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USGS2008

Advanced Spaceborne Thermal Emission and Reflection Radiometer (ASTER) Overview

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

Fact Sheet↗

USGS2018

Mars global digital dune database (MGD3)—Composition, stability, and thermal inertia

The Mars Global Digital Dune Database (MGD 3 ) is an online repository that has catalogued dune fields larger than 1 km 2 located between latitudes 90° N. and 90° S. The work presented here expands upon previous MGD3 open-file reports, with a new emphasis upon characterizing dune fields through composition, stability, and thermal inertia. Included in this latest addition is a detailed compositional analysis and the associated observational data from Mars Global Surveyor (MGS) Thermal Emission Spectrometer (TES) for dune fields 300 km 2 or larger; a near-global dune stability assessment; Mars Odyssey (MO1) Thermal Emission Imaging System (THEMIS) apparent thermal inertia values; and vertical near-surface thermophysical heterogeneities determined by fitting a two-layer thermal model to observed temperatures. These additional datasets are divided into two workbooks: equatorial and south polar regions. A detailed description for the layout of these workbooks can be found in the corresponding metadata document. The continuing goal of the MGD 3 is to provide a reliable and multifaceted repository of data for Mars’ dunes, with the intention that such data be easily accessible and useful to future research.

Open-File Report↗

USGS2008

Seasonally active frost-dust avalanches on a north polar scarp of Mars captured by HiRISE

North-polar temporal monitoring by the High Resolution Imaging Science Experiment (HiRISE) orbiting Mars has discovered new, dramatic examples that Mars1 CO2-dominated seasonal volatile cycle is not limited to quiet deposition and sublimation of frost. In early northern martian spring, 2008, HiRISE captured several cases of CO2 frost and dust cascading down a steep, polar scarp in discrete clouds. Analysis of morphology and process reveals these events to be similar to terrestrial powder avalanches, sluffs, and falls of loose, dry snow. Potential material sources and initiating mechanisms are discussed in the context of the Martian polar spring environment and of additional, active, aeolian processes observed on the plateau above the scarp. The scarp events are identified as a trigger for mass wasting of bright, fractured layers within the basal unit, and may indirectly influence the retreat rate of steep polar scarps in competing ways.

Geophysical Research Letters↗

USGS2012

Radiometric and paleomagnetic evidence for the Emperor reversed polarity event at 0.46 ± 0.05 M.Y. in basalt lava flows from the eastern Snake River Plain, Idaho

K-Ar and paleomagnetic data from cores through a sequence of basalt flows in the eastern Snake River Plain provide evidence for a brief (0.005 to 0.01 m.y.) reversal of the geomagnetic field 0.46 ± 0.05 m.y. ago. This reversed polarity event has also been found in sea-floor magnetic anomalies and in sediment cores and is probably the Emperor event of Ryan [1972].

Idaho, Oregon↗

USGS1961

Paleomagnetism

This chapter highlights the ways in which rocks become magnetized. It also interprets paleomagnetic results in terms of the theories of polar wandering, continental drift, and an expanding Earth. The chapter describes the salient characteristics and trends of the geomagnetic field during the period of direct observation. Several questions are posed concerning the extension of these properties back to earlier times. Some of these questions can now be answered from the results of paleomagnetic research. The intensity of the main dipole component of the geomagnetic field appears to have been decreasing since well before the period of direct observation. Furthermore, two important properties of the geomagnetic field have been established by spherical harmonic analysis. First, the field is derivable from a potential and, hence, contributions to the total field from currents flowing across the Earth–air interface are negligibly small. Secondly, 2–5% of the field is of external origin and is because of movements of charged particles in the space around the Earth.

