Geology topics

Research about California;Oregon;Washington

Source-linked reports with geographic coverage including California;Oregon;Washington.

9 recordsLinked to original sources

USGS2014

Hydrothermal monitoring in a quiescent volcanic arc: Cascade Range, northwestern United States

Ongoing (1996–present) volcanic unrest near South Sister, Oregon, is accompanied by a striking set of hydrothermal anomalies, including elevated temperatures, elevated major ion concentrations, and 3 He/ 4 He ratios as large as 8.6 R A in slightly thermal springs. These observations prompted the US Geological Survey to begin a systematic hydrothermal-monitoring effort encompassing 25 sites and 10 of the highest-risk volcanoes in the Cascade volcanic arc, from Mount Baker near the Canadian border to Lassen Peak in northern California. A concerted effort was made to develop hourly, multiyear records of temperature and/or hydrothermal solute flux, suitable for retrospective comparison with other continuous geophysical monitoring data. Targets included summit fumarole groups and springs/streams that show clear evidence of magmatic influence in the form of high 3 He/ 4 He ratios and/or anomalous fluxes of magmatic CO 2 or heat. As of 2009–2012, summit fumarole temperatures in the Cascade Range were generally near or below the local pure water boiling point; the maximum observed superheat was <2.5°C at Mount Baker. Variability in ground temperature records from the summit fumarole sites is temperature-dependent, with the hottest sites tending to show less variability. Seasonal variability in the hydrothermal solute flux from magmatically influenced springs varied from essentially undetectable to a factor of 5–10. This range of observed behavior owes mainly to the local climate regime, with strongly snowmelt-influenced springs and streams exhibiting more variability. As of the end of the 2012 field season, there had been 87 occurrences of local seismic energy densities approximately ≥ 0.001 J/m 3 during periods of hourly record. Hydrothermal responses to these small seismic stimuli were generally undetectable or ambiguous. Evaluation of multiyear to multidecadal trends indicates that whereas the hydrothermal system at Mount St. Helens is still fast-evolving in response to the 1980–present eruptive cycle, there is no clear evidence of ongoing long-term trends in hydrothermal activity at other Cascade Range volcanoes that have been active or restless during the past century (Baker, South Sister, and Lassen). Experience gained during the Cascade Range hydrothermal-monitoring experiment informs ongoing efforts to capture entire unrest cycles at more active but generally less accessible volcanoes such as those in the Aleutian arc.

California;Oregon;Washington↗

USGS2014

Technical implementation plan for the ShakeAlert production system: an Earthquake Early Warning system for the West Coast of the United States

Earthquake Early Warning (EEW) systems can provide as much as tens of seconds of warning to people and automated systems before strong shaking arrives. The United States Geological Survey (USGS) and its partners are developing such an EEW system, called ShakeAlert, for the West Coast of the United States. This document describes the technical implementation of that system, which leverages existing stations and infrastructure of the Advanced National Seismic System (ANSS) regional networks to achieve this new capability. While significant progress has been made in developing the ShakeAlert early warning system, improved robustness of each component of the system and additional testing and certification are needed for the system to be reliable enough to issue public alerts. Major components of the system include dense networks of ground motion sensors, telecommunications from those sensors to central processing systems, algorithms for event detection and alert creation, and distribution systems to alert users. Capital investment costs for a West Coast EEW system are projected to be $38.3M, with additional annual maintenance and operations totaling $16.1M—in addition to current ANSS expenditures for earthquake monitoring. An EEW system is complementary to, but does not replace, other strategies to mitigate earthquake losses. The system has limitations: false and missed alerts are possible, and the area very near to an earthquake epicenter may receive little or no warning. However, such an EEW system would save lives, reduce injuries and damage, and improve community resilience by reducing longer-term economic losses for both public and private entities.

