Geology topics

Amy E. Draut

Publications and source records attributed to Amy E. Draut.

At least 37 records · Page 2Linked to original sources

USGS2010

2009 weather and aeolian sand-transport data from the Colorado River corridor, Grand Canyon, Arizona

This report presents measurements of weather parameters and aeolian sand transport made in 2009 near selected archeological sites in the Colorado River corridor through Grand Canyon, Ariz. The quantitative methods and data discussed here form a basis for monitoring ecosystem processes that affect archeological-site stability. Combined with forthcoming work to evaluate landscape evolution at nearby archeological sites, these data can be used to document the relation between physical processes, including weather and aeolian sand transport, and their effects on the physical integrity of archeological sites. Data collected in 2009 reveal event- and seasonal-scale variations in rainfall, wind, temperature, humidity, and barometric pressure. Broad seasonal changes in aeolian sediment flux are also apparent at most study sites. Differences in weather patterns between 2008 and 2009 included an earlier spring windy season, greater spring precipitation even though 2009 annual rainfall totals were in general substantially lower than in 2008, and earlier onset of the reduced diurnal barometric-pressure fluctuations commonly associated with summer monsoon conditions. Weather patterns in middle to late 2009 were apparently affected by a transition of the ENSO cycle from a neutral phase to the El Ni?o phase. The continuation of monitoring that began in 2007, and installation of additional equipment at several new sites in early 2008, allowed evaluation of the effects of the March 2008 high-flow experiment (HFE) on aeolian sand transport. As reported earlier, at 2 of the 9 sites studied, spring and summer winds in 2008 reworked the HFE sandbars to form new aeolian dunes, where sand moved inland toward larger, well-established dune fields. Observations in 2009 showed that farther inland migration of the dune at one of those two sites is likely inhibited by vegetation. At the other location, the new aeolian dune form was found to have moved 10 m inland toward older, well-established dunes during 2009, resulting in landward transport of several hundred cubic meters of new sand upslope and above the elevation reached by the peak HFE water level.

Open-File Report↗

USGS2010

Vegetation and substrate on aeolian landscapes in the Colorado River corridor, Cataract Canyon, Utah

Vegetation and substrate data presented in this report characterize ground cover on aeolian landscapes of the Colorado River corridor through Cataract Canyon, Utah, in Canyonlands National Park. The 27-km-long Cataract Canyon reach has undergone less anthropogenic alteration than other reaches of the mainstem Colorado River. Characterizing ecosystem parameters there provides a basis against which to evaluate future changes, such as those that could result from the further spread of nonnative plant species or increased visitor use. Upstream dams have less effect on the hydrology and sediment supply in Cataract Canyon compared with downstream reaches in Grand Canyon National Park. For this reason, comparison of these vegetation and substrate measurements with similar data from aeolian landscapes of Grand Canyon will help to resolve the effects of Glen Canyon Dam operations on the Colorado River corridor ecosystem.

Open-File Report↗

USGS2010

Seasonal and decadal-scale channel evolution on the dammed Elwha River, Washington

More than 75,000 dams exist in the continental United States to provide water storage, flood control, and hydropower generation (Graf, 1999). Many of these were built during the early twentieth century and are due for relicensing consideration now and in the near future. The cost of repairing aging dams, together with growing understanding of the ecologic effects of river regulation (Williams and Wolman, 1984; Dynesius and Nilsson, 1994; Graf, 1999, 2003; Yang et al., 2007), in some places have prompted dam removal, facilitating restoration of riparian habitat to a more natural state. In the Pacific Northwest region of the U.S., river-restoration efforts are commonly targeted to improve habitat quality for native salmonid fish species, many runs of which have declined precipitiously from their historical conditions (owing, in part, to overfishing and habitat loss and degradation) and are now endangered (e.g., Nehlsen, 1997; Larsen et al., 2004; Pess et al., 2008). Removal of dams that block the upstream migration of anadromous fish is considered an important step toward any potential recovery of Pacific Northwest salmon and steelhead populations.