Advances in Geophysics↗

USGS2024

Synoptic analysis and WRF-Chem model simulation of dust events in the southwestern United States

Dust transported from rangelands of the Southwestern United States (US) to mountain snowpack in the Upper Colorado River Basin during spring (March-May) forces earlier and faster snowmelt, which creates problems for water resources and agriculture. To better understand the drivers of dust events, we investigated large-scale meteorology responsible for organizing two Southwest US dust events from two different dominant geographic locations: (a) the Colorado Plateau and (b) the northern Chihuahuan Desert. High-resolution Weather Research and Forecasting coupled with Chemistry model (WRF-Chem) simulations with the Air Force Weather Agency dust emission scheme incorporating a MODIS albedo-based drag-partition was used to explore land surface-atmosphere interactions driving two dust events. We identified commonalities in their meteorological setups. The meteorological analyses revealed that Polar and Sub-tropical jet stream interaction was a common upper-level meteorological feature before each of the two dust events. When the two jet streams merged, a strong northeast-directed pressure gradient upstream and over the source areas resulted in strong near-surface winds, which lifted available dust into the atmosphere. Concurrently, a strong mid-tropospheric flow developed over the dust source areas, which transported dust to the San Juan Mountains and southern Colorado snowpack. The WRF-Chem simulations reproduced both dust events, indicating that the simulations represented the dust sources that contributed to dust-on-snow events reasonably well. The representativeness of the simulated dust emission and transport in different geographic and meteorological conditions with our use of albedo-based drag partition provides a basis for additional dust-on-snow simulations to assess the hydrologic impact in the Southwest US.

southwestern United States↗

USGS2007

Volcanic ash plume identification using polarization lidar: Augustine eruption, Alaska

During mid January to early February 2006, a series of explosive eruptions occurred at the Augustine volcanic island off the southern coast of Alaska. By early February a plume of volcanic ash was transported northward into the interior of Alaska. Satellite imagery and Puff volcanic ash transport model predictions confirm that the aerosol plume passed over a polarization lidar (0.694 mm wavelength) site at the Arctic Facility for Atmospheric Remote Sensing at the University of Alaska Fairbanks. For the first time, lidar linear depolarization ratios of 0.10 – 0.15 were measured in a fresh tropospheric volcanic plume, demonstrating that the nonspherical glass and mineral particles typical of volcanic eruptions generate strong laser depolarization. Thus, polarization lidars can identify the volcanic ash plumes that pose a threat to jet air traffic from the ground, aircraft, or potentially from Earth orbit.

Alaska↗

USGS1980

Borehole geophysical measurements for hole UE25-3, Nevada Test Site, Nuclear Waste Isolation Program

Borehole geophysical measurements made in drill hole UE25a-3 with a U.S. Geological Survey research well-logging truck are presented in this paper. The purpose of these logging measurements is to provide in-situ physical properties information that is not commercially available on drill hole UE25a-3. Well logs are presented in this paper for dual-detector density, normal resistivity, gamma-ray, neutron-neutron, induced polarization, and magnetic susceptibility measurements. These data are analyzed for correlations with the core lithology. Hole-to-surface measurements made from drill hole UE25a-3 indicate the presence of two resistive bodies at depth. The deeper resistive anomaly may be related to a granitic intrusion.

Nevada↗

USGS2001

Global occurrences of gas hydrate

Natural gas hydrate is found worldwide in sediments of outer continental margins of all oceans and in polar areas with continuous permafrost. There are currently 77 localities identified globally where geophysical, geochemical and/or geological evidence indicates the presence of gas hydrate. Details concerning individual gas-hydrate occurrences are compiled at a new world-wide-web (www) site (http://walrus.wr.usgs.gov/globalhydrate). This site has been created to facilitate global gas-hydrate research by providing information on each of the localities where there is evidence for gas hydrate. Also considered are the implications of gas hydrate as a potential (1) energy resource, (2) factor in global climate change, and (3) geohazard.

