Earth Sciences Commons^™

Uav-Based Quantification Of Dynamic Lahar Channel Morphology At Volcán De Fuego, Guatemala, Jerry C. Mock, Jeffrey B. Johnson, Armando Pineda, Gustavo Bejar, Amilcar Roca

Geosciences Faculty Publications and Presentations

This study quantified erosional and depositional processes for secondary lahars in Las Lajas drainage at Volcán de Fuego, Guatemala, during the rainy season from May to October 2021. Abundant pyroclastic material from ongoing eruptive activity is remobilized seasonally during heavy precipitation, which can impact infrastructure and populations living near Fuego. Our region of focus was in an agricultural zone 6 to 10 km from the summit, surveyed with an unoccupied aerial vehicle (UAV) quadcopter at monthly intervals. Imagery was processed into overlapping time-lapse structure from motion digital elevation models (DEMs). DEMs were differenced to find volumetric changes as a function …

Revisiting The Diffuse Layer Polarization Of A Spherical Grain In Electrolytes With Numerical Solutions Of Nernst-Planck-Poisson Equations, Qifei Niu

Geosciences Faculty Publications and Presentations

Induced polarization (IP) has been frequently used in solid earth geophysics, hydrology, and environmental sciences. A mechanistic understanding of the IP responses of geological materials is crucial for correctly interpreting field IP measurements. In this study, the fully-coupled, nonlinear Nernst-Planck-Poisson equations are numerically solved to analyze the electrochemical mechanism of diffuse layer polarization around a spherical grain immersed in electrolytes. The numerical results show diffuse layer polarization is formed by the charge separation between counterions in the diffuse layer and charges on the grain surface. Both tangential and normal movements of counterions in the diffuse layer are involved in the …

Whitewater Sound Dependence On Discharge And Wave Configuration At An Adjustable Wave Feature, Taylor A. Tatum, Jacob F. Anderson, Timothy J. Ronan

Geosciences Faculty Publications and Presentations

Stream acoustics has been proposed as a means of monitoring discharge and wave hazards from outside the stream channel. To better understand the dependence of sound on discharge and wave characteristics, this study analyzes discharge and infrasound data from an artificial wave feature which is adjusted to accommodate daily changes in recreational use and seasonal changes in irrigation demand. Monitorable sound is only observed when discharge exceeds ∼35 m³/s, and even above that threshold the sound-discharge relationship is non-linear and inconsistent. When sound is observed, it shows consistent dependence on wave type within a given year, but the …

Influence Of Urbanization And Climate On Irrigation Diversions And Return Flows In The Lower Boise River Basin, Bridget Bittmann

Boise State University Theses and Dissertations

The western US is facing both the rapid urbanization of agricultural lands and a changing climate, producing subsequent changes to irrigation water demand and availability. Adaptive water management requires knowledge regarding how and why water usage and availability is changing; however, managers often do not possess the tools or resources for the necessary analysis. These environmental changes are also place-based, meaning that water managers cannot directly use studies from other basins to actively manage theirs. Co-produced, actionable research can help fill this knowledge gap and provide the necessary information for adaptive management. The Lower Boise River Basin (LBRB) in southwestern …

Effects Of Discharge And Morphology On Fluvial Sound, Scott J. Gauvain

Boise State University Theses and Dissertations

Rivers, streams, and tributaries play a critical role in the global water cycle and their dispersion of freshwater is essential for widespread human consumption, crop irrigation, waste management, and hydropower generation. Currently, there is a need for innovative, non-invasive, and low-cost methods of surface freshwater discharge gauging. With careful site selection, recording the acoustics produced by streamflow could be used reliably and inexpensively to infer changes in local discharge. An important knowledge gap currently preventing the use of acoustics for stream gauging is the unknown relationships by which stream sounds depend on discharge and stream morphology. To address this, I …

Picking Up Steam: A Year Long Infrasonic Record Of Steamboat Geyser. Minor And Major Paroxysms Of The Multi-Phase Eruptions At Steamboat Geyser, Yellowstone National Park, Margaret Holahan

