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Geology Newsletter- 1996, Department Of Geology

Geological and Environmental Sciences News

Vol. 1, No. 21

• Faculty News
• Alumni/ Friends/ Former Faculty Notes
• Geology Development
• Donations
• Scholarship Donations

Yellow Sea & East China Sea Bibliography, Nicole D. Scott, Patricia T. Carrier, John D. Milliman

Reports

No abstract provided.

Cycle Symmetry And Its Causes, Cisco Group (Virgilian And Wolfcampian), Texas, Wan Yang

Geosciences and Geological and Petroleum Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

181 transgressive-regressive cycles composed of nonmarine and marine carbonate and siliciclastic rocks of the Cisco Group on the Eastern Shelf, Texas, display complex characteristics at both hemicycle and full-cycle scales. They are delineated on the basis of successive changes of depositional environments, stratal boundary relations, and stratigraphic position. Transgressive and regressive stratigraphic environment gradients are defined as the magnitude of environmental shift divided by thickness for each hemicycle. They indicate the rates of lateral environmental shifts during transgression and regression. Cycle symmetry index is defined as the ratio between transgressive and regressive stratigraphic environment gradients. It provides a measure of …

Low Temperature Magnetic Properties Of Siderite And Magnetite In Marine Sediments, Bernard A. Housen, S. K. Banerjee, B. M. Moskowitz

Geology Faculty Publications

Low temperature magnetic techniques provide useful tools to detect the presence of magnetite and pyrrhotite in sediments through identification of their low temperature transitions, to determine the amount of ultrafine-grained (superparamagnetic) material in sediments, and can potentially detect the presence of certain types of magnetotactic bacteria. Application of these types of experiments to nannofossil chalks from beneath the Barbados accretionary prism led to some unusual results, which are attributed to the presence of siderite. Thermal demagnetization of low-temperature remanence after cooling in zero field and in a 2.5 T field both displayed large remanence losses from 20 K to 40 …

Naticid Gastropod Prey Selectivity Through Time And The Hypothesis Of Escalation, Patricia H. Kelley, Thor A. Hansen

Geology Faculty Publications

The hypothesis of escalation posits that biologic hazards such as predation have increased during the Phanerozoic. Previously, a survey of drilling frequencies in the Cretaceous and Paleogene of the North American Coastal Plain suggested an episodic pattern of escalation within the naticid gastropod predator-prey system. This study examines escalation from the perspective of naticid prey selectivity. If escalation occurred within the system, less selectivity of prey may be apparent in the Paleogene compared to younger assemblages. We test this hypothesis for four Eocene Coastal Plain assemblages. Contrary to predictions, intraspecific prey size selectivity was well developed for nine of eleven …

Timing Of Latest Eocene Molluscan Extinction Patterns In Mississippi, David M. Hassl, Thor A. Hansen

Geology Faculty Publications

Molluscs removed from 12 bulk samples of the Yazoo Formation (upper Eocene), exposed in a quarry at Cynthia, Mississippi, are similar in com- position and diversity to those found in the underlying upper Eocene Moodys Branch Formation, when dif- ferences in outcrop area are considered (74% of the Yazoo species are also found in the Moodys Branch). This suggests there was no significant extinction during the late Eocene (at the P15/P16 biozone boundary) as has been reported for planktic foraminifera. Only 11.4% of the species from the Yazoo extend into the Oligocene Red Bluff Formation, suggesting a large molluscan extinction …

Theoretical Analysis Of Cross Joint Geometries And Their Classification, Taixu Bai

FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Joints as opening-mode fractures play important roles as indicators of tectonic stress fields and as pathways for underground fluid flow. This thesis analytically investigates the relationships among cross joint geometry, orientations and ratios of remote principal stresses, and fluid pressure. Results show that main trends of cross joints are perpendicular to the least far field stresses during cross joint formation, and cross joint paths can be used to determine relative magnitudes of remote principal stresses. Based on the theoretical derivation, cross joint geometries are grouped into five main categories: curving-parallel, curving-perpendicular, quasi-curving-parallel, quasi-curving-perpendicular and non-curving geometries. By introducing the concepts …

Localized Amplification Of Seismic Waves And Correlation With Damage Due To The Northridge Earthquake: Evidence For Focusing In Santa Monica, Stephen S. Gao, Kelly H. Liu, Paul M. Davis, Leon Knopoff

Geosciences and Geological and Petroleum Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

