Earth Sciences Commons^™

The Vegetation Drought Response Index (Vegdri): A New Integrated Approach For Monitoring Drought Stress In Vegetation, Jesslyn F. Brown, Brian D. Wardlow, Tsegaye Tadesse, Michael Hayes, Bradley C. Reed

National Drought Mitigation Center: Faculty Publications

The development of new tools that provide timely, detailed-spatial-resolution drought information is essential for improving drought preparedness and response. This paper presents a new method for monitoring drought-induced vegetation stress called the Vegetation Drought Response Index (VegDRI). VegDRI integrates traditional climate-based drought indicators and satellite-derived vegetation index metrics with other biophysical information to produce a 1 km map of drought conditions that can be produced in near-real time. The initial VegDRI map results for a 2002 case study conducted across seven states in the north-central United States illustrates the utility of VegDRI for improved large-area drought monitoring.

Characterization Of Natural Spring Waters Of The San Bernardino Mountains Using Stable Isotopes Of Oxygen And Hydrogen, Alison Renee Sloat

Theses Digitization Project

The purpose of this study was to characterize the natural spring waters of the San Bernardino Mountains using two stable isotopes. The isotopic results of this study will aid with tracing sources, movements, and mixing effects on groundwater receiving mountain-front recharge in the region.

Atlantic And Pacific Sst Influences On Medieval Drought In North America Simulated By The Community Atmospheric Model, Song Feng, Robert J. Oglesby, Clinton M. Rowe, David B. Loope, Qi Steven Hu

Department of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences: Faculty Publications

Severe drought is arguably one of the greatest recurring natural disasters that strikes North America. A synthesis of multiproxy data shows that North America was in the grip of a severe centennial-scale drought during medieval times (800–1300 AD). In this study, the Community Atmospheric Model (CAM) is used to investigate the role of sea surface temperature (SST) anomalies from the North Atlantic and the tropical Pacific Ocean on this megadrought. These anomalies are obtained from proxy reconstructions of SST. Four model experiments with prescribed SST anomalies in the tropical Pacific and/or North Atlantic Ocean were made. The CAM results captured …

High-Spectral Resolution Simulation Of Polarization Of Skylight: Sensitivity To Aerosol Vertical Profile, Jing Zeng, Qingyuan Han, Jun Wang

Department of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences: Faculty Publications

A vector radiative transfer model was used in conjunction with the line-by-line radiative transfer model and the database of high-resolution transmission (HITRAN) molecular absorption to simulate the degree of linear polarization of skylight in cloud-free conditions. Differences between simulated and measured polarization data in highspectral resolution are found to be within 1% after aerosol scattering and gas absorptions are carefully considered. Limiting experiments are conducted at wavelengths around 0.760–0.765 μm O₂-A absorption band for the same columnar aerosol optical thickness but different aerosol profiles. Results showed that the degree of linear polarization of skylight at surface varies strongly …

Simulation Of Ground-Water Flow And Effects Of Ground-Water Irrigation On Base Flow In The Elkhorn And Loup River Basins, Nebraska, Steven M. Peterson, Jennifer S. Stanton, Amanda T. Saunders, Jesse R. Bradley

United States Geological Survey: Publications

Irrigated agriculture is vital to the livelihood of com¬munities in the Elkhorn and Loup River Basins in Nebraska, and ground water is used to irrigate most of the cropland. Concerns about the sustainability of ground-water and surface-water resources have prompted State and regional agencies to evaluate the cumulative effects of ground-water irrigation in this area. To facilitate understanding of the effects of ground-water irrigation, a numerical computer model was devel¬oped to simulate ground-water flow and assess the effects of ground-water irrigation (including ground-water withdrawals, hereinafter referred to as pumpage, and enhanced recharge) on stream base flow.
The study area covers …

Modelling The Deformation Front Of A Fold-Thrust Belt: The Effect Of An Upper Detachment Horizon (Abstract), Caroline M. Burberry, H. Koyi, F. Nilfouroushan, John W. Cosgrove

Department of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences: Faculty Publications

First sentence of abstract: Structures found at the deformation fronts of fold-thrust belts are variable in type, geometry and spatial organisation, as can be demonstrated from comparisons between structures in the Zagros Fold-Thrust Belt, Iran and the Sawtooth Range, Montana.

