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Publications

Publications from the staff of the Geology, Minerals, Energy, and Geophysics Science Center

Filter Total Items: 2350

By-products of porphyry copper and molybdenum deposits

Porphyry Cu and porphyry Mo deposits are large to giant deposits ranging up to >20 and 1.6 Gt of ore, respectively, that supply about 60 and 95% of the world’s copper and molybdenum, as well as significant amounts of gold and silver. These deposits form from hydrothermal systems that affect 10s to >100 km3 of the upper crust and result in enormous mass redistribution and potential concentration of
Authors
David John, Ryan D. Taylor

Soil formation: Chapter 6

Soil formation reflects the complex interaction of many factors, among the most important of which are (i) the nature of the soil parent material, (ii) regional climate, (iii) organisms, including humans, (iv) topography and (v) time. These processes operate in Earth's critical zone; the thin veneer of our planet where rock meets life. Understanding the operation of these soil-forming factors requ
Authors
Martin B. Goldhaber, Steven A. Banwart

Regional tectonic setting for the Trinidad earthquake swarms (2000-2012) from gravity and magnetic data

Earthquakes in the Raton basin near Trinidad, Colorado, (Figure 1) are located (Rubenstein et. al., 2014) near a major gravity and magnetic boundary. These earthquakes also occur in an area of hydrocarbon production that includes several high-capacity produced water injection wells. This presentation gives a very basic outline of the relation between the earthquakes, the potential field data, and
Authors
Carol A. Finn, Mason A. Kass, Bruce D. Smith

Construction ages of the Upton Stone Chamber: Preliminary findings and suggestions for future luminescence research

The Upton Chamber in Massachusetts, an earth-covered stone structure 3.4 meters (m) in diameter, with a corbelled stone dome, and a 4.3 m long entrance passageway, is studied with the aim of determining whether optically stimulated luminescence (OSL) dating methods can be used to establish the approximate construction date of the entranceway. Three samples, taken from soil behind the lowest stones
Authors
Shannon A. Mahan, Frederick Martin, Cathy Taylor

Geologic maps of the eastern Alaska Range, Alaska (1:63,360 scale)

This report provides a description of map units for a suite of 44 inch-to-mile (1:63,360-scale) geologic quadrangle maps of the eastern Alaska Range. This report also contains a geologic and tectonic summary and a comprehensive list of references pertaining to geologic mapping and specialized studies of the region. In addition to the geologic maps of the eastern Alaska Range, this package includes
Authors
Warren J. Nokleberg, John N. Aleinikoff, Gerard C. Bond, Oscar J. Ferrians, Paige L. Herzon, Ian M. Lange, Ronny T. Miyaoka, Donald H. Richter, Carl E. Schwab, Steven R. Silva, Thomas E. Smith, Richard E. Zehner

Isotopic insights into biological regulation of zinc in contaminated systems

Aquatic organisms use a variety of biogeochemical reactions to regulate essential and non-essential trace metals. Many of these mechanisms can lead to isotopic fractionation, thus measurement of metal isotopes may yield insights into the processes by which organisms respond to metal exposure. We illustrate these concepts with two case studies, one involving an intra- and the other an extra-cellula
Authors
Richard B. Wanty, Laurie S. Balistrieri, Jeff S. Wesner, David Walters, Travis S. Schmidt, Francesca Podda, G. De Giudici, Craig A. Stricker, Johanna M. Kraus, Pierfranco Lattanzi, Ruth E. Wolf, R. Cidu

Qualitative assessment of selected areas of the world for undiscovered sediment-hosted stratabound copper deposits: Chapter Y in Global mineral resource assessment

A qualitative mineral resource assessment of sediment-hosted stratabound copper mineralized areas for undiscovered copper deposits was performed for 10 selected areas of the world. The areas, in alphabetical order, are (1) Belt-Purcell Basin, United States and Canada; (2) Benguela and Cuanza Basins, Angola; (3) Chuxiong Basin, China; (4) Dongchuan Group rocks, China; (5) Egypt–Israel–Jordan Rift,
Authors
Michael L. Zientek, Niki E. Wintzer, Timothy S. Hayes, Heather L. Parks, Deborah A. Briggs, J. Douglas Causey, Shyla A. Hatch, M. Christopher Jenkins, David J. Williams

Architecture and evolution of an Early Permian carbonate complex on a tectonically active island in east-central California

The newly named Upland Valley Limestone represents a carbonate complex that developed on and adjacent to a tectonically active island in east-central California during a brief interval of Early Permian (late Artinskian) time. This lithologically unique, relatively thin limestone unit lies within a thick sequence of predominantly siliciclastic rocks and is characterized by its high concentration of
Authors
Calvin H. Stevens, Robert T. Magginetti, Paul Stone

Stratigraphy and paleogeographic significance of a Late Pennsylvanian to Early Permian channeled slope sequence in the Darwin Basin, southern Darwin Hills, east-central California

The complex stratigraphy of late Paleozoic rocks in the southern Darwin Hills consists of regionally extensive Mississippian and Early to Middle Pennsylvanian rocks overlain by latest Pennsylvanian to Early Permian rocks, herein called the Darwin Hills sequence. Deposition of this latter sequence marked the beginning of the Darwin Basin. In Mississippian time, a carbonate platform prograded westwa
Authors
Calvin H. Stevens, Paul Stone, Robert T. Magginetti, Scott M. Ritter

Regional implications of new chronostratigraphic and paleogeographic data from the Early Permian Darwin Basin, east-central California

The Darwin Basin developed in response to episodic subsidence of the western margin of the Cordilleran continental shelf from Late Pennsylvanian (Gzhelian) to Early Permian (late Artinskian) time. Subsidence of the basin was initiated in response to continental truncation farther to the west and was later augmented by thrust emplacement of the Last Chance allochthon. This deep-water basin was fill
Authors
Calvin H. Stevens, Paul Stone, Robert T. Magginetti

Contrasting distributions of groundwater arsenic and uranium in the western Hetao basin, Inner Mongolia: Implication for origins and fate controls

Although As concentrations have been investigated in shallow groundwater from the Hetao basin, China, less is known about U and As distributions in deep groundwater, which would help to better understand their origins and fate controls. Two hundred and ninety-nine groundwater samples, 122 sediment samples, and 14 rock samples were taken from the northwest portion of the Hetao basin, and analyzed f
Authors
Huaming Guo, Yongfeng Jia, Richard B. Wanty, Yuxiao Jiang, Weiguang Zhao, Wei Xiu, Jiaxing Shen, Yuan Li, Yongsheng Cao, Yang Wu, Di Zhang, Chao Wei, Yilong Zhang, Wengeng Cao, Andrea L. Foster