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Attributes for NHDPlus catchments (Version 1.1) for the conterminous United States: STATSGO soil characteristics

This data set represents estimated soil variables compiled for every catchment of NHDPlus for the conterminous United States. The variables included are cation exchange capacity, percent calcium carbonate, slope, water-table depth, soil thickness, hydrologic soil group, soil erodibility (k-factor), permeability, average water capacity, bulk density, percent organic material, percent clay, percent sand, and percent silt. The source data set is the State Soil ( STATSGO ) Geographic Database (Wolock, 1997). The NHDPlus Version 1.1 is an integrated suite of application-ready geospatial datasets that incorporates many of the best features of the National Hydrography Dataset (NHD) and the National Elevation Dataset (NED). The NHDPlus includes a stream network (based on the 1:100,00-scale NHD), improved networking, naming, and value-added attributes (VAAs). NHDPlus also includes elevation-derived catchments (drainage areas) produced using a drainage enforcement technique first widely used in New England, and thus referred to as "the New England Method." This technique involves "burning in" the 1:100,000-scale NHD and when available building "walls" using the National Watershed Boundary Dataset (WBD). The resulting modified digital elevation model (HydroDEM) is used to produce hydrologic derivatives that agree with the NHD and WBD. Over the past two years, an interdisciplinary team from the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA), and contractors, found that this method produces the best quality NHD catchments using an automated process (USEPA, 2007). The NHDPlus dataset is organized by 18 Production Units that cover the conterminous United States. The NHDPlus version 1.1 data are grouped by the U.S. Geologic Survey's Major River Basins (MRBs, Crawford and others, 2006). MRB1, covering the New England and Mid-Atlantic River basins, contains NHDPlus Production Units 1 and 2. MRB2, covering the South Atlantic-Gulf and Tennessee River basins, contains NHDPlus Production Units 3 and 6. MRB3, covering the Great Lakes, Ohio, Upper Mississippi, and Souris-Red-Rainy River basins, contains NHDPlus Production Units 4, 5, 7 and 9. MRB4, covering the Missouri River basins, contains NHDPlus Production Units 10-lower and 10-upper. MRB5, covering the Lower Mississippi, Arkansas-White-Red, and Texas-Gulf River basins, contains NHDPlus Production Units 8, 11 and 12. MRB6, covering the Rio Grande, Colorado and Great Basin River basins, contains NHDPlus Production Units 13, 14, 15 and 16. MRB7, covering the Pacific Northwest River basins, contains NHDPlus Production Unit 17. MRB8, covering California River basins, contains NHDPlus Production Unit 18.

Data Series↗

Attributes for NHDPlus catchments (version 1.1) for the conterminous United States: normalized atmospheric deposition for 2002, Total Inorganic Nitrogen

This data set represents the average normalized atmospheric (wet) deposition, in kilograms, of Total Inorganic Nitrogen for the year 2002 compiled for every catchment of NHDPlus for the conterminous United States. Estimates of Total Inorganic Nitrogen deposition are based on National Atmospheric Deposition Program (NADP) measurements (B. Larsen, U.S. Geological Survey, written commun., 2007). De-trending methods applied to the year 2002 are described in Alexander and others, 2001. NADP site selection met the following criteria: stations must have records from 1995 to 2002 and have a minimum of 30 observations. The NHDPlus Version 1.1 is an integrated suite of application-ready geospatial datasets that incorporates many of the best features of the National Hydrography Dataset (NHD) and the National Elevation Dataset (NED). The NHDPlus includes a stream network (based on the 1:100,00-scale NHD), improved networking, naming, and value-added attributes (VAAs). NHDPlus also includes elevation-derived catchments (drainage areas) produced using a drainage enforcement technique first widely used in New England, and thus referred to as "the New England Method." This technique involves "burning in" the 1:100,000-scale NHD and when available building "walls" using the National Watershed Boundary Dataset (WBD). The resulting modified digital elevation model (HydroDEM) is used to produce hydrologic derivatives that agree with the NHD and WBD. Over the past two years, an interdisciplinary team from the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA), and contractors, found that this method produces the best quality NHD catchments using an automated process (USEPA, 2007). The NHDPlus dataset is organized by 18 Production Units that cover the conterminous United States. The NHDPlus version 1.1 data are grouped by the U.S. Geologic Survey's Major River Basins (MRBs, Crawford and others, 2006). MRB1, covering the New England and Mid-Atlantic River basins, contains NHDPlus Production Units 1 and 2. MRB2, covering the South Atlantic-Gulf and Tennessee River basins, contains NHDPlus Production Units 3 and 6. MRB3, covering the Great Lakes, Ohio, Upper Mississippi, and Souris-Red-Rainy River basins, contains NHDPlus Production Units 4, 5, 7 and 9. MRB4, covering the Missouri River basins, contains NHDPlus Production Units 10-lower and 10-upper. MRB5, covering the Lower Mississippi, Arkansas-White-Red, and Texas-Gulf River basins, contains NHDPlus Production Units 8, 11 and 12. MRB6, covering the Rio Grande, Colorado and Great Basin River basins, contains NHDPlus Production Units 13, 14, 15 and 16. MRB7, covering the Pacific Northwest River basins, contains NHDPlus Production Unit 17. MRB8, covering California River basins, contains NHDPlus Production Unit 18.