Washington↗

USGS2010

Grain-size evolution in suspended sediment and deposits from the 2004 and 2008 controlled-flood experiments in Marble and Grand Canyons, Arizona

Since the closure of Glen Canyon Dam in 1963, the hydrology, sediment supply, and distribution and size of modern alluvial deposits in the Colorado River through Grand Canyon have changed substantially (e.g., Howard and Dolan, 1981; Johnson and Carothers, 1987; Webb et al., 1999; Rubin et al., 2002; Topping et al., 2000, 2003; Wright et al., 2005; Hazel et al., 2006). The dam has reduced the fluvial sediment supply at the upstream boundary of Grand Canyon National Park by about 95 percent. Regulation of river discharge by dam operations has important implications for the storage and redistribution of sediment in the Colorado River corridor. In the absence of natural floods, sediment is not deposited at elevations that regularly received sediment before dam closure. There has been a systemwide decrease in the size and number of subaerially exposed fluvial sand deposits since the 1960s, punctuated by episodic aggradation during the exceptional high-flow intervals in the early 1980s and by sediment input from occasional tributary floods (Beus and others, 1985; Schmidt and Graf, 1990; Kearsley et al., 1994; Schmidt et al., 2004; Wright et al., 2005; Hazel et al., 2006). Fluvial sandbars are an important component of riparian ecology that, among other functions, enclose eddy backwaters that form native-fish habitat, provide a source for eolian sand that protects some archaeological sites, and are used as campsites by thousands of river-runners annually (Rubin et al., 1990; Kearsley et al., 1994; Neal et al., 2000; Wright et al., 2005; Draut and Rubin, 2008).

Arizona↗

USGS2009

Late Pleistocene to Holocene sedimentation and hydrocarbon seeps on the continental shelf of a steep, tectonically active margin, southern California, USA

Small, steep, uplifting coastal watersheds are prolific sediment producers that contribute significantly to the global marine sediment budget. This study illustrates how sedimentation evolves in one such system where the continental shelf is largely sediment-starved, with most terrestrial sediment bypassing the shelf in favor of deposition in deeper basins. The Santa Barbara-Ventura coast of southern California, USA, is considered a classic area for the study of active tectonics and of Tertiary and Quaternary climatic evolution, interpretations of which depend upon an understanding of sedimentation patterns. High-resolution seismic-reflection data over >570 km 2 of this shelf show that sediment production is concentrated in a few drainage basins, with the Ventura and Santa Clara River deltas containing most of the upper Pleistocene to Holocene sediment on the shelf. Away from those deltas, the major factor controlling shelf sedimentation is the interaction of wave energy with coastline geometry. Depocenters containing sediment 5-20 m thick exist opposite broad coastal embayments, whereas relict material (bedrock below a regional unconformity) is exposed at the sea floor in areas of the shelf opposite coastal headlands. Locally, natural hydrocarbon seeps interact with sediment deposition either to produce elevated tar-and-sediment mounds or as gas plumes that hinder sediment settling. As much as 80% of fluvial sediment delivered by the Ventura and Santa Clara Rivers is transported off the shelf (some into the Santa Barbara Basin and some into the Santa Monica Basin via Hueneme Canyon), leaving a shelf with relatively little recent sediment accumulation. Understanding factors that control large-scale sediment dispersal along a rapidly uplifting coast that produces substantial quantities of sediment has implications for interpreting the ancient stratigraphic record of active and transform continental margins, and for inferring the distribution of hydrocarbon resources in relict shelf deposits.

