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Subsurface Mapping Of Intra-Arbuckle Shale In North-West Kansas Using Well Log Data, Cole M. Denny

Master's Theses

The aim of this research was to enhance knowledge of Intra-Arbuckle Shale (IAS) distribution and structure through new maps, cross sections, and well log correlations. Understanding the shale(s) ultimately advances the discernment of complex Arbuckle reservoirs that are critical to the Kansas petroleum industry. IAS has been intercepted by oil wells throughout Kansas, but this study focuses on their presence in portions of Ellis, Rooks, Graham, and Trego counties. To study the distribution and structure of IAS, data from micro-resistivity and gamma ray well logs were collected from more than three hundred Arbuckle oil and gas wells. On each well …

Hydrothermal Fluid Transport Pathways Along Fractures And Veins At Brothers Volcano, Southern Kermadec Arc, Robert Atnip

Master's Theses

Hydrothermal fluid flow in fractures and veins is a key component in the mineralization of economic metals within calderas. But there are several methods by which fractures can form. Regional extension, episodic caldera collapse, and fluid overpressure all have the potential to create brittle features. Current studies focus on the formation of fractures and veins by these methods, but do not focus on the preferred movement of hydrothermal fluids through brittle features, nor which features are more dominant in active hydrothermal systems. This thesis introduces multiple studies to better understand which method of fracture creation dominates Brothers volcano. Data from …

Emplacement Of The Dadeville Complex Of The Southernmost Inner Piedmont Within The 7.5 Min. Cusseta Quadrangle, Chambers County, Alabama: Channel Flow, Klippe Kinematics, Or Orogen Parallel Translation, Timothy Black

Master's Theses

The Appalachian Mountains have a complex geologic history spanning three orogenic periods, the Taconic, the Acadian/Neoacadian, and Alleghanian orogenies. The Inner Piedmont of the Appalachian Mountains within Alabama contains two distinct lithologic complexes, the Dadeville Complex, and the Opelika Complex separated by the Stonewall Line. These complexes were formed during an arc-back arc fringing system during the Taconic orogeny and emplaced and recorded peak metamorphism during the Acadian orogeny.

The Dadeville Complex is an allochthonous arc terrain built on extended Laurentian crust. The mode of transportation and accretion after formation is not well understood, which has implications for the role …

Origins And Relationships Of The Units In And Adjacent To The Ross Lake Fault Zone, North Cascades, Washington, Leonard Hogan

Master's Theses

The North Cascades of Washington preserves a wide range of crustal levels in andadjacent to a Cretaceous magmatic arc. Field, petrographic, and detrital zircon geochronological research focused on a discontinuous, 55-km-long belt of metasedimentary rocks in the NW-striking Ross Lake fault zone (RLFZ) within the North Cascades. In the NW, metapelitic rocks of the Little Jack unit have an Early Jurassic maximum depositional age (MDA) and strong ductile fabrics in contrast to clastic rocks on the E with an Early Cretaceous MDA and primary structures, confirming the presence of the dextral Hozameen fault. To the SE, the oldest unit (~110 …

The Shallow Benthic Invertebrate Recovery From The End-Cretaceous Mass Extinction Across The Gulf Coastal Plain, Ronan B. Beltracchi

Master's Theses

The Gulf Coastal Plain, in the southeastern United States, contains several sites with well-preserved fossil assemblages from the Cretaceous- Paleogene boundary (K/Pg). Changes in benthic macroinvertebrate assemblages after mass extinction events commonly include reduction in body size of surviving organisms and preferential survival based on ecospace occupation. This study examines patterns of functional ecology and body size change in mollusk fossils from bulk samples collected throughout the post-extinction recovery interval at a well-studied boundary site from Darting Minnow Creek in Brazos, Texas USA and a recently described K/Pg boundary section on the Ouachita River in Malvern, Arkansas USA. The proportional …

The Spatial Distribution Of Mercury Contamination In The Yolo Bypass, California, Thomas S. Mykytyn

Master's Theses

Gold and mercury mining in the latter half of California’s 19th century resulted in massive and lingering alterations to downstream ecosystems through sedimentation and mercury contamination. Located at the confluence of Sierra Nevada and Coast Range watersheds, the Yolo Bypass is a critical conveyor of flood waters from the Lower Sacramento Valley to the Sacramento–San Joaquin Delta. Sedimentation in the bypass diminishes its flood conveyance capacity, and Hg contamination is hazardous to humans and ecosystems. The purpose of this study is to locate and quantify mercury contamination in the Yolo Bypass. Concentrations of total mercury ([THg]) were measured in 22 …

