Development Of An Approach To Evaluate Fractured Crystalline Bedrock Water Resource Supply And Sustainability,
2011
University of Connecticut
Development Of An Approach To Evaluate Fractured Crystalline Bedrock Water Resource Supply And Sustainability, Helen E. Spera
Master's Theses
Groundwater derived from fractured crystalline bedrock is an important resource in Connecticut. Despite its importance we know very little about this resource. This study was conducted at the Plant Science and Landscape Architecture Research and Education Facility, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT. The objectives of this study were: to improve the characterization of the hydrogeology of the facility; to develop a method to determine the amount of recharge to the bedrock from the overburden during pumping and non-pumping periods; and to develop an approach that can be used in evaluating the sustainability and zone of contribution of bedrock pumping wells. …
Implications Of Dune Pattern Analysis For Titan's Surface History,
2011
Brigham Young University - Provo
Implications Of Dune Pattern Analysis For Titan's Surface History, Christopher Jon Savage
Theses and Dissertations
Analyzing dune parameters such as dune width and spacing can be useful in determining the reaction of dunes to changes in atmospheric and sedimentary conditions currently and in the recent geologic past. Dune parameters, dune width and spacing, were measured for linear dunes in regions across Saturn's moon Titan from images T21, 23, 28, 44 and 48 collected by Synthetic Aperture RADAR aboard the Cassini spacecraft in order to reconstruct the surface history of Titan. Dunes in the five study swaths are all linear in form, but lack superimposed or flanking dunes. They have a mean width of 1.3 km …
Correlation Between Grain Dislocation Density And Orientation For Naturally Deformed Mantle Xenolith From Jagersfontein Mine,
2011
Monmouth College
Correlation Between Grain Dislocation Density And Orientation For Naturally Deformed Mantle Xenolith From Jagersfontein Mine, Quinton Guerrero, Quinlan Smith
Undergraduate Research Opportunities Program (UROP)
Determining the reaction of poly-crystalline structures to induced stress is an extremely difficult problem in contemporary engineering and geology. The main challenge lies in the inhomogeneity of the grains inside of the poly-crystalline structures. To predict the response of a certain polycrystalline structure to a specific stress, you must resort to one of two views on grain interaction, an orientation or propagation based model. For every material there may be certain correlations between the prediction model used and the actual deformation that occurred. Our work centers around describing the correlation of these prediction models with a sample of naturally deformed …
Predicted Velocity And Density Structure Of The Exhuming Papua New Guinea Ultrahigh‐Pressure Terrane,
2011
University of California - Santa Barbara
Predicted Velocity And Density Structure Of The Exhuming Papua New Guinea Ultrahigh‐Pressure Terrane, Sarah J. Brownlee, Bradley R. Hacker, Matthew Salisbury, Gareth Seward, Timothy A. Little, Suzanne A. Baldwin, Geoffrey A. Abers
Environmental Science and Geology Faculty Research Publications
New electron backscatter diffraction measurements show that the Papua New Guinea (PNG) ultrahigh‐pressure (UHP) terrane is dominated by rocks with weakly oriented quartz and feldspar and less abundant strongly oriented hornblende, clinopyroxene, and mica. Velocities measured at high pressures (600 MPa) show that VP is 5.8–6.3 km/s for gneiss samples, 6.5–7.7 km/s for amphibolite, and 7.7–8.2 km/s for eclogite and VS is 3.4–3.9 km/s for gneiss, 4.0–4.4 km/s for amphibolite, and 4.5–4.6 km/s for eclogite. Velocities and anisotropies calculated from mineral crystal preferred orientations (CPOs) are equivalent to within 5% of the measured values. The highest seismic anisotropy …
Rock Porosity Analysis Using High Resolution X-Ray Tomography,
2011
[email protected]
Rock Porosity Analysis Using High Resolution X-Ray Tomography, Leo Groner, Dula Parkinson, Katya Bazilevskaya
STAR Program Research Presentations
Understanding rock porosity, the fraction of rock volume that is in pores, is a key to modeling weathering and flow of water, petroleum and CO2 through geological structures. Weathering of rocks affects the CO2 cycle, nutrient cycle and soil formation. Rock porosity affects water flow rates and, in turn, affects weathering. Avizo software was used to explore, visualize and measure the reconstructed high-resolution X-ray micro-tomography data collected from scanned rocks. Many Avizo approaches were tried before arriving at an acceptable process to determine their porosity characteristics. Porosity dynamics are affected by weathering and lithification. At micron resolution, the image is …
Quantifying 20th Century Glacier Change In The Sierra Nevada, California,
2011
Portland State University
