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At least 631 records · Page 35Linked to original sources
USGS2014

Structural control of ore deposition at Kasaan Peninsula, southeastern Alaska

Copper‐bearing magnetite deposits and associated copper deposits at Kasaan Peninsula , Prince of Wales Island, southeastern Alaska , have been known for many years and have been mined to some extent for their copper content. At the beginning of World War II, the development of war industries in the Pacific northwest focused attention on the deposits as possible sources of iron ore . From 1942 through 1944 the United States Geological Survey made detailed studies of most of the ore deposits and at a few of the more promising localities diamond‐drilling operations were carried on by the United States Bureau of Mines. The deposits are for the most part small and irregular but of relatively high grade. The chief ore minerals are magnetite, pyrite, and chalcopyrite, and the gangue consists largely of skarn minerals, including garnet, epidote, diopside, and hornblende. The deposits are presumably of pyrometasomatic origin, but whereas deposits of this type are commonly replacement bodies in limestone, at Kasaan Peninsula limestone seemingly was a poor host rock for the ore.

Alaska↗
USGS1992

An aeromagnetic survey over the northwestern Ross Ice Shelf and the McMurdo Sound area

As part of the expedition GANOVEX VI 1990/91, the Bundesanstalt für Geowissenschaften und Rohstoffe (BGR), the Alfred Wegener Institute for Polar and Marine Research (AWI), and the United States Geological Survey (USGS) carried out an airborne magnetic survey over the northwestern Ross Ice Shelf and McMurdo Sound between Ross Island, the Transantarctic Mountains, and Minna Bluff. The area planned for the aeromagnetic survey connects directly with the GANOVEX IV survey area (BGR & USGS 1987, BACHEM et al. 1989a) which terminated along an approximately cast-west line at about the latitude of Cape Bird. The GANOVEX IV survey covered the Victoria Land Basin - which is the westernmost of the three north/south striking basins in the Ross Sea - from its northern end in the Terra Nova Bay region to its known southern end at Ross Island. A possible southem extension of the Victoria Land Basin and its central graben structure (the Terror Rift as found from seismic surveys (COOPER et al. 1987) and what has been referred to as Victoria Graben in the aeromagnetic interpretation of the GANOVEX IV data (BOSUM et al. 1989) was one of the major targets for this survey. The survey was laid out in the form of blocks. A 135 km wide transect from the Transantarctic Mountains to about 175° W formed the focal block of the survey (Fig. 1) in which all major scientific objectives could be covered. Other survey blocks were planned to the south of this. During the course of the survey it turned out that in the time available no further area could be covered. Indeed, the unfavourable weather conditions made it impossible to complete even the above described main section fully. In detail, the lay-out of the survey area was closely following that of the GANOVEX IV survey to assure compatibility and direct continuation between the two data sets. The line spacing was chosen again to 4.4 km with a tic-line separation of 22 km. The survey altitude of 2,000 ft (610 m) corresponds to that of the Ross Sea section of the GANOVEX IV survey to which this survey area is directly adjacent. The profile lines were aligned approximately E-W, the tie-lines N-S. As part of the survey area is covered by the maps of the USGS Antarctica Reconnaissance Series 1:250,000 the Lambert conformal conic projection used for these maps was also used for the preparation of a flight line grid.

Polarforschung↗
USGS2006

Aeromagnetic survey of Dillingham area in southwest Alaska, a website for the preliminary distribution of data

An airborne high-resolution magnetic survey was completed over the Dillingham and Nushagak Bay and Naknek area in southwestern Alaska. The flying was undertaken by McPhar Geosurveys Ltd. on behalf of the United States Geological Survey (USGS). First tests and calibration flights were completed by August 26th, 2005 and data acquisition was initiated on September 1st, 2005. The final data acquisition flight was completed on October 22nd, 2005. A total of 8,630 line-miles of data were acquired during the survey.