Boise State University Theses and Dissertations

The renewed activity of the world’s tallest geyser, Steamboat Geyser (Yellowstone National Park) in 2018, offers the opportunity to utilize long-term continuous infrasound and low-frequency acoustic monitoring to quantify eruptive behaviors. Eruption parameters including onset timing, duration, phase transitions between steam and water, instantaneous sound intensity, eruptive power, energy content, and spectral character, may be used to characterize individual eruption styles and reveal eruption trends. I interpret the character of the acoustic radiation through corroboration of first-hand observations and time-lapse video. I find that infrasound (acoustic energy below 20 Hz) is a particularly effective tool for tracking the evolving eruption …

Characteristics Of Stream Source Water Contributions And Associated Geochemical Signatures Along A Climate And Vegetation Gradient In A Glacierized Landscape, Southcentral Alaska, Hannah K. Richardson

Boise State University Theses and Dissertations

Mountain-derived snow and ice melt are essential for global water resources, and over one-sixth of the population depends on melt for freshwater. Rising air temperatures are causing vegetation to replace snow- and ice-covered landscapes and precipitation regimes to change. Collectively, these changes will alter the hydrology of mountain environments, although the exact impacts to hydrologic regimes are poorly understood. The source waters of streamflow (i.e. the proportion of ice melt, snowmelt, rain, and groundwater) dictate the timing and magnitude and affect temperature, sediment, and nutrient fluxes. By examining differences in source waters across basins with varying land covers and precipitation …

Cambrian Explosion Condensed: High-Precision Geochronology Of The Lower Wood Canyon Formation, Nevada, Lyle L. Nelson, James L. Crowley, Emily F. Smith, Darin M. Schwartz, Eben B. Hodgin, Mark D. Schmitz

Geosciences Faculty Publications and Presentations

The geologically rapid appearance of fossils of modern animal phyla within Cambrian strata is a defining characteristic of the history of life on Earth. However, temporal calibration of the base of the Cambrian Period remains uncertain within millions of years, which has resulted in mounting challenges to the concept of a discrete Cambrian explosion. We present precise zircon U–Pb dates for the lower Wood Canyon Formation, Nevada. These data demonstrate the base of the Cambrian Period, as defined by both ichnofossil biostratigraphy and carbon isotope chemostratigraphy, was younger than 533 Mya, at least 6 My later than currently recognized. This …

Brief Communication: Is Vertical Shear In An Ice Shelf (Still) Negligible?, Chris Miele, Timothy C. Bartholomaus, Ellyn M. Enderlin

Geosciences Faculty Publications and Presentations

Vertical shear is recognized today as a key component of the stress balance of ice shelves. However, the first ice shelf models were built on the neglect of vertical shear. Partly due to its historical treatment, it remains common to discuss vertical shear as though it were still considered negligible in ice shelf models. Here, we offer a historical perspective on the changing treatment of vertical shear over time, and we emphasize the term's non-negligibility in current ice shelf modeling. We illustrate our discussion in the simplest context of an analytic, isothermal, shallow-ice-shelf model.

Early Permian Zircon Ages From The P. Confluens And P. Pseudoreticulata Spore-Pollen Zones In The Southern Bonaparte And Canning Basins, Northwestern Australia, A. J. Mory, J. Crowley, J. Backhouse, R. S. Nicoll, J. D. Gorter

Geosciences Faculty Publications and Presentations

The Pseudoreticulatispora confluens–P. pseudoreticulata spore-pollen zonal datum typically coincides with the end of widespread Permian glacial deposits in Western Australia. Although previously attributed to the mid-Sakmarian, chemical abrasion isotope dilution thermal ionisation mass spectrometry (TIMS) dating of zircons from volcanic tuffs in the Ditji Formation of the Bonaparte Basin and the Grant Group in the Canning Basin point to an Asselian age of about 295.25 Ma for this datum. All dated zircons from the Ditji Formation came from petroleum well cuttings but the accompanying palynology was mostly from sidewall cores; however, all Grant Group samples were from conventional core. TIMS …

Apatite Reference Materials For Sims Microanalysis Of Isotopes And Trace Elements, James L. Crowley, Mark Schmitz