The analysis of seismograms from 32 aftershocks recorded by 98 seismic stations installed after the Northridge earthquake in the San Fernando Valley, the Santa Monica Mountains, and Santa Monica, California, indicates that the enhanced damage in Santa Monica is explained in the main by focusing due to a lens structure at a depth of several kilometers beneath the surface and having a finite lateral extent. The diagnosis was made from the observation of late-arriving S phases with large amplitudes, localized in the zones of large damage. The azimuths and angles of incidence of the seismic rays that give rise to …

Quantification Of Extraterrestrial Lava Flow Effusion Rates Through Laboratory Simulations, Tracy K.P. Gregg, Jonathan H. Fink

Geology Faculty Publications and Presentations

We have used carefully controlled laboratory simulations to develop a model which relates lava flow morphology to effusion rate and rheology. Through comparisons with measured and estimated eruption rates on Earth, this approach allows us to constrain eruptive styles and compositions of extraterrestrial lava flows. By applying this model to lava flows on the Moon, Mars and Venus, we have determined that all the common flow morphologies (domes, folds and levees) on these planets could have been produced by basalt-like or andesite-like lavas through either continuous or episodic emplacement. The presence of more evolved magma compositions on other planets is …

Investigation Of Spatial Patterns Of Ground-Water Exchange With Lakes, Using A Three-Dimensional Numerical Model, Indranil Bandopadhyay

FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Hydrogeologic variables controlling groundwater exchange with inflow and flow-through lakes were simulated using a three-dimensional numerical model (MODFLOW) to investigate and quantify spatial patterns of lake bed seepage and hydraulic head distributions in the porous medium surrounding the lakes. Also, the total annual inflow and outflow were calculated as a percentage of lake volume for flow-through lake simulations. The general exponential decline of seepage rates with distance offshore was best demonstrated at lower anisotropy ratio (i.e., Kh/Kv = 1, 10), with increasing deviation from the exponential pattern as anisotropy was increased to 100 and 1000. 2-D vertical section models constructed …

Swath Mapping On The Continental Shelf And Slope: The Eel River Basin, Northern California, John A. Goff, Larry A. Mayer, John E. Hughes Clarke, Lincoln F. Pratson

Affiliate Scholarship

First Paragraph

The STRATAFORM program sponsored by the Office of Naval Research (Nittrouer and Kravitz, 1996, this issue) seeks to understand how sedimentary processes lead to the formation of the stratigraphic sequences on continental margins. A central challenge facing this effort is to understand the transport of sediments in shore-parallel as well as shore-perpendicular directions• Multidimensionality is necessary to describe, for example, the accumulation of sediments from river inputs, the distribution of gullies and canyons on the slope, the meandering of channels, and the structure of slumps and slides.

Marine Pore-Water Sulfate Profiles Indicate In Situ Methane Flux From Underlying Gas Hydrate, Walter S. Borowski, Charles K. Paull, William Ussler Iii

EKU Faculty and Staff Scholarship

Marine pore-water sulfate profiles measured in piston cores are used to estimate methane flux toward the sea floor and to detect anomalous methane gradients within sediments overlying a major gas hydrate deposit at the Carolina Rise and Blake Ridge (U.S. Atlantic continental margin). Here, sulfate gradients are linear, implying that sulfate depletion is driven by methane flux from below, rather than by the flux of sedimentary organic matter from above. Thus, these linear sulfate gradients can be used to quantify and assess in situ methane flux, which is a function of the methane inventory below.

Ua66/8/3 Annual Report, Wku Geography & Geology

WKU Archives Records

Annual report created by and about WKU Geography & Geology.

Modeling Transport Of Colloid-Bound Herbicides And Heavy Metals To Groundwater, Anastasios D. Karathanasis, R. E. Phillips, A. K. Seta

KWRRI Research Reports

Recent studies have suggested that contaminant transport to groundwater may be enhanced by association with colloidal particles. This study evaluated the role of water dispersible colloids with diverse mineralogical composition in co-transporting selected herbicides and heavy metals through intact soil columns. Colloid recovery in the eluents ranged from 45-90% for the herbicides and 10-60% for the heavy metals. The presence of colloids enhanced the transport of atrazine by 2-18%, and metolachlor by 8-30%. The corresponding increase for Cu and Zn was 2-150 and 5-30 times, respectively. For Pb, there was essentially no elution in the absence of colloids, suggesting nearly …

Mapped Karst Ground-Water Basins In The Lexington 30 X 60 Minute Quadrangle, James C. Currens, Joseph A. Ray

Map and Chart--KGS

No abstract provided.

