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Earth Sciences

Central Washington University

All Master's Theses

2017

Articles 1 - 11 of 11

Full-Text Articles in Physical Sciences and Mathematics

Estimating The Thickness Of An Ultrahigh-Pressure (Uhp) Terrane: Insights From Phase Equilibria Modelling And Zr-In-Rutile Thermometry, Dulan Area, North Qaidam Terrane, China, David Hernández Uribe Jan 2017

Estimating The Thickness Of An Ultrahigh-Pressure (Uhp) Terrane: Insights From Phase Equilibria Modelling And Zr-In-Rutile Thermometry, Dulan Area, North Qaidam Terrane, China, David Hernández Uribe

All Master's Theses

The North Qaidam UHP terrane, in western China, exposes minor UHP eclogites hosted by ortho- and paragneisses. In the southeastern part of the terrane, the Dulan area exposes eclogite with the mineral assemblage Grt + Omp ± Ky ± Ph ± Zo ± Qz/Coe. LASS U-Pb analyses of zircons yield weighted mean ages of 463-425 Ma, and REE patterns indicate that these ages record the eclogite-facies metamorphism. Inherited zircon cores yield ages of 928-905 Ma, and REE patterns indicate that the eclogite´s protolith had a magmatic origin. Zr-in-rutile thermometry reveals that Dulan eclogites record peak temperatures of 647-711°C. Spatially distributed …

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Catastrophic Landscape Modification From Massive Landslide Tsunamis: An Example From Taan Fiord, Alaska, Colin Bloom Jan 2017

Catastrophic Landscape Modification From Massive Landslide Tsunamis: An Example From Taan Fiord, Alaska, Colin Bloom

All Master's Theses

The October 17th 2015 Taan landslide and tsunami generated a high runup of 192 m, nearly an order of magnitude greater than most previously surveyed tsunamis. Extensive modifications observed and documented on several low gradient fan deltas within the fiord make Taan Fiord an excellent laboratory for characterizing geomorphic signatures of a high runup tsunami event. Although interest in this topic is high, most prior post-tsunami surveys are from earthquake-generated tsunamis with relatively low runup, thus the geomorphic signatures of high runup tsunamis or their potential for preservation are uncharacterized. Additionally, clear modifications described during post-tsunami surveys are typically …

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150 Years Of Light Absorbing Impurity Deposition On South Cascade Glacier, Washington State Usa, Dan Pittenger Jan 2017

150 Years Of Light Absorbing Impurity Deposition On South Cascade Glacier, Washington State Usa, Dan Pittenger

All Master's Theses

Glaciers and seasonal snowpack in Washington State have undergone significant decline over the past 50 years. While warming global temperatures are widely recognized as the cause of glacial decline, the deposition of black carbon (BC) can also contribute to increased melt. BC, commonly referred to as soot, is produced by the incomplete combustion of fossil and biofuels. These particles are subject to atmospheric transport and are deposited on snow by wind and precipitation events. When BC is deposited, it lowers the albedo of the glacial surface resulting in increased energy absorption and melt. We used a 158 m long ice …

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Isotope Investigation Of Nitrate In Soils And Agricultural Drain Waters Of The Lower Yakima Valley, Washington, Dallin Jensen Jan 2017

Isotope Investigation Of Nitrate In Soils And Agricultural Drain Waters Of The Lower Yakima Valley, Washington, Dallin Jensen

All Master's Theses

Nitrate in the groundwater of the Lower Yakima Valley, Washington has long been known to frequently exceed the EPA maximum contaminant level standard for potable water (10 mg/L), adversely impacting communities with disadvantaged socio-economic status. In this research, nitrogen and oxygen isotopic signatures were determined for nitrate soil leachates and irrigation return flow collected in the Lower Yakima Valley, Washington and compared to previous isotopic studies of nitrate in Central Washington. δ15N, δ18O and Δ17O values are used to constrain sources of to groundwater. Isotope signatures for nitrate from soil leachate largely overlapped with …

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Post-Wildfire Black Carbon Deposition On The Snowpack In The Cascade Range, Washington State: Temporal And Spatial Variability With Implications For Accelerated Melt, Ted Uecker Jan 2017

Post-Wildfire Black Carbon Deposition On The Snowpack In The Cascade Range, Washington State: Temporal And Spatial Variability With Implications For Accelerated Melt, Ted Uecker

All Master's Theses

Wildfires in the seasonal snow zone affect both snow accumulation and ablation patterns by decreasing forest canopy and depositing light absorbing impurities (LAI) on the snowpack. LAI such as black carbon (BC), burned woody debris, and dust reduce snow albedo (reflectance), accelerate melt, and affect the timing and availability of water resources. Charred trees in post-wildfire forests provide a significant source of BC that is deposited on the snowpack for years following a wildfire, and this effect varies with burn conditions and forest structure. Snow samples were gathered from five sites of varying burn age (0.7, 2.7, 3.8, and 9.8 …

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Tidal And Structural Controls On Seismic Events Near The Grounding Line At Beardmore Glacier, Antarctica, Jade Cooley Jan 2017