Geosciences Faculty Publications and Presentations

Twelve apatite samples have been tested as secondary ion mass spectrometry (SIMS) reference materials. Laser ablation-inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry (LA-ICP-MS) analysis shows that the SLAP, NUAN and GR40 apatite gems are internally homogeneous, with most trace element mass fractions having 2 standard deviations (2s) ≤ 2.0%. BR2, BR5, OL2, AFG2 and AFB1, which have U > 63 μg g^-1, ²⁰⁶Pb/²⁰⁴Pb > 283, and homogeneous SIMS U-Pb data, have respective isotope dilution thermal ionisation mass spectrometry (ID-TIMS) ages of 2053.83 ± 0.21 Ma, 2040.34 ± 0.09 Ma, 868.87 ± 0.25 Ma, 478.71 ± 0.22 Ma and …

Estimating Snow Accumulation And Ablation With L-Band Interferometric Synthetic Aperture Radar (Insar), Jack Tarricone, Ryan W. Webb, Hans-Peter Marshall, Anne W. Nolin, Franz J. Meyer

Geosciences Faculty Publications and Presentations

Snow is a critical water resource for the western United States and many regions across the globe. However, our ability to accurately measure and monitor changes in snow mass from satellite remote sensing, specifically its water equivalent, remains a challenge. To confront these challenges, NASA initiated the SnowEx program, a multiyear effort to address knowledge gaps in snow remote sensing. During SnowEx 2020, the Uninhabited Aerial Vehicle Synthetic Aperture Radar (UAVSAR) team acquired an L-band interferometric synthetic aperture radar (InSAR) data time series to evaluate the capabilities and limitations of repeat-pass L-band InSAR for tracking changes in snow water equivalent …

Applications Of High-Precision U-Pb Geochronology: Innovations And Insights Into Super-Eruption Petrochronology, Chronostratigraphy, And Linking Large Igneous Provinces, Michael T. Mohr

Boise State University Theses and Dissertations

The perpetual and persistent forward march of time is a geoscientist’s reference frame for understanding Earth’s natural changes that manifest in all scales of natural materials (e.g., minerals, fossils, glaciers, rocks, mountain belts, cratons). While indicators of relative timing can be abundant in natural materials (e.g., stratigraphic superposition, cross-cutting relationships, crystal growth zonation), numerical timing constraints are required to contextualize and constrain the ordering, duration, and rate of Earth system processes. For investigating Earth processes in deep time, radioisotopic ages provide a temporal foundation for deciphering the clues from an often fragmented and incomplete rock record. Among the radioisotope chronometers, …

Hydrologic Implications Of Snow-Vegetation Interactions In A Semiarid Mountain Climate, Maggi Kraft

Boise State University Theses and Dissertations

Knowledge of the complex interaction between snow, vegetation, and streamflow in semiarid mountain climates is necessary for predicting water resources. The effects of warming temperatures on snow distribution will cascade into vegetation water use and streamflow. Due to our reliance on snow water resources, it is necessary to understand how vegetation affects snow distribution, how vegetation uses snow water inputs and the subsequent effects on streamflow in the current and warming climate. The overall objective of this research is to improve our understanding of snow-vegetation interactions in a semiarid climate. In this dissertation, I use field data to evaluate how …

Application Of A High-Resolution Climate Model Dataset To Assess Habitat Suitability For Spotted Wing Drosophila In Southwest Idaho, Elizabeth Padian

Boise State University Theses and Dissertations

As global climate change continues to produce large deviations from the normals of the 19th and 20th centuries, the agricultural sector will need to adapt to these changes in order to maintain yields and feed the global population. Crop selections, yield amounts, and pest management techniques may need to be adjusted to adapt. The Spotted Wing Drosophila (SWD) is a small fruit fly-like bug that can infest berries and stone fruit crops by burrowing into the fruit (at most points in the fruit’s lifecycle) and laying its eggs. These eggs will hatch and the larvae will burrow back out of …

Investigating The Petrogenesis Of The Naifeh And Plumeria Seamounts: Insights Into The Geochemical Diversity Of Seamounts Adjacent To The Hawaiian Seamount Chain, Geoffrey Montour

Boise State University Theses and Dissertations

The Naifeh and Plumeria seamount clusters, which consist of 10 submarine volcanoes located ~220km north of the Northwest Hawaiian Ridge, were mapped and sampled by the E/V Nautilus expedition NA101 in 2018. The origin of these seamounts is unknown, but their unique orientation and location imply several possible mechanisms of formation. Four possible mechanisms of formation include: 1) off-axis upwelling of the Hawaiian mantle plume, 2) ancient arch volcanism, 3) intraplate extension and deformation, 4) hotspot volcanism. Investigating the origin of these seamount clusters will better constrain the composition of the underlying mantle, as well as the depth and extent …

