Geology Commons^™

Latest Quaternary Paleoclimate Reconstruction Utilizing Stable Isotopic And Trace Element Proxies In A Stalagmite From Culverson Creek Cave, West Virginia, Ashley Nicole Gilbert

University of Kentucky Master's Theses

A reconstruction of regional climate variability in southern West Virginia that spans the last glacial/interglacial transition is presented. Paleoclimate interpretations obtained from the 50-cm long stalagmite provide key insights regarding the timing, magnitude, and forcing mechanisms responsible for past climate variability. Stable isotopic (δ¹⁸O and δ¹³C) and trace element (Ba, Sr, Mg) signatures from samples contiguously milled along the growth-axis of a ²³⁰Th-dated stalagmite which grew between approximately 20 and 5 thousand years before present (kyr BP) provide critical constraints for above-cave mean annual temperature, seasonality of moisture mean annual precipitation, and potential vegetation shifts. …

The Mississippian Section At Paddys Bluff, Crittenden County, Kentucky, Ron Counts, F. Brett Denny, James C. Hower, Zakaria Lasemi, Rodney D. Norby, Paul E. Potter, Scott Waninger, David A. Williams

Map and Chart--KGS

Paddys Bluff (Figs. 1-3) is located on the south side of the Illinois Basin on the Cumberland River, 1.7 miles downstream from Dycusburg in Crittenden County, Ky., in Carter coordinate section 23-I-16 and ecoregion 71f of the Western Highland Rim of Kentucky (Woods and others, 2002). This bluff is on a right-descending bend 18 liver miles above its junction with the Ohio River at Smithland, Livingston County. The bluff (Figs. 4A, B) is locally famous as the location for a scene from the classic 1962 film, "How the West Was Won,' a winner of three Academy Awards, starling James Stewart, …

Four Rivers Basin: Cumberland, Tennessee, Ohio, Mississippi, Daniel I. Carey

Map and Chart--KGS

The Four Rivers Basin includes over 4 ,700 square miles in all or parts of 17 counties. The basin contains more than 10,700 miles of streams.

More than 720 miles of streams assessed in the basin by the Kentucky Division of Water do not support designated uses for warm-water aquatic habitat, fish consumption, primary contact recreation, or secondary contact recreation. Not all streams have been assessed. The percentage of assessed streams not supporting uses was: warm-water aquatic habitat (58 percent); fish consumption (14 percent); primary contact recreation (76 percent); secondary contact recreation (30 percent). Nearly 125 miles of streams have …

Upper Cumberland River Basin In Kentucky, Daniel I. Carey

Map and Chart--KGS

The Upper Cumberland River Basin covers over 7,300 square miles, 5,180 in Kentucky and 2,130 in Tennessee. All or parts of 20 Kentucky counties lie in the basin. The basin contains nearly 15,100 miles of streams, 10,430 in Kentucky and 4,640 in Tennessee. From the headwaters of Looney Creek in Harlan County, 4,100 feet above sea level, and the Poor Fork in Letcher County, runoff flows down the Upper Cumberland River west to an elevation of 460 feet at the Kentucky-Tennessee line. The river and its tributaries are a blessing and a bane: They provide for recreation, drinking water, and …

Mapped Karst Groundwater Basins In The Tell City And Part Of The Jasper 30 X 60 Minute Quadrangles, Joseph A. Ray, Jack R. Moody, Robert J. Blair, James C. Currens, Randall L. Paylor

Map and Chart--KGS

No abstract provided.

Green/Tradewater River Basin In Kentucky, Daniel I. Carey

Map and Chart--KGS

The total area of the Green/Tradewater River Basin is 11,500 square miles, including 410 square miles in Tennessee. More than one-fouth of Kentucky lies in the basin, including all or parts of 35 Kentucky counties. The basin contains nearly 23,600 miles of streams, including 1,580 miles in Tennessee. The Green River Basin contains over 9,230 square miles, including 410 square miles in Tennessee.

From an elevation of 1,384 feet on a ridge in Lincoln County, water flows west 385 miles down the Green River to its confluence with the Ohio River east of Henderson at an elevation of 342 feet. …

Licking River Basin, Daniel I. Carey

Map and Chart--KGS

Nearly 9,600 miles of streams flow through the Licking River Basin's 3,700 square miles in 22 counties. From a hill in southern Magoffin County 1,600 feet above sea level, the Licking River runs northwest down to the Ohio River at 448 feet above sea level.

