Geomorphology Commons^™

An Investigation Into The Origin, Composition, And Commercial Significance Of A Sedimentary Subsalt Formation: Keathley Canyon, Gulf Of Mexico, David Aaron Brassieur

University of New Orleans Theses and Dissertations

Sub-salt oil and gas formations in deep-water northern Gulf of Mexico are high priority targets. Advances in seismic processing allow for high-resolution, below-salt imaging. Understanding the modes of salt emplacement provide insight into sub-salt traps and potential drilling hazards.

A sub-salt sedimentary unit lies in the Keathley Canyon protraction. Autosutures created the transport-parallel lineaments of the upper surface of the unit. In addition, highly variable sediment aggradation rates created ramps, flats, and basal cutoffs along the base of the allochthon as salt and sediment competed for space. Seismic models identify modes of salt emplacement, salt/sediment interactions, and mechanisms responsible for …

Ironstone Gravel Types In Western Australia: Re-Purposing A Geological Survey To Improve Soil Management, Edward A. Griffin, Karen Holmes, Tim Overheu

Conference papers and presentations

The deeply laterised landscapes of Western Australia’s wheatbelt contain large amounts of ferruginous concretions or pisoliths, referred to locally as ironstone gravel. Soil surveys over the years have described ironstone gravel presence and abundance, and the state soil classification system recognises their importance in agriculture by designating ‘ironstone gravel soils’ at the highest level of the classification hierarchy. These gravels have generally been assumed inert in agricultural soils; however, farm trials and anecdotal experience suggest they may play a more active role in nutrient and water retention than previously recognised. Gravelly soil performance under dryland agriculture varies dramatically across the …

Evaluating Lithology As An Erosional Control On A Fluviokarst System In Northeastern Kentucky, Andrew K. Francis

Theses and Dissertations

Longitudinal stream profiles can be used to evaluate landscape evolution. Lithology as a control on a stream profile is especially of interests because fluviokarst systems are characterized by the contact of carbonate and non-carbonate rocks at the surface. Due to the difference in weathering processes between carbonates and non-carbonate rocks, it is likely that there is a difference in their rates of erosion. Cave Branch and its tributary Horn Hollow, are fluviokarst systems located in northeastern Kentucky. This area is primarily comprised of sandstone and limestone. The objectives of this study were to determine if variation in lithology was creating …

Modern Fair-Weather And Storm Sediment Transport Around Ship Island, Mississippi: Implications For Coastal Habitats And Restoration Efforts, Eve Rettew Eisemann

Master's Theses

The Mississippi – Alabama barrier island chain is experiencing accelerated sea level rise, decreased sediment supply, and frequent hurricane impacts. These three factors drive unprecedented rates of morphology change and ecosystem reduction. All islands in the chain have experienced land loss on the order of hectares per year since records began in the 1840s. In 1969, Hurricane Camille impacted as a Category 5, breaching Ship Island, and significantly reduced viable seagrass habitat. Hurricane Katrina impacted as a Category 3 in 2005, further widening Camille Cut. To better understand the sustainability of these important islands and the ecosystems they support, sediment …

The Development And Evaluation Of Lecture Tutorials For Introductory Soil Science, Judith K. Turk

Conservation and Survey Division

The wide-array of concepts from the natural sciences that must be mastered to succeed in an introductory soil science course presents a significant challenge to students. This study was conducted to determine if students’ conceptual development regarding topics in introductory soil science could be improved by using lecture tutorials. Lecture tutorials are activities that students complete following a lecture. They guide the students to critically analyze their understanding of a concept presented in the lecture. Eight lecture tutorials were written and evaluated using pre/post quizzes and surveys in two courses (an environmental science program course and a general studies course). …

Characterization And Delineation Of Karst Geohazards Along Rm652 Using Electrical Resistivity Tomography, Culberson County, Texas, Adam F. Majzoub

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The Delaware Basin of West Texas and southeastern New Mexico is the major western subdivision of the Permian Basin and a northern extension of the Chihuahuan Desert. The major evaporite unit within the Delaware Basin is the Castile Formation, which consists of gypsum/anhydrite and is highly susceptible to dissolution and karsting. Manifestations of karst within the Castile outcrop are abundant and include sinkholes, subsidence features and caves, both epigene and hypogene in origin.

