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

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At least 595 records · Page 33Linked to original sources
USGS1993

Fire history of southeastern Glacier National Park: Missouri River Drainage

In 1982, Glacier National Park (GNP) initiated long-term studies to document the fire history of all forested lands in the 410,000 ha. park. To date, studies have been conducted for GNP west of the Continental Divide (Barrett et al. 1991), roughly half of the total park area. These and other fire history studies in the Northern Rockies (Arno 1976, Sneck 1977, Arno 1980, Romme 1982, Romme and Despain 1989, Barrett and Arno 1991, Barrett 1993a, Barrett 1993b) have shown that fire history data can be an integral element of fire management planning, particularly wen natiral fire plans are being developed for parks and wilderness. The value of site specific fire history data is apparent when considering study results for lodgepole pin ( Pinus contorta var. latifolia ) forests. Lodgepole pine is a major subalpine type in the Northern Rockies and such stands experiences a wide range of presettlement fire patterns. On relatively warm-dry sites at lower elevations, such as in GNP's North Fork drainage (Barrett et al. 1991), short to moderately long interval (25-150 yr) fires occurred in a mixed severity pattern ranging from non-lethal underburns to total stand replacement (Arno 1976, Sneck 1977, Barrett and Arno 1991). Markedly different fire history occurred at high elevation lodgepole pine stands on highly unproductive sites, such as on Yellowstone National Park's (YNP) subalpine plateau. Romme (1982) found that, on some sites, stand replacing fires recurred after very long intervals (300-400 yr), and that non-lethal surface fires were rare. For somewhat more productive sites in the Absaroka Mountains in YNP, Barrett (1993a) estimated a 200 year mean replacement interval, in a pattern similar to that found in steep mountain terrain elsewhere, such as in the Middle Fork Flathead River drainage (Barrett et al. 1991, Sneck 1977). Aside from post-1900 written records (ayres 1900; fire atlas data on file, GNP Archives Div. and GNP Resources Mgt. Div.), little fire history information existed for GNP's east-side forests, which are dominated primarily by lodgepole pine. In fall 1992, the park initiated a study to determine the fire history of the Missouri River drainage portion of southeastern GNP. Given the known variation in pre-1900 fire patterns for lodgepole pine, this study was seen as a potentially important contribution to GNP's Fire Management Plan, and to the expanding data base of fire history studies in the region. Resource managers sought this information to assist their development of appropriate fire management strategies for the east-side forests, and the fire history data also would be a useful interactive component of the park's Geographic Information System (GIS). Primary objectives were to: 1) determine pre-1900 fire periodicities, severities, burning patterns, and post-fire succession for major forest types, and 2) document and map the forest age class mosaic, reflecting the history of stand replacing fires at the landscape level of analysis. Secondary objectives were to interpret the possible effects of modern fire suppression on area forests, and to determine fire regime patterns relative to other lodgepole pine ecosystems in the Northern Rockies.

Montana↗
USGS2014

Lessons from the 1989 Exxon Valdez oil spill: A biological perspective

On March 24, 1989, the tanker vessel Exxon Valdez altered its course to avoid floating ice, and ran aground on Bligh Reef in northeastern Prince William Sound (PWS), Alaska (Figure 1). The tanker was carrying about 53 million gallons of Prudhoe Bay crude, a heavy oil, and an estimated 11 million gallons spilled (264,000 barrels or about 42 million liters) in what was, prior to the Deepwater Horizon (DWH) spill of 2010, the largest accidental release of oil into U.S. waters (Morris and Loughlin 1994; Spies et al. 1996; Shigenaka 2014). Following the Exxon Valdez oil spill (EVOS), a broad range of studies was implemented and 25 years later, monitoring and research efforts to understand the long-term impacts of the spill continue, although now at a lesser intensity. The Exxon Valdez and DWH spills differed in many ways (Plater 2010; Atlas and Hazen 2011; Sylves and Comfort 2012), but there are also similarities, and lessons from the EVOS experience may offer valuable insights as research efforts proceed in the wake of the DWH spill. Here we provide an overview of the EVOS, summarize key findings from several long-term biological research programs, and conclude with some considerations of lessons learned after two and a half decades of study.