Conference Paper↗

USGS1993

Use of satellite telemetry for study of a gyrfalcon in Greenland

Long-term research in Greenland has yielded 1 8 years of incidental sightings and 2 years of surveys and observations of gyrfalcons(Falco rusticolus) around Sondrestromfjord, Greenland. Gyrfalcons nest on cliffs along fjords and near rivers and lakes throughout our 2590 sq. km study area. Nestlings are present mid-June to July. In 1990, we marked one adult female gyrfalcon with a 65 g radio-transmitter to obtain location estimates via the ARGOS polar orbiting satellite system. The unit transmitted 8 hours/day every two days. We obtained 145 locations during 5 weeks of the nestling and fledgling stage of breeding. We collected 1-9 locations/day, with a mean of 4/day. We calculated home range estimates based on the Minimum Convex Polygon( MCP) and Harmonic Mean (HM methods and tested subsets of the data based on location quality and number of transmission hours per day. Home range estimated by MCP using higher quality locations was approximately 589 sq. km. Home range estimates were larger when lower-quality locations were included in the estimates. Estimates based on data collected for 4 hours/day were similar to those for 8 hours/day. In the future, it might be possible to extend battery life of the transmitters by reducing the number of transmission hours/day. A longer-lived transmitter could provide information on movements and home ranges throughout the year.

Journal of Raptor Research↗

USGS2004

Crystallographic controls on the frictional behavior of dry and water-saturated sheet structure minerals

We compare the frictional strengths of 17 sheet structure mineral powders, measured under dry and water-saturated conditions, to identify the factors that cause many of them to be relatively weak. The dry coefficient of friction μ ranges upward from 0.2 for graphite, leveling off at 0.8 for margarite, clintonite, gibbsite, kaolinite, and lizardite. The values of μ (dry) correlate directly with calculated (001) interlayer bond strengths of the minerals. This correlation occurs because shear becomes localized along boundary and Riedel shears and the platy minerals in them rotate into alignment with the shear planes. For those gouges with μ (dry) < 0.8, shear occurs by breaking the interlayer bonds to form new cleavage surfaces. Where μ (dry) = 0.8, consistent with Byerlee's law, the interlayer bonds are sufficiently strong that other frictional processes dominate. The transition in dry friction mechanisms corresponds to calculated surface energies of 2–3 J/m 2 . Adding water causes μ to decrease for every mineral tested except graphite. If the minerals are separated into groups with similar crystal structures, μ (wet) increases with increasing interlayer bond strength within each group. This relationship also holds for the swelling clay montmorillonite, whose water-saturated strength is consistent with the strengths of nonswelling clays of similar crystal structure. Water in the saturated gouges forms thin, structured films between the plate surfaces. The polar water molecules are bonded to the plate surfaces in proportion to the mineral's surface energy, and μ (wet) reflects the stresses required to shear through the water films.

Journal of Geophysical Research B: Solid Earth↗

USGS2025

Hair growth rate estimation in North American ursids

The feeding ecology of wildlife populations has important implications for individual health, population productivity and distribution patterns. For ursids (bears), food resources and feeding behaviour primarily affect population dynamics via effects on cub production and survival. Much of what is known about the feeding ecology of bears is based on analyses of tissues collected from capture-based research efforts, harvested animals or non-invasive approaches. However, inference about diet from hair has been limited by a lack of quantitative data on the timing of the moult and hair growth rates. We conducted a study to develop and test two methods of quantifying hair growth rates of three species in the family Ursidae ( n = 1 polar bear, Ursus maritimus ; n = 3 black bears, Ursus americanus ; n = 3 grizzly bears, Ursus arctos horribilis ). We implemented visual and biochemical approaches, proven safe for humans and other mammals, in a zoo setting. These methods relied on voluntary bear behaviours trained using positive reinforcement. The two methods were: (i) applying a small patch of hair dye (or bleach) on the rump or foreleg, and (ii) feeding an isotopically labelled amino acid (glycine) capsule that ‘marks’ time at a particular location as it is incorporated within the hair. We collected hair at regular intervals (every 1–2 weeks) for five months from body locations on the bear consistent with commonly sampled collection points in wild-caught bears. We found that both methods effectively identified periods of hair growth and detected individual and seasonal variation in hair growth rates. Average guard hair growth rates ranged between 0.10 and 1.05 mm day −1 across the three species. This study provides the first step for developing a foundation for incorporating seasonality in wild-collected bear hair samples by assessing growth over an annual cycle.