Data Series↗

Attributes for NHDPlus catchments (version 1.1) for the conterminous United States: Average Annual Daily Maximum Temperature, 2002

This data set represents the average monthly maximum temperature in Celsius multiplied by 100 for 2002 compiled for every catchment of NHDPlus for the conterminous United States. The source data were the Near-Real-Time High-Resolution Monthly Average Maximum/Minimum Temperature for the Conterminous United States for 2002 raster dataset produced by the Spatial Climate Analysis Service at Oregon State University. The NHDPlus Version 1.1 is an integrated suite of application-ready geospatial datasets that incorporates many of the best features of the National Hydrography Dataset (NHD) and the National Elevation Dataset (NED). The NHDPlus includes a stream network (based on the 1:100,00-scale NHD), improved networking, naming, and value-added attributes (VAAs). NHDPlus also includes elevation-derived catchments (drainage areas) produced using a drainage enforcement technique first widely used in New England, and thus referred to as "the New England Method." This technique involves "burning in" the 1:100,000-scale NHD and when available building "walls" using the National Watershed Boundary Dataset (WBD). The resulting modified digital elevation model (HydroDEM) is used to produce hydrologic derivatives that agree with the NHD and WBD. Over the past two years, an interdisciplinary team from the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA), and contractors, found that this method produces the best quality NHD catchments using an automated process (USEPA, 2007). The NHDPlus dataset is organized by 18 Production Units that cover the conterminous United States. The NHDPlus version 1.1 data are grouped by the U.S. Geologic Survey's Major River Basins (MRBs, Crawford and others, 2006). MRB1, covering the New England and Mid-Atlantic River basins, contains NHDPlus Production Units 1 and 2. MRB2, covering the South Atlantic-Gulf and Tennessee River basins, contains NHDPlus Production Units 3 and 6. MRB3, covering the Great Lakes, Ohio, Upper Mississippi, and Souris-Red-Rainy River basins, contains NHDPlus Production Units 4, 5, 7 and 9. MRB4, covering the Missouri River basins, contains NHDPlus Production Units 10-lower and 10-upper. MRB5, covering the Lower Mississippi, Arkansas-White-Red, and Texas-Gulf River basins, contains NHDPlus Production Units 8, 11 and 12. MRB6, covering the Rio Grande, Colorado and Great Basin River basins, contains NHDPlus Production Units 13, 14, 15 and 16. MRB7, covering the Pacific Northwest River basins, contains NHDPlus Production Unit 17. MRB8, covering California River basins, contains NHDPlus Production Unit 18.

Data Series↗

Attributes for NHDPlus catchments (version 1.1) for the conterminous United States: 30-year average annual maximum temperature, 1971-2000