Interactive Effects Of Fungal Community Structure And Soil Moisture On Wyoming Big Sagebrush Performance, Arden Marlene Engel

Boise State University Theses and Dissertations

Large swathes of the North American sagebrush steppe have been converted to grazing and agricultural use. Remaining fragmented areas are threatened by invasive annual grasses and associated perpetuation of increased fire frequency, with efforts to restore sagebrush after fire largely unsuccessful. Lack of success may be due, in part, to poor interactions between sagebrush seed sourced from distant locations and unfamiliar soil fungi.

A greenhouse experiment was designed to evaluate effects of soil fungal community composition on sagebrush reestablishment by answering: (1) How does inoculation with ‘coevolved’ versus ‘foreign’ fungal inoculum impact sagebrush fitness? (2) How does moisture availability modify …

Volcano Opto-Acoustics: Mapping The Infrasound Wavefield At Yasur Volcano (Vanuatu), J. B. Johnson, T. Boyer, L. M. Watson, J. F. Anderson

Geosciences Faculty Publications and Presentations

We explore the capabilities of volcano opto-acoustics, a promising technique for measuring explosion and infrasound resonance phenomena at open-vent volcanoes. Joint visual and infrasound study at Yasur Volcano (Vanuatu) demonstrate that even consumer-grade cameras are capable of recording infrasound with high fidelity. Passage of infrasonic waves, ranging from as low as 5 Pa to hundreds of Pa, from both explosions and persistent tremor, pressurizes and depressurizes ambient plumes inducing visible vaporization and condensation respectively. Optical tracking of these pressure wavefields can be used to identify spectral characteristics, which vary within Yasur's two deep craters and are distinct for explosion and …

Infrasound Detection Of Approaching Lahars, J. B. Johnson, J. F. Anderson, J. Mock, A. Bosa

Geosciences Faculty Publications and Presentations

Infrasound may be used to detect the approach of hazardous volcanic mudflows, known as lahars, tens of minutes before their flow fronts arrive. We have analyzed signals from more than 20 secondary lahars caused by precipitation events at Fuego Volcano during Guatemala’s rainy season in May through October of 2022. We are able to quantify the capabilities of infrasound monitoring through comparison with seismic data, time lapse camera imagery, and high-resolution video of a well-recorded event on August 17. We determine that infrasound sensors, deployed adjacent to the lahar path and in small-aperture (10 s of meters) arrays, are particularly …

New U–Pb Geochronology For The Central Atlantic Magmatic Province, Critical Reevaluation Of High-Precision Ages And Their Impact On The End-Triassic Extinction Event, Alisson L. Oliveira, Mark D. Schmitz, Corey J. Wall, James L. Crowley, Antomat A. Macêdo Filho, Maria Helena B. M. Hollanda

Geosciences Faculty Publications and Presentations

The end-Triassic extinction (ETE) event represents one of the ‘big five’ episodes of mass extinction. The leading hypothesis for the cause of the ETE is the intrusion of voluminous magmas of the Central Atlantic Magmatic Province (CAMP) into carbon-rich sediments of two South American sedimentary basins, around 201.5 Ma. The timing of dikes and sills emplacement, however, must be considered in light of age models from CAMP rocks occurring in North America. In this work, we present new high-precision ages for critical samples in NE Brazil (201.579 ± 0.057 Ma) and Canada (201.464 ± 0.017 Ma), in order to evaluate …

Critical Workforce Skills For Bachelor-Level Geoscientists: An Analysis Of Geoscience Job Advertisements, G. W. Shafer, K. Viskupic, A. E. Egger

Geosciences Faculty Publications and Presentations

Understanding the skills bachelor-level geoscientists need to enter the workforce is critical to their success. The goal of this study was to identify the workforce skills that are most requested from a broad range of geoscience employers. We collected 3668 job advertisements for bachelor-level geoscientists and used a case-insensitive, code-matching function in Matlab to determine the skills geoscience employers seek. Written communication (67%), field skills (63%), planning (53%), and driving (51%) were most frequently requested. Field skills and data collection were frequently found together in the ads. Written communication skills were common regardless of occupation. Quantitative skills were requested less …

