Geology topics

Shari A. Kelley

Publications and source records attributed to Shari A. Kelley.

4 recordsLinked to original sources

USGS2021

Salinity contributions from geothermal waters to the Rio Grande and shallow aquifer system in the transboundary Mesilla (United States)/Conejos-Médanos (Mexico) Basin

Freshwater scarcity has raised concerns about the long-term availability of the water supplies within the transboundary Mesilla (United States)/Conejos-Médanos (Mexico) Basin in Texas, New Mexico, and Chihuahua. Analysis of legacy temperature data and groundwater flux estimates indicates that the region’s known geothermal systems may contribute more than 45,000 tons of dissolved solids per year to the shallow aquifer system, with around 8500 tons of dissolved solids being delivered from localized groundwater upflow zones within those geothermal systems. If this salinity flux is steady and eventually flows into the Rio Grande, it could account for 22% of the typical average annual cumulative Rio Grande salinity that leaves the basin each year—this salinity proportion could be much greater in times of low streamflow. Regional water level mapping indicates upwelling brackish waters flow towards the Rio Grande and the southern part of the Mesilla portion of the basin with some water intercepted by wells in Las Cruces and northern Chihuahua. Upwelling waters ascend from depths greater than 1 km with focused flow along fault zones, uplifted bedrock, and/or fractured igneous intrusions. Overall, this work demonstrates the utility of using heat as a groundwater tracer to identify salinity sources and further informs stakeholders on the presence of several brackish upflow zones that could notably degrade the quality of international water supplies in this developed drought-stricken region.

Chuhuahua, New Mexico, Texas↗

USGS2015

Summer of Applied Geophysical Experience (SAGE): Training for our future geoscientists

Energy and natural resources are crucial to the sustainability of worldwide economies, security, and overall well-being. However, the future workforce in the energy and natural-resources sector is at risk, and meeting the challenges of this dwindling workforce requires well-educated geoscientists in exploration and applied geophysics and related geoscience and technology disciplines. Programs such as geophysical field courses that are supported by SEG and industry, in partnership with academic institutions and government laboratories, are important approaches to maintaining and enhancing expertise in exploration geophysics. One example of a geophysical field course devoted to educating our future workforce is the Summer of Applied Geophysical Experience (SAGE), a four-week program based in Santa Fe, New Mexico, designed to actively engage students in all phases of applied geophysical research. SAGE is a unique educational experience that combines teaching and research as a partnership among universities, industry, government agencies, and professional societies. SAGE teaches the principles and applications of refraction and reflection seismology, magnetics, gravity, GPS, heat flow, several electromagnetic (EM) methods, and ground-penetrating radar (GPR) in a field-based, hands-on setting. More than 850 students and qualified professionals have attended SAGE, many of whom have gone on to become leaders in academia, industry, and government. SAGE students are exposed to the exciting challenges that face earth scientists today, and they develop skills that are necessary to address the world's growing energy demands. Examples of SAGE research projects include mapping archaeological sites and tectonic structure and investigating water and geothermal resources in the Rio Grande rift.

Leading Edge (Tulsa, OK)↗

USGS2013

Comment on “Apatite 4He/3He and (U-Th)/He Evidence for an Ancient Grand Canyon”

Flowers and Farley (Reports, 21 December 2012, p. 1616; published online 29 November 2012) propose that the Grand Canyon is 70 million years old. Starkly contrasting models for the age of the Grand Canyon—70 versus 6 million years—can be reconciled by a shallow paleocanyon that was carved in the eastern Grand Canyon 25 to 15 million years ago (Ma), negating the proposed 70 Ma and 55 Ma paleocanyons. Cooling models and geologic data are most consistent with a 5 to 6 Ma age for western Grand Canyon and Marble Canyon.

Science↗

USGS2009

Revisions to the stratigraphic nomenclature of the Abiquiu Formation, Abiquiu and contiguous areas, north-central New Mexico

Stratigraphic studies and geologic mapping on the Abiquiu 7.5-min quadrangle have led to revision of the stratigraphic nomenclature for the Oligocene to Miocene Abiquiu Formation in north-central New Mexico. The Abiquiu Formation had previously been defined to include informal upper, middle (Pedernal chert member), and lower members. The basement-derived conglomeratic lower member in the northern Jemez Mountains and Abiquiu embayment is here redefined. We propose removing the "lower member" from the Abiquiu Formation because provenance of these coarse sediments is dramatically different than the volcaniclastic strata of the "upper member." Furthermore, we propose that the term "lower member of the Abiquiu Formation" be replaced with an existing unit name, the Ritito Conglomerate of Barker (1958), and that the name Abiquiu Formation be restricted to the volcaniclastic succession. The lower part of the Ritito Conglomerate in Arroyo del Cobre on the Abiquiu quadrangle is 47 m (155 ft) thick and is composed of arkosic conglomeratic beds interbedded with arkosic sands and siltstones. Clasts include, in descending order of abundance, Proterozoic quartzite, granite, metavolcanic rocks, quartz, schist, and gneiss and a trace of Mesozoic sandstone and Paleozoic chert. Clasts are predominantly of pebble and cobble size but range from granule to boulder size. Paleocurrent data collected in the Arroyo del Cobre area indicate that the Ritito Conglomerate was deposited by a south-flowing river system during the Oligocene, eroding Laramide highlands such as the Tusas Mountains to the northeast, which contain predominantly Proterozoic rocks. This depositional setting has also been suggested by previous workers. The middle member or Pedernal chert member is present both at the top of the Ritito Conglomerate and as lenses within the lower part of the Abiquiu Formation. This post-depositional diagenetic chert remains an informal unit called the Pedernal chert.

New Mexico↗