This data set represents the 30-year (1971-2000) average annual maximum temperature in Celsius multiplied by 100 compiled for every catchment of NHDPlus for the conterminous United States. The source data were the United States Average Monthly or Annual Minimum Temperature, 1971 - 2000 raster dataset produced by the PRISM Group at Oregon State University. The NHDPlus Version 1.1 is an integrated suite of application-ready geospatial datasets that incorporates many of the best features of the National Hydrography Dataset (NHD) and the National Elevation Dataset (NED). The NHDPlus includes a stream network (based on the 1:100,00-scale NHD), improved networking, naming, and value-added attributes (VAAs). NHDPlus also includes elevation-derived catchments (drainage areas) produced using a drainage enforcement technique first widely used in New England, and thus referred to as "the New England Method." This technique involves "burning in" the 1:100,000-scale NHD and when available building "walls" using the National Watershed Boundary Dataset (WBD). The resulting modified digital elevation model (HydroDEM) is used to produce hydrologic derivatives that agree with the NHD and WBD. Over the past two years, an interdisciplinary team from the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA), and contractors, found that this method produces the best quality NHD catchments using an automated process (USEPA, 2007). The NHDPlus dataset is organized by 18 Production Units that cover the conterminous United States. The NHDPlus version 1.1 data are grouped by the U.S. Geologic Survey's Major River Basins (MRBs, Crawford and others, 2006). MRB1, covering the New England and Mid-Atlantic River basins, contains NHDPlus Production Units 1 and 2. MRB2, covering the South Atlantic-Gulf and Tennessee River basins, contains NHDPlus Production Units 3 and 6. MRB3, covering the Great Lakes, Ohio, Upper Mississippi, and Souris-Red-Rainy River basins, contains NHDPlus Production Units 4, 5, 7 and 9. MRB4, covering the Missouri River basins, contains NHDPlus Production Units 10-lower and 10-upper. MRB5, covering the Lower Mississippi, Arkansas-White-Red, and Texas-Gulf River basins, contains NHDPlus Production Units 8, 11 and 12. MRB6, covering the Rio Grande, Colorado and Great Basin River basins, contains NHDPlus Production Units 13, 14, 15 and 16. MRB7, covering the Pacific Northwest River basins, contains NHDPlus Production Unit 17. MRB8, covering California River basins, contains NHDPlus Production Unit 18.

Data Series↗

Attributes for NHDPlus Catchments (Version 1.1) for the Conterminous United States: Average Annual Daily Minimum Temperature, 2002

This data set represents the average monthly minimum temperature in Celsius multiplied by 100 for 2002 compiled for every catchment of NHDPlus for the conterminous United States. The source data were the Near-Real-Time High-Resolution Monthly Average Maximum/Minimum Temperature for the Conterminous United States for 2002 raster dataset produced by the Spatial Climate Analysis Service at Oregon State University. The NHDPlus Version 1.1 is an integrated suite of application-ready geospatial datasets that incorporates many of the best features of the National Hydrography Dataset (NHD) and the National Elevation Dataset (NED). The NHDPlus includes a stream network (based on the 1:100,00-scale NHD), improved networking, naming, and value-added attributes (VAAs). NHDPlus also includes elevation-derived catchments (drainage areas) produced using a drainage enforcement technique first widely used in New England, and thus referred to as "the New England Method." This technique involves "burning in" the 1:100,000-scale NHD and when available building "walls" using the National Watershed Boundary Dataset (WBD). The resulting modified digital elevation model (HydroDEM) is used to produce hydrologic derivatives that agree with the NHD and WBD. Over the past two years, an interdisciplinary team from the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA), and contractors, found that this method produces the best quality NHD catchments using an automated process (USEPA, 2007). The NHDPlus dataset is organized by 18 Production Units that cover the conterminous United States. The NHDPlus version 1.1 data are grouped by the U.S. Geologic Survey's Major River Basins (MRBs, Crawford and others, 2006). MRB1, covering the New England and Mid-Atlantic River basins, contains NHDPlus Production Units 1 and 2. MRB2, covering the South Atlantic-Gulf and Tennessee River basins, contains NHDPlus Production Units 3 and 6. MRB3, covering the Great Lakes, Ohio, Upper Mississippi, and Souris-Red-Rainy River basins, contains NHDPlus Production Units 4, 5, 7 and 9. MRB4, covering the Missouri River basins, contains NHDPlus Production Units 10-lower and 10-upper. MRB5, covering the Lower Mississippi, Arkansas-White-Red, and Texas-Gulf River basins, contains NHDPlus Production Units 8, 11 and 12. MRB6, covering the Rio Grande, Colorado and Great Basin River basins, contains NHDPlus Production Units 13, 14, 15 and 16. MRB7, covering the Pacific Northwest River basins, contains NHDPlus Production Unit 17. MRB8, covering California River basins, contains NHDPlus Production Unit 18.