Alaska↗
USGS2012

Wet deposition of fission-product isotopes to North America from the Fukushima Dai-ichi incident, March 2011

Using the infrastructure of the National Atmospheric Deposition Program (NADP), numerous measurements of radionuclide wet deposition over North America were made for 167 NADP sites before and after the Fukushima Dai-ichi Nuclear Power Station incident of March 12, 2011. For the period from March 8 through April 5, 2011, wet-only precipitation samples were collected by NADP and analyzed for fission-product isotopes within whole-water and filterable solid samples by the United States Geological Survey using gamma spectrometry. Variable amounts of 131 I, 134 Cs, or 137 Cs were measured at approximately 21% of sampled NADP sites distributed widely across the contiguous United States and Alaska. Calculated 1- to 2-week individual radionuclide deposition fluxes ranged from 0.47 to 5100 Becquerels per square meter during the sampling period. Wet deposition activity was small compared to measured activity already present in U.S. soil. NADP networks responded to this complex disaster, and provided scientifically valid measurements that are comparable and complementary to other networks in North America and Europe.

Environmental Science & Technology↗
USGS2023

Water balance characterization of the early 21st century drought in the western United States

Monthly temperature and precipitation data for 923 United States Geological Survey 8-digit hydrologic units are used as inputs to a monthly water balance model to compute monthly actual evapotranspiration, soil moisture storage, and runoff across the western United States (U.S.) for the period 1900 through 2020. Time series of these water balance variables are examined to characterize and explain the dry conditions across the western U.S. since the year 2000. Results indicate that although precipitation deficits account for most of the changes in actual evapotranspiration and runoff, increases in temperature primarily explain decreases in soil moisture storage. Specifically, temperature has been particularly impactful on the magnitude of negative departures of soil moisture storage during the spring (April through June) and summer (July through September) seasons. These effects on soil moisture may be particularly detrimental to agriculture in regions already stressed by drought such as the western U.S.

Journal of the American Water Resources Associatio↗
USGS2006

Using role analysis to plan for stakeholder involvement: a Wyoming case study

Prior to implementing laws and policies regulating water, wildlife, wetlands, endangered species, and recreation, natural resource managers often solicit public input. Concomitantly, managers are continually seeking more effective ways to involve stakeholders. In the autumn of 1999, the Wyoming Game and Fish Department sought to develop a state management plan for its portion of the Yellowstone grizzly bear (Ursus arctos horribilis) population if it was removed from the federal threatened species list. A key aspect of developing this plan was the involvement of federal, state, and local agencies, representatives from nongovernmental organizations, and citizens. Wyoming wildlife managers asked researchers from the United States Geological Survey to demonstrate how the Legal-Institutional Analysis Model could be used to initiate this process. To address these needs, we conducted similar workshops for a group of state and federal managers or staffers and a broad group of stakeholders. Although we found similarities among the workshop groups, we also recorded differences in perspective between stakeholder groups. The managers group acknowledged the importance of varied stakeholders but viewed the grizzly bear planning process as one centered on state interests, influenced by state policies, and amenable to negotiation. The other workshops identified many stakeholders and viewed the decision process as diffuse, with many opportunities for entry into the process. These latter groups were less certain about the chance for a successful negotiation. We concluded that if these assumptions and differences were not reconciled, the public involvement effort was not likely to succeed.

Wildlife Society Bulletin↗
USGS1999

The northern pintail in North America: status and conservation needs of a struggling population

The number of northern pintails (Anas acuta) in North America continues to be low despite sub- stantially improved wetland habitat conditions as recorded by the May Breeding Population and Habitat Survey (May Survey, United States Fish and Wildlife Service [USFWS] 1998; Figure 1). In 1993-97, following extended drought during the 1980s and early 1990s, favorable precipitation pat- terns returned to the critical waterfowl nesting areas of the northern Great Plains of the United States (U.S.) and Canada (USFWS 1997), the area known as the Prairie Pothole Region (PPR, Bellrose 1980). Historically, when the number of wetlands (May ponds) counted on the May Survey increased in the PPR, pintail breeding populations (BPOP) also increased (e.g., Smith 1970). However, even though May ponds attained record high levels 1996 and 1997, the expected increase in pintail populations did not occur (Figure 1). Even after a 30% increase in the BPOP between 1996 and 1997, pintails remained 19% below the long-term average and 36% below the North American Waterfowl Management Plan (NAWMP) goal of 5.6 million (USFWS et al. 1994); additionally, peaks and lows in pintail BPOP have been successively lower since 1955-56 (Figure 1). In contrast, all other PPR-nest- ing dabbling ducks (tribe Anatini) rebounded in the 1990s to levels that exceeded objectives set by NAWMP (USFWS 1997). The minimal recovery of pintails is perplexing, given the very large popula- tions attained during previous periods of abundant May ponds (Figure 1).

