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At least 127 records · Page 7Linked to original sources
USGS2009

Petrographic and geochemical comparisons between the lower crystalline basement-derived section and the granite megablock and amphibolite megablock of the Eyreville B core, Chesapeake Bay impact structure, USA

The Eyreville B core from the Chesapeake Bay impact structure, Virginia, USA, contains a lower basement-derived section (1551.19 m to 1766.32 m deep) and two megablocks of dominantly (1) amphibolite (1376.38 m to 1389.35 m deep) and (2) granite (1095.74 m to 1371.11 m deep), which are separated by an impactite succession. Metasedimentary rocks (muscovite-quartz-plagioclase-biotite-graphite ± fibrolite ± garnet ± tourmaline ± pyrite ± rutile ± pyrrhotite mica schist, hornblende-plagioclase-epidote-biotite-K-feldspar-quartz-titanite-calcite amphibolite, and vesuvianite-plagioclase-quartz-epidote calc-silicate rock) are dominant in the upper part of the lower basement-derived section, and they are intruded by pegmatitic to coarse-grained granite (K-feldspar-plagioclase-quartz-muscovite ± biotite ± garnet) that increases in volume proportion downward. The granite megablock contains both gneissic and weakly or nonfoliated biotite granite varieties (K-feldspar-quartz-plagioclase-biotite ± muscovite ± pyrite), with small schist xenoliths consisting of biotite-plagioclase-quartz ± epidote ± amphibole. The lower basement-derived section and both megablocks exhibit similar middle- to upper-amphibolite-facies metamorphic grades that suggest they might represent parts of a single terrane. However, the mica schists in the lower basement-derived sequence and in the megablock xenoliths show differences in both mineralogy and whole-rock chemistry that suggest a more mafic source for the xenoliths. Similarly, the mineralogy of the amphibolite in the lower basement-derived section and its association with calc-silicate rock suggest a sedimentary protolith, whereas the bulk-rock and mineral chemistry of the megablock amphibolite indicate an igneous protolith. The lower basement-derived granite also shows bulk chemical and mineralogical differences from the megablock gneissic and biotite granites.

Virginia↗
USGS2009

Comparison of clast frequency and size in the resurge deposits at the Chesapeake Bay impact structure (Eyreville A and Langley cores): Clues to the resurge process

Collapse and inward slumping of unconsolidated sedimentary strata expanded the Chesapeake Bay impact structure far beyond its central basement crater. During crater collapse, sediment-loaded water surged back to fill the crater. Here, we analyze clast frequency and granulometry of these resurge deposits in one core hole from the outermost part of the collapsed zone (i.e., Langley) as well as a core hole from the moat of the basement crater (i.e., Eyreville A). Comparisons of clast provenance and flow dynamics show that at both locations, there is a clear change in clast frequency and size between a lower unit, which we interpret to be dominated by slumped material, and an upper, water-transported unit, i.e., resurge deposit. The contribution of material to the resurge deposit was primarily controlled by stripping and erosion. This includes entrainment of fallback ejecta and sediments eroded from the surrounding seafloor, found to be dominant at Langley, and slumped material that covered the annular trough and basement crater, found to be dominant at Eyreville. Eyreville shows a higher content of crystalline clasts than Langley. There is equivocal evidence for an anti-resurge from a collapsing central water plume or, alternatively, a second resurge pulse, as well as a transition into oscillating resurge. The resurge material shows more of a debris-flow-like transport compared to resurge deposits at some other marine target craters, where the ratio of sediment to water has been relatively low. This result is likely a consequence of the combination of easily disaggregated host sediments and a relatively shallow target water depth.

Chesapeake Bay↗
USGS2009

Paleontological interpretations of crater processes and infilling of synimpact sediments from the Chesapeake Bay impact structure