Data Series↗

Attributes for NHDPlus Catchments (Version 1.1) for the Conterminous United States: 30-Year Average Annual Minimum Temperature, 1971-2000

This data set represents the 30-year (1971-2000) average annual minimum temperature in Celsius multiplied by 100 compiled for every catchment of NHDPlus for the conterminous United States. The source data were the "United States Average Monthly or Annual Minimum Temperature, 1971 - 2000" raster dataset produced by the PRISM Group at Oregon State University. The NHDPlus Version 1.1 is an integrated suite of application-ready geospatial datasets that incorporates many of the best features of the National Hydrography Dataset (NHD) and the National Elevation Dataset (NED). The NHDPlus includes a stream network (based on the 1:100,00-scale NHD), improved networking, naming, and value-added attributes (VAAs). NHDPlus also includes elevation-derived catchments (drainage areas) produced using a drainage enforcement technique first widely used in New England, and thus referred to as "the New England Method." This technique involves "burning in" the 1:100,000-scale NHD and when available building "walls" using the National Watershed Boundary Dataset (WBD). The resulting modified digital elevation model (HydroDEM) is used to produce hydrologic derivatives that agree with the NHD and WBD. Over the past two years, an interdisciplinary team from the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA), and contractors, found that this method produces the best quality NHD catchments using an automated process (USEPA, 2007). The NHDPlus dataset is organized by 18 Production Units that cover the conterminous United States. The NHDPlus version 1.1 data are grouped by the U.S. Geologic Survey's Major River Basins (MRBs, Crawford and others, 2006). MRB1, covering the New England and Mid-Atlantic River basins, contains NHDPlus Production Units 1 and 2. MRB2, covering the South Atlantic-Gulf and Tennessee River basins, contains NHDPlus Production Units 3 and 6. MRB3, covering the Great Lakes, Ohio, Upper Mississippi, and Souris-Red-Rainy River basins, contains NHDPlus Production Units 4, 5, 7 and 9. MRB4, covering the Missouri River basins, contains NHDPlus Production Units 10-lower and 10-upper. MRB5, covering the Lower Mississippi, Arkansas-White-Red, and Texas-Gulf River basins, contains NHDPlus Production Units 8, 11 and 12. MRB6, covering the Rio Grande, Colorado and Great Basin River basins, contains NHDPlus Production Units 13, 14, 15 and 16. MRB7, covering the Pacific Northwest River basins, contains NHDPlus Production Unit 17. MRB8, covering California River basins, contains NHDPlus Production Unit 18.

Data Series↗

Attributes for NHDPlus Catchments (Version 1.1): Basin Characteristics, 2002

This data set represents basin characteristics, compiled for every catchment in NHDPlus for the conterminous United States. These characteristics are basin shape index, stream density, sinuosity, mean elevation, mean slope, and number of road-stream crossings. The source data sets are the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's NHDPlus and the U.S. Census Bureau's TIGER/Line Files. The NHDPlus Version 1.1 is an integrated suite of application-ready geospatial datasets that incorporates many of the best features of the National Hydrography Dataset (NHD) and the National Elevation Dataset (NED). The NHDPlus includes a stream network (based on the 1:100,00-scale NHD), improved networking, naming, and value-added attributes (VAAs). NHDPlus also includes elevation-derived catchments (drainage areas) produced using a drainage enforcement technique first widely used in New England, and thus referred to as "the New England Method." This technique involves "burning in" the 1:100,000-scale NHD and when available building "walls" using the National Watershed Boundary Dataset (WBD). The resulting modified digital elevation model (HydroDEM) is used to produce hydrologic derivatives that agree with the NHD and WBD. Over the past two years, an interdisciplinary team from the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA), and contractors, found that this method produces the best quality NHD catchments using an automated process (USEPA, 2007). The NHDPlus dataset is organized by 18 Production Units that cover the conterminous United States. The NHDPlus version 1.1 data are grouped by the U.S. Geologic Survey's Major River Basins (MRBs, Crawford and others, 2006). MRB1, covering the New England and Mid-Atlantic River basins, contains NHDPlus Production Units 1 and 2. MRB2, covering the South Atlantic-Gulf and Tennessee River basins, contains NHDPlus Production Units 3 and 6. MRB3, covering the Great Lakes, Ohio, Upper Mississippi, and Souris-Red-Rainy River basins, contains NHDPlus Production Units 4, 5, 7 and 9. MRB4, covering the Missouri River basins, contains NHDPlus Production Units 10-lower and 10-upper. MRB5, covering the Lower Mississippi, Arkansas-White-Red, and Texas-Gulf River basins, contains NHDPlus Production Units 8, 11 and 12. MRB6, covering the Rio Grande, Colorado and Great Basin River basins, contains NHDPlus Production Units 13, 14, 15 and 16. MRB7, covering the Pacific Northwest River basins, contains NHDPlus Production Unit 17. MRB8, covering California River basins, contains NHDPlus Production Unit 18.

