Publications
Publications authored by the Nevada Water Science Center scientists are listed below. Older publications may not be available in electronic form yet. If a Nevada Water Science Center publication that you would like to view isn't listed below, please send email to GS-W-NVpublic-info@ usgs.gov.
Filter Total Items: 374
Lake Tahoe water monitoring and research activities
Several decades ago, deteriorating water quality and clarity in Lake Tahoe prompted the initiation of environmental programs in the Lake Tahoe basin. Data on seasonal sediment loads from tributary streams, and nutrient loads from surrounding streams and groundwater aquifers, were needed to document the causes of this deterioration, the local and regional effectiveness of environmental programs, an
Authors
Ramon C. Naranjo
Managed aquifer recharge in snow-fed river basins: What, why and how?
What does climate change mean for snow-fed river basins?Climate change poses unique challenges in snow-fed river basins across the western United States because the majority of water supply originates as snow (Dettinger, Udall, & Georgakakos, 2015). In the Sierra Nevada, recent observations include changes in snow accumulation and snowmelt, and shifts in peak streamflow timing (Barnhart et al., 20
Authors
Kelley Sterle, Wesley Kitlasten, Eric D. Morway, Richard G. Niswonger, Loretta Singletary
Estimation of groundwater flow through Yucca Flat based on a multiple-well aquifer test at well ER-6–1–2 main, Nevada National Security Site, southern Nevada
The rate of groundwater flow past underground nuclear testing areas in Yucca Flat at the Nevada National Security Site, southern Nevada, was estimated using results from the ER-6-1-2 main multiple-well aquifer test (MWAT), done during February 5–July 23, 2004. Drawdowns in 13 observation wells were evaluated from pumping in well ER-6-1-2 main and used as observations in a regional groundwater-flow
Authors
Tracie R. Jackson, Keith J. Halford
Evaluation of groundwater-flow models for estimating drawdown from proposed groundwater development in Tule Desert, Nevada
At the request of the Bureau of Land Management (BLM), the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) is releasing with this open-file report (OFR) a previously unpublished review and comparison of two numerical models for Tule Desert, Nevada. The original review was performed in spring 2013, and only minor editorial revisions were made in the current (2019) OFR for clarity and to reformat the original interag
Authors
Keith J. Halford
Uncertainty of reference pixel soil moisture averages sampled at SMAP core validation sites
Despite extensive efforts to maximize ground coverage and improve upscaling functions within core validation sites (CVS) of the NASA Soil Moisture Active/Passive (SMAP) mission, spatial averages of point-scale soil moisture observations often fail to accurately capture the true average of the reference pixels. Therefore, some level of pixel-scale sampling error from in situ observations must be co
Authors
Fan Chen, W.T Crow, M.H. Cosh, A. Colliander, J. Asanuma, A. Berg, D.D. Bosch, Todd Caldwell, C. Holifield-Collins, J. Martínez-Fernández, H. McNairn, P.J. Starks, Z. Su, J.P. Walker
Flood-inundation mapping of a steep, gravel desert stream in Death Valley National Park, California
In desert landscapes, flooding can result in dramatic changes to streams. However, the frequency, magnitude, and geomorphic effects of floods in such environments are less understood compared to wetter environments (Tooth, 2000). In desert landscapes, steep slopes and sparse vegetation result in runoff and flashy flood peaks, often lasting for only a few hours. Many floods are the result of isolat
Authors
Christopher M. Morris, Toby L. Welborn
Spatial patterns of meadow sensitivities to interannual climate variability in the Sierra Nevada
Conservation of montane meadows is a high priority for land and water managers given their critical role in buffering the effects of climate variability and their vulnerability to increasing temperatures and evaporative demands. Recent advances in cloud computing have provided new opportunities to examine ecological responses to climate variability over the past few decades, and at large spatial s
Authors
Christine M. Albano, Meredith L. McClure, Shana E. Gross, Wesley Kitlasten, Christopher Soulard, Charles Morton, Justin Huntington
Methods for installation, removal, and downloading data from the temperature profiling probe (TROD)
This document provides a brief method overview on the deployment and removal of the temperature profiling probe developed by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) in 2015 and referred to as SensorRod or temperature rod (TROD). The TROD is suitable for short- to long-term deployments (days to years) for evaluating thermal gradients in soils and sediments beneath surface water. Applications include eval
Authors
Ramon C. Naranjo
Hydrogeology of Lower Amargosa Valley and groundwater discharge to the Amargosa Wild and Scenic River, Inyo and San Bernardino Counties, California, and adjacent areas in Nye and Clark Counties, Nevada
In 2009, Congress designated certain reaches of the Amargosa River in Inyo County, California between the town of Shoshone and Dumont Dunes as a Wild and Scenic River. As part of the management of the Amargosa Wild and Scenic River, the Bureau of Land Management cooperated with the U.S. Geological Survey to assess the surface and groundwater resources of the Tecopa basin. Groundwater is the primar
Authors
Wayne R. Belcher, Donald S. Sweetkind, Candice B. Hopkins, Megan E. Poff
Analysis of aquifer framework and hydraulic properties of Lovelock Valley, Lovelock, Nevada
Multiple aquifer tests were conducted in Lovelock, Nevada, to determine hydraulic conductivity and storage properties to be used with the numerical groundwater flow model of the lower Humboldt River Basin while accounting for the influence of surface features with a modeling component. The numerical model will ultimately provide the Nevada Division of Water Resources (NDWR) with information regard
Authors
Cara A. Nadler
Linkages between hydrology and seasonal variations of nutrients and periphyton in a large oligotrophic subalpine lake
Periphyton is important to lake ecosystems, contributing to primary production, nutrient cycling, and benthic metabolism. Increases in periphyton growth in lakes can be indicative of changes in water quality, shifts in ecosystem structure, and increases in nutrient fluxes. In oligotrophic lakes, conservationists are interested in characterizing the influence of hydrological drivers on excessive pe
Authors
Ramon C. Naranjo, Richard G. Niswonger, David Smith, Donald O. Rosenberry, Sudeep Chandra
Groundwater contributions to excessive algal growth in the East Fork Carson River, Carson Valley, west-central Nevada, 2010 and 2012
Excessive algal growth and low dissolved oxygen concentrations were observed during low streamflow conditions during summer months along a 5,800-foot reach of the East Fork Carson River in Carson Valley, west-central Nevada. Algal growth from nutrient enrichment of a stream reduces aquatic diversity, threatens fish ecology and stream health, and can be a recreational nuisance. In response to conce
Authors
Nancy L. Alvarez, Randy A. Pahl, Michael R. Rosen