Earth Sciences Commons^™

Global Distribution Of Atmospheric Phosphorus Sources, Concentrations And Deposition Rates, And Anthropogenic Impacts, Natalie Mahowald, Timothy D. Jickells, Alex R. Baker, Paulo Artaxo, Claudia R. Benitez-Nelson, Gilles Bergametti, Tami C. Bond, Ying Chen, David D. Cohen, Barak Herut, Nilgun Kubilay, Remi Losno, Chao Luo, Willy Maenhaut, Kenneth A. Mcgee, Gregory S. Okin, Ronald L. Siefert, Seigen Tsukuda

Faculty Publications

[1] A worldwide compilation of atmospheric total phosphorus (TP) and phosphate (PO4) concentration and deposition flux observations are combined with transport model simulations to derive the global distribution of concentrations and deposition fluxes of TP and PO4. Our results suggest that mineral aerosols are the dominant source of TP on a global scale (82%), with primary biogenic particles (12%) and combustion sources (5%) important in nondusty regions. Globally averaged anthropogenic inputs are estimated to be ∼5 and 15% for TP and PO4, respectively, and may contribute as much as 50% to the deposition over the oligotrophic ocean where productivity may …

Final Report: Task 22 — Extreme Ground Motion Studies, John G. Anderson, James N. Brune, Jaak J.K. Daemen, Matthew Purvance

Publications (YM)

TASK 22 consisted of two separate investigations into extreme ground motions due to seismic events, Subtask 1 and Subtask 2. Subtask 1 included field studies of geological formations that should put an upper bound on extreme ground motions that have happened at the site of the formations. The locations are critically selected to provide the most effective constraints possible on the validity of the probabilistic seismic hazard analysis for Yucca Mountain. Subtask 2 surveyed recorded ground motions from around the world, with the aim to draw general conclusions from these as to the conditions where extreme ground motions are observed. …

Surface Energy Balance And Melt Thresholds Over 11 Years At Taylor Glacier, Antarctica, Matthew James Hoffman, Andrew G. Fountain, Glen E. Liston

Geography Faculty Publications and Presentations

In the McMurdo Dry Valleys, Victoria Land, Antarctica, melting of glacial ice is the primary source of water to streams, lakes, and associated ecosystems. To understand geochemical fluxes and ecological responses to past and future climates requires a physically based energy balance model. We applied a one-dimensional model to one site on Taylor Glacier using 11 years of daily meteorological data and seasonal ablation measurements. Inclusion of transmission of solar radiation into the ice was necessary to accurately model summer ablation and ice temperatures. Results showed good correspondence between calculated and measured ablation and ice temperatures over the 11 years. …

Organic Chemostratigraphic Markers Characteristic Of The (Informally Designated) Anthropocene Epoch, Michael A. Kruge

Department of Earth and Environmental Studies Faculty Scholarship and Creative Works

Recognizing the tremendous collective impact of humans on the environment in the industrial age, the proposed designation of the current time period as the Anthropocene Epoch has considerable merit. One of the signature activities during this time continues to be the intensive extraction, processing, and combustion of fossil fuels. While fossil fuels themselves are naturally-occurring, they are most often millions of years old and associated with deeply buried strata. They may be found at the surface, for example, as natural oil seeps or coal seam outcrops, but these are relatively rare occurrences. Fossil fuels and their myriad by-products become the …

The Tiffanian Land-Mammal Age (Middle And Late Paleocene) In The Northern Bighorn Basin, Wyoming, Ross Secord

Department of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences: Faculty Publications

The Tiffanian North American land-mammal age is an informal biochronologic unit that spans 4.5 myr of the middle and late Paleocene. It is preceded and succeeded by the Torrejonian and Clarkforkian land-mammal ages, respectively. The Tiffanian was initially based on a small collection of mammals from southern Colorado, but faunas of Tiffanian age are now known throughout the Rocky Mountain region. The richest and most complete sequence of middle and late Tiffanian faunas known occurs in the northern Bighorn Basin. These faunas are the primary basis for regional Tiffanian biochronology. The Bighorn Basin sequence is also important because it preserves …

Motion On Upper-Plate Faults During Subduction Zone Earthquakes: Case Of The Atacama Fault System, Northern Chile, John P. Loveless, Matthew E. Pritchard

Geosciences: Faculty Publications

Motion on the Atacama Fault System (AFS) in northern Chile is driven by Andean subduction zone processes. We use two approaches, observational and theoretical, to evaluate how the AFS and other forearc faults responded to coseismic stress induced by one well-studied megathrust earthquake, the 1995 Mw = 8.1 Antofagasta event. We use synthetic aperture radar interferometry (InSAR) to search for small-scale coseismic and postseismic deformation on individual faults. The InSAR data are ambiguous: some images show offset consistent with coseismic faulting on the Paposo segment of the AFS and others lack such signal. The fact that we do not …