Data Series↗

EAARL coastal topography — Northern Gulf of Mexico, 2007: Bare earth

These remotely sensed, geographically referenced elevation measurements of Lidar -derived bare earth ( BE ) topography were produced as a collaborative effort between the U.S. Geological Survey ( USGS ), Florida Integrated Science Center ( FISC ), St. Petersburg, FL ; the National Park Service ( NPS ), Gulf Coast Network, Lafayette, LA ; and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration ( NASA ), Wallops Flight Facility, VA . The purpose of this project is to provide highly detailed and accurate datasets of select barrier islands and peninsular regions of Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, and Florida, acquired on June 27-30, 2007. The datasets are made available for use as a management tool to research scientists and natural resource managers. An innovative airborne Lidar instrument originally developed at the NASA Wallops Flight Facility, and known as the Experimental Advanced Airborne Research Lidar ( EAARL ), was used during data acquisition. The EAARL system is a raster-scanning, waveform-resolving, green-wavelength (532-nanometer) Lidar designed to map near-shore bathymetry, topography, and vegetation structure simultaneously. The EAARL sensor suite includes the raster-scanning, water-penetrating full-waveform adaptive Lidar , a down-looking red-green-blue ( RGB ) digital camera, a high-resolution multi-spectral color infrared ( CIR ) camera, two precision dual-frequency kinematic carrier-phase GPS receivers, and an integrated miniature digital inertial measurement unit which provide for submeter georeferencing of each laser sample. The nominal EAARL platform is a twin-engine Cessna 310 aircraft, but the instrument may be deployed on a range of light aircraft. A single pilot, a Lidar operator, and a data analyst constitute the crew for most survey operations. This sensor has the potential to make significant contributions in measuring sub-aerial and submarine coastal topography within cross-environmental surveys. Elevation measurements were collected over the survey area using the EAARL system and the resulting data were then processed using the Airborne Lidar Processing System ( ALPS ), a custom-built processing system developed in a NASA - USGS collaboration. ALPS supports the exploration and processing of Lidar data in an interactive or batch mode. Modules for presurvey flight line definition, flight path plotting, Lidar raster and waveform investigation, and digital camera image playback have been developed. Processing algorithms have been developed to extract the range to the first and last significant return within each waveform. ALPS is used routinely to create maps that represent submerged or sub-aerial topography. Specialized filtering algorithms have been implemented to determine the 'bare earth' under vegetation from a point cloud of last return elevations.

northern Gulf of Mexico↗

Arkansas and Landsat

Scenic Arkansas certainly lives up to its nickname, “The Natural State.” The Ozark Plateau and Ouachita Mountains boast stunning views, vast resources, and recreation. Hardwood and pine forests cover one-half of the State. The major rivers—Arkansas, Ouachita, Red, and White—offer recreation and navigation as they drain toward the Mississippi River, which forms the State’s eastern border. Smaller streams and rivers, reservoirs, and rice fields serve as homes for wildlife as well, including birds migrating along the Mississippi Flyway. Agriculture has always been a key industry in Arkansas, which is the top rice producer in the United States. Poultry, soybeans, cotton, cattle, and timber are among other agricultural products that contribute to the State’s economy. The aquaculture industry has diversified from just goldfish to more than 20 species of fish and crustaceans. Geological features include waterfalls, limestone caves, and the country’s only active diamond mine, Crater of Diamonds State Park, where visitors can keep any rock or mineral they find in the volcanic crater. Hot Springs National Park—within the city of Hot Springs—features thermal springs of water heated deep belowground that follow a fault line of the Ouachita Mountains up to the surface. Here are a few ways Landsat has benefited Arkansas.