The underlying rocks in the basin are, in general, dominated by shale. This creates a large number of perennial streams in the basin and provides a foundation for ponds and lakes, but also limits the potential for water wells. There are 29,000 acres of wetland in the basin.

Residents draw about 24 million gallons of …

Salt River Basin, Daniel I. Carey

Map and Chart--KGS

The Salt River Basin and adjacent Ohio River drainages include over 4,150 square miles in all or parts of 19 counties. The basin contains more than 9,600 miles of streams.

Over 660 miles of streams assessed in the basin by the Kentucky Division of Water do not support designated uses for warm-water aquatic habitat, fish consumption, or primary contact recreation (swimming). Not all streams have been assessed. The percentage of assessed streams not supporting uses was: warm-water aquatic habitat (38 percent); fish consumption (36 percent); primary contact recreation (86 percent). Over 100 miles of streams have been declared special use …

Big Sandy/Little Sandy And Tygarts Creek Basins, Daniel I. Carey

Map and Chart--KGS

Nearly 7,600 miles of streams flow through the basin's 3,440 square miles in 14 counties to the Tug Fork, Big Sandy River, and Ohio River. The Tygarts Creek–Little Sandy River Basin includes 1,160 square miles. The Big Sandy River Basin has 2,285 square miles in Kentucky and 1,950 square miles in West Virginia and Virginia. There are nearly 17,000 acres of wetlands, including water bodies.

Residents draw about 27 million gallons of water per day (mgd) from streams and reservoirs in the basin. About three in five residents are on public water; other households rely primarily on domestic wells. Only …

Kentucky River Basin, Daniel I. Carey

Map and Chart--KGS

The Kentucky River Basin's nearly 7,000 square miles in 42 counties contain 16,000 miles of streams. From a hill in Letcher County 3,250 feet above sea level, and the Kentucky River runs down the Eastern Kentucky Coal Field, Knobs, and Bluegrass Regions to the Ohio River at 420 feet above sea level.

Along the way the river washes rocks laid down as sediments over a period of 150 million years—past the 300-million-year-old sandstone, siltstone, shale, and Camp Nelson limestones at the base of the Kentucky River Palisades in central Kentucky.

Residents draw about 100 million gallons of water per day …

Paleogeographic Reconstructuion Of The St. Lawrence Promontory, Western Newfoundland, John Stefan Allen

University of Kentucky Doctoral Dissertations

Neoproterozoic-Early Cambrian continental rifting related to the breakup of the supercontinent Rodinia framed the continental margin of eastern Laurentia and the departing cratons around the opening Iapetus Ocean. The result of continental extension was the production of a zig-zag set of promontories and embayments on the eastern Laurentian margin defined by northeast-trending rift segments offset by northwesttrending transform faults.

The St. Lawrence promontory defines the Laurentian margin in western Newfoundland. There, Neoproterozoic-Carboniferous clastic, volcanic, and carbonate successions record protracted continental rifting and passive-margin thermal subsidence followed by destruction of the margin during the early, middle, and late Paleozoic Appalachian orogenic …

Variation In C/P Ratios In Devonian-Mississippian Marine Shales: Testing The Productivity-Anoxia Feedback Model, Brian T. Scott

University of Kentucky Master's Theses

Carbon/phosphorus ratios for late Devonian-early Mississippian marine black shales along a transect from the Illinois Basin, across the Cumberland Saddle, and into the Appalachian Basin were evaluated to assess the role of productivity in organic carbon accumulation. Phosphorus is a key limiting nutrient for biological productivity in marine environments and may be regenerated preferentially relative to organic carbon, the amount of regeneration possibly being related to bottom-water anoxia. A positive feed-back mechanism (more specifically, productivity-anoxia feedback or PAF) has been proposed between water-column anoxia, high benthic regeneration of phosphorus, and marine productivity. This regeneration of phosphorus under anoxic conditions and …