Preliminary Results From A Holocene Record From Crystal Lake, Southwestern Ohio, Rebecca Teed, Leigh Deuter, Ashley Kesler, Graham Parker, Melissa Sparks

Earth and Environmental Sciences Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Kinematic Analysis Of Mylonitic Rocks, Southern Ruby Mountains, Sw Montana: Evidence For Proterozoic Orogenic Crustal Thickening And Topographic Collapse, Jessica Sousa

Undergraduate Review

Mylonitic granitic rocks from a large shear zone within the southern Ruby Mountains in southwest Montana record evidence for a multiple tectonic movement history. The shear zone is 500 meters thick with ductile shear fabrics generally striking northeast and dipping to the northwest. Foliations in the adjacent country rocks are sub-parallel to the foliations within the mylonites suggesting shear zone development was contemporaneous with the regional deformation and metamorphism of the country rock. A well-developed mineral stretching lineation, defined by aligned sillimanite crystals, records predominantly dip-slip movement, but locally, oblique-slip is also preserved. Sheath-type folds developed in thin calc-silicate layers …

Environmental Factors Affecting Mercury In Camp Far West Reservoir, California, 2001–03, Charles N. Alpers, A. Robin Stewart, Michael K. Saiki, Mark C. Marvin-Dipasquale, Brent R. Topping, Kelly M. Rider, Steven K. Gallanthine, Cynthia A. Kester, Robert O. Rye, Ronald C. Antweiler, John F. De Wild

United States Geological Survey: Publications

This report documents water quality in Camp Far West Reservoir from October 2001 through August 2003. The reservoir, located at approximately 300 feet above sea level in the foothills of the northwestern Sierra Nevada, California, is a monomictic lake characterized by extreme drawdown in the late summer and fall. Thermal stratification in summer and fall is coupled with anoxic conditions in the hypolimnion. Water-quality sampling was done at approximately 3-month intervals on eight occasions at several stations in the reservoir, including a group of three stations along a flow path in the reservoir: an upstream station in the Bear River …

Evapotranspiration Rates Of Riparian Forests, Platte River, Nebraska, 2002–06, Matthew K. Landon, David L. Rus, Benjamin J. Dietsch, Michaela R. Johnson, Kathleen D. Eggemeyer

United States Geological Survey: Publications

Evapotranspiration (ET) in riparian areas is a poorly understood component of the regional water balance in the Platte River Basin, where competing demands have resulted in water shortages in the ground-water/surface-water system. From April 2002 through March 2006, the U.S. Geological Survey, Nebraska Platte River Cooperative Hydrology Study Group, and Central Platte Natural Resources District conducted a micrometeorological study of water and energy balances at two sites in central Nebraska near Odessa and Gothenburg to improve understanding of ET rates and factors affecting them in Platte River riparian forests. A secondary objective of the study was to constrain estimates of …

Range-Wide Patterns Of Greater Sage-Grouse Persistence, Cameron L. Aldridge, Scott E. Nielsen, Hawthorne L. Beyer, Mark S. Boyce, John W. Connelly, Steven T. Knick, Michael A. Schroeder

United States Geological Survey: Staff Publications

Aim
Greater sage-grouse (Centrocercus urophasianus), a shrub-steppe obligate species of western North America, currently occupies only half its historical range. Here we examine how broad-scale, long-term trends in landscape condition have affected range contraction.

Location
Sagebrush biome of the western USA.