Arkansas↗

The physical hydrogeology of ore deposits

Hydrothermal ore deposits represent a convergence of fluid flow, thermal energy, and solute flux that is hydrogeologically unusual. From the hydrogeologic perspective, hydrothermal ore deposition represents a complex coupled-flow problem—sufficiently complex that physically rigorous description of the coupled thermal (T), hydraulic (H), mechanical (M), and chemical (C) processes (THMC modeling) continues to challenge our computational ability. Though research into these coupled behaviors has found only a limited subset to be quantitatively tractable, it has yielded valuable insights into the workings of hydrothermal systems in a wide range of geologic environments including sedimentary, metamorphic, and magmatic. Examples of these insights include the quantification of likely driving mechanisms, rates and paths of fluid flow, ore-mineral precipitation mechanisms, longevity of hydrothermal systems, mechanisms by which hydrothermal fluids acquire their temperature and composition, and the controlling influence of permeability and other rock properties on hydrothermal fluid behavior. In this communication we review some of the fundamental theory needed to characterize the physical hydrogeology of hydrothermal systems and discuss how this theory has been applied in studies of Mississippi Valley-type, tabular uranium, porphyry, epithermal, and mid-ocean ridge ore-forming systems. A key limitation in the computational state-of-the-art is the inability to describe fluid flow and transport fully in the many ore systems that show evidence of repeated shear or tensional failure with associated dynamic variations in permeability. However, we discuss global-scale compilations that suggest some numerical constraints on both mean and dynamically enhanced crustal permeability. Principles of physical hydrogeology can be powerful tools for investigating hydrothermal ore formation and are becoming increasingly accessible with ongoing advances in modeling software.

Economic Geology↗

Geology & mineralogy of the Old Mine Park area Trumbull Connecticut

Old Mine Park, in the northern Trumbull area (also known as Long Hill) of southwestern Connecticut, is a recreation area encompassing the mineral-rich hill of “Saganawamps” and owned by the Town of Trumbull. Most of its 72 acres are wooded, rocky and undeveloped but it is surrounded by dense infrastructure and transportation, residential, retail, and commercial development (Figure 1). It preserves the first tungsten mine operated east of the Mississippi and the first topaz locality identified in the USA (Hitchcock and Silliman, 1825), as well as the type locality for the mineral tungstite (WO 3 ·H 2 O). Hiking and biking trails cross the property and continue beyond the park along the former New Haven railroad line that parallels the Pequonnock River, which flows through the southern part of the park. Access is from the south via Old Mine Road, or from the north via Corporate Drive. During the mining era and for many decades after its creation the park was a famous source of mineral specimens. In 2016 the Trumbull Parks and Recreation Commission suspended collecting of any kind.

Connecticut↗

Economics of the coal industry east of the Mississippi, 1973-1982

Government regulations on health, safety and environment have been poppular blamed for the declining productivity in U.S. coal mines since 1970. The stagnation in the coal industry east of the Mississippi is alleged to have been caused by this declining productivity and by the growth of cheaper and cleaner coal production west of the Mississippi. Economic evidence suggests, however, that productivity declines were more due to a relative lowering of labor costs in comparison with coal prices and due to work stoppages. The development of western coals fields was spurred by growth in local demand and had only a relatively small impact on coal production east of the Mississippi. Problems of the eastern coal industry are rooted mainly in slow economic growth in eastern U.S. which must be addressed in the long-term interests of the eastern coal industry.

