Geology Commons^™

Ductile Deformation In The Central Panamint Mountains - A Multi-Disciplinary Approach To A Multi-Dimensional Problem., Tai Antonia Subia

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

This study provides new insights into the geometry and timing of ductile, syn-metamorphic structures in the central Panamint Mountains of eastern California. The study focused on Surprise Canyon, where exposures of Meso- to Neoproterozoic miogeocline rocks, reworked crystalline basement, and syn-metamorphic granitoids record fabric overprints indicative of at least two distinct dynamo-thermal metamorphic events. Prograde metamorphism at greenschist and amphibolite metamorphic facies conditions occurred during Early Jurassic plutonism based on deformation of a dioritic pluton with a U-Pb date reported here of 175.6 ± 3.2 Ma. Mid Jurassic deformation (D1) generated the main continuous cleavage in the rocks (S1) as …

Glacial Deposits, Vol. 44, 2019, Department Of Geography, Geology, And The Environment

Glacial Deposits

Newsletter of the Department of Geography, Geology, and the Environment

Structural Controls And Depositional Environments Of The Glen Rose Subgroup In Pelahatchie Field In Rankin County, Mississippi, Chesney Petkovsek

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Following Lion Oil’s drilling of the Sowell #1, Lower Cretaceous step-out drilling in Pelahatchie Field has led to the establishment of Mooringsport, Paluxy, Rodessa, Sligo, and Hosston oil and gas condensate production along the flanks and crest of a salt feature within Rankin County, Mississippi. Exploration of salt features has been intermittent throughout Mississippi, but has shifted from targeting pay zones along the crests of domal and piercement salt features in the 1940s, to targeting reserves along the flanks of these features in the 1970s. The dominant structural feature in Pelahatchie Field is an elongate north-south-trending salt ridge. Results of …

Spatial And Temporal Distribution Of Hydrothermal Minerals And Sources Of Hydrothermal Fluids Inferred From Light Stable Isotopes, Keweenaw Peninsula Native Copper District, Michigan, Thomas Bodden

Dissertations, Master's Theses and Master's Reports

Hydrothermal native copper deposits are hosted by Mesoproterozoic Midcontinent Rift-filling volcanic and sedimentary rocks in Michigan’s Keweenaw Peninsula. The genesis of the native copper deposits has been a point of interest since their discovery. Native copper and associated mineral assemblages vary temporally and spatially. A refined mineral paragenesis is presented and used as the basis to spatially compare mineral assemblages as it is essential that spatial comparison involve only minerals that are temporally/genetically, related to each other. The main-stage minerals associated with precipitation of native copper are spatially zoned. The higher-grade zones correspond to the area of native copper deposits …

Ephemeral Gully Erosion Modeling And Surveying With Close-Range Digital Photogrammetry, M. A. Islam, C. Weerasekara, Y. Zhou, A. Y. Shesukov

Conservation and Survey Division: Faculty and Staff Publications

No abstract provided.

Exploring The Northwest Margin Of The High Plains Aquifer: Structure, Depositional History And Hydrogeology, Nebraska Geological Society Field Trip, Doug Hallum, Dennis O. Terry, Jr., Michael Leite, Jennifer Balmat

Conservation and Survey Division: Faculty and Staff Publications

The northwest portion of the High Plains Aquifer in Nebraska corresponds with the western Sandhills, Box Butte, Sioux and Dawes County tablelands, and the Nebraska Pine Ridge in northwest Nebraska. This field excursion will travel beyond the margins of the High Plains aquifer into the White River valley and onto the Oglala National Grasslands. These areas are not only rich in natural resources, but rich in history as well. While this excursion will explore earth history, depositional environments and a portion of the High Plains Aquifer, the authors encourage all attendees to take additional time to explore the cultural, military …

Optimizing Historic Preservation Under Climate Change: Decision Support For Cultural Resource Adaptation Planning In National Parks, Xiao Xiao, Erin Seekamp, Max Post Van Der Burg, Mitchell Eaton, Sandra Fatorić, Allie Mccreary