California;Oregon;Washington↗

USGS2014

Pacific Continental Shelf Environmental Assessment (PaCSEA): aerial seabird and marine mammal surveys off northern California, Oregon, and Washington, 2011-2012

Marine birds and mammals comprise an important community of meso- and upper-trophic-level predators within the northern California Current System (NCCS). The NCCS is located within one of the world’s four major eastern boundary currents and is characterized by an abundant and diverse marine ecosystem fuelled seasonally by wind-driven upwelling which supplies nutrient-rich water to abundant phytoplankton inhabiting the surface euphotic zone. The oceanographic conditions throughout the NCCS fluctuate according to well-described seasonal, inter-annual, and decadal cycles. Such oceanographic variability can influence patterns in the distribution, abundance, and habitat use among marine birds and mammals. Although there are an increasing number of studies documenting distributions and abundances among birds and mammals in various portions of the NCCS, there have been no comprehensive, large-scale, multi-seasonal surveys completed throughout this region since the early 1980s (off northern California; Briggs et al. 1987) and early 1990s (off Oregon and Washington; Bonnell et al. 1992, Briggs et al. 1992, Green et al. 1992). During 2011 and 2012, we completed the Pacific Continental Shelf Environmental Assessment (PaCSEA) which included replicated surveys over the continental shelfslope from shore to the 2000-meter (m) isobath along 32 broad-scale transects from Fort Bragg, California (39° N) through Grays Harbor, Washington (47° N). Additionally, surveys at a finer scale were conducted over the continental shelf within six designated Focal Areas: Fort Bragg, CA; Eureka, CA; Siltcoos Bank, OR; Newport, OR; Nehalem Bank, OR; and Grays Harbor, WA. We completed a total of 26,752 km of standardized, low-elevation aerial survey effort across three bathymetric domains: inner-shelf waters (<100-m depth), outer shelf waters (100 – 200-m depth) and continental slope waters (200 – 2000-m depth). Survey effort was similar among seasons (winter, summer, and fall) and between years and varied according to the three bathymetric domains: 47% (12,646 km) covered the continental slope, 33% (8887 km) covered the inner-shelf (0 – 100-m depth), and 20% (5,219 km) covered the outer-shelf. Overall, we recorded 15,403 sightings of 59,466 individual marine birds (12 families, 54 species). During winter, seven species groupings comprised >90% of the total number of birds counted (19,033) with Common Murres (Uria aalge) representing the majority of individuals counted (70.4% of total). The remaining six most abundant taxa included: Surf/White-winged Scoters (Melanitta perspicillata/M. fusca; 4.8% of total), Herring/Thayer’s Gulls (Larus argentatus/L. thayeri; 3.8% of total), Cassin’s Auklets (Ptychoramphus aleuticus; 3.8% of total), Glaucous-winged Gulls (Larus glaucescens; 3.7% of total), Black-legged Kittiwakes (Rissa tridactyla; 2.0% of total), and Western Gulls (Larus occidentalis; 1.9% of total). During summer, five species comprised >95% of the total number of birds counted (17,063) with the majority comprised of Common Murres (54.1% of total) and Sooty Shearwaters (Puffinus griseus; 34.4% of total). The remaining most abundant three taxa included: Fork-tailed Storm-Petrels (Oceanodroma furcata; 3.3% of total), Western Gulls (2.1% of total), and Leach’s