Land reconnaissance surveys conducted during the summer of 2015 documented abundant karst landforms in close proximity to a major thoroughfare, RM 652, in Culberson County, Texas. 2D …

Channel Form And Processes In A Formerly Glaciated Terrain, Nathaniel Bergman

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

Despite that many places around the world in general, and North America in particular, were glaciated during the last ice age, relatively little is known about rivers that evolved over these landscapes once they deglaciated. These rivers are commonly categorized as alluvial with a glacial legacy, and often described as plain gravel-bed or sand-bed rivers. Alternatively, they are considered to be bedrock rivers when the glacial deposits were eroded and underlying rock was exposed. However, ignoring the glacial history of these rivers is scientifically wrong and they should be termed "semi-alluvial". This work shows that classification is important, not only …

Guidance Index For Shallow Landslide Hazard Analysis, Cheila Cullen

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

Rainfall-induced landslides are one of the most frequent hazards on slanted terrains. They lead to considerable economic losses and fatalities worldwide. Intense storms with high-intensity and long-duration rainfall have high potential to trigger rapidly moving soil masses due to changes in pore water pressure and seepage forces. Nevertheless, regardless of the intensity-duration of the rainfall, shallow landslides are influenced by antecedent soil moisture conditions. To the present day, no system exists that dynamically interrelates these two factors.

This work establishes a relationship between antecedent soil moisture and rainfall expressed in the form of a Shallow Landslide Index (SLI) at 1km …

Surficial Geology Of York College Campus (Queens) And Montauk Point (Long Island): An Open Access To Geoscience Education, Nazrul I. Khandaker, Stanley Schleifer, Krishna Mahabir, Erik Menjivar, Ality Aghedo, Dennis Baidoo, Tenzin Choeying, Vanessa Erwin, Jonathan Xavier, Laboni Molla, Akeed Alrubay

Publications and Research

To evaluate compositional and textural differences among the samples collected from York College (YC) campus (Queens), Montauk Point (MP) and Hither Hills (HH), Long Island, emphasis is given to the general geologic setting, overall grain size distribution, and relative abundances of light and heavy mineral assemblages. Geologic setting encompasses outwash plains (York College), fluvioglacial and glacial (Montauk Point) and beach and dune complex (Hither Hills). YC samples were collected from depth ranging 40 cm to 250 cm and are mostly an assortment of medium to coarse sand, granule to cobble sized, minor silt, and clay. Presence of low angle cross …

Montauk Point, An Essential Field Experience For Students In The New York City Area, Stanley Schleifer, Nazrul I. Khandaker, Keshaw Narine

Publications and Research

Except for a thin strip of Proterozoic and Paleozoic metamorphic and igneous rock along its very western edge and an outcropping of coastal plain deposits along its northwestern edge, the surface of Long Island is immediately underlain by unconsolidated deposits consisting of moraines of glacial till, outwash plains of stratified drift, and beach and dune complex formed by wave action. Two very prominent features of the island are the Harbor Hill Moraine, which marks the southernmost extent of the last major advance of continental glacier ice in the New York area during the Pleistocene and the Ronkonkoma Moraine, which marks …

Birth And Evolution Of The Rio Grande Fluvial System In The Last 8 Ma:Progressive Downward Integration And Interplay Between Tectonics, Volcanism, Climate, And River Evolution, Marisa N. Repasch

Earth and Planetary Sciences ETDs

The Rio Grande-Rio Chama (RG-RC) fluvial system has evolved dramatically over the last 8 Ma, undergoing channel migrations, drainage capture and integration events, volcanic damming, and carving and refilling of paleocanyons. Volcanism concurrent with the development of the river system provides a unique opportunity to apply multiple geochronometers to the study of its incision and drainage evolution. This paper reports 19 new ⁴⁰Ar/³⁹Ar basalt ages and 19 detrital mineral samples (zircon and sanidine) collected from RG-RC alluvium overlain by dated basalt flows in the context of a compilation of published ⁴⁰Ar/³⁹Ar basalt ages. The …

Martian Gully Formation And Evolution: Studies From The Local To Global Scale, Tanya Nicole Harrison

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

Gullies in the mid- and high-latitudes of Mars were first observed in Mars Global Surveyor (MGS) Mars Orbiter Camera (MOC) images in 1997. Appearing to be geologically young, they quickly became a feature of interest due to the implication of liquid water in their formation based on distinct morphological characteristics including incised channels, many exhibiting features indicative of fluid flow. However, the temperature and pressure conditions on the surface of Mars during its most recent geologic era have not been conducive to sustaining water in the liquid phase for extended periods of time; therefore, a number of “wet” (water-related) and …

