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Oceanography and Atmospheric Sciences and Meteorology

Western Kentucky University

Earth, Environmental, and Atmospheric Sciences Faculty Publications

Articles 1 - 10 of 10

Full-Text Articles in Physical Sciences and Mathematics

Stable Isotopic And Geochemical Variability Within Shallow Groundwater Beneath A Hardwood Hammock And Surface Water In An Adjoining Slough (Everglades National Park, Fl), Lee J. Florea, Dorien K. Mcgee, Jonathan G. Wynn Jun 2010

Stable Isotopic And Geochemical Variability Within Shallow Groundwater Beneath A Hardwood Hammock And Surface Water In An Adjoining Slough (Everglades National Park, Fl), Lee J. Florea, Dorien K. Mcgee, Jonathan G. Wynn

Earth, Environmental, and Atmospheric Sciences Faculty Publications

Data from a ten-month monitoring study during 2007 in south Florida provide insight into the variation of δ18O, δD, and δ13C of DOC in surface water and shallow groundwater of the Everglades ecosystem. Bi-monthly samples were taken from surface water and time-averaged precipitation at Taylor Slough, and shallow groundwater from a well and a small cave within Palma Vista Hammock, an exposure of the Upper Pleistocene Miami Limestone.

δ18O and δD values in shallow groundwater from the well and cave remain near the mean of -2.4 ‰ and -12 ‰, respectively (VSMOW scale). 18O and D are enriched in surface …


Geology And Hydrology Of Karst In West-Central And North-Central Florida, Lee J. Florea Aug 2008

Geology And Hydrology Of Karst In West-Central And North-Central Florida, Lee J. Florea

Earth, Environmental, and Atmospheric Sciences Faculty Publications

The state of Florida is blessed with the highest density of large springs in North America and hundreds of smaller springs where the water from limestone aquifers returns to the surface (Scott et al., 2004). Spectacular underwater caves supply water to these springs. Lesser known are the equally fantastic air-filled caves of Florida and South Georgia (Florea, 2006; Lane, 1986). This paper features these underwater and airfilled caves, explores the impact of changes in sea level on karst in this near-coastal environment, and establishes several geologic and hydrologic characteristics that distinguish karst in the limestones of the southeast from karst …


Biogenic Porosity And Its Lattice Boltzmann Method Permeability In The Karst Biscayne Aquifer, Kevin Cunningham, Mike Sukop, Haibo Huang, Pedro Alvarez, Allen Curran, Michael Waker, Lee J. Florea, Robert Renken, Joann F. Dixon Jan 2008

Biogenic Porosity And Its Lattice Boltzmann Method Permeability In The Karst Biscayne Aquifer, Kevin Cunningham, Mike Sukop, Haibo Huang, Pedro Alvarez, Allen Curran, Michael Waker, Lee J. Florea, Robert Renken, Joann F. Dixon

Earth, Environmental, and Atmospheric Sciences Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.


Visualization Of Groundwater Flow Within Touching-Vu And Matrix Porosity In An Eogenetic Karst Aquifer, Lee J. Florea, Kevin J. Cunningham, Stephen Altobelli Jan 2008

Visualization Of Groundwater Flow Within Touching-Vu And Matrix Porosity In An Eogenetic Karst Aquifer, Lee J. Florea, Kevin J. Cunningham, Stephen Altobelli

Earth, Environmental, and Atmospheric Sciences Faculty Publications

In this study, we use an innovative, non-invasive technology, nuclear magnetic resonance imaging (NMRI), to visualize the direction and magnitude of groundwater flow in field samples of late Pleistocene limestone of the Biscayne aquifer. Specific goals of the first set of NMRI experiments are to map the advective velocity of water flowing at two rates of specific discharge (0.00025 and 0.00013 m/s) through a 10-cm-diameter cylindrical, epoxy-resin model. The model interior accurately reproduces a well-connected maze of ichnologically influenced, centimeter-scale, touching-vug macroporosity common within preferred flow zones in parts of the Biscayne aquifer. A second set of NMRI experiments investigates …


Focus Group On Karst Hydrology - Conceptual Models, Aquifer Characterization, And Numerical Modeling, Martin Sauter, Lee J. Florea, Others Jan 2008

Focus Group On Karst Hydrology - Conceptual Models, Aquifer Characterization, And Numerical Modeling, Martin Sauter, Lee J. Florea, Others

Earth, Environmental, and Atmospheric Sciences Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.