Conservation Physiology↗

USGS1991

[Book review] Birds of Malheur National Wildlife Refuge, Oregon

Although John Warham has worked for at least 40 years on procellariids, this book is much more than just a summary of a distinguished research career. It is a useful synthesis of the vast and often obscure literature on the more than 100 species of shearwaters, petrels, albatrosses, and fulmars that comprise the avian order with the widest range of body mass (19.5 g to 8.7 kg) and widest distribution, throughout the world's oceans, from the tropics to open leads in polar ice packs. The order's literary credentials are also impressive, with contributions from Dionysus (200 AD), St. Augustine, and Cole- ridge (not cited). Warham has also unearthed useful references from journals not examined by many ornithologists, such as Bocagiana , Il-Merill , and the Journal of the Manx Museum . He also appears to have done a good job of covering the Japanese-language literature.

The Auk↗

USGS2018

Inhibition of grain boundary sliding creep in fine-grained ice by inter-granular particles: Implications for planetary ice masses

Ice in both terrestrial and planetary settings often contains rock particles. Here we present an experimental investigation of the influence of intergranular particles on the rheological behavior of ice. Experiments were performed on samples fabricated from 10‐μm ice powders +1‐μm graphite or 0.8‐μm alumina particles and subjected to elevated confining pressures. A critical particle fraction, ∼6%, was observed, below which samples behave like pure ice and deform by both grain boundary sliding (GBS) and dislocation creep, and above which GBS creep is impeded. Above this critical fraction, ice grains occur in particle‐free clusters surrounded by bands of particles mixed with fine‐grained ice, resulting in the impedance of GBS in the bands as well as sliding between the ice clusters. Our results imply that South Polar Layered Deposits and midlatitude lobate debris aprons on Mars must contain >94% ice and that the shallow subsurface of Ceres could contain >90% ice.

Geophysical Research Letters↗

USGS2025

From water to web: Trophic transfer of neonicotinoids from a wastewater effluent-dominated stream to riparian spiders

Municipal wastewater is a known point source of organic contaminants, including pharmaceuticals and neonicotinoid insecticides. Emergent aquatic insects can provide a direct aquatic-to-terrestrial contaminant transfer route to the food web, with implications for terrestrial food web dispersal of wastewater-derived organic contaminants. We quantified 17 target pharmaceuticals and insecticides (log K ow : −1.43 to 4.75) in surface water, fish, aquatic insects, and web-building riparian spiders at a wastewater effluent-dominated stream in eastern Iowa, USA. Two neonicotinoids, imidacloprid and clothianidin, had spider tissue concentrations of 8.9–84 ng/g and 1.2–11 ng/g, respectively. The imidacloprid/clothianidin ratios in spider tissues were reflective of the concentration ratios in the effluent-dominated streamwater and opposite of nearby agriculturally dominated waters. In contrast, no pharmaceuticals were detectable in the riparian spiders; however, only pharmaceuticals were present in both fish and aquatic insects (1.1–11 ng/g and 5.9–51 ng/g, respectively). Neonicotinoids are not predicted to enter aquatic food webs based on their log K ow and bioconcentration factor values; therefore, an implication of this study is to warrant caution when using traditional bioaccumulation models for polar hydrophilic contaminants. This work provides further evidence that neonicotinoids undergo trophic transfer and represents the initial measurements, implicating such a transfer from effluent-dominated streams into terrestrial food webs. While this study emphasizes field-relevant observations, it is limited by environmental variability, including uncertainties in the biomass of emergent insects that likely contribute to spider diets. Future research could investigate contaminant metabolites within individual organisms or use complementary techniques to better understand the underlying mechanisms.