Use Of Surface Geophysical Techniques To Locate A Karst Conduit In The Cane Run - Royal Spring Basin, Kentucky, Ganesh N. Tripathi

University of Kentucky Master's Theses

Groundwater flow in karst terrains is difficult to map because it can be concentrated through conduits that do not necessarily coincide with the surface features. We applied electrical resistivity (ER) and self-potential (SP) techniques at three sites to locate an inferred trunk conduit feeding a major spring in the Inner Bluegrass region of Kentucky. Royal Spring is the primary water supply for the city of Georgetown; the upper part of its basin coincides with the Cane Run watershed. ER and SP profiles were perpendicular to the inferred trunk conduit orientation. ER profiles (972 m total length) were measured using a …

Bedrock Mapping Of The Winchendon (1:25,000) Quadrangle (Ma-Nh): Evidence For Discontinous Deformation Along The Bronson Hill-Central Maine Boundary Zone, Timothy M. O'Brien

University of Kentucky Master's Theses

Bedrock geology of the Winchendon quadrangle is divided into two zones based on structures and lithology. The eastern zone consists of tightly folded Silurian Rangeley and Paxton metasediments and pegmatites. Planar, NNE-SSW striking, W dipping foliations are characterized by alternating phyllosilicate-rich and leucosome layers. Fold axes of tight to isoclinal upright and recumbent folding are parallel to SSW-NNE shallowly plunging sillimanite, quartz and muscovite lineations. In the western zone Rangeley schists were intruded by Devonian Hardwick and Coys Hill and Fitzwilliam plutons. Planar NNE-SSW striking foliations dip shallowly to steeply west. Fold axes of tight-to-isoclinal asymmetric to recumbent folds plunge …

Structural Geology Of The Transylvania Fault Zone In Bedford County, Pennsylvania, Elizabeth Lauren Dodson

University of Kentucky Master's Theses

Transverse zones cross strike of thrust-belt structures as large-scale alignments of cross-strike structures. The Transylvania fault zone is a set of discontinuous right-lateral transverse faults striking at about 270º across Appalachian thrust-belt structures along 40º N latitude in Pennsylvania. Near Everett, Pennsylvania, the Breezewood fault terminates with the Ashcom thrust fault. The Everett Gap fault terminates westward with the Hartley thrust fault. Farther west, the Bedford fault extends westward to terminate against the Wills Mountain thrust fault. The rocks, deformed during the Alleghanian orogeny, are semi-independently deformed on opposite sides of the transverse fault, indicating fault movement during folding and …

Matrix Geochemistry And Phytophthora Occurrence On Reforested Mine Lands In Appalachia, Kathryn M. Ward

University of Kentucky Master's Theses

At the Bent Mountain surface mine, Pike County, Kentucky, a study has been ongoing since 2005 to assess the influence of various types of loose-graded mine spoils on water quality and forest establishment. Six research plots consist of two replicates of brown weathered sandstone, gray unweathered sandstone, and mixed brown sandstone, gray sandstone, and shale that were emplaced according to Forestry Reclamation Approach criteria. A series of analyses was initiated in 2007 to examine influence of spoil matrix composition on sulfate and carbonate geochemistry of infiltrated waters, as well as to investigate the occurrence of Phytophthora, a group of …

Kentucky Terrain, Daniel I. Carey, Terry D. Hounshell

Map and Chart--KGS

The terrain of Kentucky has been shaped by geologic forces and the underlying rocks.Tectonic forces lifted, bent, and buckled the rocks–originally formed from sediments on shallow sea floors or swampy lowlands. Weathering and erosion shaved the hills and dissected the plains, exposing at the surface a cross section of rocks 250 to 500 million years old. The sands, gravels, silts, and clays of the Jackson Purchase Region are younger, remnants of a time when the sea lapped at the confluence of the Mississippi and Ohio Rivers.

The landforms in Kentucky are the result of the differential weathering of interbedded sandstones, …

Geologic Hazards In Kentucky, Daniel I. Carey, Terry D. Hounshell, John D. Kiefer

Map and Chart--KGS

Geologic data were derived from the Kentucky Geological Survey-U.S. Geological Survey areal geologic mapping project. Nearly 190 geologists mapped the geology of Kentucky from 1960 to 1978. KGS geologists converted the resulting 707 geologic quadrangle maps into digital format at part of the STATEMAP component of the National Cooperative Geologic Mapping Program of the United States Geological Survey.