Biostratigraphic analysis of sedimentary breccias and diamictons in the Chesapeake Bay impact structure provides information regarding the timing and processes of late-stage gravitational crater collapse and ocean resurge. Studies of calcareous nannofossil and palynomorph assemblages in the International Continental Scientific Drilling Program (ICDP)-U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) Eyreville A and B cores show the mixed-age, mixed-preservation microfossil assemblages that are typical of deposits from the upper part of the Chesapeake Bay impact structure. Sparse, poorly preserved, possibly thermally altered pollen is present within a gravelly sand interval below the granite slab at 1392 m in Eyreville core B, an interval that is otherwise barren of calcareous nannofossils and dinocysts. Gravitational collapse of watersaturated sediments from the transient crater wall resulted in the deposition of sediment clasts primarily derived from the nonmarine Cretaceous Potomac Formation. Collapse occurred before the arrival of resurge. Low pollen Thermal Alteration Index (TAI) values suggest that these sediments were not thermally altered by contact with the melt sheet. The arrival of resurge sedimentation is identified based on the presence of diamicton zones and stringers rich in glauconite and marine microfossils at 866.7 m. This horizon can be traced across the crater and can be used to identify gravitational collapse versus ocean-resurge sedimentation. Glauconitic quartz sand diamicton dominates the sediments above 618.2 m. Calcareous nannofossil and dinoflagellate data from this interval suggest that the earliest arriving resurge from the west contained little or no Cretaceous marine input, but later resurge pulses mined Cretaceous sediments east of the Watkins core in the annular trough. Additionally, the increased distance traveled by resurge to the central crater in turbulent flow conditions resulted in the disaggregation of Paleogene unconsolidated sediments. As a result, intact Paleogene clasts in Eyreville cores are rare, but clasts of semilithified Potomac Formation silts and clays are common.

Chesapeake Bay↗
USGS2009

Paleoenvironmental recovery from the Chesapeake Bay bolide impact: The benthic foraminiferal record

The late Eocene Chesapeake Bay bolide impact transformed its offshore target site from an outer neritic, mid-shelf seafloor into a bathyal crater basin. To obtain a depositional record from one of the deepest parts of this basin, the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) and the International Continental Scientific Drilling Program (ICDP) drilled a 1.76-km-deep core hole near Eyreville, Virginia. The Eyreville core and eight previously cored boreholes contain a rarely obtainable record of marine deposition and microfossil assemblages that characterize the transition from synimpact to postimpact paleoenvironments inside and near a submarine impact crater. I used depositional style and benthic foraminiferal assemblages to recognize a four-step transitional succession, with emphasis on the Eyreville core. Step 1 is represented by small-scale, silt-rich turbidites, devoid of indigenous microfossils, which lie directly above the crater-filling Exmore breccia. Step 2 is represented by very thin, parallel, silt and clay laminae, which accumulated on a relatively tranquil and stagnant seafloor. This stagnation created a dead zone, which excluded seafloor biota, and it lasted ~3-5 ka. Step 3 is an interval of marine clay deposition, accompanied by a burst of microfaunal activity, as a species-rich pioneer community of benthic foraminifera repopulated the impact site. The presence of a diagnostic suite of agglutinated foraminifera during step 3 indicates that paleoenvironmental stress related to the impact lasted from ~9 ka to 400 ka at different locations inside the crater. During step 4, the agglutinated assemblage disappeared, and an equilibrium foraminiferal community developed that contained nearly 100% calcareous species. In contrast to intracrater localities, core sites outside and near the crater rim show neither evidence of the agglutinated assemblage, nor other indications of long-term biotic disruption from the bolide impact.

Chesapeake Bay↗
USGS2009

Integrated sequence stratigraphy of the postimpact sediments from the Eyreville core holes, Chesapeake Bay impact structure inner basin

The Eyreville core holes provide the first continuously cored record of postimpact sequences from within the deepest part of the central Chesapeake Bay impact crater. We analyzed the upper Eocene to Pliocene postimpact sediments from the Eyreville A and C core holes for lithology (semiquantitative measurements of grain size and composition), sequence stratigraphy, and chronostratigraphy. Age is based primarily on Sr isotope stratigraphy supplemented by biostratigraphy (dinocysts, nannofossils, and planktonic foraminifers); age resolution is approximately ±0.5 Ma for early Miocene sequences and approximately ±1.0 Ma for younger and older sequences. Eocene–lower Miocene sequences are subtle, upper middle to lower upper Miocene sequences are more clearly distinguished, and upper Miocene–Pliocene sequences display a distinct facies pattern within sequences. We recognize two upper Eocene, two Oligocene, nine Miocene, three Pliocene, and one Pleistocene sequence and correlate them with those in New Jersey and Delaware. The upper Eocene through Pleistocene strata at Eyreville record changes from: (1) rapidly deposited, extremely fine-grained Eocene strata that probably represent two sequences deposited in a deep (>200 m) basin; to (2) highly dissected Oligocene (two very thin sequences) to lower Miocene (three thin sequences) with a long hiatus; to (3) a thick, rapidly deposited (43–73 m/Ma), very fine-grained, biosiliceous middle Miocene (16.5–14 Ma) section divided into three sequences (V5–V3) deposited in middle neritic paleoenvironments; to (4) a 4.5-Ma-long hiatus (12.8–8.3 Ma); to (5) sandy, shelly upper Miocene to Pliocene strata (8.3–2.0 Ma) divided into six sequences deposited in shelf and shoreface environments; and, last, to (6) a sandy middle Pleistocene paralic sequence (~400 ka). The Eyreville cores thus record the filling of a deep impact-generated basin where the timing of sequence boundaries is heavily influenced by eustasy.