Wildlife Society Bulletin↗
USGS2026

Bascom Laser Diffraction Sedimentology Laboratory, Reston, Virginia

Introduction At the Bascom Laser Diffraction Sedimentology Laboratory, which is located in the Florence Bascom Geoscience Center at U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) headquarters in Reston, Virginia, scientists use physical sedimentology and particle characterization techniques to conduct detailed sediment characterization. Scientists address research problems in collaboration with other USGS science centers, State geological surveys, commercial industry, universities, and other partners. Laboratory capabilities include laser diffractometry for quantitative particle-size analysis, portable x-ray fluorescence (XRF) analysis for determining elemental abundances in rock or sediment samples, petrographic analysis of geologic media, and mechanical sieve analysis. These methods are used to analyze soil and sediment core material from terrestrial, marine, and lacustrine environments, surface sediments from coastal regions, and calcareous materials. Work done by the laboratory supports geologic mapping, resource assessments, land change studies, and geohazard analyses.

Fact Sheet↗
USGS2025

Airborne geophysical efforts for critical mineral systems mapping in the southern Midcontinent, USA

The increasing global demand for critical minerals to support energy and technological advancement has accelerated exploration and research efforts for these essential resources. Since 2019, the United States Geological Survey (USGS) Earth Mapping Resources Initiative (EMRI) has worked to modernize geologic mapping of the Nation to better understand its critical mineral resources. To further this initiative, the USGS has flown a series of high-resolution airborne magnetic and radiometric surveys over large areas of the southern Midcontinent. The surveys cover known critical mineral deposits and areas with the potential to host additional critical minerals based on the presence of one or more overlapping mineral systems. One aspect of EMRI emphasizes close collaboration between the USGS and the Association of American State Geologists, as well as other government and industry partners to leverage geophysical, geological, and geochemical expertise on both regional and local scales. The EMRI high-resolution airborne survey data provide new insights into the geophysical framework of the southern Midcontinent and its critical mineral endowment. Additionally, discoveries made from the data have directed new studies for critical mineral exploration.

southern Midcontinent↗
USGS2009

The National Geospatial Technical Operations Center

The United States Geological Survey (USGS) National Geospatial Technical Operations Center (NGTOC) provides geospatial technical expertise in support of the National Geospatial Program in its development of The National Map, National Atlas of the United States, and implementation of key components of the National Spatial Data Infrastructure (NSDI).

Fact Sheet↗
USGS2009

IPANE: Could New England's Early Detection Network benefit eastern Canada?

The Invasive Plant Analysis of New England (IPANE: ipane.org) is a multifaceted approach to regional early detection of invasive plants. IPANE, was founded in 2001 to create a comprehensive six state New England regional partnership to: minimize the ecological damage caused by invasive plants; provide reliable and accessible educational material; maintain a network of professional and trained volunteers to gather information and to locate new incursions; provide a web-accessible database and maps of invasive and potentially invasive plants; conduct and encourage research on the biology and ecology of invasive plants; and, use program-generated data to develop predictive distribution models for the region. This program uses the synergy of all the components to create a regional early detection and rapid assessment network to curtail new invasions before they become widespread on the regional landscape. IPANE is a model for the United States Geological Survey National Early Detection Network Toolbox, a compendium of information developed for use by Network partners. In addition, an Early Detection Alert system has been developed to inform key federal and state agency staff, conservation organizations, and those with vegetation management responsibilities about new or potential invaders to the region. These include current and anticipated distribution, diagnostic characters, images, pertinent biological and control information, and key contacts. Most of the non-native species currently considered invasive by IPANE appear to be spreading into New England from the south or west. IPANE is strategically placed to act as an advanced warning system for the 5 provinces of Eastern and Maritime Canada. At the meeting held in Nova Scotia in September 2007, this idea was suggested to attendees from 4 of these 5 provinces and the Canadian government. By expanding its alert systems, IPANE could serve as a focal point for Early Detection information moving in any direction and tie Eastern Canada into the National Early Detection Network of the United States.

