering American black ducks. The prototype presented here does not resolve management decisions; rather, it provides a framework for decision making at the Edwin B. Forsythe National Wildlife Refuge that can be updated as new data and information become available. Insights from this process may also be useful to inform future habitat management planning at the refuges.

New Jersey↗

Science storms the cloud

The core tools of science (data, software, and computers) are undergoing a rapid and historic evolution, changing what questions scientists ask and how they find answers. Earth science data are being transformed into new formats optimized for cloud storage that enable rapid analysis of multi-petabyte data sets. Data sets are moving from archive centers to vast cloud data storage, adjacent to massive server farms. Open source cloud-based data science platforms, accessed through a web-browser window, are enabling advanced, collaborative, interdisciplinary science to be performed wherever scientists can connect to the internet. Specialized software and hardware for machine learning and artificial intelligence are being integrated into data science platforms, making them more accessible to average scientists. Increasing amounts of data and computational power in the cloud are unlocking new approaches for data-driven discovery. For the first time, it is truly feasible for scientists to bring their analysis to data in the cloud without specialized cloud computing knowledge. This shift in paradigm has the potential to lower the threshold for entry, expand the science community, and increase opportunities for collaboration while promoting scientific innovation, transparency, and reproducibility. Yet, we have all witnessed promising new tools which seem harmless and beneficial at the outset become damaging or limiting. What do we need to consider as this new way of doing science is evolving?

AGU Advances↗

Formulating the American Geophysical Union's Scientific Integrity and Professional Ethics Policy: Challenges and lessons learned

Creating an ethics policy for a large, diverse geosciences organization is a challenge, especially in the midst of the current contentious dialogue in the media related to such issues as climate change, sustaining natural resources, and responding to natural hazards. In 2011, the American Geophysical Union (AGU) took on this challenge, creating an Ethics Task Force to update their ethics policies to better support their new Strategic Plan and respond to the changing scientific research environment. Dialogue with AGU members and others during the course of creating the new policy unveiled some of the following issues to be addressed. Scientific results and individual scientists are coming under intense political and public scrutiny, with the efficacy of the science being questioned. In some cases, scientists are asked to take sides and/or provide opinions on issues beyond their research, impacting their objectivity. Pressure related to competition for funding and the need to publish high quality and quantities of papers has led to recent high-profile plagiarism, data fabrication, and conflict of interest cases. The complexities of a continuously advancing digital environment for conducting, reviewing, and publishing science has raised concerns over the ease of plagiarism, fabrication, falsification, inappropriate peer review, and the need for better accessibility of data and methods. Finally, students and scientists need consistent education and encouragement on the importance of ethics and integrity in scientific research. The new AGU Scientific Integrity and Ethics Policy tries to address these issues and provides an inspirational code of conduct to encourage a responsible, positive, open, honest scientific research environment.

Book chapter↗