Marine Geophysical Research↗

USGS2009

Arc-continent collision and the formation of continental crust: A new geochemical and isotopic record from the Ordovician Tyrone Igneous Complex, Ireland

Collisions between oceanic island-arc terranes and passive continental margins are thought to have been important in the formation of continental crust throughout much of Earth's history. Magmatic evolution during this stage of the plate-tectonic cycle is evident in several areas of the Ordovician Grampian-Taconic orogen, as we demonstrate in the first detailed geochemical study of the Tyrone Igneous Complex, Ireland. New U-Pb zircon dating yields ages of 493 2 Ma from a primitive mafic intrusion, indicating intra-oceanic subduction in Tremadoc time, and 475 10 Ma from a light rare earth element (LREE)-enriched tonalite intrusion that incorporated Laurentian continental material by early Arenig time (Early Ordovician, Stage 2) during arc-continent collision. Notably, LREE enrichment in volcanism and silicic intrusions of the Tyrone Igneous Complex exceeds that of average Dalradian (Laurentian) continental material that would have been thrust under the colliding forearc and potentially recycled into arc magmatism. This implies that crystal fractionation, in addition to magmatic mixing and assimilation, was important to the formation of new crust in the Grampian-Taconic orogeny. Because similar super-enrichment of orogenic melts occurred elsewhere in the Caledonides in the British Isles and Newfoundland, the addition of new, highly enriched melt to this accreted arc terrane was apparently widespread spatially and temporally. Such super-enrichment of magmatism, especially if accompanied by loss of corresponding lower crustal residues, supports the theory that arc-continent collision plays an important role in altering bulk crustal composition toward typical values for ancient continental crust. ?? 2009 Geological Society of London.

Journal of the Geological Society↗

USGS2009

Coastal Processes Study of Santa Barbara and Ventura Counties, California

The Santa Barbara littoral cell (SBLC) is a complex coastal system with significant management challenges. The coastline ranges broadly in exposure to wave energy, fluvial inputs, hard structures, and urbanization. Geologic influence (structural control) on coastline orientation exerts an important control on local beach behavior, with anthropogenic alterations and the episodic nature of sediment supply and transport also playing important roles. Short- and long-term temporal analyses of shoreline change, beach width, and volume change show no obvious trends in regional beach behavior. Extensive armoring along the SBLC has accreted the back beach, narrowing beach widths and in some cases increasing sediment transport. Unarmored beaches have exhibited mild erosion while maintaining similar widths. Harbor constructions have had notable impacts on downdrift beaches, but once the coastal system has equilibrated the signal becomes strongly dampened and littoral-drift gradients driven by natural shoreline orientation again become dominant. Sediment inputs from the Santa Clara River dominate sediment processes on beaches to the south. The SBLC is dominated by episodic flood and storm-wave events. Exceptionally large accretion signals along this stretch of coastline are closely tied to major flood events when large amounts of sediment are deposited in deltas. These deltas decay over time, supplying downdrift beaches with sediment. Storm-wave impacts and gradients in alongshore transport can lead to beach rotations and migrating erosion hotspots when geological controls are weak. Annual and seasonal rates of cross-shore and alongshore transport are at least 2-3 times higher for the more west- and southwest-facing beaches south of the Ventura River as compared to the more sheltered beaches to the west/north. Gross littoral transports are good approximations of net littoral transports for beaches west/north of Ventura as transport is almost purely unidirectional. However, significant transport reversals occur intermittently in the east/south, especially adjacent to the Ventura and Channel Islands Harbors. For this reason, and due to the episodic nature of flood and storm wave events, using dredging rates from the harbors at Ventura and Channel Islands as a proxy for drift rates may be invalid. An extensive grain-size investigation of the surface and shallow subsurface in the nearshore region of the SBLC identified only two sites for potential beach-nourishment material: offshore of Santa Barbara Harbor and Oil Piers. However, seismic-reflection lines offshore of Santa Barbara suggest shallow bedrock (< 1 m), so the volume of coarse material in this area may be limited. Sampling of the Santa Clara River delta was minimal, but this site could be promising. Numerical modeling shows that local beach behavior is primarily influenced by local littoral-drift gradients, which are in turn controlled by natural shoreline orientation. Given the high rates of net littoral drift and the relatively insignificant cross-shore transport in the SBLC, the SBLC should be considered a sediment-limited system (as opposed to a transport-limited system). Management actions, such as any future beach nourishment, would likely have a severely limited life span without employing additional measures that adequately address local littoral-drift gradients to retain added sand.