Alaska↗
USGS1978

Jordan aquifer of Iowa

Water demand for all uses in Iowa is increasing at an accelerated rate. Demand has increased from about 1,800 million gallons per day in 1955 to 3,500 million gallons per day in 1975 (MacKichan, 1957; Murray and Reeves, 1977). By the year 2020, water demand is expected to be eight times that in 1975 (Barnard and Dent, 1976). Historically, about 75 percent of the demand, excluding that required for power generation, has been met by withdrawals from the water-bearing zones (aquifers) in Iowa's ground-water reservoir. Because this percentage is expected to remain about the same, the anticipated future demands will require extensive withdrawals from the ground-water reservoir. The increasing stress on the ground-water system, which already is severely stressed in several places in the state, will create development and management problems that will require hydrologic information to solve. In order to provide this information, the lowa Geological Survey in cooperation with the U.S. Geological Survey has instituted a series of investigations to define, describe, and evaluate the major aquifers in Iowa's groundwater reservoir. Information from each investigation will be presented in atlas format.

Iowa↗
USGS2006

Modeling brook trout presence and absence from landscape variables using four different analytical methods

As a part of the Great Lakes Regional Aquatic Gap Analysis Project, we evaluated methodologies for modeling associations between fish species and habitat characteristics at a landscape scale. To do this, we created brook trout Salvelinus fontinalis presence and absence models based on four different techniques: multiple linear regression, logistic regression, neural networks, and classification trees. The models were tested in two ways: by application to an independent validation database and cross-validation using the training data, and by visual comparison of statewide distribution maps with historically recorded occurrences from the Michigan Fish Atlas. Although differences in the accuracy of our models were slight, the logistic regression model predicted with the least error, followed by multiple regression, then classification trees, then the neural networks. These models will provide natural resource managers a way to identify habitats requiring protection for the conservation of fish species.

Book chapter↗
USGS1899

Geology and mining industry of the Tintic district, Utah: Section in Nineteenth Annual Report of the United States Geological Survey to the Secretary of the Interior 1897 - 1898: Part III - Economic Geology

The field work upon which this report is based was begun in July, 1897, and continued without interruption until December of the same year. The area studied is approximately 15 miles square and contains 234 square miles. The topographic maps, which are two in number, were prepared under the direction of Mr. R. U. Goode, Mr. S. S. Gannett doing the triangulation and Messrs. Marshall and Griswold the topography in the fall of 1896 and summer of 1897. The mapping is done on two scales; the larger area, approximately 15 miles square, is mapped on a scale of 1: 62,500. This map is designed to form a part of the Geologic Atlas of the United States. The other map represents the portion of the larger area in which the majority of the mines are located. It is on a scale of 1: 9,600, and covers an area of 12 square miles. The work has been greatly facilitated through the assistance rendered by the mining men of the district, among whom special thanks are due to Messrs. G. H. Robinson, W. J. Craig, W. M. Nesbit, and C. H. Blanchard. The chemical work on the ores and country rocks from the district has been done in the laboratory of the Survey by Messrs. H. N. Stokes and George Steiger, and the determination of the fossils collected is to be credited to Mr. G. H. Girty, also of the Geological Survey. In the field work the authors have cooperated constantly on every phase of the varied problems. The same is true for the office work, except that the stratigraphic and economic problems have been the especial studies of Mr. Tower, while the petrologic and remaining problems have been the special studies of Mr. Smith. In pursuance of this system of work the introduction has been written conjointly, Chapter II of Part I and all of Part II have been written by Mr. Tower, and Chapters I and III to VII of Part I by Mr. Smith.