Virginia↗
USGS2009

Hydrothermal processes above the Yellowstone magma chamber: Large hydrothermal systems and large hydrothermal explosions

Hydrothermal explosions are violent and dramatic events resulting in the rapid ejection of boiling water, steam, mud, and rock fragments from source craters that range from a few meters up to more than 2 km in diameter; associated breccia can be emplaced as much as 3 to 4 km from the largest craters. Hydrothermal explosions occur where shallow interconnected reservoirs of steam- and liquid-saturated fluids with temperatures at or near the boiling curve underlie thermal fields. Sudden reduction in confining pressure causes fluids to flash to steam, resulting in significant expansion, rock fragmentation, and debris ejection. In Yellowstone, hydrothermal explosions are a potentially significant hazard for visitors and facilities and can damage or even destroy thermal features. The breccia deposits and associated craters formed from hydrothermal explosions are mapped as mostly Holocene (the Mary Bay deposit is older) units throughout Yellowstone National Park (YNP) and are spatially related to within the 0.64-Ma Yellowstone caldera and along the active Norris-Mammoth tectonic corridor. In Yellowstone, at least 20 large (>100 m in diameter) hydrothermal explosion craters have been identified; the scale of the individual associated events dwarfs similar features in geothermal areas elsewhere in the world. Large hydrothermal explosions in Yellowstone have occurred over the past 16 ka averaging ~1 every 700 yr; similar events are likely in the future. Our studies of large hydrothermal explosion events indicate: (1) none are directly associated with eruptive volcanic or shallow intrusive events; (2) several historical explosions have been triggered by seismic events; (3) lithic clasts and comingled matrix material that form hydrothermal explosion deposits are extensively altered, indicating that explosions occur in areas subjected to intense hydrothermal processes; (4) many lithic clasts contained in explosion breccia deposits preserve evidence of repeated fracturing and vein-filling; and (5) areal dimensions of many large hydrothermal explosion craters in Yellowstone are similar to those of its active geyser basins and thermal areas. For Yellowstone, our knowledge of hydrothermal craters and ejecta is generally limited to after the Yellowstone Plateau emerged from beneath a late Pleistocene icecap that was roughly a kilometer thick. Large hydrothermal explosions may have occurred earlier as indicated by multiple episodes of cementation and brecciation commonly observed in hydrothermal ejecta clasts. Critical components for large, explosive hydrothermal systems include a water-saturated system at or near boiling temperatures and an interconnected system of well-developed joints and fractures along which hydrothermal fluids flow. Active deformation of the Yellowstone caldera, active faulting and moderate local seismicity, high heat flow, rapid changes in climate, and regional stresses are factors that have strong influences on the type of hydrothermal system developed. Ascending hydrothermal fluids flow along fractures that have developed in response to active caldera deformation and along edges of low-permeability rhyolitic lava flows. Alteration of the area affected, self-sealing leading to development of a caprock for the hydrothermal system, and dissolution of silica-rich rocks are additional factors that may constrain the distribution and development of hydrothermal fields. A partial low-permeability layer that acts as a cap to the hydrothermal system may produce some over-pressurization, thought to be small in most systems. Any abrupt drop in pressure initiates steam flashing and is rapidly transmitted through interconnected fractures that result in a series of multiple large-scale explosions contributing to the excavation of a larger explosion crater. Similarities between the size and dimensions of large hydrothermal explosion craters and thermal fields in Yellowstone may indicate that catastrophic events which result in large hydrothermal explosions are an end phase in geyser basin evolution. The Mary Bay hydrothermal explosion crater complex is the largest such complex in Yellowstone, and possibly in the world, with a diameter of 2.8 km in length and 2.4 km in width. It is nested in Mary Bay in the northern basin of Yellowstone Lake, an area of high heat flow and active deformation within the Yellowstone caldera. A sedimentary sequence exposed in wave-cut cliffs between Storm Point and Mary Bay gives insight into the geologic history of the Mary Bay hydrothermal explosion event. The Mary Bay explosion breccia deposits overlie sand above varved lake sediments and are separated locally into an upper and lower unit. The sand unit contains numerous small normal faults and is coextensive with the Mary Bay breccia in its northern extent. This sand may represent deposits of an earthquake-generated wave. Seismicity associated with the earthquake may have triggered the hydrothermal explosion responsible for development of the Mary Bay crater complex. Large hydrothermal explosions are rare events on a human time scale; however, the potential for additional future events of the sort in Yellowstone National Park is not insignificant. Based on the occurrence of large hydrothermal explosion events over the past 16,000 yr, an explosion large enough to create a 100-m-wide crater might be expected every 200 yr.

