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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 1,117 records · Page 62Linked to original sources
USGS2009

Floods of water and lava in the Columbia River Basin: Analogs for Mars

The Columbia River Basin (CRB) is home to the best studied examples of two of the most spectacular geologic processes on Earth and Mars: flood volcanism and catastrophic water floods. Additionally, features formed by a variety of eolian, glacial, tectonic, and mass-wasting processes can also be seen in the CRB. These terrains provide exceptional terrestrial analogs for the study of similar processes on Mars. This field guide describes four one-day trips out of Moses Lake, Washington, to observe a wide variety of Mars analogs.

Oregon, Washington↗
USGS2004

Mapping saline groundwater beneath the Sea Galilee and its vicinity using time domain electromagnetic (TDEM) geophysical technique

An extensive time domain electromagnetic (TDEM) survey covering the Sea of Galilee with a dense grid of points has been recently carried out. A total of 269 offshore and 33 supplementary onshore TDEM soundings were performed along six N-S and ten W-E profiles and at selected points both offshore and onshore along the whole coastal line. The interpreted resistivities were calibrated with the direct salinity measurements in the Haon-2 borehole and relatively deep (5 m) cores taken from the lake bottom. It was found that resistivities below 1 ohm-m are solely indicative of groundwater salinity exceeding 10,000 mg Cl/l. Such low resistivities (high salinities) were detected at depths greater than 15 m below almost the entire bottom of the lake. At some parts of the lake, particularly in the south, the saline water was detected at shallower depths, sometimes at a few meters below the bottom. Relatively high resistivity (fresh groundwater) was found along the margins of the lake down to roughly 100 m, the maximum exploration depth of the system. The detected sharp lateral contrasts at the lake margin between high and low resistivities coincide with the faults separating the carbonate and clastic units, respectively. The geometry of the fresh/saline groundwater interface below the central part of the lake is very similar to the shape of the lake bottom, probably due to the diffusive salt transport from the bottom sediments to the lake water. The above geophysical observations suggest differentsalt transport mechanisms from the sediments to the central part of the lake (diffusion) and from regional aquifers to the margins of the lake (advection). ?? 2004 Science From Israel/LPPLtd.

Israel Journal of Earth Sciences↗
USGS2003

Tsunamis generated by subaerial mass flows

Tsunamis generated in lakes and reservoirs by subaerial mass flows pose distinctive problems for hazards assessment because the domain of interest is commonly the "near field," beyond the zone of complex splashing but close enough to the source that wave propagation effects are not predominant. Scaling analysis of the equations governing water wave propagation shows that near-field wave amplitude and wavelength should depend on certain measures of mass flow dynamics and volume. The scaling analysis motivates a successful collapse (in dimensionless space) of data from two distinct sets of experiments with solid block "wave makers." To first order, wave amplitude/water depth is a simple function of the ratio of dimensionless wave maker travel time to dimensionless wave maker volume per unit width. Wave amplitude data from previous laboratory investigations with both rigid and deformable wave makers follow the same trend in dimensionless parameter space as our own data. The characteristic wavelength/water depth for all our experiments is simply proportional to dimensionless wave maker travel time, which is itself given approximately by a simple function of wave maker length/water depth. Wave maker shape and rigidity do not otherwise influence wave features. Application of the amplitude scaling relation to several historical events yields "predicted" near-field wave amplitudes in reasonable agreement with measurements and observations. Together, the scaling relations for near-field amplitude, wavelength, and submerged travel time provide key inputs necessary for computational wave propagation and hazards assessment.

Journal of Geophysical Research B: Solid Earth↗
USGS1997

Photometric stability of the lunar surface

The rate at which cratering events currently occur on the Moon is considered in light of their influence on the use of the Moon as a radiometric standard. The radiometric effect of small impact events is determined empirically from the study of Clementine images. Events that would change the integral brightness of the moon by 1% are expected once per 1.4 Gyr. Events that cause a 1% shift in one pixel for low Earth-orbiting instruments with a 1-km nadir field of view are expected approximately once each 43 Myr. Events discernible at 1% radiometric resolution with a 5 arc-sec telescope resolution correspond to crater diameters of approximately 210 m and are expected once every 200 years. These rates are uncertain by a factor of two. For a fixed illumination and observation geometry, the Moon can be considered photometrically stable to 1 ?? 10-8per annum for irradiance, and 1 ?? 10-7per annum for radiance at a resolution common for spacecraft imaging instruments, exceeding reasonable instrument goals by six orders of magnitude. ?? 1997 Academic Press.