United States Geological Survey: Staff Publications

Climate change poses great challenges for cultural resource management, particularly in coastal areas. Cultural resources, such as historic buildings, in coastal areas are vulnerable to climate impacts including inundation, deterioration, and destruction from sea-level rise and storm-related flooding and erosion. However, research that assesses the trade-offs between actions for protecting vulnerable and valuable cultural resources under budgetary constraints is limited. This study focused on developing a decision support model for managing historic buildings at Cape Lookout National Seashore. We designed the Optimal Preservation Decision Support (OptiPres) model to: (a) identify optimal, annual adaptation actions for historic buildings across a 30-year …

Ecosystem Processes, Land Cover, Climate, And Human Settlement Shape Dynamic Distributions For Golden Eagle Across The Western Us, J.D. Tack, B.R. Noon, Z.H. Bowen, B.C. Fedy

United States Geological Survey: Staff Publications

Species–environment relationships for highly mobile species outside of the breeding season are often highly dynamic in response to the collective effects of everchanging climatic conditions, food resources, and anthropogenic disturbance. Capturing dynamic space-use patterns in a model-based framework is critical as model inference often drives place-based conservation planning. We applied dynamic occupancy models to broad-scale golden eagle Aquila chrysaetos survey data collected annually from 2006 to 2012 during the late summer post-fledging period in the western US. We defined survey sites as 10 km transect segments with a 1 km buffer on either transect side (n = 3540). Derived estimates …

Implementation Of An Occupancy-Based Monitoring Protocol For A Widespread And Cryptic Species, The New England Cottontail (Sylvilagus Transitionalis), Colin P. Shea, Mitchell J. Eaton, Darryl I. Mackenzie

United States Geological Survey: Staff Publications

Context. Designing effective long-term monitoring strategies is essential for managing wildlife populations. Implementing a cost-effective, practical monitoring program is especially challenging for widespread but locally rare species. Early successional habitat preferred by the New England cottontail (NEC) has become increasingly rare and fragmented, resulting in substantial declines from their peak distribution in the mid-1900s. The introduction of a possible competitor species, the eastern cottontail (EC),may also have played a role. Uncertainty surrounding how these factors have contributed to NEC declines has complicated management and necessitated development of an appropriate monitoring framework to understand possible drivers of distribution and dynamics.

Aims. …

Coastal Wetlands: A Synthesis, Charles S. Hopkinson, Eric Wolanski, Mark M. Brinson, Daonald R. Cahoon, Gerardo M.E. Perillo

United States Geological Survey: Staff Publications

What are coastal wetland ecosystems, what are their limits of distribution, and where do they exist in the overall coastal landscape? There are several general definitions for wetlands, but the Ramsar definition is likely the most broadly encompassing (http://www.ramsar. org/), whereas others are more focused definitions tailored to country-specific protection and management policies (Mitsch and Gosselink, 2006). We offer a very general approach rather than a precise definition: coastal wetlands are ecosystems that are found within an elevation gradient that ranges between subtidal depths where light penetrates to support photosynthesis of benthic plants to the landward edge where the sea …

Promoting Change In Common Tern (Sterna Hirundo) Nest Site Selection To Minimize Construction Related Disturbance., Peter C. Mcgowan, Jeffery D. Sullivan, Carl R. Callahan, William Schultz, Jennifer L. Wall, Diann J. Prosser

United States Geological Survey: Staff Publications

Due to the many challenges facing waterbird populations (Jia et al. 2018, Wetlands International 2018), it has become common practice to limit disturbance to breeding colonies whenever possible to maximize reproductive success. While this may require often unpopular management techniques including beach closures (Jorgensen et al. 2015, Mayo et al. 2015) and predator removal (Neuman et al. 2004, Stocking et al. 2017), such actions are sometimes necessary for the success of the colony. However, there are instances when eliminating disturbance is not possible and birds must be attracted to a new site. A common method for attracting waterbirds to a …

Optimizing Historic Preservation Under Climate Change: Decision Support For Cultural Resource Adaptation Planning In National Parks, Xiao Xiao, Erin Seekamp, Max Post Van Der Burg, Mitchell Eaton, Sandra Fatorić, Allie Mccreary