The Effect Of Submarine Volcanism On Foraminifera At Axial Seamount Of Juan De Fuca Ridge, Gabriela Marie Diaz Santana

Master's Theses

Submarine volcanoes contribute more than 75% of global volcanic eruptions annually and have the potential to change the surrounding submarine ecosystems. The species richness, abundance of foraminifera assemblages and the average test size of samples recovered from marine sediment cores are a proxy for past environmental changes on the seafloor and in the water column. This study evaluates the ecosystem impact of multiple eruptions that formed a massive caldera at Axial Seamount between 1300 and 800 years before present (BP). An examination of the diversity, abundance, and size of planktic and benthic foraminifera assemblages recorded in volcanic and hemipelagic sediments …

Quaternary Geologic Slip Rates For The Northern Rodgers Creek Fault, Near Windsor, Ca, Alianora Walker

Master's Theses

New Quaternary geologic slip rates were determined for the northern Rodgers CreekFault at two sites near Windsor, CA. Slip rates were determined through Quaternary mapping and geochronologic dating, specifically in situ cosmogenic 10Be, and infrared stimulated luminescence dating. At the Shiloh Ranch Regional Park site, a terrace dated to ~3.2 ka – 7.9 ka and offset 18 m – 45 m yielded a preliminary slip rate of 6.1 mm/yr ± 4.5 mm/yr. At the Foothill Regional Park site, an older Quaternary terrace and a younger alluvial fan deposit are reconstructed with source drainages across the fault. Reconstructing the ~68.8 ka …

Deformation History Of The Pasayten Fault Zone, North Cascades, Washington And British Columbia, Natasha Budimirovic

Master's Theses

The Pasayten fault extends ~250 km from Washington to British Columbia (BC), roughly following the controversial, paleomagnetically defined “Baja BC” boundary. This study investigated the deformation history of the Pasayten fault zone through mapping contacts, measuring orientations of foliations, lineations, and folds, and examining kinematic indicators in the northern segment in BC and in the southern projection of the fault in Washington. In the northern area, the ~110-105 Ma Pasayten fault separates the Jurassic-Cretaceous Methow basin from the Middle Jurassic to mid-Cretaceous Eagle Plutonic Complex and Permian Eastgate-Whipsaw metamorphic belt to the northeast. Structural orientations and kinematic indicators in outcrops …

Dye Tracing And The Effects Of Infrastructure In Hidden River Cave, Horse Cave, Ky, Alexa G. Franks

Master's Theses

Hidden River Cave is a stream cave system found in Horse Cave, KY with continuous water flow of its two branches, Wheet River and East River. The infrastructure of the city of Hose Cave, KY was originally designed to utilize natural sinkholes for drainage of all wastewaters. The city uses many of these, now modified, sinkholes for wastewater disposal and storm water drainage. Historically, Hidden River Cave has been severely impacted by unmonitored dumping of contamination. To better understand and identify specific flow paths from sinkholes and infrastructure into Hidden River Cave, this study documented various sinkholes and other infrastructure, …

A Chemical And Minerological Fingerprint Of Hydraulic Mining Sediment, In The Yolo Bypass, California, Stephanie Annette Meursing

Master's Theses

Hydraulic gold mining in California, began not long after the discovery of gold in 1848. This type of mining dislodged large amounts of sediment, which were then deposited downstream. The Yolo Bypass, downstream from several northern California rivers, has received and continues to receive hydraulic mining sediment (HMS). The main goal of this study was to document the chemical and mineralogical characteristics of HMS in the bypass. Twelve borehole cores from the bypass and five in-situ auriferous gravel samples, which were used for background concentrations, were collected for this study. All twelve cores had higher Hg concentrations than the in-situ …

Evidence Of Active Reverse Faulting And A Left-Stepping San Andreas Fault (Mission Creek Strand) In The Eastern San Bernardino Mountains, Southern California, Jesse Waco