Icarus↗
USGS2010

Active shoreline of Ontario Lacus, Titan: A morphological study of the lake and its surroundings

Of more than 400 filled lakes now identified on Titan, the first and largest reported in the southern latitudes is Ontario Lacus, which is dark in both infrared and microwave. Here we describe recent observations including synthetic aperture radar (SAR) images by Cassini's radar instrument (??= 2 cm) and show morphological evidence for active material transport and erosion. Ontario Lacus lies in a shallow depression, with greater relief on the southwestern shore and a gently sloping, possibly wave-generated beach to the northeast. The lake has a closed internal drainage system fed by Earth-like rivers, deltas and alluvial fans. Evidence for active shoreline processes, including the wave-modified lakefront and deltaic deposition, indicates that Ontario is a dynamic feature undergoing typical terrestrial forms of littoral modification. Copyright ?? 2010 by the American Geophysical Union.

Geophysical Research Letters↗
USGS2017

Using strain rates to forecast seismic hazards

One essential component in forecasting seismic hazards is observing the gradual accumulation of tectonic strain accumulation along faults before this strain is suddenly released as earthquakes. Typically, seismic hazard models are based on geologic estimates of slip rates along faults and historical records of seismic activity, neither of which records actively accumulating strain. But this strain can be estimated by geodesy: the precise measurement of tiny position changes of Earth’s surface, obtained from GPS , interferometric synthetic aperture radar ( InSAR ), or a variety of other instruments.

Eos, Earth and Space Science News↗
USGS2015

Crustal deformation in the New Madrid seismic zone and the role of postseismic processes

Global Navigation Satellite System data across the New Madrid seismic zone (NMSZ) in the central United States over the period from 2000 through 2014 are analyzed and modeled with several deformation mechanisms including the following: (1) creep on subsurface dislocations, (2) postseismic frictional afterslip and viscoelastic relaxation from the 1811–1812 and 1450 earthquakes in the NMSZ, and (3) regional strain. In agreement with previous studies, a dislocation creeping at about 4 mm/yr between 12 and 20 km depth along the downdip extension of the Reelfoot fault reproduces the observations well. We find that a dynamic model of postseismic frictional afterslip from the 1450 and February 1812 Reelfoot fault events can explain this creep. Kinematic and dynamic models involving the Cottonwood Grove fault provide minimal predictive power. This is likely due to the smaller size of the December 1811 event on the Cottonwood Grove fault and a distribution of stations better suited to constrain localized strain across the Reelfoot fault. Regional compressive strain across the NMSZ is found to be less than 3 × 10 −9 /yr. If much of the present-day surface deformation results from afterslip, it is likely that many of the earthquakes we see today in the NMSZ are aftershocks from the 1811–1812 New Madrid earthquakes. Despite this conclusion, our results are consistent with observations and models of intraplate earthquake clustering. Given this and the recent paleoseismic history of the region, we suggest that seismic hazard is likely to remain significant.