Open-File Report↗

USGS2009

2007 Weather and Aeolian Sand-Transport Data from the Colorado River Corridor, Grand Canyon, Arizona

Weather data constitute an integral part of ecosystem monitoring in the Colorado River corridor and are particularly valuable for understanding processes of landscape change that contribute to the stability of archeological sites. Data collected in 2007 are reported from nine weather stations in the Colorado River corridor through Grand Canyon, Ariz. The stations were deployed in February and March 2007 to measure wind speed and direction, rainfall, air temperature, relative humidity, and barometric pressure. Sand traps near each weather station collect windblown sand, from which daily aeolian sand-transport rates are calculated. The data reported here were collected as part of an ongoing study to test and evaluate methods for quantifying processes that affect the physical integrity of archeological sites along the river corridor; as such, these data can be used to identify rainfall events capable of causing gully incision and to predict likely transport pathways for aeolian sand, two landscape processes integral to the preservation of archeological sites. Weather data also have widespread applications to other studies of physical, cultural, and biological resources in Grand Canyon. Aeolian sand-transport data reported here, collected in the year before the March 2008 High-Flow Experiment (HFE) at Glen Canyon Dam, represent baseline data against which the effects of the 2008 HFE on windblown sand will be compared in future reports.

Open-File Report↗

USGS2009

2008 Weather and Aeolian Sand-Transport Data from the Colorado River Corridor, Grand Canyon, Arizona

This report presents measurements of weather parameters and aeolian (windblown) sand transport made in 2008 near selected archaeological sites in the Colorado River corridor through Grand Canyon, Ariz. The quantitative methods and data discussed here form a basis for monitoring ecosystem processes that affect archeological-site stability. Combined with forthcoming work to evaluate landscape evolution at nearby archaeological sites, these data can be used to document the relationship between physical processes, including weather and aeolian sand transport, and their effects on the physical integrity of archaeological sites. Data collected in 2008 reveal event- and seasonal-scale variations in rainfall, wind, temperature, humidity, and barometric pressure. Broad seasonal changes in aeolian sediment flux are also apparent at most study sites. The continuation of monitoring that began in 2007, and installation of equipment at several new sites in early 2008, allowed evaluation of the effects of the March 2008 high-flow experiment (HFE) on aeolian sand transport. At two of the nine sites studied, spring and summer winds reworked 2008 HFE sandbars to form new aeolian dunes, at which sand moved inland toward larger, well-established dune fields. At the other seven study sites, neither dune formation nor enhanced sand transport after the HFE were observed. At several of those sites, dominant wind directions in spring 2008 were not oriented such that much HFE sand would have moved inland; at other sites, lack of increased inland sand flux is attributable to lack of sandbar enlargement near the study sites or to inhibition of sand movement by vegetation or local topography.

Open-File Report↗

USGS2008

High-resolution chirp and mini-sparker seismic-reflection data from the southern California continental shelf — Gaviota to Mugu Canyon

The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) collected high-resolution shallow seismic-reflection data in September, 2007, and June-July, 2008, from the continental shelf offshore of southern California between Gaviota and Mugu Canyon, in support of the California's State Waters Mapping Program. Data were acquired using SIG 2mille mini-sparker and Edgetech chirp 512 instruments aboard the R/V Zephyr (Sept. 2007) and R/V Parke Snavely (June-July 2008). The survey area spanned approximately 120 km of coastline, and included shore-perpendicular transects spaced 1.0-1.5 km apart that extended offshore to at least the 3-mile limit of State waters, in water depths ranging from 10 m near shore to 300 m near the offshore extent of Mugu and Hueneme submarine canyons. Subbottom acoustic penetration spanned tens to several hundred meters, variable by location. This report includes maps of the surveyed transects, linked to Google Earth software, as well as digital data files showing images of each transect in SEG-Y, JPEG, and TIFF formats. The images of sediment deposits, tectonic structure, and natural-gas seeps collected during this study provide geologic information that is essential to coastal zone and resource management at Federal, State and local levels, as well as to future research on the sedimentary, tectonic, and climatic record of southern California.