Master's Theses

This study presents a revision of mapped faults of the southern San Andreas fault, specifically the Mission Creek strand, at the latitude of northern Coachella Valley from Mission Creek to Whitewater River. Previous studies in the region indicate that as the San Andreas fault splits into the Mission Creek, Banning, and Garnet Hill strands in the Indio Hills, the Banning strand accommodates the majority of displacement across the plate boundary and forms a structurally complex zone with the Garnet Hill strand and San Gorgonio Pass fault zone, while the Mission Creek is mapped as inactive. However, a recent provenance study …

Sediment Provenance Of Tsunami Deposits: Implications For Assessing The Relative Intensity Of Paleotsunamis From The Sendai Coastline Of Japan, Tiffany Otai

Master's Theses

The 2011 Tohoku tsunami impacted the northeastern coast of Japan and caused unexpected damages due to the underestimation of this type of hazard. Of particular importance is the fact that geologic evidence for a predecessor event, the Jogan tsunami (CE 869), could have forecasted the severity of the 2011 Tohoku event. While the timing of tsunamis is important for effective hazard mitigation, outside of the 2011 Tohoku event, the intensity of past tsunamis remains unclear. To understand paleotsunami intensity, it is important to document characteristics of modern analogues like the 2011 event. This study utilizes surface distributions of foraminifera from …

Lithology, Structure, Geochronology, And Tectonic Implications Of The Spider Glacier Unit And Holden Assemblage, North Cascades, Washington, Colin Phillips

Master's Theses

To better understand the effects of deeply emplaced sediments on continental magmatic arcs, researchers study crustal cross sections where meta-sediments are exposed at the surface, such as the crystalline core of the North Cascades of Washington. The 8–12 kbar Swakane Biotite Gneiss has been considered the deepest meta-sedimentary unit in the section, but my mapping shows that the adjacent Spider Glacier unit is probably structurally lower. The Spider Glacier unit consists of biotite and hornblende gneisses, quartzites and rare meta-peridotites, all deformed by highly variably oriented folds with a mean moderate west plunge. My U-Pb dating of detrital zircon indicates …

Movement History Of The Pasayten Fault Zone: Insights Into Large-Scale Transport Across The North American Continental Margin, John Daniel Lee

Master's Theses

Controversial paleomagnetic data implies that at 90 Ma much of the Coast Mountains and Insular superterrane were 1200-3000 km to the south. The eastern boundary of these allochthonous rocks is near the Pasayten fault in southern British Columbia. This study covered an ~40 km segment of the fault, and the Eagle Plutonic Complex and Eagle shear zone to the east. In the 157-123 Ma Eagle tonalite, NE-vergent reverse shear zones involve rafts of the host Nicola Group; overall, the Eagle shear zone has flattening fabrics. Plutonic screens in the tonalite yielded a U-Pb zircon age of 207.9±2.1 Ma, implying rocks …

Zircon Trace Element Variation From Mono Craters (California) Ashes And Domes As Recorders Of Temporal Changes In The Rhyolite Magma System, Natalie D. Baker

Master's Theses

The Pleistocene to Holocene Mono Craters in eastern California comprise at least 28 high-silica rhyolite domes, lava flows and tephra cones. To examine the geochemical evolution of the magma system, trace elements were analyzed on crystal rims of zircons separated from juvenile pumice clasts from 5 ashes in the correlative Wilson Creek Formation (spanning from 62 to 21 ka) and from 3 rhyolite domes (21, 12.5, and 7 ka). Rare earth element (REE) patterns show similar overall shapes with prominent negative Eu anomalies, indicative of similar geochemical environments of zircon crystallization, but variation in key trace elements and ratios indicate …

Late-Stage Deformation And Exhumation Of A High-Pressure Metamorphic Belt In An Active Arc-Continent Collision, Taiwan, Michael Chojnacki

Master's Theses

Structural analyses and fluid inclusion microthermometry were conducted within the blueschist facies, Yuli Belt in the Taiwan arc-continent collision in order to better understand the kinematics and pressure and temperature conditions associated with rapid exhumation (~10 km/myr) of high-pressure rocks. The most recent ductile deformation, observed as a penetrative fabric, S3, and relatively late, steeply dipping, mineral-filled, mode-I fractures, was characterized by vertical shortening, top-to-the southwest shear, and northeast-southwest extension. The late-stage veins record entrapment conditions ranging from 200°C to 450°C. To generalize, this structural and metamorphic history is interpreted to reflect the later stages of exhumation of the Yuli …

Fracture Analysis Of The Lower Oceanic Crust, Atlantis Bank, Southwest Indian Ridge, Trent Jackson