Geology Of Mammoth Cave National Park, Kentucky, Matthew M. Crawford, Rickard A. Olson, Rickard S. Toomey Iii, Lillian J. Scoggins

Map and Chart--KGS

Mammoth Cave National Park in south-central Kentucky was authorized as a national park in 1926 and was fully established in 1941 to protect the cave system, scenic landscape, and diverse flora and fauna. The park contains 52,830 acres and most of the longest recorded cave system in the world, with more than 390 miles of mapped passages as of 2013. Even though Mammoth Cave is famous, people are often unaware of the park's intricate connection to the outside region. This poster shows the geology of Mammoth Cave and the interconnected issues that are important to the park and its visitors. …

Foundation Problems And Pyrite Oxidation In The Chattanooga Shale, Estill County, Kentucky, Warren H. Anderson

Report of Investigations--KGS

Pyrite oxidation in the Chattanooga Shale has caused serious foundation problems in numerous buildings and structures in Estill County, Ky. Pyrite oxidizes and various secondary sulfates form when excavated shale or shale fill are used in foundations. These secondary sulfates are water- and humidity-sensitive and can form when only minor amounts of water are present in foundation materials. These sulfates form by crystal growth and expand by volume change, which causes subsequent soil expansion and heaving of any foundation materials when the materials are confined. Several structures have undergone expensive remediation to repair damaged sidewalks, floors, walls, and foundations. Zones …

An Evaluation Of Earthquake Ground-Motion Site Effects At Two Sites Underlain By Deep Soils In Western Kentucky, Jonathan Larry Mcintyre

University of Kentucky Master's Theses

Six earthquake acceleration time histories were used to evaluate the groundmotion response of two sites, VSAP and VSAS, near the New Madrid Seismic Zone. These earthquakes ranged in magnitude from M_w 3.6 to M_w 5.2 and were located 46 to 173 km away from the recording instruments. These two sites are underlain by thick sequences (100 and 590 m) of unlithified soil that have been shown to greatly influence earthquake ground motions.

Near-surface soil dynamic properties were characterized at the two sites using seismic SH-wave refraction, P-S suspension logging, borehole electrical logs, and geotechnical logging methods. The soil …

Subsurface Characterization And Seuqence Stratigraphy Of Late Mississippian Strata In The Black Warrior Basin, Alabama And Mississippi, Carrie A. Kidd

University of Kentucky Master's Theses

A depositional framework for the Mississippian (Chesterian) Pride Mountain Formation/Hartselle Sandstone clastic tongue and the lower Bangor Limestone carbonate ramp in the Black Warrior basin, Mississippi and Alabama, is constructed from approximately 250 geophysical well logs, 15 well cuttings descriptions, and outcrop data. The framework is based upon cross sections, isopach maps, and transgressive-regressive sequence stratigraphy.

The Lowndes-Pickens synsedimentary fault block controlled sediment dispersal in during Pride Mountain/Hartselle deposition. The basin filled from the southwest, which pushed the depocenter northeastward during Hartselle deposition. The Hartselle sub-basin is composed of the Hartselle barrier-island and back-barrier deposits to the southwest, including the …

Integrated Geophysical Imaging Of Subsurface Geologic Conditions Across A Contaminant Plume, Mccracken County, Kentucky, Cora A. Blits

University of Kentucky Master's Theses

Over 7.8 km of seismic reflection data and 2 km of electrical resistivity data were acquired, processed, and interpreted during this multi-method geophysical study. Objectives included the definition of geologic conditions underlying a contaminant plume in McCracken County, western Kentucky, and the determination of the potential for structural control on the rate and direction of plume migration. Both geophysical methods indicate the presence of multiple high-angle normal faults outlining a series of asymmetric grabens ranging in width from 160 m to almost 300 m and striking between N40°E and N45°E. There was agreement between the two methods on fault location …

The Mobility Of Fecal Indicator Microorganisms Within A Karst Groundwater Basin In The Inner Bluegrass Region, Kentucky, James Wade Ward