Tectonomagmatic Evolution Of Southwestern Laurentia: Insights From Zircon U-Pb Geochronology And Hafnium Isotopic Composition Of The Red Bluff Granite Suite, West Texas, Usa, Munazzam Ali Mahar, Philip C. Goodell, Jason W. Ricketts, Eric J. Kappus, James L. Crowley, Anthony M. Alvarez

Geosciences Faculty Publications and Presentations

We provide laser ablation–multicollector–inductively coupled plasma–mass spectrometry (LA-MC-ICP-MS) and high-precision chemical abrasion–isotope dilution–thermal ionization mass spectrometry (CA-ID-TIMS) U-Pb ages and Hf isotopic compositions of zircons from the Red Bluff Granite Suite and mafic dikes in the Franklin Mountains of El Paso, Texas, USA. Granitoids exposed in the Franklin Mountains were previously divided into five magmatic stages based on cross-cutting relationships. Major and trace element compositions showed that these granitoids are ferroan, alkaline, and A2 type. Homogeneity in the whole-rock geochemistry suggests that the granite stages are genetically related and share similar petrogenetic histories. Weighted mean zircon ²⁰⁶Pb/²³⁸U …

Advances In Our Understanding Of Pyroclastic Current Behavior From The 1980 Eruption Sequence Of Mount St. Helens Volcano (Washington), Usa, Brittany D. Brand, Aaron A. Marshall

Geosciences Faculty Publications and Presentations

This review summarizes what the volcanology community has learned thus far from studying the deposits of pyroclastic currents (PCs) from the 1980 eruption sequence at Mount St. Helens. The review includes mass flow events during the May 18 eruption, including the lateral blast, the afternoon column collapse and boil-over PC activity, and some aspects of the debris avalanche. We also include a summary of PCs generated in the smaller eruptions following the climactic May 18 event. Our objective is to summarize the state of our understanding of PC transport and emplacement mechanisms from the combination of field and laboratory observations, …

New Insights Into The Age And Origin Of Two Small Cretaceous Seamount Chains Proximal To The Northwestern Hawaiian Ridge, Arturo Sotomayor, Andrea Balbas, Kevin Konrad, Anthony A. P. Koppers, Jasper G. Konter, V. Dorsey Wanless, Thomas F. Hourigan, Christopher Kelley, Nicole Raineault

Geosciences Faculty Publications and Presentations

The Northwestern Hawaiian Ridge is an age-progressive volcanic chain sourced from the Hawaiian mantle plume. Proximal to the Northwestern Hawaiian Ridge are several clusters of smaller seamounts and ridges with limited age constraints and unknown geodynamic origins. This study presents new bathymetric data and ⁴⁰Ar/³⁹Ar age determinations from lava flow samples recovered by remotely operated vehicle (ROV) from two east–west-trending chains of seamounts that lie north of the Pūhāhonu and Mokumanamana volcanoes. The previously unexplored Naifeh Chain (28°48′N,167°48′W) and Plumeria Chain (25°36′N, 164°35′W) contain five volcanic structures each, including three guyots in the Naifeh Chain. New ^{40 …}

Dynamic Mass Loss From Greenland's Marine-Terminating Peripheral Glaciers (1985–2018), Katherine E. Bollen, Ellyn M. Enderlin, Rebecca Muhlheim

Geosciences Faculty Publications and Presentations

Global glacier mass balance decreased rapidly over the last two decades, exceeding mass loss from the Greenland and Antarctic Ice Sheets. In Greenland, peripheral glaciers and ice caps (GICs) cover only ~5% of Greenland's area but contributed ~20% of the island's ice mass loss between 2000 and 2018. Although Greenland GIC mass loss due to surface meltwater runoff has been estimated using atmospheric models, mass lost to changes in ice discharge into oceans (i.e., dynamic mass loss) remains unquantified. We use the flux gate method to estimate discharge from Greenland's 585 marine-terminating peripheral glaciers between 1985 and 2018, and compute …

Lidar And Deep Learning Reveal Forest Structural Controls On Snowpack, Ahmad Hojatimalekshah, Joel Gongora, Josh Enterkine, Nancy F. Glenn, T. Trevor Caughlin, Hans-Peter Marshall, Christopher A. Hiemstra