Wyoming↗
USGS2009

Hurricane Rita and the destruction of Holly Beach, Louisiana: Why the chenier plain is vulnerable to storms

Hurricane Rita devastated gulf-front communities along the western Louisiana coast in 2005. LIDAR (light detection and ranging) topographic surveys and aerial photography collected before and after the storm showed the loss of every structure within the community of Holly Beach. Average shoreline change along western Louisiana's 140-km-long impacted shore was −23.3 ± 30.1 m of erosion, although shoreline change in Holly Beach was substantially less, and erosion was not pervasive where the structures were lost. Before the storm, peak elevations of the dunes, or berms in the absence of dunes, along the impacted shore averaged 1.6 m. The storm surge, which reached 3.5 m just east of Holly Beach, completely inundated the beach systems along the impacted western Louisiana shore. The high surge potential and low land elevations make this coast extremely vulnerable to hurricanes. In fact, most of the western Louisiana shore impacted by Rita will be completely inundated by the storm surge of a worst-case Saffir-Simpson category 1 hurricane. All of this shore will be inundated by worst-case category 2–5 storms.

Louisiana↗
USGS2010

Implications of geophysical analysis on basin geometry and fault offsets in the northern Colorado River extensional corridor and adjoining Lake Mead region, Nevada and Arizona

The northern Colorado River extensional corridor and Lake Mead region are characterized by prominent gravity and magnetic anomalies that provide insight into the geometry of extensional basins, amount of vertical and strike-slip offset on faults that bound these basins, and composition of major basement blocks. Although large-magnitude extension throughout the extensional corridor and major strike-slip faulting north of Lake Mead have highly disrupted many basins, most of the older basins (middle to late Miocene) are not associated with prominent geophysical anomalies. Instead, the most conspicuous anomalies (e.g., gravity lows) generally correspond to the younger (late Miocene to recent), structurally more coherent basins. Most of the geophysically expressed basins lie north of Lake Mead and are bounded by Quaternary normal and/or strike-slip fault zones. Both Quaternary faults and geophysically conspicuous basins are largely absent south of Lake Mead, where the only prominent gravity low corresponds to a structurally intact basin filled primarily with halite along the less extended, eastern margin of the corridor. Relatively continuous northeast-trending magnetic anomalies south of Lake Mead, presumably caused by Proterozoic basement rocks, suggest that strike-slip displacement is negligible on many of the major normal faults. In contrast, magnetic anomalies are smeared along the Lake Mead fault system and Las Vegas Valley shear zone. Offset anomalies suggest left-lateral displacement of 12–20 km for the Hamblin Bay fault zone, 12–15 km for the Lime Ridge fault, and 12 km on the Gold Butte fault. These values are compatible with or lower than published estimates based on geologic mapping.

Arizona, Nevada↗
USGS2011

High geologic slip rates since early Pleistocene Initiation of the San Jacinto and San Felipe fault zones in the San Andreas fault system: southern California, USA