California↗

USGS2008

The Role of Eolian Sediment in the Preservation of Archeologic Sites Along the Colorado River Corridor in Grand Canyon National Park, Arizona

Since the closure of Glen Canyon Dam in 1963, the natural hydrologic and sedimentary systems along the Colorado River in the Grand Canyon reach have changed substantially (see, for example, Andrews, 1986; Johnson and Carothers, 1987; Webb and others, 1999b; Rubin and others, 2002; Topping and others, 2003; Wright and others, 2005; Hazel and others, 2006b). The dam has reduced the fluvial sediment supply at the upstream boundary of Grand Canyon National Park by about 95 percent. Regulation of river discharge by dam operations has important implications for the storage and redistribution of sediment in the Colorado River corridor. In the absence of floods, sediment is not deposited at elevations that regularly received sediment before dam closure. Riparian vegetation has colonized areas at lower elevations than in predam time when annual floods removed young vegetation (Turner and Karpiscak, 1980). Together, these factors have caused a systemwide decrease in the size and number of subaerially exposed fluvial sand deposits since the 1960s, punctuated by episodic aggradation during the exceptional high-flow intervals in 1983-84, 1996, and 2004 and by sediment input from occasional tributary floods (Beus and others, 1985; Schmidt and Graf, 1987; Kearsley and others, 1994; Hazel and others, 1999; Schmidt and others, 2004; Wright and others, 2005). When the Bureau of Reclamation sponsored the creation of the Glen Canyon Environmental Studies (GCES) research initiative in 1982, research objectives included physical and biologic resources, whereas the effects of dam operations on cultural resources were not addressed (Fairley and others, 1994; Fairley, 2003). In the early 1980s, it was widely believed that because few archeologic sites were preserved within the river's annual-flood zone, cultural features would not be greatly affected by dam operations. Recent studies, however, indicate that alterations in the flow and sediment load of the Colorado River by Glen Canyon Dam operations may affect archeologic sites within the river corridor, even above the annual flood limit (Hereford and others, 1993, Yeatts, 1996, 1997; Thompson and Potochnik, 2000; Draut and others, 2005). (The annual-flood zone is defined here by the mean annual predam flood of 2,410 m3/s; the 'predam flood limit', the highest elevation at which fluvial deposits are present locally, was approximately equivalent to a rare, major flood of 8,500 m3/s; Topping and others, 2003.) Of about 500 archeologic sites documented between Glen Canyon Dam and Separation Canyon (255 river miles), more than 330 are considered to be within the area of potential effect (APE) of dam operations (Fairley and others, 1994; Neal and others, 2000; Fairley, 2005). The APE was designated by the National Park Service (NPS) to include the area below the peak stage of the 1884 flood; though previously believed to have reached 8,490 m3/s, this flood was shown by Topping and others (2003) to have peaked at 5,940 m3/s. Archeologic research and monitoring in Grand Canyon National Park focus increasingly on the potential effects of Glen Canyon Dam operations on the landscape in which these sites exist. Many archeologic sites in or on sedimentary deposits are being eroded, owing to eolian deflation and gully incision (Leap and others, 2000; Neal and others, 2000; Fairley, 2003, 2005). Hereford and others (1993) first suggested that gully incision of sedimentary deposits, and the base level to which small drainage systems respond, were linked to dam operations; they hypothesized that pronounced arroyo incision, which occurs during rainfall runoff, was caused by lowering of the effective base level at the mouths of ephemeral drainages to meet the new postdam elevation of high-flow sediment deposition, about 3 to 4 m below the lowest predam alluvial terraces. Thompson and Potochnik (2000) modified that hypothesis to include the restorative effects of fluvial deposition in the mouths of gullies and ar