Geosciences Faculty Publications and Presentations

Forest structure has a strong relationship with abiotic components of the environment. For example, canopy morphology controls snow depth through interception and modifies incoming thermal radiation. In turn, snow water availability affects forest growth, carbon sequestration, and nutrient cycling. We investigated how structural diversity and topography affect snow depth patterns across scales. The study site, Grand Mesa, Colorado, is representative of many areas worldwide where declining snowpack and its consequences for forest ecosystems are increasingly an environmental concern. On the basis of a convolution neural network model (R² of 0.64; root mean squared error of 0.13 m), we …

Operational Water Forecast Ability Of The Hrrr-Isnobal Combination: An Evaluation To Adapt Into Production Environments, Joachim Meyer, John Horel, Patrick Kormos, Andrew Hedrick, Ernesto Trujillo, S. Mckenzie Skiles

Geosciences Faculty Publications and Presentations

Operational water-resource forecasters, such as the Colorado Basin River Forecast Center (CBRFC) in the Western United States, currently rely on historical records to calibrate the temperature-index models used for snowmelt runoff predictions. This data dependence is increasingly challenged, with global and regional climatological factors changing the seasonal snowpack dynamics in mountain watersheds. To evaluate and improve the CBRFC modeling options, this work ran the physically based snow energy balance iSnobal model, forced with outputs from the High-Resolution Rapid Refresh (HRRR) numerical weather prediction model across 4 years in a Colorado River Basin forecast region. Compared to in situ, remotely sensed, …

Precise Zircon U-Pb Dating Of The Mesoproterozoic Gawler Large Igneous Province, South Australia, Elizabeth A. Jagodzinski, Anthony J. Reid, James L. Crowley, Claire E. Wade, Stacey Curtis

Geosciences Faculty Publications and Presentations

The Mesoproterozoic Gawler Range Volcanics and Benagerie Volcanic Suite of the Gawler Craton and Curnamona Province, South Australia, together with associated intrusive magmatism, define an intracontinental, subaerial large igneous province (LIP) preserving an estimated 110 000 km³ of volcanic rock, which hosts one of the world's largest orebodies, the Fe oxide-Cu-Au-U deposit at Olympic Dam, and numerous other related Cu-Au deposits. New high-precision Chemical Abrasion Isotope Dilution Thermal Ionization Mass Spectrometry (CA-TIMS) U-Pb dates on volcanic zircons allow for regional correlations between stratigraphic units of the GRV and BVS, and an understanding of how magmatic styles, temperatures, composition and …

Drivers Of Spatiotemporal Patterns Of Surface Water Inputs In A Catchment At The Rain-Snow Transition Zone Of The Water-Limited Western United States, E. Trujillo, J. Mcnamara

Geosciences Faculty Publications and Presentations

Spatial and temporal dynamics of rainfall and snowmelt (i.e., surface water inputs, SWI) control soil moisture, groundwater recharge, and streamflow at annual, seasonal, and event scales. In the rain-snow transition zone, comprising a large portion of the mountainous western United States, there is limited understanding of the sensitivity of spatiotemporal SWI dynamics across hydrologically variable water years (WYs). We modeled rainfall and snowpack dynamics in a small headwater catchment (1.8 km²) spanning the rain-snow transition in southwestern Idaho, USA, for two hydrologically distinct WYs (2011 and 2014). In wet WY 2011 and dry WY 2014, total precipitation drove …

Elastic Thermobarometry, Matthew J. Kohn, Mattia L. Mazzucchelli, Matteo Alvaro

Geosciences Faculty Publications and Presentations

Upon exhumation and cooling, contrasting compressibilities and thermal expansivities induce differential strains (volume mismatches) between a host crystal and its inclusions. These strains can be quantified in situ using Raman spectroscopy or X-ray diffraction. Knowing equations of state and elastic properties of minerals, elastic thermobarometry inverts measured strains to calculate the pressure-temperature conditions under which the stress state was uniform in the host and inclusion. These are commonly interpreted to represent the conditions of inclusion entrapment. Modeling and experiments quantify corrections for inclusion shape, proximity to surfaces, and (most importantly) crystal-axis anisotropy, and they permit accurate application of the more …