United States Geological Survey: Staff Publications

Climate change poses great challenges for cultural resource management, particularly in coastal areas. Cultural resources, such as historic buildings, in coastal areas are vulnerable to climate impacts including inundation, deterioration, and destruction from sea-level rise and storm-related flooding and erosion. However, research that assesses the trade-offs between actions for protecting vulnerable and valuable cultural resources under bud- getary constraints is limited. This study focused on developing a decision support model for managing historic buildings at Cape Lookout National Seashore. We designed the Optimal Preservation Decision Support (OptiPres) model to: (a) identify optimal, annual adaptation actions for historic buildings across a …

Assessment Of Chronic Low-Dose Elemental And Radiological Exposures Of Biota At The Kanab North Uranium Mine Site In The Grand Canyon Watershed, Danielle Cleveland, Jo Ellen Hinck, Julia S. Lankton

United States Geological Survey: Staff Publications

High-grade U ore deposits are in various stages of exploitation across the Grand Canyon watershed, yet the effects of U mining on ecological and cultural resources are largely unknown. Wecharacterized the concentrations of Al, As, Bi, Cd, Co, Cu, Fe, Pb, Hg, Mo, Ni, Se, Ag, Tl, Th, U, and Zn, gross alpha and beta activities, and U and Th radioisotopes in soil, vegetation (Hesperostipa comata, Artemisia tridentata, Tamarix chinensis), and rodents (Peromyscus maniculatus, P. boylii) to waste material at the Kanab North mine, a mine with decades-long surficial contamination, and compared the concentrations (P<0.01) to those at a premining site (Canyon Mine). Rodent tissues were also analyzed for radium-226 and microscopic lesions. Radioactivities and some elemental concentrations (e.g., Co, Pb, U) were greater in the Kanab North mine biological samples than in Canyon Mine biota, indicating a mining-related elemental signature. Mean rodent Ra-226 (111 Bq/kg dry weight [dry wt]) was 3 times greater than expected, indicating radioactive disequilibrium. Multiple soil sample U concentrations exceeded a screening benchmark, growth inhibition thresholds for sensitive plants, and an EC20 for a soil arthropod. Lesions associated with metals exposure were also observed more frequently in rodents at Kanab North than those at Canyon Mine but could not be definitively attributed to U mining. Our results indicate that Kanab North biota have taken up U mining-related elements owing to chronic exposure to surficial contamination. However, no literature-based effects thresholds for small rodents were exceeded, and only a few soil and vegetation thresholds for sensitive species were exceeded; therefore, adverse effects to biota from U mining-related elements at Kanab North are unlikely despite chronic exposure.

Pressure, Temperature, And Stress Conditions Of Southern Alpine Fault (New Zealand) Mylonites, Jake T. Reitman

Dissertations and Theses

The Alpine Fault, New Zealand, provides a unique window into the rheologic history of a seismically-active continental plate boundary. Due to lower exhumation rates along southern portions of the fault relative to the well-studied central Alpine Fault, deformation ages vary along strike by ~15 m.y.. Mylonites collected from two southern creeks near Haast, NZ, display a uniform recrystallized grain size of ~11 𝜇m in mylonitic quartz indicating differential stress values in the south of ~100 MPa, roughly twice the stress values observed in the central Alpine Fault. Constraints from Ti-in-quartz thermobarometry and Raman Spectroscopy of Carbonaceous Material (RSCM) indicate mylonitization …

Sequence Stratigraphy Of Middle-Mississippian Carbonates Of The Southern Appalachians: Tuscumbia Limestone, Tuscumbia, Al, Austin L. Caughey

Theses and Dissertations

This field-based research develops a sequence stratigraphic framework and detailed facies analysis which is used as a basis for understanding depositional histories of low-latitude, shallow-water, Mississippian carbonate deposits (Fort Payne Chert and Tuscumbia Limestone) in northwestern Alabama. This in turn, is used to evaluate controls on deposition (e.g., sea level, tectonics, paleogeography, and paleoceanographic conditions). Additionally, possible sources of the silica (chert) found within these units (e.g., eolian dust, upwelling) are evaluated based upon thin section analysis. Four facies and one subfacies were identified: F1: echinoderm, bryozoan mudstone/wackestone facies and Fla: muddy echinoderm chert, F2: echinoderm, bryozoan packstone/grainstone facies, F3: …