Professional Paper↗

USGS2008

Channel Evolution on the Lower Elwha River, Washington, 1939-2006

Analyses of historical aerial photographs of the lower Elwha River, Clallam County, Washington, reveal rates and patterns of channel change in this dammed, anabranching river between 1939 and 2006. Absolute positional changes of the active-floodplain margins, which commonly exceeded 50 m over that interval, have exceeded 400 m locally. Annualized rates of channel movement were typically ~2 to 10 m/yr; higher annualized rates over some time intervals are attributable to the formation of new channels by episodic avulsion. Channel movement by more gradual lateral meander migration was also common. Anthropogenic modification of the floodplain between the 1940s and 1980s substantially altered channel form and position. This analysis of rates and patterns of channel change over nearly 70 years on the lower Elwha River is intended to characterize the evolution of the river throughout most of the time interval when two large dams have been in place upstream. Channel morphology and rates of channel movement are expected to change significantly in response to removal of the dams and re-establishment of the upstream sediment supply during a major river-restoration project.

Scientific Investigations Report↗

USGS2007

Sedimentary properties of shallow marine cores collected in June and September 2006, Hanalei Bay, Kaua'i, Hawai'i

Sedimentary facies, short-lived isotopes 7 Be, 137 Cs, and 210 Pb, and magnetic properties of sediment cores in Hanalei Bay, Kaua‘i, Hawai‘i, were used to assess sediment sources and patterns of deposition associated with seasonal flooding of the Hanalei River. Sediment cores were collected from the seafloor in June and September of 2006 to supplement similar data collected during the summer of 2005. The youngest and thickest terrigenous sediment was observed on the east side of the bay: near the Hanalei River mouth and in a bathymetric depression, known locally as the Black Hole, that acts as a temporary sediment sink. Deposits from floods that occurred between February and April 2006 left flood deposits in the eastern bay that, by June of 2006, were on the order of 10 cm thick. A flood occurred on August 7, 2006, that was smaller than floods that occurred the previous winter but was a substantial discharge event for the summer season. Deposits from the winter 2006 floods continued to dominate the sedimentary record in the eastern bay through early fall, even after the addition of newer sediment during the August 7 flood; this is consistent with the much higher sediment input of the winter floods compared with the August 7 flood. Broad variations in magnetic grain size and relative magnetite-hematite abundance in several sediment cores indicate many sources of upland terrigenous sediment. As a group, recent flood deposits show much less variation in these properties compared with older deposits, implying either that the 2006 winter–spring flood sediment originated from one or more distinct upland settings, or that substantial mixing of sediment from multiple sources occurred during transport. Sediment is most readily remobilized and advected out of the bay during winter, when oceanic conditions are energetic. In summer, wave and current measurements made concurrently with this study showed weak currents and little wave energy, indicating that sediment delivered during summer floods most likely remains in the bay until winter storms can remove it. Increased turbidity and sedimentation on corals resulting from floods of the Hanalei River could affect the sustainability of coral reefs and their many associated species. This possibility is of particular concern during summer months when wave energy is low and sediment is not readily remobilized and transported out of the bay. The timing (seasonality) and magnitude of sediment input to the coastal ocean relative to seasonal variations in wave and current energy could have significant ecological consequences for coral-reef communities in the Hawaiian Islands.

Hawai'i↗

USGS2007

The role of aeolian sediment in the preservation of archaeological sites in the Colorado River corridor, Grand Canyon, Arizona: Final report on research activities, 2003-2006

This report summarizes a three-year study of aeolian sedimentary processes in the Colorado River corridor, Grand Canyon, Arizona, and discusses the relevance of those processes to the preservation of archaeological sites. Findings are based upon detailed sedimentary and geomorphic investigations conducted in three areas of the river corridor, continuous measurements of wind, precipitation, and aeolian sediment transport at six locations for up to 26 months, short-term field study at 35 other sites, examination of historical aerial photographs, and review of data collected and analyzed by previous studies. Detailed results of this study, which involved collaboration with scientists at the Grand Canyon Monitoring and Research Center, National Park Service, Northern Arizona University, the Hopi Tribe, and GeoArch, Inc., have been published previously in topical USGS Open-File Reports (Draut and Rubin, 2005, 2006), a USGS Scientific Investigations Report (Draut and others, 2005), and will be discussed in two forthcoming journal articles. This report serves as an overview of the results and contains new conclusions regarding aeolian sedimentary processes in the Colorado River Ecosystem and their relevance to many archaeological sites.