Storm-Petrels (Oceanodroma leucorhoa; 1.1% of total). During fall, nine species comprised >85% of the total number of birds counted (23,376) with the majority comprised of Common Murres (50.0% of total) and Sooty Shearwaters (10.5% of total). The remaining seven taxa included Cassin’s Auklets (5.2% of total), Surf/White-winged Scoters (5.1% of total), Fork-tailed Storm-Petrels (3.8% of total), Red/Red-necked Phalaropes (Phalaropus fulicarius/P. lobatus; 3.2% of total), California Gulls (Larus californicus; 3.1% of total), Northern Fulmars (Fulmarus glacialis; 2.7% of total), and Sabine’s Gulls (Xema sabini; 2.2% of total). Throughout the entire PaCSEA survey area, average densities (± SE) at sea for all marine birds combined were similar between fall (23.7 ± 1.9 birds km -2 ) and winter (24.0 ± 1.9 birds km -2 ) and least during summer (16.3 ± 2.2 birds km -2 ). Marine bird densities at sea varied according to bathymetric domain and season. Throughout the entire PaCSEA study area average densities (± SE) for all marine birds combined were greatest over the inner-shelf domain (<100-m depth) during fall (49.4 ± 5.0 birds km -2 ) and similar during winter (37.4 ± 4.6 birds km -2 ) and summer (37.5 ± 6.4 birds km -2 ). Within the outer-shelf domain (100 – 200-m depth), average densities for all marine birds combined were greatest during winter (34.6 ± 4.2 birds km-2), lesser during fall (16.2 ± 1.7 birds km-2), and least during summer (6.9 ± 1.1 birds km-2). Within the farthest offshore waters over the continental slope domain (200 – 2000-m depth) average densities for all marine birds combined were greatest during fall (10.0 ± 2.2 birds km -2 ) and winter (9.3 ± 1.5 birds km -2 ), and lesser during summer (6.2 ± 1.4 birds km -2 ). We observed 16 cetacean species and five pinniped species. Among the Mysticeti (baleen whales), humpback whales (Megaptera novaeangliae) were most frequently observed (114 sightings of 264 individuals) during summer and fall mostly over the outer-shelf and slope waters, however, individuals were also seen within the Siltcoos, Nehalem, Fort Bragg, and Eureka Focal Areas. We recorded 11 Odontoceti (toothed whale) species. Harbor porpoises (Phocoena phocoena) were the most frequently sighted (164 sightings of 270 individuals). Harbor porpoises were present year-round and most frequently sighted within the inner-shelf domain throughout the entire study area in all seasons. Harbor porpoises occurred in all six Focal Areas, with noteworthy aggregations within the Eureka, Siltcoos, and Grays Harbor Focal Areas. We recorded 246 sightings of 375 individual pinnipeds (5 species). California sea lions (Zalophus californianus) were the most frequently sighted and were present year-round with slightly more sightings recorded during the fall. California sea lions showed a decreasing frequency of sightings and relative abundance with distance from shore across the bathymetric domains surveyed, being most frequently observed over the inner-shelf. Northern elephant seals (Mirounga angustirostris), harbor seals (Phoca vitulina), and northern fur seals (Callorhinus ursinus) were observed occasionally during all seasons with harbor seals occurring nearshore (usually within 10 km of the coast) and northern fur seals almost exclusively beyond the shelf break (> 200-m depth), especially during winter off Oregon and Washington. Northern (Steller’s) sea lions (Eumetopias jubatus) were uncommonly sighted during winter and fall.