Utah↗
USGS1970

Quality of surface water in the Bear River basin, Utah, Wyoming and Idaho

Water-quality data have been collected intermittently at several sites in the Bear River basin since 1947. Because the Bear River flows through three States - Utah, Wyoming, and Idaho - water-quality programs have been confined for the most part within State boundaries. In 1967, the U.S. Geological Survey, as a part of its cooperative program with the Utah Department of Natural Resources, Division of Water Rights, designed a reconnaissance to obtain needed water-quality information for the entire basin. This report presents the results of the data-collection phase of the reconnaissance. Also included in this report are data collected intermittently or periodically prior to the reconnaissance by the U.S. Geological Survey, the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation, and the Federal Water Pollution Control Administration. An interpretive report is being prepared and will be published by the U.S. Geological Survey as a Hydrologic Atlas.

Idaho, Utah, Wyoming↗
USGS1990

Coastal mapping programs at the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service's National Wetlands Research Center

Over the past 10 years, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service's (FWS) National Wetlands Research Center (center; formerly the National Coastal Ecosystems Team) has been continuously involved in the production of maps for use by coastal decision makers. The types of maps produced by the center have been national, regional, or local in scope depending on user needs. Map scales have ranged from 1:24,000 to 1:250,000. Themes depicted have included biological resources, including wetlands and seagrasses; upland habitat or land use; water resources such as water quality, bathymetry, and salinity; cultural features such as ownership, archaeological sites, and dredge-spoil disposal areas; and soils and landforms. We present overviews on the various mapping programs of the center. We highlight efforts such as the ecological inventories of the Atlantic, Gulf, and Pacific coasts; the ecological characterization atlases of the Gulf of Mexico; and the large scale (1:24,000) habitat maps of various coastal regions of the United States. Center methods and techniques are discussed, including the collaborative efforts between the center and FWS's National Wetlands Inventory for updating wetland maps and adding upland and seagrass bed delineations to inventory maps. We also make recommendations for future coastal ecosystem mapping programs that use conventional and automated mapping methodologies, such as geographic information systems and image processing.

Biological Report↗
USGS2010

Report of the COSPAR mars special regions colloquium

In this paper we present the findings of a COSPAR Mars Special Regions Colloquium held in Rome in 2007. We review and discuss the definition of Mars Special Regions, the physical parameters used to define Mars Special Regions, and physical features on Mars that can be interpreted as Mars Special Regions. We conclude that any region experiencing temperatures > -25 ??C for a few hours a year and a water activity > 0.5 can potentially allow the replication of terrestrial microorganisms. Physical features on Mars that can be interpreted as meeting these conditions constitute a Mars Special Region. Based on current knowledge of the martian environment and the conservative nature of planetary protection, the following features constitute Mars Special regions: Gullies and bright streaks associated with them, pasted-on terrain, deep subsurface, dark streaks only on a case-by-case basis, others to be determined. The parameter definition and the associated list of physical features should be re-evaluated on a regular basis. ?? 2010 COSPAR. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Advances in Space Research↗
USGS1984

Surficial geology

Surficial materials are those at or near the Earth's surface. They constitute, by far, the largest and most used part of the ground around us. Areas not covered by surficial deposits--bare bedrock--form probably less than 5 percent of our land surface. Most surficial deposits are composed of poorly consolidated clay, silt, sand, or gravel-sized particles that are produced chiefly by erosion and are transported by and finally deposited by water, wind, or ice, but are also partly produced by the in-situ weathering of bedrock. The major genetic categories are shown on the map by various colors; the principal compositional types in each category are indicated by patterns. Colors, patterns, and letter symbols are given in the explanation which follows this summary description. Surficial deposits have characteristics important to our environment--water-bearing properties, mineral resources, and suitability as a natural foundation for buildings. They are also susceptible to flooding, erosion, ground subsidence, land slides, and earthquakes.

National Atlas of the United States of America↗
USGS2007

Geology

This map shows the ages and types of rocks that lie at or near the land surface throughout the United States. It does not show surficial materials such as soil and glacial deposits, except where Quartenary sedimentary materials cover extensive areas and obscure underlying bedrock materials. The map is a generalization and simplification of the "Geologic Map of North America," published by the Geological Society of America in 2005. A more complete description of the map and discussion of major geologic features it portrays are available as U.S. Geological Survey Circular 1300 (in press).

National Atlas of the United States of America↗