Arizona↗

USGS2006

Sedimentary processes in modern and ancient oceanic arc settings: evidence from the Jurassic Talkeetna Formation of Alaska and the Mariana and Tonga Arcs, western Pacific

Sediment deposited around oceanic volcanic ares potentially provides the most complete record of the tectonic and geochemical evolution of active margins. The use of such tectonic and geochemical records requires an accurate understanding of sedimentary dynamics in an arc setting: processes of deposition and reworking that affect the degree to which sediments represent the contemporaneous volcanism at the time of their deposition. We review evidence from the modern Mariana and Tonga arcs and the ancient arc crustal section in the Lower Jurassic Talkeetna Formation of south-central Alaska, and introduce new data from the Mariana Arc, to produce a conceptual model of volcaniclastic sedimentation processes in oceanic arc settings. All three arcs are interpreted to have formed in tectonically erosive margin settings, resulting in long-term extension and subsidence. Debris aprons composed of turbidites and debris flow deposits occur in the immediate vicinity of arc volcanoes, forming relatively continuous mass-wasted volcaniclastic records in abundant accommodation space. There is little erosion or reworking of old volcanic materials near the arc volcanic front. Tectonically generated topography in the forearc effectively blocks sediment flow from the volcanic front to the trench; although some canyons deliver sediment to the trench slope, most volcaniclastic sedimentation is limited to the area immediately around volcanic centers. Arc sedimentary sections in erosive plate margins can provide comprehensive records of volcanism and tectonism spanning < 10 My. The chemical evolution of a limited section of an oceanic arc may be best reconstructed from sediments of the debris aprons for intervals up to ~ 20 My but no longer, because subduction erosion causes migration of the forearc basin crust and its sedimentary cover toward the trench, where there is little volcaniclastic sedimentation and where older sediments are dissected and reworked along the trench slope.

Alaska↗

USGS2006

Field-trip guide to volcanic and volcaniclastic deposits of the lower Jurassic Talkeetna formation, Sheep Mountain, south-central Alaska

This guide provides information for a one-day field trip in the vicinity of Sheep Mountain, just north of the Glenn Highway in south-central Alaska. The Lower Jurassic Talkeetna Formation, consisting of extrusive volcanic and volcaniclastic sedimentary rocks of the Talkeetna arc complex, is exposed on and near Sheep Mountain. Field-trip stops within short walking distance of the Glenn Highway (approximately two hours’ drive from Anchorage) are described, which will be visited during the Geological Society of America Penrose meeting entitled Crustal Genesis and Evolution: Focus on Arc Lower Crust and Shallow Mantle , held in Valdez, Alaska, in July 2006. Several additional exposures of the Talkeetna Formation on other parts of Sheep Mountain that would need to be accessed with longer and more strenuous walking or by helicopter are also mentioned.

Alaska↗

USGS2006

Coastal circulation and sediment dynamics in Hanalei Bay, Kaua'i, Hawaii: Part II: Tracking recent fluvial sedimentation: Isotope stratigraphy obtained in Summer 2005