Methods
Logistic regression was used to assess persistence and extirpation of greater sage-grouse range based on landscape conditions measured by human population (density and population change), vegetation (percentage of sagebrush habitat), roads (density of and distance to roads), agriculture (cropland, farmland and cattle density), climate (number of severe and extreme droughts) and range periphery. Model predictions were …

Distribution And Environmental Limitations Of An Amphibian Pathogen In The Rocky Mountains, Usa, Erin Muths, David S. Pilliod, Lauren J. Livo

United States Geological Survey: Staff Publications

Amphibian populations continue to be imperiled by the chytrid fungus (Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis). Understanding where B. dendrobatidis (Bd) occurs and how it may be limited by environmental factors is critical to our ability to effectively conserve the amphibians affected by Bd. We sampled 1247 amphibians (boreal toads and surrogates) at 261 boreal toad (Bufo boreas) breeding sites (97 clusters) along an 11° latitudinal gradient in the Rocky Mountains to determine the distribution of B. dendrobatidis and examine environmental factors, such as temperature and elevation, that might affect its distribution. The fungus was detected at …

Corrigendum To ‘‘Distribution And Environmental Limitations Of An Amphibian Pathogen In The Rocky Mountains, Usa’’ [Biological Conservation 141 (2008) 1484–1492], Erin Muths, David S. Pilliod, Lauren J. Livo

United States Geological Survey: Staff Publications

The author regrets that in the above published paper the following error occurred:
In our recently published paper, ‘‘Distribution and environmental limitations of an amphibian pathogen in the Rocky Mountains, USA’’, we erroneously included the paper by J. Bosch et al. (2006), ‘‘Climate change and outbreaks of amphibian chytridiomycosis in a montane area of Central Spain: is there a link?’’ in a list of studies from the tropics. Clearly Dr. Bosch and colleagues worked in the temperate zone at a latitude very similar to that in our study suggesting that further investigation of additional similarities between the two sites might …

Paleoclimatic Significance Of Chemical Weathering In Loess-Derived Paleosols Of Subarctic Central Alaska, Daniel R. Muhs, Thomas A. Ager, Gary Skipp, Jossh Beann, James Budahn, John P. Mcgeehin

United States Geological Survey: Staff Publications

Chemical weathering in soils has not been studied extensively in high-latitude regions. Loess sequences with modern soils and paleosols are present in much of subarctic Alaska, and allow an assessment of present and past chemical weathering. Five sections were studied in detail in the Fairbanks, Alaska, area. Paleosols likely date to mid-Pleistocene interglacials, the last interglacial, and early-to-mid- Wisconsin interstadials. Ratios of mobile (Na, Ca, Mg, Si) to immobile (Ti or Zr) elements indicate that modern soils and most interstadial and interglacial paleosols are characterized by significant chemical weathering. Na₂O/TiO₂ is lower in modern soils and most …

Pesticide Fate And Transport Throughout Unsaturated Zones In Five Agricultural Settings, Usa, Tracy C. Hancock, Mark W. Sandstrom, Jason R. Vogel, Richard M.T. Webb, E. Randall Bayless, Jack E. Barbash

United States Geological Survey: Staff Publications

Pesticide transport through the unsaturated zone is a function of chemical and soil characteristics, application, and water recharge rate. The fate and transport of 82 pesticides and degradates were investigated at five different agricultural sites. Atrazine and metolachlor, as well as several of the degradates of atrazine, metolachlor, acetochlor, and alachlor, were frequently detected in soil water during the 2004 growing season, and degradates were generally more abundant than parent compounds. Metolachlor and atrazine were applied at a Nebraska site the same year as sampling, and focused recharge coupled with the short time since application resulted in their movement in …

Developing Conceptual Hydrogeological Model For Potsdam Sandstones In Southwestern Quebec, Canada, M. Nastev, Roger H. Morin, R. Godin, A. Rouleau

United States Geological Survey: Staff Publications

A hydrogeological study was conducted in Potsdam sandstones on the international border between Canada (Quebec) and the USA (New York). Two sandstone formations, arkose and conglomerate (base) and well-cemented quartz arenite (upper), underlie the study area and form the major regional aquifer unit. Glacial till, littoral sand and gravel, and marine silt and clay discontinuously overlie the aquifer. In both sandstone formations, sub-horizontal bedding planes are ubiquitous and display significant hydraulic conductivities that are orders of magnitude more permeable than the intact rock matrix. Aquifer tests demonstrate that the two formations have similar bulk hydrologic properties, with average hydraulic conductivities …