The San Jacinto right-lateral strike-slip fault zone is crucial for understanding plate-boundary dynamics, regional slip partitioning, and seismic hazards within the San Andreas fault system of southern California, yet its age of initiation and long-term average slip rate are controversial. This synthesis of prior and new detailed studies in the western Salton Trough documents initiation of structural segments of the San Jacinto fault zone at or slightly before the 1.07-Ma base of the Jaramillo subchron. The dextral faults changed again after ca. 0.5–0.6 Ma with creation of new fault segments and folds. There were major and widespread basinal changes in the early Pleistocene when these new faults cut across the older West Salton detachment fault. We mapped and analyzed the complex fault mesh, identified structural segment boundaries along the Clark, Coyote Creek, and San Felipe fault zones, documented linkages between the major dextral faults, identified previously unknown active strands of the Coyote Creek fault 5 and 8 km NE and SW of its central strands, and showed that prior analyses of these fault zones oversimplify their complexity. The Clark fault is a zone of widely distributed faulting and folding SE of the Santa Rosa Mountains and unequivocally continues 20–25 km SE of its previously inferred termination point to the San Felipe Hills. There the Clark fault zone has been deforming basinal deposits at an average dextral slip rate of ≥10.2 +6.9/−3.3 mm/yr for ~0.5–0.6 m.y. Five new estimates of displacement are developed here using offset successions of crystalline rocks, distinctive marker beds in the late Cenozoic basin fill, analysis of strike-slip–related fault-bend folds, quantification of strain in folds at the tips of dextral faults, and gravity, magnetic, and geomorphic data sets. Together these show far greater right slip across the Clark fault than across either the San Felipe or Coyote Creek faults, despite the Clark fault becoming “hidden” in basinal deposits at its SE end as strain disperses onto a myriad of smaller faults, strike-slip ramps and flats, transrotational systems of cross faults with strongly domain patterns, and a variety of fault-fold sets. Together the Clark and Buck Ridge–Santa Rosa faults accumulated ~16.8 +3.7/−6.0 km of right separation in their lifetime near Clark Lake. The Coyote Ridge segment of the Coyote Creek fault accumulated ~3.5 ± 1.3 km since roughly 0.8–0.9 Ma. The San Felipe fault accumulated between 4 and 12.4 km (~6.5 km preferred) of right slip on its central strands in the past 1.1–1.3 Ma at Yaqui and Pinyon ridges. Combining the estimates of displacement with ages of fault initiation indicates a lifetime geologic slip rate of 20.1 +6.4/−9.8 mm/yr across the San Jacinto fault zone (sum of Clark, Buck Ridge, and Coyote Creek faults) and about ~5.4 +5.9/−1.4 mm/yr across the San Felipe fault zone at Yaqui and Pinyon ridges. The NW Coyote Creek fault has a lifetime slip rate of ~4.1 +1.9/−2.1 mm/yr, which is a quarter of that across the Clark fault (16.0 +4.5/−9.8 mm/yr) nearby. The San Felipe fault zone is not generally regarded as an active fault in the region, yet its lifetime slip rate exceeds those of the central and southern Elsinore and the Coyote Creek fault zones. The apparent lower slip rates across the San Felipe fault in the Holocene may reflect the transfer of strain to adjacent faults in order to bypass a contractional bend and step at Yaqui Ridge. The San Felipe, Coyote Creek, and Clark faults all show evidence of major structural adjustments after ca. 0.6–0.5 Ma, and redistribution of strain onto new right- and left-lateral faults and folds far removed from the older central fault strands. Active faults shifted their locus and main central strands by as much as 13 km in the middle Pleistocene. These changes modify the entire upper crust and were not localized in the thin sedimentary basin fill, which is only a few kilometers thick in most of the western Salton Trough. Steep microseismic alignments are well developed beneath most of the larger active faults and penetrate basement to the base of the seismogenic crust at 10–14 km. We hypothesize that the major structural and kinematic adjustments at ca. 0.5–0.6 Ma resulted in major changes in slip rate within the San Jacinto and San Felipe fault zones that are likely to explain the inconsistent slip rates determined from geologic (1–0.5 m.y.; this study), paleoseismic, and geodetic studies over different time intervals. The natural evolution of complex fault zones, cross faults, block rotation, and interactions within their broad damage zones might explain all the documented and implied temporal and spatial variation in slip rates. Co-variation of slip rates among the San Jacinto, San Felipe, and San Andreas faults, while possible, is not required by the available data. Together the San Jacinto and San Felipe fault zones have accommodated ~25.5 mm/yr since their inception in early Pleistocene time, and were therefore slightly faster than the southern San Andreas fault during the same time interval. If the westward transfer of plate motion continues in southern California, the southern San Andreas fault in the Salton Trough may change from being the main plate boundary fault to defining the eastern margin of the growing Sierra Nevada microplate, as implied by other workers.

California↗
USGS2013

New perspectives on the geometry of the Albuquerque Basin, Rio Grande rift, New Mexico: Insights from geophysical models of rift-fill thickness