International, Cooperative Research In The Apuseni Mountains Of Western Romania, Lee J. Florea, Bogdan P. Onac Jan 2007

International, Cooperative Research In The Apuseni Mountains Of Western Romania, Lee J. Florea, Bogdan P. Onac

Earth, Environmental, and Atmospheric Sciences Faculty Publications

In May of 2006, nine American scientists and cavers from the Karst Research Group at the University of South Florida traveled to western Romania to attend and present at an international conference on records of climate change in caves in the historic Roman town of Baile Hurculane. The conference, co-sponsored by the “Emil Racoviţă” Speleological Institute of Romania and the Karst Waters Institute, drew more than 100 experts in the field of climate change and karst, and was a wonderful time spent alongside the thermal springs and Austro-Hungarian bathhouses nestled within the massive limestone canyon of the Cerna River.

Following …


Morphologic Features Of Conduits And Aquifer Response In The Unconfined Floridan Aquifer System, West Central Florida, Lee J. Florea, H L. Vacher Jun 2006

Morphologic Features Of Conduits And Aquifer Response In The Unconfined Floridan Aquifer System, West Central Florida, Lee J. Florea, H L. Vacher

Earth, Environmental, and Atmospheric Sciences Faculty Publications

Conduits within the unconfined Floridan Aquifer of west-central Florida include both horizontal and vertical components. In this paper, we investigate each and propose theories based upon cave survey data and a collection of over 300 Florida cave maps. First, we find that vertical portions of conduits visually correlate to fractures, and these fractures tend to be the dominant control of conduit directionality. Length-weighted rose diagrams of passage directions reveal a NW-SE and NE-SW pattern of conduit directions statistically similar to results found in remote sensing studies of photolinears. Secondly we note that horizontal elements of conduits occur at consistent horizons …


Cave Levels, Marine Terraces, Paleoshorelines, And The Water Table In Peninsular Florida, Lee J. Florea, H L. Vacher Jan 2006

Cave Levels, Marine Terraces, Paleoshorelines, And The Water Table In Peninsular Florida, Lee J. Florea, H L. Vacher

Earth, Environmental, and Atmospheric Sciences Faculty Publications

Levels of passages are a common feature of many cave systems around the world. Likewise, coastal and marine terraces are common in coastal plain settings. This paper extends the discussion of cave levels from traditional research sites in the interior lowlands of the United States to the Atlantic Coastal Plains, namely peninsular Florida. Are there levels in Florida caves, and is there a link between the elevation of cave levels, marine terraces, paleoshorelines, and thus the water table, above and below present sea level in peninsular Florida?


Light & Dark: The Hidden Wonders Of Buck Creek, Lee J. Florea Jan 2004

Light & Dark: The Hidden Wonders Of Buck Creek, Lee J. Florea

Earth, Environmental, and Atmospheric Sciences Faculty Publications

As early morning mists rise from the banks of its supple waters, beams of light penetrate the Buck Creek valley illuminating its beauty. While light illuminates most of the land, there are secret places, nestled within the forest where darkness reigns supreme. Places beyond the touch of the sun, beyond the influence of seasons. Here time is measured not in cycles of light but by the flow of water and fall of rock. These are the caves, conduits for water past and present. Nestled in the hills of south-central Kentucky the caves along Buck Creek provide the lifeblood for a …


Karst Genetic Model For The French Bay Breccia Deposits, San Salvador, Bahamas, Lee J. Florea, John Mylroie, Jim Carew Jan 2001

Karst Genetic Model For The French Bay Breccia Deposits, San Salvador, Bahamas, Lee J. Florea, John Mylroie, Jim Carew

Earth, Environmental, and Atmospheric Sciences Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.