Journal of Geophysical Research B: Solid Earth↗
USGS2013

Clustering of GPS velocities in the Mojave Block, southeastern California

We find subdivisions within the Mojave Block using cluster analysis to identify groupings in the velocities observed at GPS stations there. The clusters are represented on a fault map by symbols located at the positions of the GPS stations, each symbol representing the cluster to which the velocity of that GPS station belongs. Fault systems that separate the clusters are readily identified on such a map. The most significant representation as judged by the gap test involves 4 clusters within the Mojave Block. The fault systems bounding the clusters from east to west are 1) the faults defining the eastern boundary of the Northeast Mojave Domain extended southward to connect to the Hector Mine rupture, 2) the Calico-Paradise fault system, 3) the Landers-Blackwater fault system, and 4) the Helendale-Lockhart fault system. This division of the Mojave Block is very similar to that proposed by Meade and Hager. However, no cluster boundary coincides with the Garlock Fault, the northern boundary of the Mojave Block. Rather, the clusters appear to continue without interruption from the Mojave Block north into the southern Walker Lane Belt, similar to the continuity across the Garlock Fault of the shear zone along the Blackwater-Little Lake fault system observed by Peltzer et al. Mapped traces of individual faults in the Mojave Block terminate within the block and do not continue across the Garlock Fault [Dokka and Travis, ].

California↗
USGS2021

Geodetic constraints on a 25-year magmatic inflation episode near Three Sisters, central Oregon

Crustal inflation near the Three Sisters volcanic center documented since the mid-1990s has persisted for more than two decades. We update past analyses of the event through 2020 by simultaneously inverting InSAR interferograms, GPS time series, and leveling data for time-dependent volcanic deformation source parameters. We explore several source models to estimate how the deformation rate varied through time and to identify parameters that can reproduce measured deformation. Our preferred model is a Mogi source 4.1 km below sea level (5.9 km below the surface) about 5 km west of the summit of South Sister. Inflation started in late 1995 or 1996; the rate increased rapidly during 1998–1999, and peaked in late 1999, resulting in maximum surface uplift of about 30 cm by mid-2020. Since 2000, the inflation rate generally declined exponentially with a time constant of about 6 years. Two source inflation scenarios fit the data equally well. In the first, the crust surrounding the source is elastic and the net source-volume increase, which we attribute to persistent magma input, has been about 49 × 10 6 m 3 . The second scenario adds a viscoelastic shell surrounding the Mogi source. In that case, an injection of about 21 × 10 6 m 3 of magma prior to 2000, followed by continuing relaxation of the viscoelastic shell, can account for most of the observed surface deformation. In both scenarios, modeling reveals quasiperiodic increases in the inflation rate (pulses) with a recurrence interval of 3–4 years, both before and after 2000.

Oregon↗
USGS2012

Paleoseismology along the 1980 surface rupture of the Irpinia Fault: Implications for earthquake recurrence in the southern Apennines, Italy

The Irpinia fault was the source of the M s 6.9 1980 Irpinia earthquake and produced the first unequivocal historical surface faulting in Italy. Trenching of the 1980 fault scarp at Piano di Pecore, a flat intermontane basin about 5 km south of the 1980 instrumental epicenter, provides the first data on earthquake recurrence intervals, slip per event, and slip rate on a major normal fault in the Southern Apennines fault zone. The trenches exposed evidence of four pre-1980 paleoearthquakes that occurred during the past 8600 years. A best estimate average recurrence interval is 2150 years, although the time interval between individual events varies by as much as a factor of 2. Each paleo earthquake is similar to the 1980 surface rupture in amount of slip and style of deformation, which suggests that the 1980 event is characteristic for the Irpinia fault. Slip per event values average 61 cm. The net vertical displacement of 2.12–2.36 m since 8600 cal year B.P. observed in the trenches gives a vertical slip rate of 0.25–0.35 mm/yr, a dip slip rate of 0.29–0.40 mm/yr, and an extension rate of 0.14–0.20 mm/yr. Although fault behavior data are only available for the Irpinia fault they provide a starting point for evaluating earthquake recurrence and rates of deformation in southern Apennines. They suggest that (1) fault specific earthquake recurrence intervals based on the historical seismic record overestimates the occurrence of large magnitude ( M 7) earthquakes and (2) the Holocene rate of extension across the Apennines is ≤1 mm/yr. The 1980 earthquake and the paleoseismologic observations show that repeated and localized surface faulting occurs in southern Apennines and leaves subtle but distinct geomorphic evidence that can be detected with detailed and careful investigation.