Discrepancies among previous models of the geometry of the Albuquerque Basin motivated us to develop a new model using a comprehensive approach. Capitalizing on a natural separation between the densities of mainly Neogene basin fill (Santa Fe Group) and those of older rocks, we developed a three-dimensional (3D) geophysical model of syn-rift basin-fill thickness that incorporates well data, seismic-reflection data, geologic cross sections, and other geophysical data in a constrained gravity inversion. Although the resulting model does not show structures directly, it elucidates important aspects of basin geometry. The main features are three, 3–5-km-deep, interconnected structural depressions, which increase in size, complexity, and segmentation from north to south: the Santo Domingo, Calabacillas, and Belen subbasins. The increase in segmentation and complexity may reflect a transition of the Rio Grande rift from well-defined structural depressions in the north to multiple, segmented basins within a broader region of crustal extension to the south. The modeled geometry of the subbasins and their connections differs from a widely accepted structural model based primarily on seismic-reflection interpretations. Key elements of the previous model are an east-tilted half-graben block on the north separated from a west-tilted half-graben block on the south by a southwest-trending, scissor-like transfer zone. Instead, we find multiple subbasins with predominantly easterly tilts for much of the Albuquerque Basin, a restricted region of westward tilting in the southwestern part of the basin, and a northwesterly trending antiform dividing subbasins in the center of the basin instead of a major scissor-like transfer zone. The overall eastward tilt indicated by the 3D geophysical model generally conforms to stratal tilts observed for the syn-rift succession, implying a prolonged eastward tilting of the basin during Miocene time. An extensive north-south synform in the central part of the Belen subbasin suggests a possible path for the ancestral Rio Grande during late Miocene or early Pliocene time. Variations in rift-fill thickness correspond to pre-rift structures in several places, suggesting that a better understanding of pre-rift history may shed light on debates about structural inheritance within the rift.

Special Paper of the Geological Society of America↗
USGS2015

Aftershocks illuminate the 2011 Mineral, Virginia, earthquake causative fault zone and nearby active faults

Deployment of temporary seismic stations after the 2011 Mineral, Virginia (USA), earthquake produced a well-recorded aftershock sequence. The majority of aftershocks are in a tabular cluster that delineates the previously unknown Quail fault zone. Quail fault zone aftershocks range from ~3 to 8 km in depth and are in a 1-km-thick zone striking ~036&deg; and dipping ~50&deg;SE, consistent with a 028&deg;, 50&deg;SE main-shock nodal plane having mostly reverse slip. This cluster extends ~10 km along strike. The Quail fault zone projects to the surface in gneiss of the Ordovician Chopawamsic Formation just southeast of the Ordovician&ndash;Silurian Ellisville Granodiorite pluton tail. The following three clusters of shallow (<3 km) aftershocks illuminate other faults. (1) An elongate cluster of early aftershocks, ~10 km east of the Quail fault zone, extends 8 km from Fredericks Hall, strikes ~035&deg;&ndash;039&deg;, and appears to be roughly vertical. The Fredericks Hall fault may be a strand or splay of the older Lakeside fault zone, which to the south spans a width of several kilometers. (2) A cluster of later aftershocks ~3 km northeast of Cuckoo delineates a fault near the eastern contact of the Ordovician Quantico Formation. (3) An elongate cluster of late aftershocks ~1 km northwest of the Quail fault zone aftershock cluster delineates the northwest fault (described herein), which is temporally distinct, dips more steeply, and has a more northeastward strike. Some aftershock-illuminated faults coincide with preexisting units or structures evident from radiometric anomalies, suggesting tectonic inheritance or reactivation.

Virginia↗
USGS2015

Organic sedimentation in modern lacustrine systems: A case study from Lake Malawi, East Africa

This study examines the relationship between depositional environment and sedimentary organic geochemistry in Lake Malawi, East Africa, and evaluates the relative significance of the various processes that control sedimentary organic matter (OM) in lacustrine systems. Total organic carbon (TOC) concentrations in recent sediments from Lake Malawi range from 0.01 to 8.80 wt% and average 2.83 wt% for surface sediments and 2.35 wt% for shallow core sediments. Hydrogen index (HI) values as determined by Rock-Eval pyrolysis range from 0 to 756 mg HC g−1 TOC and average 205 mg HC g−1 TOC for surface sediments and 228 mg HC g−1 TOC for shallow core samples. On average, variations in primary productivity throughout the lake may account for ~33% of the TOC content in Lake Malawi sediments (as much as 1 wt% TOC), and have little or no impact on sedimentary HI values. Similarly, ~33% to 66% of the variation in TOC content in Lake Malawi sediments appears to be controlled by anoxic preservation of OM (~1–2 wt% TOC), although some component of the water depth–TOC relationship may be due to physical sediment transport processes. Furthermore, anoxic preservation has a minimal effect on HI values in Lake Malawi sediments. Dilution of OM by inorganic sediment may account for ~16% of variability in TOC content in Lake Malawi sediments (~0.5 wt% TOC). The effect of inputs of terrestrial sediment on the organic character of surface sediments in these lakes is highly variable, and appears to be more closely related to the local depositional environment than the regional flux of terrestrial OM. Total nitrogen and TOC content in surface sediments collected throughout the lake are found to be highly correlated (r2 = 0.95), indicating a well-homogenized source of OM to the lake bottom. The recurring suspension and deposition of terrestrial sediment may account for significant amounts of OM deposited in offshore regions of the lake. This process effectively separates denser inorganic sediment from less dense OM and allows terrestrial OM to preferentially be transported farther offshore. The conclusion is that for the organic carbon content in these regions to be elevated a mixed terrestrial-lacustrine origin is required. The hydrodynamic separation of mineral and organic constituents is most pronounced in regions with shallow bathymetric gradients, consistent with previous findings from Lake Tanganyika.