Determining The Viability Of Recent Storms As Modern Analogues For North-Central Gulf Of Mexico Paleotempestology Through Sedimentary Analysis And Storm Surge Reconstruction, Joshua Caleb Bregy

Master's Theses

The northern Gulf of Mexico has been devastated by recent intense storms. Camille (1969) and Katrina (2005) are two notable hurricanes that made landfall in virtually the same location in Mississippi. However, fully understanding the risks and processes associated with hurricane impacts is impeded by a short and fragmented instrumental record. Paleotempestology could potentially use modern analogues from intense storms in this region to extend the hurricane record back to pre-observational time. Existing empirically based models can back-calculate surge heights over coastal systems as a function of transport distance, particle settling velocity, and gravitational acceleration. We collected cores in a …

Three-Dimensional Architecture And Hydrostratigraphy Of Cross-Cutting Buried Valleys Using Airborne Electromagnetics, Glaciated Central Lowlands, Nebraska, Usa, Jesse T. Korus Dr., Robert Matthew Joeckel, Dana P. Divine, Jared D. Abraham

Conservation and Survey Division

Buried valleys are characteristic features of glaciated landscapes, and their deposits host important aquifers worldwide. Understanding the stratigraphic architecture of these deposits is essential for protecting groundwater and interpreting sedimentary processes in subglacial and ice-marginal environments. The relationships between depositional architecture, topography and hydrostratigraphy in dissected, pre-Illinoian till sheets is poorly understood. Boreholes alone are inadequate to characterize the complex geology of buried valleys, but airborne electromagnetic surveys have proven useful for this purpose. A key question is whether the sedimentary architecture of buried valleys can be interpreted from airborne electromagnetic profiles. This study employs airborne electromagnetic resistivity profiles to …

Reevaluating The Geologic Formations Of The Upper Coastal Plain In Chesterfield County, South Carolina, Bradley Aaron Fitzwater

OES Theses and Dissertations

Data from a new geological map of the Patrick, S.C. 7.5 minute quadrangle (1:24,000) and detailed descriptions of two cores collected nearby (Middendorf and Cheraw, S.C.) permit improved interpretation of the geology of this portion of the Carolina Sandhills. Geologic mapping incorporated analyses of outcrops with LiDAR data, soil survey maps, ground-penetrating radar transects, and hand auger borings. Micro- and macrofossil identification and optically-stimulated luminescence (OSL) dating provided age control.

Four distinct mappable units occur throughout the Patrick quadrangle. Resting unconformably on schist of the Paleozoic Persimmons Fork Formation, the Cretaceous Middendorf Formation is more than 85.3 m thick and …

The Influence Of The Great Falls Tectonic Zone On The Thrust Sheet Geometry Of The Southern Sawtooth Range, Montana, Usa, Caroline M. Burberry, J. M. Palu

Department of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences: Faculty Publications

The reactivation potential of pre-existing deep-seated structures influences deformation structures produced in subsequent compression. This contribution investigates thrust geometries produced in surface thrust sheets of the Sawtooth Range, Montana, USA, deforming over a previously faulted sedimentary section. Surface thrust fault patterns were picked using existing maps and remote sensing. Thrust location and regional transport direction was also verified in the field. These observations were used to design a series of analogue models, involving deformation of a brittle cover sequence over a lower section with varying numbers of vertical faults. A final model tested the effect of decoupling the upper cover …

Surface Slip During Large Owens Valley Fault Earthquakes, Elizabeth K. Haddon, Colin B. Amos, O. Zielke, A. S. Jayko, R. Bürgmann

Geology Faculty Publications

The 1872 Owens Valley earthquake is the third largest known historical earthquake in California. Relatively sparse field data and a complex rupture trace, however, inhibited attempts to fully resolve the slip distribution and reconcile the total moment release. We present a new, comprehensive record of surface slip based on lidar and field investigation, documenting 162 new measurements of laterally and vertically displaced landforms for 1872 and prehistoric Owens Valley earthquakes. Our lidar analysis uses a newly developed analytical tool to measure fault slip based on cross‐correlation of sublinear topographic features and to produce a uniquely shaped probability density function (PDF) …

The Spatial Distribution And Origins Of Sandstone Monoliths In The Swauk Watershed, Kittitas County, Wa, Rebeca Becerra, Daniel O'Dell

Symposium Of University Research and Creative Expression (SOURCE)