Late-Seasonal A Ctivity And Diet Of The Eveninc Bat (Nycticeius Humeralis) In Nebraska, Keith Geluso, Jason P. Damm, Ernest W. Valdez

United States Geological Survey: Staff Publications

In North America, Nebraska represents part of the northwestern edge of the distribution for the evening bat (Nycticeius humeralis). To date, little information on this bat’s natural history has been published from the state or from other parts of the Great Plains. Here we report on aspects of its natural history in Nebraska from 2 localities. In late summer and early autumn of 2006, we documented individuals farther west in Nebraska (Harlan County) than previously reported and determined that individuals fed mainly on Coleoptera and Hymenoptera. In 2006, evening bats appeared to migrate from Nebraska during late September–early …

Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta Regional Ecosystem Restoration Implementation Plan, Charles N. Alpers, Collin Eagles-Smith, Chris Foe, Susan Klasing, Mark C. Marvin-Dipasquale, Darell G. Slotton, Lisamarie Windham-Myers

United States Geological Survey: Staff Publications

Mercury has been identified as an important contaminant in the Delta, based on elevated concentrations of methylmercury (a toxic, organic form that readily bioaccumulates) in fish and wildlife. There are health risks associated with human exposure to methylmercury by consumption of sport fish, particularly top predators such as bass species. Original mercury sources were upstream tributaries where historical mining of mercury in the Coast Ranges and gold in the Sierra Nevada and Klamath-Trinity Mountains caused contamination of water and sediment on a regional scale. Remediation of abandoned mine sites may reduce local sources in these watersheds, but much of the …

Development And Evaluation Of Geochemical Methods For The Sourcing Of Archaeological Maize, L.V. Benson, H. E. Taylor, K.A. Peterson, B.D. Shattuck, C.A. Ramotnik, J.R. Stein

United States Geological Survey: Staff Publications

Strontium (Sr)-isotope values on bone from deer mice pairs from 12 field sites in the Chaco Canyon area, New Mexico, were compared with isotope values of synthetic soil waters from the same fields. The data indicate that mice obtain Sr from near-surface sources and that soil samples collected at depths ranging from 25 to 95 cm contain Sr that is more accessible to the deep roots of maize; thus, synthetic soil solutions provide better data for the sourcing of archaeological maize. However, the Sr-isotope composition of mice may be more valuable in sourcing archaeological remains of animals such as rabbit, …

Tools And Technology Article: Estimation And Correction Of Visibility Bias In Aerial Surveys Of Wintering Ducks, Aaron T. Pearse, Patrick D. Gerard, Stephen J. Dinsmore, Richard M. Kaminski, Kenneth J. Reinecke

United States Geological Survey: Staff Publications

Incomplete detection of all individuals leading to negative bias in abundance estimates is a pervasive source of error in aerial surveys of wildlife, and correcting that bias is a critical step in improving surveys. We conducted experiments using duck decoys as surrogates for live ducks to estimate bias associated with surveys of wintering ducks in Mississippi, USA. We found detection of decoy groups was related to wedand cover type (open vs. forested), group size (1-100 decoys), and interaction of these variables. Observers who detected decoy groups reported counts that averaged 78% of the decoys actually present, and this counting bias …

Relations Between And Among Contaminant Concentrations And Biomarkers In Black Bass (Micropterus Spp.) And Common Carp (Cyprinus Carpio) From Large U.S. Rivers, 1995–2004, Jo Ellen Hinck, Christopher J. Schmitt, Mark R. Ellersieck, Donald E. Tillitt