Slides: Lower Arkansas Valley Super Ditch Company, Inc.: Water Leasing Program, Peter Nichols

Evolving Regional Frameworks for Ag-to-Urban Water Transfers (December 11)

Presenter: Peter Nichols, General Counsel of the Lower Arkansas Valley “Super Ditch” Company, Trout, Raley, Montano, Witwer & Freeman PC, Colorado

33 slides

Slides: Idaho Rental Pool: Rules And Procedures, Idaho Water Resource Board, Jerry R. Rigby

Evolving Regional Frameworks for Ag-to-Urban Water Transfers (December 11)

Presenter: Jerry Rigby, Counsel for Fremont‐Madison Irrigation District, Rigby, Thatcher, Andrus, Rigby & Moeller, Idaho

25 slides

Agenda: Evolving Regional Frameworks For Ag-To-Urban Water Transfers, University Of Colorado Boulder. Natural Resources Law Center, Western Water Policy Program, Western Water Assessment (Program), Red Lodge Clearinghouse

Evolving Regional Frameworks for Ag-to-Urban Water Transfers (December 11)

The permanent transfer of water from agricultural users to municipalities has become a common feature of water management in several western states. In many cases, these voluntary market‐based transfers provide significant benefits to both the buyers and sellers, but many third parties—including remaining irrigators, rural businesses and communities dependent upon agricultural economies—have been negatively impacted. While some impacts of these so‐called “buy and dry” transfers are largely unavoidable, many can be lessened by temporary arrangements that only shift water to cities in years when municipal supplies are inadequate, such as drought and post‐drought storage recovery, and by consolidating individual farm‐to‐city …

Slides: Pvid/Mwd Land Management, Crop Rotation And Water Supply Program, Ed Smith

Evolving Regional Frameworks for Ag-to-Urban Water Transfers (December 11)

Presenter: Ed Smith, General Manager, Palo Verde Irrigation District, Southern California

25 slides

Using Geoscience Education Graduate Students To Help Faculty Transform Teaching Practice, Teagan L. Tomlin

Theses and Dissertations

Universities make claims about student learning that graduates don't often achieve and are under pressure to show improvement in teaching and learning in their undergraduate programs. This has been the constant focus of university-level professional development programs, but most teachers are still not using the most effective teaching methods. Individual departments need to find ways to help their instructors overcome three main challenges associated with adopting more effective student-centered teaching methods. No matter what strategy is adopted, instructors need considerable support to 1) change their beliefs about what constitutes effective teaching and learning, 2) learn to effectively implement new strategies, …

Correction Of Electronic Record For Weighing Bucket Precipitation Gauge Measurements, Anurag Nayak, David G. Chandler, Danny Marks, James P. Mcnamara, Mark Seyfried

Geosciences Faculty Publications and Presentations

Electronic sensors generate valuable streams of forcing and validation data for hydrologic models but are often subject to noise which must be removed as part of model input and testing database development. We developed an automated precipitation correction program (APCP) for weighing bucket precipitation gauge records, which are subject to several types of mechanical and electronic noise and discontinuities, including gauge maintenance, missing data, wind vibration, and sensor drift. Corrected cumulative water year precipitation from APCP did not exhibit an error bias and matched measured water year total precipitation within 2.1% for 58 station years tested. Removal of low-amplitude periodic …

Detection Of An So2 Plume Over Sapporo, Japan From The Eruption Of Mt. Kasatochi Using A Balloon Sounding Technique, Gary A. Morris, Jun Hirokawa, Masatomo Fujiwara, Fumio Hasebe, Keisuke Ishida, Nicholay Krotkov, Mark R. Schoeberl, Walter Komhyr, Barry Lefer, James Flynn

Physics and Astronomy Faculty Presentations

During the month of August 2008, 10 ozonesondes were launched from Hokkaido University in Sapporo, Japan as part of a study to examine regional pollution during the Olympic period. Seven of these soundings included a second instrument with a filter designed to remove SO2 from the intake air stream. SO2 interferes with the normal chemistry of the electrochemical cell (ECC) method for ozone detection, with the net result being that each molecule of SO2 registers as minus one molecule of O3. Thus the unfiltered sonde reports [O3] - [SO2] while the filtered sonde reports [O3]. Laboratory tests prior to launch …

Effects Of Olfactory And Visual Predators On Nest Success And Nest-Site Selection Of Waterfowl In North Dakota, Jennifer Borgo

Green Canyon Environmental Research Area, Logan Utah

No abstract provided.

The Application Of Electrical Resistivity And Microgravity To Locate Tunnels Along The U.S.-Mexico Border At Calexico, Gina Lee Cesin

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

No abstract provided.