Large groups of gigantic sandstone and conglomerate monoliths populate the Swauk Watershed of northern Kittitas County. These monoliths rest on side slopes in the watershed and distinctively project from their surroundings. The origins of these features are unknown. We studied these monoliths in the field by mapping their spatial distribution, describing their morphology and composition, and measuring their orientation and sizes in order to determine their origins. We used Google Earth and topographic maps to locate the monoliths and map their distribution. Interpretations were based from field work data and past research. Our field results show commonalities between the features …

Barrier Spit Evolution And Primary Consolidation Of Backbarrier Facies: West Belle Pass Barrier, La, John N. Kramer Iii

University of New Orleans Theses and Dissertations

West Belle Pass Barrier is a barrier spit that formed during the last delta lobe progradation associated with the Lafourche delta complex. Located on the western flank of the Caminada-Moreau Headland, West Belle Pass Barrier and Raccoon Pass are located downdrift of the Belle Pass jetties. Morphological changes stemming from storms, jetty infrastructure, and an expanding tidal inlet are evaluated using historical shoreline data and imagery. Littoral transport around the jetties combined with inlet growth created a framework wherein sediment is transported through Raccoon Pass and sequestered as a flood-tidal delta. These events aided in the landward migration of West …

Search For An Artificially Buried Karst Cave Entrance Using Ground Penetrating Radar: A Successful Case Of Locating The S-19 Cave In The Mt. Kanin Massif (Nw Slovenia), Andrej Gosar, Teja Čeru

International Journal of Speleology

The S-19 Cave was with its explored depth of 177 m one of the most important caves of the Mt. Kanin massif, but after its discovery in 1974, a huge snow avalanche protection dyke was constructed across the cave entrance. To excavate the buried cave, the accurate location of the cave had to be determined first. Since the entrance coordinates were incorrect and no markers were available, application of geophysical techniques was necessary to do this. A Ground Penetrating Radar (GPR) with special 50 MHz rough terrain antennas was selected as the single suitable geophysical method for the given conditions …

The Stratigraphic Position Of Fossil Vertebrates From The Pojoaque Member Of The Tesuque Formation (Middle Miocene, Late Barstovian) Near Española, New Mexico, Garrett R. Williamson

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The stratigraphy of the Pojoaque Member of the Tesuque Formation near Española, NM is not well understood. This region, during the Middle Miocene, represented a dynamic alluvial fan-fluvial-lacustrine environment within the Española Basin while the Rio Grande Rift was active. Cavazza (1986) identified two paleodrainage systems (lithosome A, basin-margin facies and B, basin-floor facies) by means of sandstone and conglomerate petrology, paleocurrent, and sedimentary facies analyses. After x-ray diffraction analyses of claystones within lithosome B, mordenite was discovered, which is a zeolite mineral commonly found within volcanic rocks. This is significant because the presence of mordenite confirms Cavazza’s (1986) conclusion …

Influences Of Channel Dredging On Avulsion Potential At The Atchafalaya River, Gordon William Mccain

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

In 1950, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) reported a rapid increase of water discharge from the Mississippi River to its distributary channel; the Atchafalaya River. If not prevented by man-made structures, the complete capture of the Mississippi River by the Atchafalaya River was predicted. The USACE report cites multiple causes for the observed increase in discharge partitioning, yet fails to assess the largescale channel dredging operations conducted throughout the Atchafalaya River Basin during the 1930's and 1940's as a potential cause for the increased discharge. To assess the role man-made interventions, specifically channel dredging, played in the increase …

Statistical Analysis Of Fluvial Channel Belts, Kyle Ryan Spencer

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

As meandering rivers laterally migrate over time, they build channel belts. The accumulation of all previous flow paths creates the channel belt. To better understand these ancient rivers, modern river systems are being mapped to find statistical relationships between current flow path and the channel belt of river systems. It is important to examine a wide range of systems in terms of age, size, and location. The rivers are being mapped using an ImageJ, interpretations from Saucier (1994) and Google Earth. Three channel belt morphologies are mapped for 15 modern channel belts; the width of the river in relation to …

Alluvial Sedimentation Associated With Logging In Low Gradient Watersheds In Desoto National Forest, Mississippi, Andrew W. Simmons