Quantifying 20th Century Glacier Change In The Sierra Nevada, California, Andrew G. Fountain, Hassan J. Basagic
Geology Faculty Publications and Presentations
Numerous small alpine glaciers occupy the high elevation regions of the central and southern Sierra Nevada, California. An inventory based on 1:24,000 topographic maps revealed 1719 glaciers and perennial snowfields for a total area of 39.15 +/- 0.13 km(2). The number of 'true' glaciers, versus non-moving ice, is estimated to be 122 covering 14.89 +/- 0.08 km(2) or 38% of the ice-covered area. Historic photographs, geologic evidence, and field mapping were used to determine the magnitude of area change over the past century at 14 glaciers. The area change between 1903 and 2004 ranged from -31% to -78%, averaging -55%. …
Mapping Of Unstable And Potentially Unstable Slopes In Sogne Og Fjordane,
2011
Geological Survey of Norway
Mapping Of Unstable And Potentially Unstable Slopes In Sogne Og Fjordane, Reginald L. Hermanns, Luzia Fischer, Thierry Oppikofer, M. Bøhme, John F. Dehls, H. Henriksen, Adam M. Booth, R. Eilertsen, O. Longva, Trond Eiken
Geology Faculty Publications and Presentations
For the past three years NGU has worked on 25 unstable and potentially unstable rock slopes in Sogn og Fjordane. In addition Fjærlandsfjord, Hyenfjord and Årdalsvatnet were systematically mapped for deposits of prehistoric and historic rock slope failures onshore and with help of a bathymetry. Mapping on land included structural mapping of ten sites by on-site field mapping and nine sites by remote structural mapping using terrestrial laser scanning technology (TLS). Field work also included periodic monitoring of 14 sites using differential Global Positioning Systems (dGPS) and TLS at 4 sites. Synthetic Aperture Radar was app lied for the entire …
Geochronologic And Isotopic Investigation Of The Koipato Formation, Northwestern Great Basin, Nevada: Implications For Late Permian-Early Triassic Tectonics Along The Western U.S. Cordillera,
2011
Boise State University
Geochronologic And Isotopic Investigation Of The Koipato Formation, Northwestern Great Basin, Nevada: Implications For Late Permian-Early Triassic Tectonics Along The Western U.S. Cordillera, Nicholas Quentin Vetz
Boise State University Theses and Dissertations
The volcanics of the Early Triassic Koipato Formation of central Nevada unconformably overlie the Golconda Allochthon and, classically, this relationship has been used to define the timing of the Sonoma Orogeny as post-Middle Permian to earliest Triassic. However, the Koipato Formation represents a rather isolated magmatic succession, with other western U.S. Early Mesozoic igneous provinces determined to be younger or lacking rocks of Koipato age. This isolation, coupled with the fact that the Koipato Formation does not overlap the Golconda Allochthon, has left open two possible scenarios for its tectonic history: 1) the Koipato Formation represents the earliest, post-Sonoma Orogeny …
Using Electrical Resistivity Imaging To Map Saline Groundwater And Subaqueous Spring Discharge: An Example From The Saline Wetlands Of Eastern Nebraska,
2011
University of Nebraska-Lincoln
Using Electrical Resistivity Imaging To Map Saline Groundwater And Subaqueous Spring Discharge: An Example From The Saline Wetlands Of Eastern Nebraska, Bridget B. Kelly
Department of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research
In order to better understand saline groundwater distribution and discharge dynamics within the saline wetlands of eastern Nebraska, electrical resistivity data were collected at three wetland sites within the Little Salt Creek Watershed. Electrical resistivity imaging (ERI) can provide an expanded understanding of saline groundwater distribution through the acquisition of a large number of resistivity measurements collected at the surface; upon inversion, the distribution of resistivity can be displayed in cross-section and subsurface processes serving to control salinity can be inferred. In recent years, several studies have used conventional methods of characterizing groundwater flow within the saline wetlands. These point …
The Application Of Biostratigraphy And Paleoecology At Southern Ocean Drill Sites To Resolve Early To Middle Miocene Paleoclimatic Events,
2011
University of Nebraska-Lincoln
The Application Of Biostratigraphy And Paleoecology At Southern Ocean Drill Sites To Resolve Early To Middle Miocene Paleoclimatic Events, Ryan Farmer
Department of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research
The diatom biostratigraphy and paleoceanography of Ocean Drilling Program (ODP) Site 744 on the Southern Kerguelen Plateau, southern Indian Ocean are documented for the early to middle Miocene to improve chronostratigraphic age control for the Southern Ocean and Antarctic region. Paleoenvironmental fluctuations in the Southern Ocean are inferred from changes in fossil diatom abundance, preservation, and assemblage composition. A robust, new age model for Holes 744A and 744B is constructed using Constrained Optimization (CONOP) model ages for diatom biostratigraphic datum levels and new magnetic polarity data, which enables assessment of a nearly continuous record of paleoenvironmental change from ~20.25 to …
