Images

Map of thermal areas in Yellowstone (red), as well as lakes (outlined in blue), many of which have thermal areas on their shores or beneath their surfaces.

Shaded relief map based on high-resolution topographic data from lidar and showing subtle terraces on the north side of Yellowstone Lake (a few example terraces are marked by yellow arrows and traced by dashed and dotted white lines).

On September 3, USGS HVO geologists also visited fissure 21 of Kīlauea's 2018 lower East Rift Zone eruption. Geologists investigated and documented vent features, and collected samples for ongoing analyses of 2018 eruption dynamics. View of fissure 21 from the northeast. A small hole has formed from collapse of the rampart.

Front side of fissure 21 of Kīlauea's 2018 lower East Rift Zone eruption. Red oxidation and white mineral precipitates color the front of the rampart. Fountains erupted immediately in front of this feature. 

This photo views fissure 21, of Kīlauea's 2018 lower East Rift Zone eruption, from the southeast. 

On September 3, USGS HVO geologists visited fissure 7 of Kīlauea's 2018 lower East Rift Zone eruption. Geologists investigated and documented vent features, and collected samples for ongoing analyses of 2018 eruption dynamics. Fountains from fissure 7 left a hole over the vent area.

View of the front side of fissure 7 rampart, erupted during Kīlauea's 2018 lower East Rift Zone eruption. Red oxidation is present in lower layers within the rampart. Golden shelly pāhoehoe from fissure 8 surrounds the rampart. 

How do restoration plantings alter ecosystem function? NAU PhD student Kathleen Balazs and technician Sarah Negovan measure soil water infiltration rates at a RestoreNet site near La Sal, Utah. These measurements will illustrate how restoration plantings effect certain ecosystem functions

Photo of Kīlauea's 2018 lower East Rift Zone eruption fissure 7, from Hookupu street and looking west. The rampart is surrounded by fissure 8 lava. This view is of the back side of the rampart; lava fountains erupted on the opposite side of the rampart. 

View of the 2018 Kīlauea caldera collapse structures from Kīlauea Overlook within Hawai‘i Volcanoes National Park. USGS photo by K. Mulliken on Sept. 2, 2020.

Birch Creek near Valier streamgage

Birch Creek near Valier streamgage

Birch Creek near Valier streamgage

Birch Creek near Valier streamgage

View of the 2018 Kīlauea caldera collapse structures from Kīlauea Overlook within Hawai‘i Volcanoes National Park. USGS photo by K. Mulliken on Sept. 2, 2020.

Still images from videos of surface water flow overlaid with velocity vectors during low (top) and high (bottom) flow conditions in Frankford Creek, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, September 2020. These videos were processed using large-scale particle imaging velocimetry (LSPIV) to estimate streamflow in a location where standard methods are inadequate. 

The UNAVCO-operated geodetic infrastructure located in Yellowstone National Park consists of over a dozen continuously operating geodetic sites.  Most of these sites stream real-time data to the UNAVCO data center.  After the September 2020 maintenance trip, there are now 8 fully upgraded GNSS sites (red square) located in the park. 

Scientist Kaitlin Bowen attaching a SPATT sampler to a stable post in the Salem River.

Thin section made by slicing a small layer off the surface of a hand sample of Yeloowstone lava. Note the marker for scale.

The Total Water Level and Coastal Change Forecast has continually expanded since real-time forecasts began in 2015. In 2020, new regions of the Gulf and South Atlantic coasts were added to the forecast and officially approved for use in National Weather Service Forecasts.

Research scientist Lesley DeFalco works on native and invasive annual plant sampling at the site of the Tramp Fire,one of 12 fires for which the USGS and the BLM are implementing landscape scale restoration treatments.