Prolonged History Of Silicic Peralkaline Volcanism In The Eastern Pacific Ocean, Wendy A. Bohrson, Mary R. Reid, Anita L. Grunder, Matthew Heizler, T. Mark Harrison, Jeffrey Lee

All Faculty Scholarship for the College of the Sciences

Socorro Island, Mexico, is an alkaline and peralkaline volcanic island located in the eastern Pacific Ocean on a mid-ocean ridge spreading center that was abandoned at ∼3.5 Ma. Silicic peralkaline rocks comprise up to 80% of the surface of the island, rendering Socorro virtually unique in the Pacific Ocean. Precise, replicate ⁴⁰Ar/³⁹Ar ages of 21 peralkaline trachytes and rhyolites reveal a history of episodic volcanic activity from ∼540 to 370 ka that may have culminated with caldera formation; repose periods between these episodes may have had maximum duration of ∼30 kyr. After up to 200 kyr of …

Remote Sensing Of Volcanic Ash Clouds Using Special Sensor Microwave Imager Data, David J. Delene, William I. Rose, Norman C. Grody

Department of Geological and Mining Engineering and Sciences Publications

Measurements from the satellite-based special sensor microwave imager (SSM/I) were used to collect passive microwave radiation (19–85 GHz) for the August 19, 1992 (UT date), Crater Peak/Spurr volcanic cloud. This eruption was also imaged by a ground-based C-band radar system at Kenai, Alaska, 80 km away, and by the thermal infrared channels of the polar-orbiting advanced very high resolution radiometer (AVHRR). The SSM/I sensor detects scattering of Earth-emitted radiation by millimeter size volcanic ash particles. The size of ash particles in a volcanic ash cloud can be estimated by comparing the scattering at different microwave frequencies. The mass of particles …

Measurements Of The Complex Dielectric Constant Of Volcanic Ash From 4 To 19 Ghz, R. J. Adams, Warren F. Perger, William I. Rose, A. Kostinski

Department of Geological and Mining Engineering and Sciences Publications

Dielectric data in volcanic ash at weather radar wavelengths (centimeter range) are extremely sparse and are crucial for radar sensing of ash clouds and for imaging of volcanic terrains. This study extends previous data to include a wavelength range of 1.5–7.5 cm and volcanic ash compositions of 50–75% silica. The real part of the complex permittivity, ε′, of volcanic ash is 6 ± 0.5 (1σ) for all wavelengths. The imaginary part, ε″, ranges from 0.08 to 0.27. Both ε′ and ε″ show higher values at lower SiO2 concentration. It is safe to assume in any weather radar applications that the …

Study Of Volcanic Sediments By Microbeam-Pixe Technique, Nazrul I. Khandaker, M. Ahmed, M. A. Garwan

Publications and Research

Single mineral grains in a suite of Cretaceous (85–90 Ma) volcanic sedimentary rocks were analyzed using the microbeam-PIXE technique to understand fundamental geological processes responsible for micro-scale variation in elemental composition across mineral zones, twinning, cleavage planes, fractures and grain boundaries. Distributions of major and trace elements show distinct geochemical features indicative of a specific geological setting and a subsequent diagenetic process in these volcanic sediments. Examples of mineral zoning, microstructures of variable chemistry and post-depositional fluid flow are discussed using the data on feldspar group of minerals.

Geology Beneath The Primary Management Systems Evaluation Area (Msea) Site Southwest Of Shelton, Buffalo County, Nebraska, Robert F. Diffendal Jr., Frank A. Smith

Robert F. Diffendal, Jr., Publications

In 1990, as part of a national presidential initiative on water quality, researchers from the University of Nebraska–Lincoln (UNL) Institute of Agriculture and Natural Resources (IANR) received a multiyear grant from the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Cooperative State Research Service, to study management of irrigated corn and soybeans to minimize groundwater contamination. D. G. Watts, R. F. Spalding, and J.S. Schepers, of the IANR led a study at one of the Management Systems Evaluation Areas (MSEA). This area was made up of two sites, a primary site on a terrace of the Platte River near Shelton and a secondary site …

Geology Beneath The Primary Management Systems Evaluation Area (Msea) Site Southwest Of Shelton, Buffalo County, Nebraska, Robert F. Diffendal Jr., Frank A. Smith

Department of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences: Faculty Publications