Delivery and dispersal of fluvial sediment in Hanalei Bay, Kaua’i, Hawaii, have important implications for the health of local coral reefs. The reef community in Hanalei Bay represents a relatively healthy ecosystem. However, the reefs are periodically stressed by storm waves, and increases in sediment and dissolved substances from the Hanalei River have the potential to cause additional stress. Increased turbidity and sedimentation on corals during Hanalei River floods that occur in seasons of low wave energy, when sediment would not be readily remobilized and advected out of the bay, could affect the health and sustainability of coral reefs and the many associated species. Measurements of short-lived isotopes 7 Be and 137 Cs in sediment cores have been used to trace the thickness and distribution of terrestrial sediment in Hanalei Bay, in order to assess spatial and temporal patterns of sediment deposition and remobilization relative to coral-reef locations. A third isotope, 210 Pb, derived primarily from seawater, provides additional information about recent sedimentary history. Isotope profiles and observations of sedimentary facies from cores collected at multiple locations in June 2005, and again in August 2005, indicate the presence of recent fluvial sediment and organic debris in the east part of the bay near the mouth of the Hanalei River. Away from the immediate vicinity of the river mouth, sediment in the uppermost 1 m below the sea floor had not retained a significant quantity of fluvial sediment within the eight months prior to either sampling effort. During the study interval in summer 2005 the Hanalei River had no major floods and there was relatively little sediment input to the bay. Sediment away from the river mouth was dominated by carbonate sand, although some terrestrial sediment was present in sub-sea-floor horizons. Sedimentary facies and isotope inventories throughout the bay showed substantial spatial heterogeneity. Sediment cores will be collected again at the same sites discussed here during early and late summer 2006. If possible, additional sites will be sampled in the Black Hole depocenter near the river mouth. Major floods in winter and spring 2006 are expected to leave a significant new sediment signal in the bay that should be detected in summer 2006.

Hawaii↗

USGS2006

Measurements of wind, aeolian sand transport, and precipitation in the Colorado River corridor, Grand Canyon, Arizona: January 2005 to January 2006

This report presents measurements of aeolian sediment-transport rates, wind speed and direction, and precipitation records from six locations that contain aeolian deposits in the Colorado River corridor through Grand Canyon, Grand Canyon National Park, Arizona. Aeolian deposits, many of which contain and preserve archaeological material, are an important part of the Grand Canyon ecosystem. This report contains data collected between January 2005 and January 2006, and is the second in a series; the first contained data that were collected between November 2003 and December 2004 (Draut and Rubin, 2005; http://pubs.usgs.gov/of/2005/1309/ ). Analysis of data collected in 2005 shows great spatial and seasonal variation in wind and precipitation patterns. Total annual rainfall can vary by more than a factor of two over distances ~ 10 km. Western Grand Canyon received substantially more precipitation than the eastern canyon during the abnormally wet winter of 2005. Great spatial variability in precipitation indicates that future sedimentary and geomorphic studies would benefit substantially from continued or expanded data collection at multiple locations along the river corridor, because rainfall records collected by NPS at Phantom Ranch (near river-mile 88) cannot be assumed to apply to other areas of the canyon. Wind velocities and sand transport in 2005 were greatest during May and June, with maximum winds locally as high as ~25 m s -1 , and transport rates locally >100 g cm -1 d -1 . This represents a later peak in seasonal aeolian sand transport compared to the previous year, in which transport rates were greatest in April and May 2004. Dominant wind direction varies with location, but during the spring windy season the greatest transport potential was directed upstream in Marble Canyon (eastern Grand Canyon). At all locations, rates of sand transport during the spring windy season were 5–15 times higher than at other times of year. This information has been used to evaluate the potential for aeolian reworking of new fluvial sand deposits, and restoration of higher-elevation aeolian deposits, following the 60-hour controlled flood release from Glen Canyon Dam in November 2004. Substantial deposition of new sand occurred at all study sites during this high-flow experiment, but most of the new sediment was eroded by high flow fluctuations between January and March 2005. Comparison of aeolian sand transport in the spring windy seasons of the preand post-flood years indicates that, where some of the flood-deposited sand remained by spring, aeolian sand transport was significantly higher than during the pre-flood spring. Gully incision in an aeolian dune field was observed to be partially ameliorated by deposition of wind-blown sand derived from a nearby 2004 flood deposit. These results imply that sediment-rich controlled floods can renew sand deposition in aeolian dune fields above the flood-stage elevation. The potential for restoration of archaeological sites in aeolian deposits can be maximized by using dam operations that maximize the open sand area on fluvial sandbars during spring, when aeolian sediment transport is greatest.

Arizona↗