Conference Paper↗
USGS1919

Deposits of Claiborne and Jackson age in Georgia

In 1911 the Geological Survey of Georgia published as Bulletin 26 a "Preliminary report on the geology of the Coastal Plain of Georgia," by Otto Veatch and Lloyd William Stephenson, prepared in cooperation with the United States Geological Survey under the supervision of T. Wayland Vaughan, a geologist in charge of Coastal Plain investigations, who contributed the determinations of the invertebrate fossils of the Tertiary and Quaternary formations. Although this report constituted a decided advance in our knowledge of the geology of the Coastal Plain of Georgia, it was admittedly of reconnaissance character, and corrections and additions to it were to be expected. During the last few years field work has been prosecuted vigorously in the Coastal Plain of Georgia, and the additional information thus accumulated throws light upon certain problems of stratigraphy left unsolved by Veatch and Stephenson and alters considerably some of their correlations. The object of the present paper is to present the new evidence regarding the age and correlation of the Eocene formations of Georgia and to revise in accordance with present knowledge the descriptions of the deposits of Claiborne and Jackson age.

Georgia↗
USGS2006

State summaries: Idaho

According to the United States Geological Survey (USGS), Idaho's preliminary nonfuel mineral production value jumped to $893 million in 2005. Principal minerals by value included molybdenum concentrates, phosphate rock, sand and gravel, silver and portland cement. The state ranked second in phosphate and garnet production, third in silver and pumice, fourth in molybdenum concentrate production, and 21st overall. Majority of mining increases for the year were spurred by demand for metals by China's growing economy.

Mining Engineering↗
USGS2011

Digital Mapping Techniques '09-workshop proceedings, Morgantown, West Virginia, May 10-13, 2009

The Digital Mapping Techniques '09 (DMT'09) workshop was attended by 90 technical experts from 42 agencies, universities, and private companies, including representatives from 24 State geological surveys. This workshop, the thirteenth in the annual series, was hosted by the West Virginia Geological and Economic Survey, May 10-13, 2009, on the West Virginia University campus in Morgantown, West Virginia. Each DMT workshop has been coordinated by the National Geologic Map Database project and the Association of American State Geologists (AASG). As in the previous years' meetings, the objective was to foster informal discussion and exchange of technical information, principally in order to develop more efficient methods for digital mapping, cartography, GIS analysis, and information management. At this meeting, oral and poster presentations and special discussion sessions emphasized (1) methods for creating and publishing map products (here, "publishing" includes Web-based release); (2) field data capture software and techniques, including the use of LiDAR; (3) digital cartographic techniques; (4) migration of digital maps into ArcGIS Geodatabase format; (5) analytical GIS techniques; and (6) continued development of the National Geologic Map Database.

Open-File Report↗
USGS1995

Listings of model input and selected output values for the simulation of ground-water flow near Los Alamos, North-central New Mexico

This report contains listings of model input and selected output values for the simulation of ground-water flow near Los Alamos, north- central New Mexico. This simulation was developed by the U.S. Geological Survey in cooperation with Los Alamos National Laboratory (Frenzel, P.F., 1995, Geohydrology and simulation of ground-water flow near Los Alamos, north-central New Mexico: U.S. Geological Survey Water-Resources Investigations Report 95-4091). The simulation used the U.S. Geological Survey modular flow model code (McDonald, M.G., and Harbaugh, A.W., 1988, A modular three-dimensional finite-difference ground-water flow model: Techniques of Water-Resources Investigations of the United States Geological Survey, book 6, chap. A1). The listings in this report are in compressed format on a 1.44-megabyte IBM-PC1 compatible floppy disk. Software is included for decompression to ASCII format.