University of Kentucky Doctoral Dissertations

This project implemented novel approaches to assess the source, age, concentration and mobility of fecal indicator microorganisms within a karst groundwater system. Research was conducted in the well-characterized Blue Hole Spring karst groundwater basin in Versailles, Woodford County, Kentucky. At this site the AC/TC ratio and fecal coliform (FC) bacteria counts were used to delineate sources of fecal inputs and determine relative age of the fecal matter. An aging experiment using indicator bacteria (total coliform (TC) and atypical colonies (AC)), which approximated subsurface conditions, indicated that changes in the AC/TC ratio are likely to be retarded during bacterial transport through …

Groundwater Quality In Kentucky: Atrazine, Bart Davidson, R. Stephen Fisher

Information Circular--KGS

Atrazine is an organic herbicide used for selective control of broadleaf and grassy weeds in crops such as corn, soybeans, sorghum, sugarcane, macadamia nuts, pineapples, pine trees, grasslands, and roses. Atrazine does not harm the crops, which can absorb and metabolize the herbicide, thereby removing the toxins. It controls targeted plants by inhibiting photosynthesis (Wilkes University Center for Environmental Quality, 2003). Atrazine is a white, odorless, crystalline powder that dissolves readily in water and does not occur naturally. It is widely used because of its low cost and ability to reduce crop losses from weed interference.

Kentucky Structural Contours From Digitally Vectorized Geologic Quadrangles, Kentucky Geological Survey

Research Data--KGS

This dataset includes geologic stuctural contours of varying datums across Kentucky in shapefile format. These structural contours are compiled from structural contour layers published as a part of the individual Digitally Vectorized Geologic Quadrangles (DVGQ) datasets (by the Kentucky Geologic Survey: https://kgs.uky.edu/kygeode/services/pubs/?pubtype=DVGQ&searchtype=pubcategory). The original structural contours were mapped on the 7.5-minute (1:24,000 scale) series geologic maps published during the Kentucky geologic mapping program (Kentucky Geological Survey - U.S. Geological Survey from 1960 to 1989: https://kgs.uky.edu/kygeode/services/pubs/?pubtype=GQ&searchtype=pubcategory). The digital contours were subsequently digitized as a part of the DVGQ datasets during the geologic digital mapping program at KGS (1996 – 2007). Contoured …

Generalized Geologic Map For Land-Use Planning: Montgomery County, Kentucky, Daniel I. Carey

Map and Chart--KGS

This map is not intended to be used for selecting individual sites. Its purpose is to inform land-use planners, government officials, and the public in a general way about geologic bedrock conditions that affect the selection of sites for various purposes. The properties of thick soils may supercede those of the underlying bedrock and should be considered on a site-to-site basis. At any site, it is important to understand the characteristics of both the soils and the underlying rock.

Generalized Geologic Map For Land-Use Planning: Adair County, Kentucky, Daniel I. Carey

Map and Chart--KGS

This map is not intended to be used for selecting individual sites. Its purpose is to inform land-use planners, government officials, and the public in a general way about geologic bedrock conditions that affect the selection of sites for various purposes. The properties of thick soils may supercede those of the underlying bedrock and should be considered on a site-to-site basis. At any site, it is important to understand the characteristics of both the soils and the underlying rock.

Generalized Geologic Map For Land-Use Planning: Perry County, Kentucky, Bart Davidson, Steven E. Webb, Daniel I. Carey

Map and Chart--KGS

This map is not intended to be used for selecting individual sites. Its purpose is to inform land-use planners, government officials, and the public in a general way about geologic bedrock conditions that affect the selection of sites for various purposes. The properties of thick soils may supercede those of the underlying bedrock and should be considered on a site-to-site basis. At any site, it is important to understand the characteristics of both the soils and the underlying rock.

Generalized Geologic Map For Land-Use Planning: Lawrence County, Kentucky, Daniel I. Carey

Map and Chart--KGS

This map is not intended to be used for selecting individual sites. Its purpose is to inform land-use planners, government officials, and the public in a general way about geologic bedrock conditions that affect the selection of sites for various purposes. The properties of thick soils may supercede those of the underlying bedrock and should be considered on a site-to-site basis. At any site, it is important to understand the characteristics of both the soils and the underlying rock.