Tidal And Structural Controls On Seismic Events Near The Grounding Line At Beardmore Glacier, Antarctica, Jade Cooley

All Master's Theses

Here I report seismic events occurring over a three-week period during the 2013-2014 austral summer near the grounding line of Beardmore Glacier, Antarctica. The ~24000 events over this time frame had a noticeable temporal pattern that correlates well with the principally diurnal tides of Antarctica. Falling and rising tide each accounted for nearly equal occurrence of events, and most (~42%) events occurred in the last third of any tidal cycle. Event epicenters were located using beamforming, and display a spatial pattern of two distinct clusters. Appearance of event location clusters differ on rising and falling tide. I theorize that, due …

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Using Strontium Isotopes In Conjunction With Major, And Trace Elements To Identify Water/Rock Interaction In The Upper Kittitas County, Washington, James Patterson, Carey Gazis Jan 2017

Using Strontium Isotopes In Conjunction With Major, And Trace Elements To Identify Water/Rock Interaction In The Upper Kittitas County, Washington, James Patterson, Carey Gazis

All Master's Theses

The complex bedrock lithologies in the Upper Kittitas County provide an ideal setting for developing isotopic methodology to identify groundwater sources and track flow paths through water-rock interaction. A wide range of 87Sr/86Sr (0.7040 to 0.7068) in surface waters, springs, and groundwater from wells was found, allowing for identification of the individual signatures of lithologic units. Rock leachates from different lithology were compared to water samples to determine a general 87Sr/86Sr signature of the water-rock interaction for that lithology. The signatures identified were systematically lower than their associated waters, but similar enough to identify the expected 87Sr/86Sr of water-rock interaction …

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Surface Offset And Slip Rates For The Winter Rim Fault System In The Summer Lake Basin, Oregon, Jennifer Hall Jan 2017

Surface Offset And Slip Rates For The Winter Rim Fault System In The Summer Lake Basin, Oregon, Jennifer Hall

All Master's Theses

The 66-km-long Winter Rim Fault (WRF) system, located in the northwestern Basin and Range Province, encompasses several Holocene fault scarps within the Summer Lake basin that include the WRF system, a normal fault divided into three segments: Slide Mountain (SMF), Winter Ridge, and Ana River (ARF), and the newly-mapped Thousand Springs fault (TSF). The current least-compressive stress field is oriented ~264° (Crider, 2001). The USGS estimates a slip rate of 0.43 mm/yr, earthquake magnitudes of 6.5-7.19, and recurrence interval of 3.1 ka (Crone et al., 2009). However, these estimates are only based upon ARF and the unfavorably slip-oriented SMF. With …

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Stratigraphy And Site Formation At The Sanders Site (45 Kt 315), Kittitas County, Washinton, James Mclean Jan 2017

Stratigraphy And Site Formation At The Sanders Site (45 Kt 315), Kittitas County, Washinton, James Mclean

All Master's Theses

The Sanders site (45KT315) was excavated in 1971 and 1972 by Central Washington State College under the direction of Dr. William Smith, then Associate Professor of Anthropology at CWSC. A total of 88 1 x 1 meter units were excavated up to 270 cm below surface. During the initial excavations and in subsequent student work, there was investigation of what would now be called site geoarchaeology, but this work was not reported in detail. In this thesis, I synthesize existing records on site stratigraphy and completed new field characterization and laboratory analyses to build a geoarchaeological summary for the site. …

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Data Potential Of Archaeological Deposits At The Chelan Station Site, Matthew J. Breidenthal Jan 2017

Data Potential Of Archaeological Deposits At The Chelan Station Site, Matthew J. Breidenthal

All Master's Theses

The Chelan Station Site (45CH782/783), located along the Rocky Reach of the Columbia River, includes lithic and faunal artifacts buried beneath volcanic tephra from Mt. Mazama (6,830 BP). Artifacts were inadvertently discovered in buried soils within a secondary alluvial terrace during construction of a pipeline to supply water to the Beebe Springs Fish Hatchery. This thesis stems from participation in original field work and includes the author’s own models of early land forms and site formation. The study reviews the construction monitoring and archaeological testing of both sites, and documents the archaeological data potential early occupations of the vicinity. The …

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Why Now?: A Case Study Of Split Estate And Fracking Activity In Garfield County Colorado, Janessa Zucchetto Jan 2017

Why Now?: A Case Study Of Split Estate And Fracking Activity In Garfield County Colorado, Janessa Zucchetto

All Master's Theses

This research examines the socio-environmental impacts associated with hydraulic fracturing activities and issues of split estate in Battlement Mesa Planned Unit Development in Garfield County, CO. Data for this research was collected during 2 months in the summer of 2015 using a series of ethnographic research methods. In doing so, this research adopts political ecology and political economy of nature as theoretical frameworks to understand the interconnections that exist between local impacts of fracking activities and a national strategy to secure gas markets internationally. I argue that the socio-environmental impacts associated with hydraulic fracturing in Garfield County, CO are not …

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