Apennine Mountains↗
USGS1998

Observations on basaltic lava streams in tubes from Kilauea Volcano, island of Hawai'i

From 1986 to 1997, the Pu'u 'O'o-Kupaianaha eruption of Kilauea produced a vast pahoehoe flow field fed by lava tubes that extended 10–12 km from vents on the volcano's east rift zone to the ocean. Within a kilometer of the vent, tubes were as much as 20 m high and 10–25 m wide. On steep slopes (4–10°) a little farther away from the vent, some tubes formed by roofing over of lava channels. Lava streams were typically 1–2 m deep flowing within a tube that here was typically 5 m high and 3 m wide. On the coastal plain (<1°), tubes within inflated sheet flows were completely filled, typically 1–2 m high, and several tens of meters wide. Tubes develop as a flow's crust grows on the top, bottom, and sides of the tubes, restricting the size of the fluid core. The tubes start out with nearly elliptical cross-sectional shapes, many times wider than high. Broad, flat sheet flows evolve into elongate tumuli with an axial crack as the flanks of the original flow were progressively buried by breakouts. Temperature measurements and the presence of stalactites in active tubes confirmed that the tube walls were above the solidus and subject to melting. Sometimes, the tubes began downcutting. Progressive downcutting was frequently observed through skylights; a rate of 10 cm/d was measured at one skylight for nearly 2 months.

Journal of Geophysical Research B: Solid Earth↗
USGS2017

The spatial distribution of earthquake stress rotations following large subduction zone earthquakes

Rotations of the principal stress axes due to great subduction zone earthquakes have been used to infer low differential stress and near-complete stress drop. The spatial distribution of coseismic and postseismic stress rotation as a function of depth and along-strike distance is explored for three recent M ≥ 8.8 subduction megathrust earthquakes. In the down-dip direction, the largest coseismic stress rotations are found just above the Moho depth of the overriding plate. This zone has been identified as hosting large patches of large slip in great earthquakes, based on the lack of high-frequency radiated energy. The large continuous slip patches may facilitate near-complete stress drop. There is seismological evidence for high fluid pressures in the subducted slab around the Moho depth of the overriding plate, suggesting low differential stress levels in this zone due to high fluid pressure, also facilitating stress rotations. The coseismic stress rotations have similar along-strike extent as the mainshock rupture. Postseismic stress rotations tend to occur in the same locations as the coseismic stress rotations, probably due to the very low remaining differential stress following the near-complete coseismic stress drop. The spatial complexity of the observed stress changes suggests that an analytical solution for finding the differential stress from the coseismic stress rotation may be overly simplistic, and that modeling of the full spatial distribution of the mainshock static stress changes is necessary.

Earth, Planets and Space↗
USGS2021

Evaluation of remote mapping techniques for earthquake-triggered landslide inventories in an urban subarctic environment: A case study of the 2018 Anchorage, Alaska Earthquake

Earthquake-induced landslide inventories can be generated using field observations but doing so can be challenging if the affected landscape is large or inaccessible after an earthquake. Remote sensing data can be used to help overcome these limitations. The effectiveness of remotely sensed data to produce landslide inventories, however, is dependent on a variety of factors, such as the extent of coverage, timing, and data quality, as well as environmental factors such as atmospheric interference (e.g., clouds, water vapor) or snow and vegetation cover. With these challenges in mind, we use a combination of field observations and remote sensing data from multispectral, light detection and ranging (lidar), and synthetic aperture radar (SAR) sensors to produce a ground failure inventory for the urban areas affected by the 2018 magnitude (M w ) 7.1 Anchorage, Alaska earthquake. The earthquake occurred during late November at high latitude (∼61°N), and the lack of sunlight, persistent cloud cover, and snow cover that occurred after the earthquake made remote mapping challenging for this event. Despite these challenges, 43 landslides were manually mapped and classified using a combination of the datasets mentioned previously. Using this manually compiled inventory, we investigate the individual performance and reliability of three remote sensing techniques in this environment not typically hospitable to remotely sensed mapping. We found that differencing pre- and post-event normalized difference vegetation index maps and lidar worked best for identifying soil slumps and rapid soil flows, but not as well for small soil slides, soil block slides and rock falls. The SAR-based methods did not work well for identifying any landslide types because of high noise levels likely related to snow. Some landslides, especially those that resulted in minor surface displacement, were identifiable only from the field observations. This work highlights the importance of the rapid collection of field observations and provides guidance for future mappers on which techniques, or combination of techniques, will be most effective at remotely mapping landslides in a subarctic and urban environment.