The Petrogenesis Of The No Agua High-Silica Rhyolite In The Taos Plateau Volcanic Field, Northern New Mexico, Kevin M. Voelz

Graduate Research Theses & Dissertations

The Taos Plateau volcanic field (TPVF) is located in Northern New Mexico between the eastern flanks of the Tusas Mountains and west of the Sangre de Cristo range. The TPVF is dominantly composed of basaltic lava flows, olivine andesites, and two-pyroxene dacites which erupted from 5.88 to 1.03 Ma. The variety of compositions within the field owes its origin to processes such as magma mixing, fractional crystallization, and crustal assimilation based on chemical modeling. Curiously placed within this spectrum of mafic to intermediate lavas exists the singular high-silica rhyolite of the No Agua Peaks. XRF and ICP-MS analyses from this …

Determining The Precambrian Structure And Thermotectonic Evolution Of The Central Ruby Range, Southwest Montana, Sara Vivienne Stotter

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

The Ruby Range in southwestern Montana is a fundamental location within the Archean Wyoming craton for examining Precambrian crustal architecture and determining the thermotectonic evolution of the region. Monazite, zircon, and garnet geochronology from each of the three major units within the Ruby Range reveal two distinct metamorphic age populations: an older population ca. 2.55-2.45 Ga (the Tendoy orogeny) and a second, younger population ca. 1.78-1.72 Ga (the Big Sky orogeny). Phase equilibria modeling for the Big Sky orogeny within the confines of the Mine Gulch 7.5’ quadrangle reveal discrete pressure-temperature (P-T)histories for each of the three major …

Utilizing Radiolarian Assemblages To Track Changes In The Agulhas Current Through The Mid-Pleistocene Transition: Iodp Site U1479, William Alberto Bugbee

Graduate Research Theses & Dissertations

The objective of this study was to assess the radiolarian assemblage of the Agulhas Current at International Ocean Discovery Program Expedition 361, Site U1479 (the most westward site), through the Mid-Pleistocene Transition (MPT). Samples between 1,000 to 777ka were utilized to (1) characterize the radiolarian assemblage, (2) observe whether the radiolarian assemblage is sufficiently distinctive to help discern the occurrence of the MPT in the Southern Ocean, and (3) determine whether changes in the radiolarian assemblage reflect a change or changes in ocean currents that may have occurred during the MPT.

Over 300 radiolarian species from 15 different families were …

Textile Dyes As A Source Of Groundwater Contamination In Mandalay, Myanmar, Surya Freeman

Graduate Research Theses & Dissertations

Textile dyeing and weaving of traditional longyi garments has traditionally occurred in the Amarapura Township of Mandalay, Myanmar, since 1822, transitioning from natural to chemical dyes in the early 1900’s. With no current wastewater treatment facilities in Mandalay, dye effluents mix with other wastewaters in unlined canals dug near peoples’ homes and discharge into local canals and groundwater. As locals rely heavily on dug and tube wells for drinking, bathing, and cooking, this industry poses a major health hazard to the people in this region. The objective of this study is to identify the previously unknown composition of the textile …

Water Quality And Small Unmanned Aerial System Photogrammetry Of Boeng Cheung Ek Wastewater Treatment Wetland, Phnom Penh, Cambodia, Samuel Vesal Mallow

Graduate Research Theses & Dissertations

Boeng Cheung Ek wetland is a large, peri-urban, free water surface, natural wastewater treatment wetland that services approximately 90% of combined storm water and untreated sewage from the city of Phnom Penh, Cambodia, population over 1.5 million. Due to monsoon rainfall and connectivity to the Mekong River, the wetted area cycles between 13 km2 and 20 km2 annually. The objective of this study is to characterize the spatiotemporal variability of contaminants in wetland surface water and groundwater. Dissolved ions including ammonium, nitrate-N (as NO3), phosphate, and chloride, along with E. coli, trace metals, δH, δ18O, and physicochemical parameters were determined …