Publications

Cassini Visual Infrared Mapping Spectrometer (VIMS) observations of Mimas, Tethys, and Dione obtained during the nominal and extended missions at large solar phase angles were analyzed to search for plume activity. No forward scattered peaks in the solar phase curves of these satellites were detected. The upper limit on water vapor production for Mimas and Tethys is one order of magnitude less tha

Columbus crater in the Terra Sirenum region of the Martian southern highlands contains light‐toned layered deposits with interbedded sulfate and phyllosilicate minerals, a rare occurrence on Mars. Here we investigate in detail the morphology, thermophysical properties, mineralogy, and stratigraphy of these deposits; explore their regional context; and interpret the crater's aqueous history. Hydrat

The thick (≤8 km), regionally extensive section of Neoproterozoic siliciclastic strata (terrigenous detrital succession, TDS) in the central and eastern Great Basin contains sedimentary pyrite characterized by mostly high δ34S values (−11.6 to 40.8‰, >70% exceed 10‰; 51 analyses) derived from reduction of seawater sulfate, and by markedly radiogenic Pb isotopes (207Pb/204Pb >19.2; 15 analyses) acq

The Goodsprings district, Clark County, Nevada, includes zinc-dominant carbonate replacement deposits of probable late Paleozoic age, and lead-dominant carbonate replacement deposits, copper ± precious metal-platinum group element (PGE) deposits, and gold ± silver deposits that are spatially associated with Late Triassic porphyritic intrusions. The district encompasses ~500 km2 although the distri

Evaluation of paleosol ages in the vicinity of Yucca Mountain, Nevada, at the time the site of a proposed high-level nuclear waste repository, is important for fault-displacement hazard assessment. Uranium-series isotope data were obtained for surface and subsurface calcrete samples from trenches and boreholes in Midway Valley, Nevada, adjacent to Yucca Mountain. 230Th/U ages of 33 surface samples

We report the discovery of organic sedimentary deposits at the bottom of dry lakebeds near Titan’s north pole in observations from the Cassini Visual and Infrared Mapping Spectrometer (VIMS). We show evidence that the deposits are evaporitic, making Titan just the third known planetary body with evaporitic processes after Earth and Mars, and is the first that uses a solvent other than water.

Large bulk-tonnage high-sulfidation gold deposits, such as Yanacocha, Peru, are the surface expression of structurally-controlled lode gold deposits, such as El Indio, Chile. Both formed in active andesite–dacite volcanic terranes. Fluid inclusion, stable isotope and geologic data show that lode deposits formed within 1500 m of the paleo-surface as a consequence of the expansion of low-salinity, l

For national or global resource estimation of frequencies of metals, a lognormal distribution has commonly been recommended but not adequately tested. Tests of frequencies of Cu, Zn, Pb, Ag, and Au contents of 1 984 well-explored mineral deposits display a poor fit to the lognormal distribution. When the same metals plus Mo, Co, Nb2O3, and REE2O3 are grouped into 19 geologically defined deposit ty

Dissolved inorganic nitrogen, largely in reduced form (NH4(T)≈NH4(aq)++NH3(aq)o), has been documented in thermal waters throughout Yellowstone National Park, with concentrations ranging from a few micromolar along the Firehole River to millimolar concentrations at Washburn Hot Springs. Indirect evidence from rock nitrogen analyses and previous work on organic compounds associated with Washburn Hot

High spectral and spatial resolution data from the Moon Mineralogy Mapper (M3) instrument on Chandrayaan-1 are used to investigate in detail changes in the optical properties of lunar materials accompanying space weathering. Three spectral parameters were developed and used to quantify spectral effects commonly thought to be associated with increasing optical maturity: an increase in spectral slop

The Deepwater Horizon oil spill covered a very large geographical area in the Gulf of Mexico creating potentially serious environmental impacts on both marine life and the coastal shorelines. Knowing the oil's areal extent and thickness as well as denoting different categories of the oil's physical state is important for assessing these impacts. High spectral resolution data in hyperspectral image

In the near-infrared from about 2 μm to beyond 3 μm, the light from the Moon is a combination of reflected sunlight and emitted thermal emission. There are multiple complexities in separating the two signals, including knowledge of the local solar incidence angle due to topography, phase angle dependencies, emissivity, and instrument calibration. Thermal emission adds to apparent reflectance, and