Biomarkers In The Lower Huron Shale (Upper Devonain) As Indicators Of Organic Matter Source, Depositional Environment, And Thermal Maturity,
2011
Clemson University
Biomarkers In The Lower Huron Shale (Upper Devonain) As Indicators Of Organic Matter Source, Depositional Environment, And Thermal Maturity, John Kroon
All Theses
The Lower Huron Shale (Upper Devonian) is considered the largest shale gas reservoir in the Big Sandy Field in Kentucky and West Virginia. The potential for gas shales, such as the Lower Huron, to produce natural gas is a function of type, amount, and thermal maturation of their organic matter. Twenty-one Lower Huron Shale samples from eight wells located in eastern Kentucky and southern West Virginia were analyzed for biomarker content to interpret biological source of organic matter, depositional environment conditions, and thermal maturity. The following biomarkers were identified: n-alkanes (C15 to C31), pristane (Pr), phytane (Ph), steranes (αααR, (αααS, …
Risks Posed To Drinking Water Aquifers Due To Leakage Of Dissolved Co2 In Improperly Abandoned Wellbores,
2011
Clemson University
Risks Posed To Drinking Water Aquifers Due To Leakage Of Dissolved Co2 In Improperly Abandoned Wellbores, Kirk Ellison
All Theses
In order to ensure safe long-term storage of carbon dioxide in geologic formations, the risks posed by improperly abandoned wells must be understood and minimalized. In addition to supercritical and gaseous CO2, brine containing dissolved CO2 poses a leakage risk. CO2 dissolution in brine leads to denser brine and better long-term storage security, but its leakage risk is not zero. Under specific circumstances with formation overpressure or overlying aquifer drawdown, dissolved brine can flow up improperly abandoned wells where it can potentially enter and contaminate drinking water aquifers. The possibility that depressurization in the wellbore may cause CO2 exsolution from …
Evaluation Of The Carbon Budgets In The Forested And Agricultural Soils Of The Semi-Arid Mogollon-Datil Highlands And Rio Grande Basin,
2011
Department of Geological Sciences, University of Texas at El Paso
Evaluation Of The Carbon Budgets In The Forested And Agricultural Soils Of The Semi-Arid Mogollon-Datil Highlands And Rio Grande Basin, Ryan Reeves^, Lixin Jin*
COURI Symposium Abstracts, Summer 2011
No abstract provided.
Taxonomy And Geochemistry Of The Globigerinoides Ruber-Elongatus Plexus, With Paleontological Implications,
2011
University of South Florida
Taxonomy And Geochemistry Of The Globigerinoides Ruber-Elongatus Plexus, With Paleontological Implications, Elizabeth Ann Brown
USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations
The reliability of foraminifera as stratigraphic index fossils, and as isotopic proxies of marine environments, is based on the assumption that the fossil concepts represent uniform species, responding consistently to their ambient environments. Understanding sources of uncertainty is, therefore, critical. In this dissertation, I explore a potential bias in the application of planktonic foraminifera utilized extensively for Cenozoic paleo-reconstruction and, to a lesser extent, biostratigraphy: the Globigerinoides ruber-elongatus plexus (‘plexus’ meaning a complex network of interconnected members). Taxonomic revisions since 1826 have resulted in the merging of multiple Globigerinoides species names under one general designation (“Globigerinoides ruber”), the implications of …
Stratigraphic Analysis And Regional Correlation Of Isolated, Top-Truncated Shallow Marine Sandstone Bodies Within The Upper Cretaceous Frontier Formation, Bighorn And Washakie Counties, Wyoming,
2011
University of Nebraska-Lincoln
Stratigraphic Analysis And Regional Correlation Of Isolated, Top-Truncated Shallow Marine Sandstone Bodies Within The Upper Cretaceous Frontier Formation, Bighorn And Washakie Counties, Wyoming, Andrew J. Hutsky
Department of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research
A detailed sedimentologic and stratigraphic analysis facilitated interpretations of depositional environment, sequence stratigraphy, and sandstone body geometry for isolated, top-truncated, shallow marine sandstone bodies of the Upper Cretaceous (Cenomanian-Turonian) Frontier Formation, northeast Bighorn Basin, Wyoming. The Frontier Formation interval is ~160 meters thick and was deposited as a complex clastic wedge that prograded into Cretaceous Western Interior Seaway (KWIS). The vertical interval comprises several incomplete coarsening-upward cycles, composed of basal offshore marine and prodeltaic shales progressively overlain by proximal shallow marine/fluvial facies that are capped by pebble lags. Sedimentary structures, vertical stacking patterns, and lateral variability within these cycles record …