Alaska↗
USGS1992

Formation of harzburgite by pervasive melt/rock reaction in the upper mantle

Many mantle peridotite samples are too rich in SiO2 (in the form of orthopyroxene) and have ratios of light to heavy rare earth elements that are too high to be consistent with an origin as the residuum of partial melting of the primitive mantle. Trace element studies of melt/rock reaction zones in the Trinity peridotite provide evidence for reaction of the mantle lithosphere with ascending melts, which dissolved calcium-pyroxene and precipitated orthopyroxene as magma mass decreased. This process can account for the observed major and trace element compositions of lithospheric mantle samples, and may accordingly be prevalent in the upper mantle.

Nature↗
USGS2013

Evaluation of ISCCP multisatellite radiance calibration for geostationary imager visible channels using the moon

Since 1983, the International Satellite Cloud Climatology Project (ISCCP) has collected Earth radiance data from the succession of geostationary and polar-orbiting meteorological satellites operated by weather agencies worldwide. Meeting the ISCCP goals of global coverage and decade-length time scales requires consistent and stable calibration of the participating satellites. For the geostationary imager visible channels, ISCCP calibration provides regular periodic updates from regressions of radiances measured from coincident and collocated observations taken by Advanced Very High Resolution Radiometer instruments. As an independent check of the temporal stability and intersatellite consistency of ISCCP calibrations, we have applied lunar calibration techniques to geostationary imager visible channels using images of the Moon found in the ISCCP data archive. Lunar calibration enables using the reflected light from the Moon as a stable and consistent radiometric reference. Although the technique has general applicability, limitations of the archived image data have restricted the current study to Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite and Geostationary Meteorological Satellite series. The results of this lunar analysis confirm that ISCCP calibration exhibits negligible temporal trends in sensor response but have revealed apparent relative biases between the satellites at various levels. However, these biases amount to differences of only a few percent in measured absolute reflectances. Since the lunar analysis examines only the lower end of the radiance range, the results suggest that the ISCCP calibration regression approach does not precisely determine the intercept or the zero-radiance response level. We discuss the impact of these findings on the development of consistent calibration for multisatellite global data sets.

IEEE Transactions on Geoscience and Remote Sensing↗
USGS1979

Depths of channels in the area of the San Juan Basin Regional Uranium Study, New Mexico, Colorado, Arizona, and Utah

During December 1977 and January 1978 about 280 measurements were made of the depths of channels (arroyos) more than 6 feet deep in the San Juan Basin area. More than half of the measurements were made at sites where channel depths had been previously measured Between 1964 and 1969. Some channels in the western part of the basin had Been re-measured in 1969 and in 1971. The principal areas Being dissected by arroyos are near highlands along the margins of the Basin and in uplands in the northeastern part of the Basin. The most severe dissection by arroyos and the deepest arroyos--commonly Between 40 and 60 feet deep--are in the southeastern part of the Basin. Dissection By arroyos is least in the central part of the Basin near the Chaco River where most arroyos are less than 10 feet deep. Elsewhere, moderate dissection predominates with most arroyos Between 12 and 40 feet deep. Comparison of measurements made from 1964-71 with those made in 1977-78 shows that more channels in the western San Juan Basin were filling than were downcutting. Downcutting or filling was generally less than 2 feet. About two-fifths of the sites measured showed less than half a foot of downcutting or filling. Maximum downcutting was 4 feet along the Rio San Jose in the southeastern part of the basin. Maximum filling of 7 feet was along the Chaco River at the Chaco Canyon National Monument. Along ii other streams elsewhere in the western part of the basin, channels were filled 3 to 4.5 feet. The few measurements made in the southeastern San Juan Basin indicate that since 1964 downcutting has predominated over filling. Large floods during the summer of 1977 caused some change in channel depths in the southwestern part of the San Juan Basin. Some of the channels appeared to have been filled during the years prior to the cutting that occurred from the 1977 floods. At other places, flood flows aggraded (filled) channels. The rate of erosion and arroyo formation in the entire San Juan Basin is effected by man. The southeastern part of the basin--having been occupied by man for several centuries--shows the greatest effects of man on the rate of arroyo formation. Recent urban developments, particularly near Gallup, also appear to have affected the rate of erosion and arroyo formation. In contrast, arroyos appear to be aggrading below many earth-fill dams. In general, the effects of the petroleum, coal, and uranium exploration and development on arroyo formation have been minimal because the main trenching of the arroyos predates oil and mining operations. Some modification--degradation or aggradation--of the arroyos and local trenching of new arroyos have taken place in the area of some of the mines. Most of the observed effects from the mining operations on erosion and aggradation relate to the discharge of mine and mill water into the nearby streams.