Iowa↗

USGS2010

Improved hydrogeophysical characterization and monitoring through parallel modeling and inversion of time-domain resistivity andinduced-polarization data

Electrical geophysical methods have found wide use in the growing discipline of hydrogeophysics for characterizing the electrical properties of the subsurface and for monitoring subsurface processes in terms of the spatiotemporal changes in subsurface conductivity, chargeability, and source currents they govern. Presently, multichannel and multielectrode data collections systems can collect large data sets in relatively short periods of time. Practitioners, however, often are unable to fully utilize these large data sets and the information they contain because of standard desktop-computer processing limitations. These limitations can be addressed by utilizing the storage and processing capabilities of parallel computing environments. We have developed a parallel distributed-memory forward and inverse modeling algorithm for analyzing resistivity and time-domain induced polar-ization (IP) data. The primary components of the parallel computations include distributed computation of the pole solutions in forward mode, distributed storage and computation of the Jacobian matrix in inverse mode, and parallel execution of the inverse equation solver. We have tested the corresponding parallel code in three efforts: (1) resistivity characterization of the Hanford 300 Area Integrated Field Research Challenge site in Hanford, Washington, U.S.A., (2) resistivity characterization of a volcanic island in the southern Tyrrhenian Sea in Italy, and (3) resistivity and IP monitoring of biostimulation at a Superfund site in Brandywine, Maryland, U.S.A. Inverse analysis of each of these data sets would be limited or impossible in a standard serial computing environment, which underscores the need for parallel high-performance computing to fully utilize the potential of electrical geophysical methods in hydrogeophysical applications.

Geophysics↗

USGS2013

Photometric properties of Mars soils analogs

We have measured the bidirectional reflectance of analogs of dry, wet, and frozen Martian soils over a wide range of phase angles in the visible spectral range. All samples were produced from two geologic samples: the standard JSC Mars-1 soil simulant and Hawaiian basaltic sand. In a first step, experiments were conducted with the dry samples to investigate the effects of surface texture. Comparisons with results independently obtained by different teams with similar samples showed a satisfying reproducibility of the photometric measurements as well as a noticeable influence of surface textures resulting from different sample preparation procedures. In a second step, water was introduced to produce wet and frozen samples and their photometry investigated. Optical microscope images of the samples provided information about their microtexture. Liquid water, even in relatively low amount, resulted in the disappearance of the backscattering peak and the appearance of a forward-scattering peak whose intensity increases with the amount of water. Specular reflections only appeared when water was present in an amount large enough to allow water to form a film at the surface of the sample. Icy samples showed a wide variability of photometric properties depending on the physical properties of the water ice. We discuss the implications of these measurements in terms of the expected photometric behavior of the Martian surface, from equatorial to circum-polar regions. In particular, we propose some simple photometric criteria to improve the identification of wet and/or icy soils from multiple observations under different geometries.

Journal of Geophysical Research E: Planets↗

USGS1994

Cyclostratigraphic calibration of cretaceous magnetic polarity events (Cismon, Southern Alps, Italy)

In an introductory section the problems of constructing a geologic time scale and the role of magnetic reversals and Milankovitch cycles in geochronology are outlined. Results of a detailed cyclostratigraphic and magnetostratigraphic study of the Valanginian/Hauterivian part of the pelagic limestone section at Cismon in the Southern Alps are presented and used in conjunction to estimate the duration of magnetic subchrons between CM10N and CM8. The new estimates are shorter than in most published time scales by a factor of two to three. More research along these lines may make a revision of the Early Cretaceous time scale necessary. ?? 1994 International Association for Mathematical Geology.

Mathematical Geology↗