Master's Theses

Atlantis Bank (AB) is an oceanic core complex (OCC), formed at the slow-spreading (spreading rate/yr) Southwest Indian Ridge (SWIR)-Atlantis II transform junction. AB is a domal massif composed of lower crustal and upper mantle rocks exhumed along a normal-sense detachment shear zone/fault. OCCs are of high interest since oceanic crust comprises the majority of Earth’s crust and OCCs form up to 15% of the crust that is formed at slow-spreading ridges. Brittle deformation, such as faults and fractures provide pathways for fluids to interact with the crust, which increases heat and mass exchange between the crust and hydrosphere, and is …

Deformation, Sandstone Detrital Zircon Ages, And Provenance In And Near The Eocene Leavenworth Fault Zone, Washington, Francesca Isabella Senes

Master's Theses

The North Cascades is an excellent area to study basins and strike-slip faults that formed during regional transtension. This structural, petrographic, and U-Pb geochronological study focuses on the Eocene Leavenworth fault (LVF), which separates Eocene non-marine clastic rocks of the Chumstick Formation and older Swauk Formation. The LVF has been interpreted as a dextral strike-slip fault active during Chumstick deposition and as a reverse fault. Poles to beds (n=207) in the Swauk Formation trend WNW, oblique to the ~320˚-striking LVF, and commonly dip SSW, defining a girdle and a fold axis plunging 4˚ toward 297˚. Beds (n=50) in the Chumstick …

Phreatomagmatic Eruption Deposits On The Seafloor Record Cataclysmic Caldera Formation On Axial Seamount, Juan De Fuca Mid-Ocean Ridge, Jacob Danielsen

Master's Theses

The physical and compositional characteristics of a unique ash-rich hydrothermal sediment, hydrothermal muddy tuff (HMT), on Axial Seamount, Juan de Fuca Ridge, suggest that it formed by phreatomagmatic eruptions during caldera formation. Deposit thickness trends away from the seamount summit and the presence of 68% primary volcaniclasts and 32% secondary lithics suggest a source from along caldera ring-faults deep in the crust. Lithic geothermometry indicates that the source was subject to low-temperature (<150 >°C) alteration, consistent with a provenance as deep as 600 – 800 m below the seafloor. At this depth, just above the critical point of seawater, the …

Characterizing Late Pleistocene And Holocene Incision And Flooding Post-Glacial Southern New England, Thomas Schenck

Master's Theses

Kettle ponds represent localized accommodation space for sediment deposition that can be reliably linked to processes following de-glaciation. In river adjacent kettle ponds the depression traps flood-born material, preserving flood frequency and alterations of the fluvial system. This study examines the sedimentary archive to explore the evidence for, and timing of, river incision in Southern New England from the Late Pleistocene into the Holocene.

The study used the sedimentary archive preserved in river adjacent kettles and sediment traps located along the Mount Hope River, Willimantic River, Quinebaug River, and Housatonic Rivers, all in Connecticut. Sediment cores were collected for study …

Structure And Emplacement Of The Eocene Golden Horn Batholith, North Cascades, Washington, Christopher Scudder

Master's Theses

The 48 Ma Golden Horn batholith is a ~310 km2, shallow intrusion constructed of sub-horizontal sheets in the crystalline core of the North Cascades of Washington. It is the only large body of granite in an orogen dominated by 96-45 Ma tonalite, and probably intruded during ridge subduction. The oldest and structurally highest unit of the batholith is diorite, followed by alkaline granite, one feldspar-biotite granite, two feldspar-biotite granite, and finally granodiorite, the youngest and structurally lowest unit. The batholith displays a weak NE-striking foliation restricted to the center of the intrusion and a stronger NW-striking foliation formed throughout the …

The Impact Of Fe-Ti Oxide Concentration On The Structural Ridgity Of The Lower Oceanic Crust, Atlantis Bank, Southwest Indian Ridge, Daniel Winkler

Master's Theses

Fe-Ti oxides are important components of oceanic core complexes (OCC) formed at slow-spreading mid-ocean ridges since Fe-Ti oxides are more susceptible to crystal-plastic deformation than silicate minerals. This study investigated the predicted relationship between the presence and concentration of Fe-Ti oxides and the presence and intensity of crystal-plastic deformation in gabbroic samples from Atlantis Bank, Southwest Indian Ridge (SWIR). Atlantis Bank is an oceanic core complex that formed through the exhumation of lower oceanic crust along a detachment fault. OCCs form along slow-spreading ridges and are characterized by the complex interactions between magmatism and lithospheric extension, thus making these complexes …