Open-File Report↗
USGS2025

Specific conductance and water type as a proxy model for salinity and total dissolved solids measurements in the Upper Colorado River Basin

Salinity levels in streams and tributaries of the Colorado River Basin have been a major concern for the United States and Mexico for over 50 years as the water is used by millions of people for domestic and industrial purposes. Recently, the United States Geological Survey expanded stream monitoring networks including the number of sites where continuous (15-min) specific conductance is measured in the Colorado River Headwaters and Gunnison River Basin located east of the Colorado-Utah state line (hereafter, UCOL). The purpose of this study is to apply a proxy method to determine salinity and total dissolved solids concentrations from specific conductance and major-ion water type that is applicable to monitoring sites in the UCOL. Within the UCOL, carbonate rich waters originate from high-elevation mountain regions in the eastern UCOL, calcium sulfate rich waters are mainly found in the western half of the UCOL including the Gunnison River Basin, and waters of variable composition are found along the lower reaches of the Colorado River and Eagle River. It was found that the chemistry of sites with variable composition changes seasonally and is impacted by both geogenic and anthropogenic processes, potentially including seasonal application of deicing road salt. The specific conductance – water type proxy can be used to reliably (±10 %) predict salinity and total dissolved solids at 66 monitoring sites in the UCOL. The method is rapid, can generate high-resolution measurements, is cost-effective, and greatly expands the utility of specific conductance measurements. Furthermore, the high-resolution estimates provide an accurate approach to determining long-term salinity loads as short-term events are accurately accounted for.

Colorado↗
USGS1978

The Energy Lands Program of the U.S. Geological Survey, fiscal year 1976

The Energy Lands Program of the U.S. Geological Survey comprises several projects that conduct basic and interpretive earth-science investigations into the environmental aspects of energy-resource recovery, transmission, and conversion. More than half the coal reserves of the United States occur west of the Mississippi River; therefore, the program concentrates mostly on coal-producing regions in the Western interior. Additional studies involve the oil-shale region in Colorado, Wyoming, and Utah, and coal-related work in Alaska and Appalachia. The work is done both by USGS personnel and under USGS grants and contracts through the Energy Lands Program to universities, State Geological Surveys, and private individuals. Maps and reports characterizing many aspects of environmental earth science are being prepared for areas of Alaska, Montana, North Dakota, Wyoming, Utah, Colorado, New Mexico, Arizona, Oklahoma, Kansas, and Texas. Types of studies underway include bedrock, surficial, and interpretive geology; engineering geology, geochemistry of surface materials and plants; climatic conditions as they influence rehabilitation potential of mined lands; and feasibility of surface vs. underground mining. The purpose common to all investigations in the Energy Lands Program is to provide timely earth-science information for use by managers, policy-makers, engineers, scientists, planners, and others, in order to contribute to an environmentally sound, orderly, and safe development of the energy resources of the Nation.

Circular↗
USGS2010

Surficial geology of the sea floor in Long Island Sound offshore of Plum Island, New York

The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), the Connecticut Department of Environmental Protection, and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) have been working cooperatively to interpret surficial sea-floor geology along the coast of the Northeastern United States. NOAA survey H11445 in eastern Long Island Sound, offshore of Plum Island, New York, covers an area of about 12 square kilometers. Multibeam bathymetry and sidescan-sonar imagery from the survey, as well as sediment and photographic data from 13 stations occupied during a USGS verification cruise are used to delineate sea-floor features and characterize the environment. Bathymetry gradually deepens offshore to over 100 meters in a depression in the northwest part of the study area and reaches 60 meters in Plum Gut, a channel between Plum Island and Orient Point. Sand waves are present on a shoal north of Plum Island and in several smaller areas around the basin. Sand-wave asymmetry indicates that counter-clockwise net sediment transport maintains the shoal. Sand is prevalent where there is low backscatter in the sidescan-sonar imagery. Gravel and boulder areas are submerged lag deposits produced from the Harbor Hill-Orient Point-Fishers Island moraine segment and are found adjacent to the shorelines and just north of Plum Island, where high backscatter is present in the sidescan-sonar imagery.

Open-File Report↗