Book Chapters
Science Quality and Integrity
The USGS provides unbiased, objective, and impartial scientific information upon which our audiences, including resource managers, planners, and other entities, rely.
The USGS provides unbiased, objective, and impartial scientific information upon which our audiences, including resource managers, planners, and other entities, rely.
Browse more than 5,500 book chapters authored by our scientists over the past 100+ year history of the USGS and refine search by topic, location, year, and advanced search.
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Porphyry and epithermal mineral deposits
Porphyry and epithermal mineral deposits form large economic ore bodies that provide the global economy with copper, molybdenum, gold, silver and other byproducts (Re, Te, Se). They form in the upper crust and are related to sulfur- and water-rich intermediate to silicic magmatic sources of hydrothermal fluids that move upward and produce extensive hydrolytic and alkali wall-rock alteration, quart
Authors
John H Dilles, David John
Ocean floor manganese deposits
Much of the dissolved Mn delivered to the oceans is slowly oxidized and precipitated alongside varying amounts of Fe into Mn and ferromanganese (FeMn) mineral deposits that occur extensively in the deep ocean wherever sediment accumulation is low and substrate is available. FeMn crusts grow as pavements on rock outcrops throughout the global ocean whereas nodules form as individual FeMn-encrusted
Authors
Kira Mizell, James R. Hein
Soils and paleosols
Soils are naturally occurring bodies that form in the interface between the geosphere, biosphere, hydrosphere, and atmosphere. They are the medium for much of the Earth's plant and animal growth. Soil morphology and how it evolves are functions of the soil-forming factors of climate, organisms, relief, parent material, and time. The expression of soil morphology takes the form of layers, called ho
Authors
Daniel R. Muhs
Eolian sediments
The origin and nature of eolian (wind-blown) sediments are reviewed, with an emphasis on the occurrence of these features in the Quaternary. Eolian sediments consist of windblown sand, loess, and long-range-transported (LRT) dust, in order of decreasing particle size. Eolian sand forms some of the most dramatic landscapes in the world, particularly when these sediments are deposited as dunes in sa
Authors
Daniel R. Muhs
Dating by cosmogenic nuclides
Since the 1990s, cosmogenic nuclides have revolutionized the study of Earth surface processes, particularly the understanding of rates and dates. These nuclides, including 3He, 10Be, 14C, 21Ne, 26Al, and 36Cl, enable dating of landforms and the measurement of erosion rates both at the scale of drainage basins and at specific locations on Earth's surface. Cosmogenic nuclides are produced at low rat
Authors
Paul R. Bierman, Adrian Bender, Andrew J. Christ, Lee B. Corbett, Christopher T. Halsted, Eric W. Portenga, Amanda H. Schmidt
Monitoring volcanic deformation
Deformation signals recorded at volcanoes have long been used to infer the processes behind subsurface magma intrusions. Monitoring strategies vary greatly depending on several factors such as the activity of the individual volcano, access, available personnel, and funding.Certain geodetic monitoring methods, such as Electronic Distance Measurements, are inexpensive but require that scientists be
Authors
Maurizio Battaglia, Jorge Alpala, Rosa Alpala, Mario Angarita, Dario Arcos, Leonardo Euillades, Pablo Euillades, Cyril Muller, Lourdes Narvaez
Karst geology of the Upper Midwest, USA
Karst in the Upper Midwest occurs within a thick sequence of mixed carbonate and siliciclastic Cambrian through Pennsylvanian sedimentary rocks, with a minor occurrence of karst in Proterozoic sandstone. Deposition of the sediments occurred on a marine epeiric ramp that spanned much of the North American continent through most of the Paleozoic. The Upper Midwest region experienced dramatic changes
Authors
Daniel H. Doctor, E. Calvin Alexander
Infectious diseases in Yellowstone’s wolves
No abstract available.
Authors
Ellen E. Brandell, Emily S. Almberg, Paul C. Cross, Andrew P Dobson, Douglas W. Smith, Peter J. Hudson
Quantitative textural measures of the aeromagnetic field: Two examples at regional scale
No abstract available.
Authors
Mark E. Gettings
The geography of islands
Islands come in all shapes, sizes and types, from tiny rocky outcrops, to enormous continental landmasses. The true number of islands distributed in the planet’s seas and oceans is still elusive. Recent efforts bolstered by an abundance of detailed satellite imagery and the sophistication of geographic information systems (GIS) are bringing real answers to those questions closer than ever.
Authors
Roger Sayre, Madeline Thomas Martin, Jill Janene Cress, Nick Holmes, Osgur McDermott-Long, Lauren Weatherdon, Dena Spatz, Keith VanGraafeiland, David Will
Systematics, evolution, and genetics of bears
Molecular genetics are key to understanding current and historical relationships between isolated populations, including species’ colonizations during glacial–interglacial cycles, to determine viability of local populations, needs for habitat corridors, and other aspects of population management, especially where bears are harvested for sport, etc. As natural habitats shrink, some bear species wil
Authors
Andrew C Kitchener, Eva Bellemain, Xiang Ding, Alexander Kopatz, Verena Kutschera, Valentina Salomashkina, Manuel Ruiz-Garcia, Tabitha Graves, Yiling Hou, Lars Werdelin, Axel Janke
Terrestrial wildlife in the post-mined Appalachian landscape: Status and opportunities
Coal mining is an anthropogenic stressor that has impacted terrestrial and semi-aquatic wildlife in the Appalachian Plateau since European settlement. Creation of grassland and early-successional habitats resulting from mining in a forested landscape has resulted in novel, non-analog habitat conditions. Depending on the taxa, the extent of mining on the landscape, and reclamation practices, effect
Authors
Christopher M. Lituma, John J. Cox, Stephen F. Spear, John W. Edwards, Jesse L. De La Cruz, Lisa I. Muller, W. Mark Ford