Lake Malawi↗
USGS2016

The Maryland Coastal Plain Aquifer Information System: A GIS-based tool for assessing groundwater resources

Groundwater is the source of drinking water for &sim;1.4 million people in the Coastal Plain Province of Maryland (USA). In addition, groundwater is essential for commercial, industrial, and agricultural uses. Approximately 0.757 &times; 109 L d &ndash;1 (200 million gallons/d) were withdrawn in 2010. As a result of decades of withdrawals from the coastal plain confined aquifers, groundwater levels have declined by as much as 70 m (230 ft) from estimated prepumping levels. Other issues posing challenges to long-term groundwater sustainability include degraded water quality from both man-made and natural sources, reduced stream base flow, land subsidence, and changing recharge patterns (drought) caused by climate change. In Maryland, groundwater supply is managed primarily by the Maryland Department of the Environment, which seeks to balance reasonable use of the resource with long-term sustainability. The chief goal of groundwater management in Maryland is to ensure safe and adequate supplies for all current and future users through the implementation of appropriate usage, planning, and conservation policies. To assist in that effort, the geographic information system (GIS)&ndash;based Maryland Coastal Plain Aquifer Information System was developed as a tool to help water managers access and visualize groundwater data for use in the evaluation of groundwater allocation and use permits. The system, contained within an ESRI ArcMap desktop environment, includes both interpreted and basic data for 16 aquifers and 14 confining units. Data map layers include aquifer and &shy;confining unit layer surfaces, aquifer extents, borehole information, hydraulic properties, time-series groundwater-level data, well records, and geophysical and lithologic logs. The aquifer and confining unit layer surfaces were generated specifically for the GIS system. The system also contains select groundwater-quality data and map layers that quantify groundwater and surface-water withdrawals. The aquifer information system can serve as a pre- and postprocessing environment for groundwater-flow models for use in water-supply planning, development, and management. The system also can be expanded to include features that evaluate constraints to groundwater development, such as insufficient available drawdown, degraded groundwater quality, insufficient aquifer yields, and well-field interference. Ultimately, the aquifer information system is intended to function as an interactive Web-based utility that provides a broad array of information related to groundwater resources in Maryland&rsquo;s coastal plain to a wide-ranging audience, including well drillers, consultants, academia, and the general public.

Special Paper of the Geological Society of America↗
USGS2019

Don Swanson: A field volcanology career worth celebrating

Don Swanson has profoundly influenced generations of volcanologists and has made major contributions to our understanding of both silicic and basaltic volcanic systems. He provides an exceptional example of how a gifted scientist can develop entirely new paradigms related to large-scale problems on the basis of decades of study, as exemplified by his work on the emplacement of flood basalts, monitoring and forecasting volcanic eruptions, the development of lava flows and domes, and the explosive nature of Kīlauea Volcano. Don has maintained exceptional productivity even while playing major leadership and management roles in science, and his research is intrinsically geological and rooted in painstaking fieldwork that is both collaborative and interdisciplinary. This volume recognizes Don’s career accomplishments by emphasizing his careful approach to volcanology and highlighting meticulous field observations as the basis for better understanding how volcanoes work.

Special Papers of the Geological Society of Americ↗
USGS2019

Lava lake thermal pattern classification using self organizing maps and relationships to eruption processes at Kilauea Volcano, Hawaii

Kīlauea Volcano’s active summit lava lake poses hazards to downwind residents and over 1.6 million Hawai‘i Volcanoes National Park visitors each year. The lava lake surface is dynamic; crustal plates separated by incandescent cracks move across the lake as magma circulates below. We hypothesize that these dynamic thermal patterns are related to changes in other volcanic processes, such that sequences of thermal images may provide information about eruption parameters that are sometimes difficult to measure. The ability to learn about current gas emissions and seismic activity from a remote thermal time-lapse camera would be beneficial when conditions are too hazardous for field measurements. We apply a machine learning algorithm called self-organizing maps (SOM) to thermal infrared time-lapse images of the lava lake collected hourly over 23 April – 21 October 2013 (n=4354). The SOM algorithm can take thousands of seemingly different images, each representing the spatial distribution of relative temperature across the lava lake surface, and group them into clusters based on their similarities. We then relate the resulting clusters to sulfur dioxide emissions and seismic tremor to characterize ties between the SOM classification and different emplacement conditions. The SOM classification results are highly sensitive to the normalization method applied to the input images. The standard pixel-by-pixel normalization method yields a cluster of images defined by the highest observed SO2 emission levels, elevated surface temperatures, and a high proportion of cracks between crustal plates. When lava lake surface patterns are isolated by minimizing the effect of temperature variation between images, relationships with seismic tremor activity emerge, revealing an “intense spatter” cluster, characterized by unstable, broken-up crustal plate patterns on the lava lake surface. This proof of concept study provides a basis for extending the SOM classification method to hazard forecasting and real-time volcanic monitoring applications, as well as comparative studies at other lava lakes.