In 1990, as part of a national presidential initiative on water quality, researchers from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln (UNL) Institute of Agriculture and Natural Resources (IANR) received a multi-year grant from the United States Department of Agriculture, Cooperative State Research Service, to study management of irrigated com and soybeans to minimize groundwater contamination. D.G. Watts, R.F. Spalding, and J.S. Schepers, of the IANR led a study at one of the Management Systems Evaluation Areas (MSEA). This area was made up of two sites, a primary site on a terrace of the Platte River near Shelton and a secondary site nearer …

Cambrian Hydrocarbon Potential Indicated In Kentucky's Rome Trough, David C. Harris, James A. Drahovzal

Information Circular--KGS

A recent gas discovery in the Rome Trough has resulted in a new phase of deep exploration in eastern Kentucky. This activity is located in Elliott County, near the northern boundary fault of the Cambrian Rome Trough graben. The Carson Associates No. 1 Kazee well was drilled in 1994, and blew out with a reported uncontrolled flow of 11 million cubic feet of gas per day. Although completed at a much lower rate, this well renewed interest in the deep gas potential of the Rome Trough, which has seen sporadic drilling activity since the 1940's. Gas production in the Rome …

The Middle And Upper Ordovician Bioclastic Carbonate ("Trenton") Play In The Appalachian Basin, Brandon C. Nuttall

Information Circular--KGS

The bioclastic carbonate play in the Appalachian Basin (referred to by drillers as the "Trenton") includes both gas and oil produced from Middle and Upper Ordovician stratigraphic and combination traps in linear reservoirs often mistaken for reefs. While production from this play is currently reported from nine fields in south-central and eastern Kentucky and five fields in New York, potential reservoir rocks are present throughout most of the Appalachian Basin from New York to Tennessee. Along the western flank of the Appalachian Basin, in the Blue Grass Region of central Kentucky, Middle and Upper Ordovician strata crop out. In the …

Hydrogeology, Hydrogeochemistry, And Spoil Settlement At A Large Mine-Spoil Area In Eastern Kentucky: Star Fire Tract, David R. Wunsch, James S. Dinger, Page B. Taylor, Daniel I. Carey, C. Douglas R. Graham

Report of Investigations--KGS

An applied research program at the Star Fire surface mine in eastern Kentucky, owned and operated by Cypress-AMAX Coal Co., defined spoil characteristics to develop and monitor water resources, which will help identify a reliable water supply for future property development. Water stored in the mine spoil may provide a usable ground-water supply, and the spoil could also be engineered to provide base flow to surfacewater reservoirs.

Ground-water recharge enters the spoil by way of sinking streams, ground-water flow from bedrock in contact with the mine spoil, and a specially designed infiltration basin. Ground water discharges predominantly from springs and …

Climatic And Hydrologic Oscillations In The Owens Lake Basin And Adjacent Sierra Nevada, California, Larry Benson, James W. Burdett, Michaele Kashgarian, Steve Lund, Fred Phillips, Robert O. Rye

United States Geological Survey: Staff Publications

Oxygen isotope and total inorganic carbon values of cored sediments from the Owens Lake basin, California, indicate that Owens Lake overflowed most of the time between 52,500 and 12,500 carbon-14 (¹⁴C) years before present (B.P.). Owens Lake desicated during or after Heinrich event H1 and was hydrologically closed during Heinrich event H2. The magnetic susceptibility and organiz carbon content of cored sediments indicate that about 19 Sierra Nevada glaciations occurred between 52,500 and 23,500 ¹⁴C years B.P.

Burt County Test Hole Logs, Raymond R. Burchett, Frank A. Smith

Conservation and Survey Division

No abstract provided.

Geology Of The Liquid Propane Gas Storage Facility Near Greenwood, Nebraska, R. R. Burchett

Conservation and Survey Division

No abstract provided.

Rural Domestic Well-Water Quality In The Sand Hills, D C. Gosselin

Conservation and Survey Division

No abstract provided.

Regional Hydrogeologic Summaries From Domestic Water-Well Quality In Nebraska -- Hat Creek-White River Drainage Basin, D. C. Gosselin, J. Headrick, X- H. Chen, S. E. Summerside

Conservation and Survey Division

No abstract provided.

Regional Analysis Of Rural Domestic Well-Water Quality -- South Central Plains, D. C. Gosselin, J. Headrick, X- H. Chen, S. E. Summerside

Conservation and Survey Division

No abstract provided.