Atrazine Contamination And Suspended Sediment Transport Within Logsdon River, Mammoth Cave, Kentucky, Julie Eileen Schenck Brown

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

Understanding the potential for karst aquifer contamination by sediment-sorbed pesticides is important for cave conservation efforts in agricultural landscapes. Flow rate, water quality parameters and suspended sediment concentrations were measured in Logsdon River, a ~10km karst conduit within the Turnhole Spring Groundwater Basin of Mammoth Cave National Park to determine characteristics of storm-period transport of sediment-sorbed atrazine through a conduit-flow karst aquifer.

Analysis of two independent precipitation events occurring in the Spring of 2008 from May 2-4 and May 27-29 demonstrated the rapid response of the Logsdon River to precipitation events with detections of atrazine increasing during the initial turbidity …

Watershed Condition Assessment For Little River Canyon National Preserve, Alabama, Nathan Demille Rinehart

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

No abstract provided.

Simulation Modeling Of Karst Aquifer Conduit Evolution And Relations To Climate, John D. Broome

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

ABSTRACT Karst regions of the world that receive relatively similar amounts of precipitation display a wide variety of landscapes. It has been suggested (Groves and Meiman, 2005) that climates exhibiting larger discrete storm events have more dissolving power and consequently higher rates of conduit growth than climates with more uniform precipitation distributions. To study this concept, a computer program “Cave Growth” was developed that modeled the growth of a cross-section of a cave passage under dynamic flow and chemical conditions. A series of 46 simulation datasets were created to represent different climatic conditions. These simulations had the same total annual …

Hydrochemistry Of Wetlands Along The Platte River Near Ashland, Nebraska, Carrie L. Wiese

School of Natural Resources: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

No abstract provided.

Determining Chemical Signatures Of Geologic Materials For Establishing Provenience Of Anasazi Red And Gray Wares Using Esem-Eds And Icp-Ms, Champagne Springs Ruins, Co, Steven Mathew Di Naso

All-Inclusive List of Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Compositional analyses of prehistoric ceramics and geological materials allow archaeologists to establish provenience of artifacts through comparative analysis of the materials used in prehistoric ceramic production. Where pottery clay pastes and tempering constituents originate from locally or regionally available geological materials, identifying their chemical composition and their geographic location and distribution facilitates a better understanding of the inter and intra socio-spatial and socioeconomic patterns among neighboring communities. The Champagne Springs Ruins were occupied during the late Pueblo I (A.D. 700 -A.D. 900) to early Pueblo II (A.D. 900 TO A.D. 1100) periods. The traditional view of local ceramic production from …

Global Irrigation Water Demand: Variability And Uncertainties Arising From Agricultural And Climate Data Sets, Dominik Wisser, Steve Frolking, Ellen M. Douglas, Balazs M. Fekete, Charles Vorosmarty, Andreas H. Schumann

Earth Sciences

Agricultural water use accounts for around 70% of the total water that is withdrawn from surface water and groundwater. We use a new, gridded, global-scale water balance model to estimate interannual variability in global irrigation water demand arising from climate data sets and uncertainties arising from agricultural and climate data sets. We used contemporary maps of irrigation and crop distribution, and so do not account for variability or trends in irrigation area or cropping. We used two different global maps of irrigation and two different reconstructions of daily weather 1963–2002. Simulated global irrigation water demand varied by ∼30%, depending on …

Analyzing The Effect Of Hurricanes On Structure And Growth In Southeast Texas Forests, Christopher M. Gentry

All-Inclusive List of Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Hurricanes are a relatively common occurrence along the gulf coast of Texas. This research analyzed the effect hurricanes have on the growth and structure of forests in southeastem_Texas. Increment cores were taken from numerous species within the Neches Bottom Unit of the Big Thicket National Preserve and the Wier Woods Nature Preserve to analyze how hurricanes affect the structure of these forests. In the Turkey Creek Unit of the Big Thicket National Preserve and in the Angelina National Forest, Pi nus palustris (Longleaf pine) and P. taeda (Loblolly pine) was sampled in order to analyze how hurricanes affect the growth …

Studies Of The Performance, Stability And Reliability Of Various Configurations Of The Activated Sludge Process At Full-Scale Municipal Wastewater Treatment Plants, Michael A. Redda

Earth & Environmental Sciences Dissertations - Archive

This research presents a performance, stability and reliability analysis of five configurations of activated sludge process, viz., conventional, contact stabilization, complete mix, extended aeration and sequencing batch reactor. Five years effluent records of carbonaceous biochemical oxygen demand (CBOD5), total suspended solids (TSS) and ammonia nitrogen (NH3-N) were used. The impact of hydraulic load classes (HLCes) and seasons on the performance of configurations were also examined. The Univariate General Linear Model with Tukey's Honestly Significant Difference was employed in the performance and stability studies. Performance was determined based on the observed lowest mean effluent concentrations, while the observed standard deviation from …