International Journal of Coal Geology↗

EAARL Coastal Topography-Pearl River Delta 2008: Bare Earth

These remotely sensed, geographically referenced elevation measurements of Lidar-derived bare earth (BE) topography were produced as a collaborative effort between the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), Florida Integrated Science Center (FISC), St. Petersburg, FL; the University of New Orleans (UNO), Pontchartrain Institute for Environmental Sciences (PIES), New Orleans, LA; and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), Wallops Flight Facility, VA. This project provides highly detailed and accurate datasets of a portion of the Pearl River Delta in Louisiana and Mississippi, acquired March 9-11, 2008. The datasets are made available for use as a management tool to research scientists and natural resource managers. An innovative airborne Lidar instrument originally developed at the NASA Wallops Flight Facility, and known as the Experimental Advanced Airborne Research Lidar (EAARL), was used during data acquisition. The EAARL system is a raster-scanning, waveform-resolving, green-wavelength (532-nanometer) Lidar designed to map near-shore bathymetry, topography, and vegetation structure simultaneously. The EAARL sensor suite includes the raster-scanning, water-penetrating full-waveform adaptive Lidar, a down-looking red-green-blue (RGB) digital camera, a high-resolution multi-spectral color infrared (CIR) camera, two precision dual-frequency kinematic carrier-phase GPS receivers, and an integrated miniature digital inertial measurement unit, which provide for submeter georeferencing of each laser sample. The nominal EAARL platform is a twin-engine Cessna 310 aircraft, but the instrument may be deployed on a range of light aircraft. A single pilot, a Lidar operator, and a data analyst constitute the crew for most survey operations. This sensor has the potential to make significant contributions in measuring sub-aerial and submarine coastal topography within cross-environmental surveys. Elevation measurements were collected over the survey area using the EAARL system, and the resulting data were then processed using the Airborne Lidar Processing System (ALPS), a custom-built processing system developed in a NASA-USGS collaboration. ALPS supports the exploration and processing of Lidar data in an interactive or batch mode. Modules for presurvey flight line definition, flight path plotting, Lidar raster and waveform investigation, and digital camera image playback have been developed. Processing algorithms have been developed to extract the range to the first and last significant return within each waveform. ALPS is used routinely to create maps that represent submerged or first surface topography. Specialized filtering algorithms have been implemented to determine the 'bare earth' under vegetation from a point cloud of last return elevations.

Data Series↗

EAARL Coastal Topography-Pearl River Delta 2008: First Surface

These remotely sensed, geographically referenced elevation measurements of Lidar-derived first surface (FS) topography were produced as a collaborative effort between the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), Florida Integrated Science Center (FISC), St. Petersburg, FL; the University of New Orleans (UNO), Pontchartrain Institute for Environmental Sciences (PIES), New Orleans, LA; and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), Wallops Flight Facility, VA. This project provides highly detailed and accurate datasets of a portion of the Pearl River Delta in Louisiana and Mississippi, acquired March 9-11, 2008. The datasets are made available for use as a management tool to research scientists and natural resource managers. An innovative airborne Lidar instrument originally developed at the NASA Wallops Flight Facility, and known as the Experimental Advanced Airborne Research Lidar (EAARL), was used during data acquisition. The EAARL system is a raster-scanning, waveform-resolving, green-wavelength (532-nanometer) Lidar designed to map near-shore bathymetry, topography, and vegetation structure simultaneously. The EAARL sensor suite includes the raster-scanning, water-penetrating full-waveform adaptive Lidar, a down-looking red-green-blue (RGB) digital camera, a high-resolution multi-spectral color infrared (CIR) camera, two precision dual-frequency kinematic carrier-phase GPS receivers, and an integrated miniature digital inertial measurement unit, which provide for submeter georeferencing of each laser sample. The nominal EAARL platform is a twin-engine Cessna 310 aircraft, but the instrument may be deployed on a range of light aircraft. A single pilot, a Lidar operator, and a data analyst constitute the crew for most survey operations. This sensor has the potential to make significant contributions in measuring sub-aerial and submarine coastal topography within cross-environmental surveys. Elevation measurements were collected over the survey area using the EAARL system, and the resulting data were then processed using the Airborne Lidar Processing System (ALPS), a custom-built processing system developed in a NASA-USGS collaboration. ALPS supports the exploration and processing of Lidar data in an interactive or batch mode. Modules for presurvey flight line definition, flight path plotting, Lidar raster and waveform investigation, and digital camera image playback have been developed. Processing algorithms have been developed to extract the range to the first and last significant return within each waveform. ALPS is used routinely to create maps that represent submerged or first surface topography. Specialized filtering algorithms have been implemented to determine the 'bare earth' under vegetation from a point cloud of last return elevations.