Master's Theses

Forestry and related businesses are an important factor of Mississippi’s economy, contributing between $11 and $14 billion annually (Mississippi Forestry Commission, 2006). The timber industry is not only important in Mississippi but is an important sector of the economy throughout the Gulf Coast region. While providing positive economic benefits to the region, the forestry industry can also negatively affect soil properties, hillslope stability, and increase sedimentation rates in local streams and rivers. The aim of this research is to determine if forestry removal causes an increase of soil erosion and how it affects floodplain sedimentation in the low gradient watershed …

Dating Late Quaternary Alluvial Fills In The Platte River Valley Using Optically Stimulated Luminescence Dating, Jacob C. Bruihler

Department of Geography: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Alluvial fills underlying the Platte River Valley in Nebraska record the geologic history of the Platte River in the late Quaternary. This study investigated the alluvium underlying the valley near the cities of North Platte and Kearney, Nebraska. Data obtained from sediment cores drilled in the alluvial deposits was used to investigate the changes in Platte River dynamics on a glacial – interglacial timescale. Optically Stimulated Luminescence (OSL) dating was used to determine burial ages of recovered sediments and to quantify the thicknesses of the late Pleistocene and Holocene alluvial fills at each study area. Our geochronology depicts considerable differences …

11th New World Luminescence Dating Workshop Scientific Program And Abstracts And Field Trip Guide Book, P.R. Hanson, James B. Swinehart, Joseph Mason

Conservation and Survey Division

No abstract provided.

Effects Of Changes In Moisture Source And The Upstream Rainout On Stable Isotopes In Precipitation – A Case Study In Nanjing, Eastern China, Y. Tang, H. Pang, W. Zhang, Y. Li, Shuang-Ye Wu, S. Hou

Shuang-ye Wu

In the Asian monsoon region, variations in the stable isotopic composition of speleothems have often been attributed to the "amount effect". However, an increasing number of studies suggest that the "amount effect" in local precipitation is insignificant or even non-existent. To explore this issue further, we examined the variability of daily stable isotopic composition (δ18O) in precipitation from September 2011 to November 2014 in Nanjing, eastern China. We found that intra-seasonal variations of δ18O during summer were not significantly correlated with local rainfall amount but could be linked to changes in the moisture source location and rainout processes in the …

Reconstruction Of The Hirnantian (Late Ordovician) Palaeotopography In The Upper Yangtze Region, Linna Zhang, Junxuan Fan, Qing Chen, Shuang-Ye Wu

Shuang-ye Wu

Reconstruction of the Hirnantian (Late Ordovician) palaeotopography in South China is important for understanding the distribution pattern of the Hirnantian marine depositional environment. In this study, we reconstructed the Hirnantian palaeotopography in the Upper Yangtze region based on the rankings of the palaeo-water depths, which were inferred according to the lithofacies and biofacies characteristics of the sections. Data from 374 Hirnantian sections were collected and standardized through the online Geobiodiversity Database. The Ordinary Kriging interpolation method in the ArcGIS software was applied to create the continuous surface of the palaeo-water depths, i.e. the Hirnantian palaeotopography. Meanwhile, the line transect analysis …

Transition From Contraction To Extension In The Northeastern Basin And Range: New Evidence From The Copper Mountains, Nevada, Jeffrey M. Rahl, Allen J. Mcgrew, Kenneth A. Foland

Allen J. McGrew

New mapping, structural analysis, and 40Ar/39Ar dating reveal an unusually well‐constrained history of Late Eocene extension in the Copper Mountains of the northern Basin and Range province. In this area, the northeast‐trending Copper Creek normal fault juxtaposes a distinctive sequence of metacarbonate and granitoid rocks against a footwall of Upper Precambrian to Lower Cambrian quartzite and phyllite. Correlation of the hanging wall with footwall rocks to the northwest provides an approximate piercing point that requires 8–12 km displacement in an ESE direction. This displaced fault slice is itself bounded above by another normal fault (the Meadow Fork Fault), which brings …

Gps Constraints On Interplate Locking Within The Makran Subduction Zone, Elyse Frohling, Walter Szeliga

All Faculty Scholarship for the College of the Sciences

The Makran subduction zone is one of the last convergent margins to be investigated using space-based geodesy. While there is a lack of historical and modern instrumentation in the region, a sparse sampling of continuous and campaign measurements over the past decade has allowed us to make the first estimates of convergence rates. We combine GPS measurements from 20 stations located in Iran, Pakistan and Oman along with hypocentral locations from the International Seismological Centre to create a preliminary 3-D estimate of the geometry of the megathrust, along with a preliminary fault-coupling model for the Makran subduction zone. Using a …