California;Oregon;Washington↗

USGS2013

Atmospheric rivers as drought busters on the U.S. west coast

Atmospheric rivers (ARs) have, in recent years, been recognized as the cause of the large majority of major floods in rivers all along the U.S. West Coast and as the source of 30%–50% of all precipitation in the same region. The present study surveys the frequency with which ARs have played a critical role as a common cause of the end of droughts on the West Coast. This question was based on the observation that, in most cases, droughts end abruptly as a result of the arrival of an especially wet month or, more exactly, a few very large storms. This observation is documented using both Palmer Drought Severity Index and 6-month Standardized Precipitation Index measures of drought occurrence for climate divisions across the conterminous United States from 1895 to 2010. When the individual storm sequences that contributed most to the wet months that broke historical West Coast droughts from 1950 to 2010 were evaluated, 33%–74% of droughts were broken by the arrival of landfalling AR storms. In the Pacific Northwest, 60%–74% of all persistent drought endings have been brought about by the arrival of AR storms. In California, about 33%–40% of all persistent drought endings have been brought about by landfalling AR storms, with more localized low pressure systems responsible for many of the remaining drought breaks.

California;Oregon;Washington↗

USGS2012

Future scenarios of land-use and land-cover change in the United States--the Marine West Coast Forests Ecoregion

Detecting, quantifying, and projecting historical and future changes in land use and land cover (LULC) has emerged as a core research area for the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS). Changes in LULC are important drivers of changes to biogeochemical cycles, the exchange of energy between the Earth’s surface and atmosphere, biodiversity, water quality, and climate change. To quantify the rates of recent historical LULC change, the USGS Land Cover Trends project recently completed a unique ecoregion-based assessment of late 20th century LULC change for the western United States. To characterize present LULC, the USGS and partners have created the National Land Cover Database (NLCD) for the years 1992, 2001, and 2006. Both Land Cover Trends and NLCD projects continue to evolve in an effort to better characterize historical and present LULC conditions and are the foundation of the data presented in this report. Projecting future changes in LULC requires an understanding of the rates and patterns of change, the major driving forces, and the socioeconomic and biophysical determinants and capacities of regions. The data presented in this report is the result of an effort by USGS scientists to downscale the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) Special Report on Emission Scenarios (SRES) to ecoregions of the conterminous United States as part of the USGS Biological Carbon Sequestration Assessment. The USGS biological carbon assessment was mandated by Section 712 of the Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007. As part of the legislative mandate, the USGS is required to publish a methodology describing, in detail, the approach to be used for the assessment. The development of future LULC scenarios is described in chapter 3.2 and appendix A. Spatial modeling is described in chapter 3.3.2 and appendix B and in Sohl and others (2011). In this report, we briefly summarize the major components and methods used to downscale IPCC-SRES scenarios to ecoregions of the conterminous United States, followed by a description of the Marine West Coast Forests Ecoregion, and lastly a description of the data being published as part of this report.

California;Oregon;Washington↗

USGS2012

Coast Range Ecoregion: Chapter 1 in Status and trends of land change in the Western United States--1973 to 2000

The Coast Range Ecoregion, which covers approximately 57,338 km 2 (22,138 mi 2 ), is a thin, linear ecoregion along the Pacific Coast, stretching roughly 1,300 km from the Olympic Peninsula, in northwest Washington, to an area south of San Francisco, California (fig. 1) (Omernik, 1987; U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, 1997). It is bounded on the east by the Puget Lowland, the Willamette Valley, the Klamath Mountains, and the Southern and Central California Chaparral and Oak Woodlands Ecoregions. Almost the entire Coast Range Ecoregion lies within 100 km of the coast. Topography is highly variable, with coastal mountain ranges and valleys ranging from sea level to over 1,000 m in elevation (fig. 2). A maritime climate, along with high topographic relief, results in substantial, but regionally variable, amounts of rainfall, ranging from 130 cm to more than 350 cm per year. The favorable climate of the Coast Range Ecoregion has supported forests of Sitka spruce ( Picea sitchensis ) along its northern coast and coast redwoods ( Sequoia sempervirens ) along its southern coast, as well as Douglas-fir ( Pseudotsuga menziesii ), western red cedar ( Thuja plicata ), and western hemlock ( Tsuga heterophylla ) inland (Omernik, 1987). Today, however, much of the forest is heavily managed for logging (fig. 3), although the ecoregion still supports some of the largest remaining areas of old-growth forest in the Pacific Northwest. Agriculture is a minor component of the landscape, present locally in flat lands and valleys near the coast. Urban development is minimal; Eureka, California, is the only urban center in the ecoregion, with a population of over 26,000 (U.S. Census Bureau, 2000).