Data Series↗

Monitoring the water quality of the Nation's large rivers: Rio Grande NASQAN Program

The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) has monitored the water quality in the Rio Grande Basin as part of the redesigned National Stream Quality Accounting Network (NASQAN) since 1995 (Hooper and others, 1997). The NASQAN program was designed to characterize the concentrations and transport of sediment and selected chemical constituents found in the Nation's large rivers-including the Mississippi, Colorado, and Columbia in addition to the Rio Grande. In these four basins, the USGS currently (1998) operates a network of 40 NASQAN sites, with an emphasis on quantifying the mass flux for each constituent (the amount of material moving past the site, expressed in tons per day). By applying a consistent flux-based approach in the Rio Grande Basin, the NASQAN program is generating the information needed to identify regional sources for a variety of constituents, including agricultural chemicals and trace elements, in the basin. The effect of the large reservoirs on the Rio Grande can be observed as constituent fluxes are routed downstream. The analysis of constituent fluxes on a basin-wide scale will provide the means to assess the influence of human activity on water-quality conditions in the Rio Grande.

Colorado, New Mexico, Texas↗

Asian carp behavior in response to static water gun firing

The potential for invasion of Asian carp into the Great Lakes has ecological and socio-economic implications. If they become established, Asian carp are predicted to alter lake ecosystems and impact commercial and recreational fisheries. The Chicago Sanitary and Shipping Canal is an important biological conduit between the Mississippi River Basin, where invasive Asian carp are abundant, and the Great Lakes. Millions of dollars have been spent to erect an electric barrier defense in the canal to prevent movement of Asian carp into the Great Lakes, but the need for additional fish deterrent technologies to supplement the existing barrier is warranted. Scientists with the U.S. Geological Survey Northern Rocky Mountain Science Center are examining seismic water gun technology, formerly used in oceanic oil exploration, as a fish deterrent. The goal of the current study is to employ telemetry and sonar monitoring equipment to assess the behavioral response of Asian carp to seismic water guns and the sound energy it generates.

Illinois↗

Simulation of hypothetical Asian carp egg and larvae development and transport in the Lockport, Brandon Road, Dresden Island, and Marseilles Pools of the Illinois Waterway by use of the Fluvial Egg Drift Simulator (FluEgg) model

As part of the Great Lakes and Mississippi River Interbasin Study, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) is conducting an assessment of the vulnerability of the Chicago Area Waterway System and Des Plaines River to Asian carp (specifically, Hypophthalmichthys nobilis (bighead carp) and Hypophthalmichthys molitrix (silver carp)) spawning and recruitment. As part of this assessment, the USACE requested the help of the U.S. Geological Survey in predicting the fate and transport of Asian carp eggs hypothetically spawned at the electric dispersal barrier on the Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal and downstream of the Brandon Road Lock and Dam on the Des Plaines River under dry weather flow and high water temperature conditions. The Fluvial Egg Drift Simulator (FluEgg) model predicted that approximately 80 percent of silver carp eggs spawned near the electric dispersal barrier would hatch within the Lockport and Brandon Road pools (as close as 3.6 miles downstream of the barrier) and approximately 82 percent of the silver carp eggs spawned near the Brandon Road Dam would hatch in the Des Plaines River (as close as 1.6 miles downstream from the gates of Brandon Road Lock). Extension of the FluEgg model to include the fate and transport of larvae until gas bladder inflation—the point at which the larvae begin to leave the drift—suggests that eggs spawned at the electric dispersal barrier would reach the gas bladder inflation stage primarily within the Dresden Island Pool, and those spawned at the Brandon Road Dam would reach this stage primarily within the Marseilles and Starved Rock Pools.

Illinois↗

Biomass and vegetative characteristics of sawgrass grown in a tilting flume as part of a study of vegetative resistance to flow

The U.S. Geological Survey is studying vegetative resistance to flow in the south Florida Everglades as part of a multidisciplinary effort to restore the South Florida Ecosystem. In order to test the flow resistance of sawgrass, one of the dominant species in the Everglades, uniform, dense stands of sawgrass were grown in a tilting flume at Stennis Space Center, Mississippi. Depth of water in the flume was controlled by adding or removing metal plates at the downstream end of the flume. A series of experiments were conducted at various flow depths, and the velocity, flow depth, and water-surface slope were measured. During each set of experiments, the sawgrass was sampled in layers from the sediment water interface for vegetative characteristics, biomass, and leaf area index. The results of the vegetation sampling are summarized in a series of tables.

Open-File Report↗