Open-File Report↗
USGS2010

The sedimentology and dynamics of crater-affiliated wind streaks in western Arabia Terra, Mars and Patagonia, Argentina

Wind streaks comprise recent aeolian deposits that have been extensively documented on Venus, Earth and Mars. Martian wind streaks are among the most abundant surface features on the planet and commonly extend from the downwind margins of impact craters. Previous studies of wind streaks emerging from crater interior deposits suggested that the mode of emplacement was primarily related to the deposition of silt-sized particles as these settled from plumes. We have performed geologic investigations of two wind streaks clusters; one situated in western Arabia Terra, a region in the northern hemisphere of Mars, and another in an analogous terrestrial site located in southern Patagonia, Argentina, where occurrences of wind streaks emanate from playas within maar craters. In both these regions we have identified bedforms in sedimentary deposits on crater floors, along wind-facing interior crater margins, and along wind streaks. These observations indicate that these deposits contain sand-sized particles and that sediment migration has occurred via saltation from crater interior deposits to wind streaks. In Arabia Terra and in Patagonia wind streaks initiate from crater floors that contain lithic and evaporitic sedimentary deposits, suggesting that the composition of wind streak source materials has played an important role in development. Spatial and topographic analyses suggest that regional clustering of wind streaks in the studied regions directly correlates to the areal density of craters with interior deposits, the degree of proximity of these deposits, and the craters' rim-to-floor depths. In addition, some (but not all) wind streaks within the studied clusters have propagated at comparable yearly (Earth years) rates. Extensive saltation is inferred to have been involved in its propagation based on the studied terrestrial wind streak that shows ripples and dunes on its surface and the Martian counterpart changes orientation toward the downslope direction where it extends into an impact crater. ?? 2009 Elsevier B.V.

Geomorphology↗
USGS2015

Borehole strainmeter measurements spanning the 2014, M w 6.0 South Napa Earthquake, California: The effect from instrument calibration

The 24 August 2014 M w 6.0 South Napa, California earthquake produced significant offsets on 12 borehole strainmeters in the San Francisco Bay area. These strainmeters are located between 24 and 80 km from the source and the observed offsets ranged up to 400 parts-per-billion (ppb), which exceeds their nominal precision by a factor of 100. However, the observed offsets of tidally calibrated strains differ by up to 130 ppb from predictions based on a moment tensor derived from seismic data. The large misfit can be attributed to a combination of poor instrument calibration and better modeling of the strain fit from the earthquake. Borehole strainmeters require in-situ calibration, which historically has been accomplished by comparing their measurements of Earth tides with the strain-tides predicted by a model. Although the borehole strainmeter accurately measure the deformation within the borehole, the long-wavelength strain signals from tides or other tectonic processes recorded in the borehole are modified by the presence of the borehole and the elastic properties of the grout and the instrument. Previous analyses of surface-mounted, strainmeter data and their relationship with the predicted tides suggest that tidal models could be in error by 30%. The poor fit of the borehole strainmeter data from this earthquake can be improved by simultaneously varying the components of the model tides up to 30% and making small adjustments to the point-source model of the earthquake, which reduces the RMS misfit from 130 ppb to 18 ppb. This suggests that relying on tidal models to calibrate borehole strainmeters significantly reduces their accuracy.

California↗