California;Oregon;Washington↗

USGS2012

Cascades Ecoregion: Chapter 11 in Status and trends of land change in the Western United States--1973 to 2000

The Cascades Ecoregion (Omernik, 1987; U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, 1997) covers approximately 46,787 km 2 (18,064 mi 2 ) in Washington, Oregon, and California (fig. 1). The main body of the ecoregion extends from Snoqualmie Pass, Washington, in the north, to Hayden Mountain, near State Highway 66 in southern Oregon. Also included in the ecoregion is a small isolated section south of Bend, Oregon, as well as a larger one around Mount Shasta, California. The ecoregion is bounded on the west by the Klamath Mountains, Willamette Valley, and Puget Lowland Ecoregions; on the north by the North Cascades Ecoregion; and on the east by the Eastern Cascades Slopes and Foothills Ecoregion. The Cascades Ecoregion is a forested, mountainous ecoregion, and it contains a large amount of Cenozoic volcanic rock and many active and inactive volcanoes, especially in the east (McNab and Avers, 1994). Elevations range from near sea level at the Columbia River to 4,390 m at Mount Rainier in Washington, with most of the ecoregion between 645 and 2,258 m. The west side of the ecoregion is characterized by long, steep ridges and wide river valleys. Subalpine meadows are present at higher elevations, and alpine glaciers have left till and outwash deposits (McNab and Avers, 1994). Precipitation in the Cascades Ecoregion ranges from 1,300 to 3,800 mm, falling mostly as rain and snow from October to June. Average annual temperatures range from –1ºC to 11ºC. The length of the growing season varies from less than 30 days to 240 days (McNab and Avers, 1994).

California;Oregon;Washington↗

USGS2012

Eastern Cascades Slopes and Foothills Ecoregion: Chapter 12 in Status and trends of land change in the Western United States--1973 to 2000

The Eastern Cascades Slopes and Foothills Ecoregion (Omernik, 1987; U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, 1997) covers approximately 57,329 km² (22,135 mi²) in the states of Washington, Oregon, and California (fig. 1). The ecoregion is bounded on the east by the Columbia Plateau, Blue Mountains, and Northern Basin and Range Ecoregions; on the south by the Sierra Nevada Ecoregion; on the west by the Klamath Mountains and Cascades Ecoregions; and on the north by the North Cascades Ecoregion (fig. 1). Because the Eastern Cascades Slopes and Foothills Ecoregion lies within the rain shadow of the Cascade Range, the annual amount of precipitation varies greatly, from 500 mm in the eastern and southern sections of the ecoregion to 3,000 mm in the area bordering the higher Cascade Range to the west. Precipitation (either rain or snow) falls mostly in the fall, through winter into spring. Elevations range from near sea level at the Columbia River to more than 3,300 m; most of the region is between 900 and 2,000 m high. In the plateaus, elevation generally varies from 60 to 600 m (McNab and Avers, 1994).

California;Oregon;Washington↗

USGS1999

The Washington and Oregon mid-shelf silt deposit and its relation to the late Holocene Columbia River sediment budget

The purpose of this report is to compile and analyze existing data which lend support to the development of a sediment budget for the Columbia River, coastal, and offshore regions of southwest Washington. This will contribute to the construction of a sediment budget model which will reflect sediment sources, depocenters, and the sediment contribution to each region. The Columbia River is the source of modern sediment for the beaches of southwest Washington. Development of the sediment budget is necessary to understand the long term effects that reduction in sediment supply has on present day areas of sediment erosion and accumulation in the region. Figure 1 describes the origin, distribution, and thickness of the Mid-Shelf Silt Deposit (MSSD) based on analysis of seismic data acquired between 1976-1980 (Wolf et al., 1997). Sediment volumes deposited during the past 5000 years were calculated for each of the physiographic areal compartments shown in Figure 2. Table 1 organizes the data from Figures 1 and 2 into tabular form. This table provides a representation of the percent volume and weight of sediment types which contribute to the estimated Columbia River sediment budget. The compartments shown in Figure 2 are color coordinated with Table 1.

California;Oregon;Washington↗