Polygonal Sandcracks: Unique Sedimentary Desiccation Structures In Bahamian Ooid Grainstone,
2011
Smith College
Polygonal Sandcracks: Unique Sedimentary Desiccation Structures In Bahamian Ooid Grainstone, Bosiljka Glumac, H. Allen Curran, Sarah A. Motti, Madeline M. Weigner, Sarah Pruss
Geosciences: Faculty Publications
Sandcracks, which are ubiquitous in Holocene eolian and beach backshore carbonate grainstone on Alligator Point, Cat Island, Bahamas, resemble polygonal mudcracks, but formed in ooid sand without muddy matrix. In experiments on Cat Island beach sand, sediment surfaces cracked polygonally in the absence of mud or biofi lms while drying at room temperature due to contraction generated by capillary effects related to surface tension attraction of interstitial water. Gravitational collapse of irregular open pores and repacking of sand grains due to loss of cohesion between particles caused by evaporation of water enhance the cracking process and appearance of polygons by …
Mammalian Fauna From The Fullerton Gravel Pit (Ogallala Group, Late Miocene), Morton County, Kansas,
2011
Fort Hays State University
Mammalian Fauna From The Fullerton Gravel Pit (Ogallala Group, Late Miocene), Morton County, Kansas, Michael Anthony Calvello
Master's Theses or Doctor of Nursing Practice
The Fullerton Gravel Pit, Morton County, Kansas is one of many sites in western Kansas at which the Ogallala Group crops out. The Ogallala Group was deposited primarily by streams flowing from the Rocky Mountains. Evidence of water transport is observable at the Fullerton Gravel Pit through the presence of allochthonous clasts, cross-bedding, pebble alignment, and fossil breakage and subsequent rounding. Fluvial mechanisms also played an important role in the distribution of fossil material. When the fossils from the Fullerton Gravel Pit are placed in Voorhies Groups, it appears that a majority of them were removed from suspension gradually and …
Techniques To Promote Garry Oak Seedling Growth And Survival In Areas With High Levels Of Herbivory And Competition,
2011
Trinity Western University
Techniques To Promote Garry Oak Seedling Growth And Survival In Areas With High Levels Of Herbivory And Competition, David R. Clements, Seth Luginbill, David A. Jordan, Randall Dragt
University Faculty Publications and Creative Works
Though regeneration of Garry oak (Quercus garryana) seedlings within Garry oak ecosystems is important to maintain this threatened habitat, seedling regeneration is often poor. Two independent studies were initiated in the early 2000s to examine questions surrounding Garry oak recruitment: one at the Crow's Nest Ecological Research Area (CNERA) on Salt Spring Island, BC, and another at the Pacific Rim Institute for Environmental Stewardship (PRI) on Whidbey Island, WA. In both areas, Garry oak seedlings were caged and monitored for growth and relative health. Over 8 years at CNERA, growth of caged plants outpaced growth of controls, which was indicative …
Identifying Changes In Climatic Trends And The Fingerprints Of Landuse And Landcover Changes In The High Plains Of The Usa,
2011
University of Nebraska-Lincoln
Identifying Changes In Climatic Trends And The Fingerprints Of Landuse And Landcover Changes In The High Plains Of The Usa, Denis Mutiibwa
Department of Agricultural and Biological Systems Engineering: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research
Human activities such as conversion of natural ecosystem to croplands and urban-centers, deforestation and afforestation impact biophysical properties of land surface such as albedo, energy balance, and surface roughness. Alterations in these properties affect the heat and moisture exchanges between the land surface and atmospheric boundary layer. The objectives of this research were; (i) to quantitatively identify the High plains’ regional climate change in temperatures over the period 1895 to 2006, (ii) detect the signatures of anthropogenic forcing of LULC changes on the regional climate change of the High Plains, and (iii) examine the trends in evolving regional latent heat …
New Stable Isotope Record Of Paleoecological Change In The Late Neogene Of The Western Great Plains From Enamel In Large Mammals,
2011
University of Nebraska-Lincoln
New Stable Isotope Record Of Paleoecological Change In The Late Neogene Of The Western Great Plains From Enamel In Large Mammals, Zachary Kita
Department of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research
An expansion of C4 grasslands occurred between 6 and 8 million years ago in the Great Plains of North America, as evidenced by a marked shift to more 13C-enriched carbon isotope compositions from large fossil mammal tooth enamel and paleosol carbonates. Prior to this expansion, habitats were comprised of exclusively C3 vegetation. To explore this problem I present a compilation of bulk stable carbon (δ13C) and oxygen (δ18O) isotope values from a variety of large mammals from 6 localities that span from the late Clarendonian to the late Blancan in Nebraska. As expected, …