Forcing And Dynamics Of Seafloor-Water Column Exchange On A Broad Continental Shelf, William B. Savidge, Ann Gargett, Richard A. Jahnke, James R. Nelson, Dana K. Savidge, R Timothy Short, George Voulgaris

Faculty Publications

Relict sediments of elevated permeability characterize the majority of continental shelves globally (Emery, 1968). In these settings, interactions between benthic boundary layer (BBL) flows and seabed topography generate pressure fluctuations that drive advective and dispersive porewater transport, dramatically increasing the magnitude and variability of porewater solute and particulate exchange across the sediment-water interface (Huettel et al., 1996; Huettel and Rusch, 2000). On broad shallow shelves with a relatively large area-to-volume ratio, the seafloor’s role is magnified. Energetic events may reorganize bedforms across a significant fraction of the shelf, leading to altered exchange dynamics that may persist long after the organizing …

Optimal Irrigation Management For Sloping, Blocked-End Borders, Jorge Jose Escurra

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

A robust mathematical model of one-dimensional flow for sloping, blocked-end border irrigation was developed using the four-point implicit method to solve the Saint-Venant equations, the volume-balance solution method, and the implementation of new algorithms to avoid numerical instability and solution divergence. The model has the capability of successfully simulating all surface irrigation phases in blocked-end borders for a range of inflow rates (0.01 - 0.05 m³/s per m), longitudinal slopes (up to 1.00%), and border lengths (100 - 500 m).

To achieve numerical stability over the specified parameter ranges, the model was divided into three parts: (1) advance-phase …

Decadal-Scale Changes On Coral Reefs In Quintana Roo, Mexico, Thaddeus Allen Nicholls

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

In 1988 data on coral reef community composition were collected from two areas, Akumal and Chemuyil, Quintana Roo, Mexico, ranging from 5-35m depth. These areas were revisited in 2005 and data were collected by the same methods and at the same depths as in 1988. Data from 1988 and 2005 were compared to determine if the coral reefs had undergone significant changes, and what specific changes had occurred. Chi-square analysis determined that community composition data collected in 1988 are significantly different from data collected in 2005 at all sites and depths within the categories of corals, gorgonians, sponges, and macroalgae. …

Sedimentology, Stratigraphy, And Organic Geochemistry Of The Red Pine Shale, Uinta Mountains, Utah: A Prograding Deltaic System In A Mid-Neoproterozoic Interior Seaway, Caroline Amelia Myer

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The Red Pine Shale (RPS; ~1120m thick), uppermost formation of the Neoproterozoic Uinta Mountain Group, Utah, is an organic-rich sedimentary succession interpreted as a marine deltaic system that delivered immature sediment from the north that mixed with mature sediment from the east. Multiple data sets suggest regional climate and sea-level changes associated with changing organic-carbon burial rates.

Six facies were identified and represent wave-, tidal-, and river-influenced parts of the distal prodelta to delta front in a marine system. These include the shale facies and associated concretion facies (distal prodelta), the shale-sandstone facies (proximal prodelta to delta front), the slump …

Seasonal Changes In A Eutrophic Lake (Wilgreen Lake, Madison County, Kentucky) From Summer Stratification Through Fall Turnover, Richard D. Stockwell, Walter S. Borowski

EKU Faculty and Staff Scholarship

No abstract provided.

Solarization Effects On Chemical Properties Of Soils Under Kudu (Pueraria Montana) Invasion, Nicole Gilbert

All Theses

Solarization is an effective method for managing small areas with kudzu (Pueraria montana) invasions that may alter soil chemical properties. Conducted from 2005 to 2007 at the Clemson University Experimental Forest in Clemson, South Carolina on a Cecil clay loam (fine, kaolinitic, thermic Typic Kanhapludult), this study compares soil chemical properties under thermally-treated and non-treated plots at different depths invaded by Kudzu.
The experimental factors of treatment and depth were arranged in a factorial treatment design with 15 treatments arranged in a split plot design. The five thermal treatments were the whole plot factors which were arranged in a randomized …

Insights Into Biogeophysical Signatures Using Polarization Force Microscopy, Elizabeth Bartosik

All Theses

The success of bioremediation strategies is dependent upon effective monitoring of microorganisms in the subsurface. Induced polarization (IP) may represent a cost-effective, complementary technique to existing borehole-based microbe detection schemes. Recent studies show a significant, yet poorly understood IP effect associated with the presence of bacteria in aqueous and porous media. This effect is believed to be rooted in the physicochemical surface interactions between cells and minerals which we probe using polarization force microscopy. Polarization force experiments were conducted on a hydrated mica surface using the gram positive bacterium Bacillus subtilis and the gram negative bacterium Escherichia coli. On all …