Structural Analysis Of Eocene Dike Swarms In And Near The Duncan Hill Pluton, North Cascades, Washington, Kathleen Bryant

Master's Theses

Voluminous Eocene dikes in the North Cascades are thought to provide insights into the regional strain field during postulated ridge–trench interaction in the Pacific Northwest. One understudied area with a large number of dikes is spatially associated with the elongate (NW-SE), ~46 Ma granodioritic Duncan Hill pluton. The ~80 km2 study area contains the shallow part of this pluton and the host schist of the Twentyfive Mile Creek unit and tonalite and migmatite of the Cretaceous Chelan Complex. Field observations and petrographic analyses indicate that the dikes in the study area can be sub-divided compositionally and texturally into three types: …

An Analysis Of Stable Isotopes From N-Alkanes Derived From Leaf Waxes In North America, Katherine T. Truong Ms.

Master's Theses

Leaf wax biomarkers are increasingly becoming a fundamental aspect of paleoclimate research. The strength of the relationship between their molecular and isotopic properties and environmental conditions is critical to their effectiveness in reconstructing past environments. To address the current lack of data pertaining to arid and semi-arid environments, soil and modern plant samples (grasses, trees, forbs, and shrubs) from sites in the western United States were analyzed to assess relationships between normal alkane molecular distribution, δD and δ¹³C and seasonal/annual climatic conditions in semi-arid ecosystems. The data show a stronger relationship between δD of leaf waxes (δD_{wax …}

Construction And Emplacement Of Cretaceous Plutons In The Crystal Range, Southwest Of Lake Tahoe, California, Brad Buerer

Master's Theses

Three Cretaceous plutons are investigated to determine their construction and emplacement histories, focusing on magmatic foliation patterns and contact relationships with each other and with the Jurassic metasedimentary host rocks of the Sailor Canyon Formation. The earliest Cretaceous Pyramid Peak granite is a leucocratic pluton with extensive co-magmatic diorite and granite-diorite hybrid rock. It contains a single NNW -striking magmatic foliation that probably reflects the regional stress field at the time of crystallization. The granite was constructed by multiple magmatic increments, though internal contacts are scarce in homogeneous parts of the pluton. Emplacement was accommodated by roof uplift, a modest …

Investigating Unit Stream Power And Drainage Capture In The Upper Dajia River, Taiwan Using Geomorphic Indices, Lindsey C. Belliveau

Master's Theses

No abstract provided.

Ncma Groundwater Model Using Usgs Modflow-2005/Pest, Brian Matthew Wallace

Master's Theses

A numerical model for the NCMA aquifer complex is presented. The objective of the study is to develop a numerical groundwater model for the NCMA aquifer system to enhance the understanding of subsurface groundwater flow. Infiltration, streamflow, pumping, and return flows are implemented to characterize the aquifer complex over time. The numerical model is calibrated to municipal and monitoring well data, average monthly water balances, and hydraulic contours. Transient aquifer inflows and outflows are assessed in the results of the study and are compared to balance terms from previous studies. The 2007 Todd Engineers Study subsurface inflows and outflows generate …

Structure, Construction, And Emplacement Of The Late Cretaceous Sonora Pass Intrusive Suite: Central Sierra Nevada Batholith, California, Monika B. Leopold

Master's Theses

The >1000 km2, ~95-88 Ma Sonora Pass intrusive suite is the oldest and most northern of the four voluminous, normally-zoned Late Cretaceous suites of the Sierra Nevada batholith. It consists of the older, marginal, equigranular Kinney Lakes hornblende-biotite granodiorite and the inner, porphyritic to megacrystic Topaz Lake biotite granodiorite. The suite intruded the ~109 Ma Bummers Flat biotite granodiorite, Jurassic diorites, and Pre-Cambrian to Cambrian metasedimentary rocks of the Snow Lake pendant. The Topaz Lake granodiorite records evidence of the development of a sizable magma chamber. The Bummers Flat and Kinney Lakes granodiorites were likely constructed by many increments, were …

Paleostress States And Tectonic Evolution Of The Early Mesozoic Hartford Basin, James Farrell

Master's Theses

No abstract provided.