United States Geological Survey: Staff Publications

Environmental contaminant and biomarker monitoring data from major U.S. river basins were summarized for black bass (Micropterus spp.) and common carp (Cyprinus carpio) sampled over a nine year period. Cumulative frequency distributions revealed taxon differences for many organochlorine residue concentrations, elemental contaminant concentrations, and biomarkers, but few gender differences were evident for chemical concentrations. Concentrations of dacthal, pentachloroanisole, p,p'-DDE, endosulfan sulfate, barium, cadmium, copper, manganese, lead, selenium, vanadium, and zinc were greater in carp than bass, but concentrations of mercury and magnesium were greater in bass. Gender differences were evident in bass for mercury and in carp …

Downflow Limestone Beds For Treatment Of Net-Acidic, Oxic, Iron-Laden Drainage From A Flooded Anthracite Mine, Pennsylvania, Usa: 2. Laboratory Evaluation, Charles A. Cravotta Iii, Suzanne J. Ward, Jane M. Hammarstrom

United States Geological Survey: Staff Publications

Acidic mine drainage (AMD) containing elevated concentrations of dissolved iron and other metals can be neutralized to varying degrees by reactions with limestone in passive treatment systems. We evaluated the chemical and mineralogical characteristics and the effectiveness of calcitic and dolomitic limestone for the neutralization of net-acidic, oxic, iron-laden AMD from a flooded anthracite mine. The calcitic limestone, with CaCO₃ and MgCO₃ contents of 99.8 and <0.1 wt%, respectively, and the dolomitic limestone, with CaCO₃ and MgCO₃ contents of 60.3 and 40.2 wt%, were used to construct a downflow treatment system in 2003 at the Bell Mine, a large source of AMD and baseflow to …

Impact Of Drought On Prehistoric Western Native Americans, Larry Benson

United States Geological Survey: Staff Publications

Some droughts that occurred during the so-called Medieval Climate Anomaly (approximately AD 800-1300) appear to have been catalysts for major changes in settlement patterns of two western Native American groups - the Lovelock culture in Nevada’s Great Basin and the Anasazi people of the Four Corners area. Both groups’ subsistence bases were impacted by diminished water supplies associated with prolonged drought, leading to the dispersal of these Native Americans from their former territories.

Tree-ring-based Palmer Drought Severity Index (PDSI) reconstructions by Cook et al. (2004) indicate that over 50% of the western U.S. experienced drought conditions during the middle-12th and …

Grenetic Evidence Of Intercontinental Movement Of Avian Influenza In A Migratory Bird: The Northern Pintail (Anas Acuta), Anson V. Koehler, John M. Pearce, Paul L. Flint, J. Christian Franson, Hon S. Ip

United States Geological Survey: Staff Publications

The role of migratory birds in the movement of the highly pathogenic (HP) avian influenza H5N1 remains a subject of debate. Testing hypotheses regarding intercontinental movement of low pathogenic avian influenza (LPAI) viruses will help evaluate the potential that wild birds could carry Asian-origin strains of HP avian influenza to North America during migration. Previous North American assessments of LPAI genetic variation have found few Asian reassortment events. Here, we present results from whole-genome analyses of LPAI isolates collected in Alaska from the northern pintail (Anas acuta), a species that migrates between North America and Asia. Phylogenetic analyses …

Degradation Of Chlorinated Ethenes In Mesocosms Simulating A Constructed Wetland, At Wpafb, Ohio, Dibyendu Mukherjee

Browse all Theses and Dissertations

The main purpose of this research was to study the degradation of chlorinated ethenes in upwardflowing mesocosms, simulating a constructed wetland at Wright Patterson Air Force Base (WPAFB) in Dayton, Ohio. This research was intended to compare biogeochemical processes and PCE degradation occurring in the mesocosms and in the field site. This research also tries to look at the effects of vegetation and season on the degradation efficiency of the mesocosms. Twelve PVC column reactors were built within the greenhouse of Wright State University in September 2005 to simulate the hydraulic conditions of a constructed wetland at WPAFB. The columns …

Droughtscape, Winter 2008, Kelly Smith

DroughtScape: Quarterly Newsletter of the National Drought Mitigation Center (2007–2023)

Now Up & On-Line:

Winter 2008 Outlook and Oct.-Dec. ’07 Summary

NDMC Experts Serve as Resource for Media

Drought Hits Ag and Urban Interests in 2007

Climatological Summary of Drought in 2007

NDMC Welcomes Data Miner Bo Zhang

New Grant Awards

Sr And Nd Isotopic Characteristics Of Some S-, I- And A-Type Granitoids From Central Anatolia, Serhat Köksal, M. Cemal Göncüoğlu

Turkish Journal of Earth Sciences

The petrogenesis of some Late Cretaceous S-, I- and A-type granitoids in the Aksaray and Kırşehir regions of Central Anatolia is investigated by means of whole-rock Sr and Nd isotope data with supplementary field, petrographic, and whole-rock geochemical studies. The S-type Central Anatolian granitoids (Sinandı and Namlıkışla) have calc-alkaline peraluminous characteristics and show LILE and LREE enrichment. The I-type Central Anatolian granitoids (Borucu, Terlemez, Hisarkaya, Baranadağ), on the other hand, are calc-alkaline (excepting the alkaline Baranadağ sample) and metaluminous or slightly peraluminous with LILE and LREE enriched patterns and variable Eu-anomalies. Additionally, the A-type Çamsarı granitoid is alkaline and metaluminous …

Crustal Structure Of The Eastern Part Of Central Anatolia (Turkey), Hüseyi̇n Yilmaz, Sevda Özel

Turkish Journal of Earth Sciences

This study aims to examine crustal structure in the eastern part of central Anatolia using the magnetotelluric (MT) method. MT data have been collected from 37 stations along a north-south 220 km profile crossing in succession the Tokat Massif (Pontide basement), the Ankara-Erzincan Suture Zone, the Kırşehir Massif, the Pınarbaşı-Divriği Ophiolitic Belt and the Tauride-Anatolide Belt. Data were modelled to derive a geo-electrical model using 2-dimensional inverse techniques. Low resistivity values (981 Ohm.m) coincide with the southern part of the Pontide Magmatic Arc, the Kırşehir Block and the Tauride-Anatolide Belt and are interpreted as upper crust of igneous and metamorphic …

The Geochemistry And Setting Of The Demirci Paragneisses Of The Sünnice Massif, Nw Turkey, Erdi̇nç Yi̇ği̇tbaş, John A. Winchester, Christopher J. Ottley

Turkish Journal of Earth Sciences

The Demirci migmatitic quartzofeldspathic gneisses of the Sünnice Massif, exposed in the İstanbul Zone north of Bolu, have compositions that show them to be paragneisses, associated with subordinate para-amphibolites. They consist principally of metamorphosed, rather calcareous greywackes, with sediment derived from a continental arc source. They occur in the para-autochthon below a nappe pile (Çele meta-ophiolite), deformed and subjected to amphibolite facies metamorphism before the emplacement of late Neoproterozoic metavolcanic rocks later subjected to greenschist-facies metamorphism (Yellice volcanics). As they are overlain in sequence by nappes comprising sections of the Çele meta-ophiolite with ocean floor basalt and island arc tholeiite …

Ankara Orogenic Phase, Its Age And Transition From Thrusting-Dominated Paleotectonic Period To The Strike-Slip Neotectonic Period, Ankara (Turkey), Ali̇ Koçyi̇ği̇t, Şule Deveci̇

Turkish Journal of Earth Sciences

The Ankara section of the İzmir-Ankara-Erzincan Suture Zone (IAESZ) is characterized by two major groups of contractional structures, namely the Ankara forced folds-monoclines and the southward-verging foreland fold-imbricate thrust to reverse fault zone (AFITFZ). In the Ankara region, one of the areas where the various phases of deformation and related structures are particularly well-preserved and exposed is the Edige (Elmadağ) area, 48 km east-southeast of the city of Ankara. The youngest palaeotectonic unit in the AFITFZ, and deformed in the last phase of the palaeotectonic period (the Ankara orogenic phase) is the Edige formation. It consists of a fluvio-lacustrine sedimentary …