Hawaii↗
USGS2021

Middle and late Pleistocene pluvial history of Newark Valley, central Nevada, USA

Newark Valley lies between the two largest pluvial lake systems in the Great Basin, Lake Lahontan and Lake Bonneville. Soils and geomorphology, stratigraphic interpretations, radiocarbon ages, and amino acid racemization geochronology analyses were employed to interpret the relative and numerical ages of lacustrine deposits in the valley. The marine oxygen isotope stage (MIS) 2 beach barriers are characterized by well-preserved morphology and deposits with youthful soil development, with Bwk horizons and maximum stage I+ carbonate morphology. Radiocarbon ages of gastropods and tufas within these MIS 2–age deposits permit construction of a latest Pleistocene lake-level curve for Newark Valley, including a maximum limiting age of 13,780 ± 50 14 C yr B.P. for the most recent highstand, and they provide a calibration point for soil development in lacustrine deposits in the central Great Basin. The MIS 8–age to MIS 4–age beach barriers are higher in elevation and represent a larger lake than existed during MIS 2. The beach barriers have subdued morphology, are only preserved in short segments, and have stronger soil development, with Bkm and/or Bkmt horizons and maximum stage III+ to IV carbonate morphology. Newark Lake reached elevations higher than the MIS 2 highstand during at least two additional pluvial periods, MIS 16 and MIS 12, 10, or 8. These oldest lacustrine deposits do not have preserved shoreline features and are represented only by gravel lags, buried deposits, and buried soils with similar strong soil development. This sequence of middle and latest Pleistocene shorelines records a long-term pluvial history in this basin that remained internally drained for the last four or more pluvial cycles. Obtaining numerical ages from material within lacustrine deposits in the Great Basin can be challenging. Amino acid D/L values from gastropod shells and mollusk valves proved to be a valuable tool to correlate lacustrine deposits within Newark Valley. Comparison of soils and geomorphology results to independent 36 Cl cosmogenic nuclide ages from a different study indicated unexpected changes in rates of soil development during the past ~200,000 yr and suggested that common stratigraphic changes in lake stratigraphy could obscure incremental changes in soil development and/or complicate 36 Cl cosmogenic nuclide age estimates.

Nevada↗
USGS2022

A refined assessment of the paleoceanographic and tectonic influences on the deposition of the Monterey Formation in California

Application of updated diatom biochronology to the Monterey Formation and related biosiliceous rocks reveals the imprint of both global paleoclimatic/ paleoceanographic and regional tectonic events. A rise in global sea level combined with regional tectonic deepening associated with the development of the transform California margin resulted in the abrupt onset of deposition of fine-grained Monterey sediments between 18 and 16 Ma. The base of the Monterey does not mark a silica shift in diatom deposition from the North Atlantic to the North Pacific. Rather, a North Atlantic decline of diatoms after ~13 Ma and increasing divergence in nutrient levels between the North Atlantic and North Pacific between ~13 and 11 Ma, coincided with a major enhancement of diatom deposition in the Monterey Formation. A stratigraphically condensed interval of phosphate-rich sediments between 13 and 10 Ma in coastal southern California appears to have resulted from sediment starvation on offshore banks during a period of higher sea level, as inland sections commonly contain thick sequences of diatomaceous sediment. Increasing latitudinal thermal gradients in the latest Miocene, which triggered a biogenic bloom in the equatorial Pacific at 8 Ma, also lead to enhanced diatom deposition in the uppermost Monterey and overlying biosiliceous rocks. Uplift of the California coastal ranges after ~5.2 Ma resulted in an increasing detrital contribution that obscured the presence of diatoms in onshore sediments. Major reduction in coastal upwelling in the early Pliocene at ~4.6 Ma caused a drastic reduction of diatoms in sediments of offshore southern California.

California↗