Publications
Browse more than 160,000 publications authored by our scientists over the past 100+ year history of the USGS. Publications available are: USGS-authored journal articles, series reports, book chapters, other government publications, and more.
Mission Area Publications
Mission Area Publications
We are focused on some of the most significant issues society faces, and our science is making a substantial contribution to the well-being of the Nation and the world. Learn more about the major topics our research covers and the programs focused on those topics.
Filter Total Items: 171224
Trends in environmental, anthropogenic, and water-quality characteristics in the upper White River Basin, Indiana
The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), in cooperation with The Nature Conservancy, undertook a study to update and extend results from a previous study (Koltun, 2019, https://doi.org/10.3133/sir20195119), using data from 3 additional years and newer estimation methods. Koltun (2019) assessed trends in streamflow, precipitation, and estimated annual mean concentrations and flux of nitrate plus nitrite,
Authors
G.F. Koltun
Coordinating science during an eruption: Lessons from the 2020–2021 Kīlauea volcanic eruption
Data collected during well-observed eruptions can lead to dramatic increases in our understanding of volcanic processes. However, the necessary prioritization of public safety and hazard mitigation during a crisis means that scientific opportunities may be sacrificed. Thus, maximizing the scientific gains from eruptions requires improved planning and coordinating science activities among governmen
Authors
Kari M. Cooper, Kyle R. Anderson, Kathy Cashman, Michelle L. Coombs, Hannah R. Dietterich, Tobias Fischer, Bruce F. Houghton, Ingrid Johanson, Kendra J. Lynn, Michael Manga, Christelle Wauthier
Secondary forest within a timber plantation concession in Borneo contributes to a diverse mammal assemblage
Commercial tree plantations of fast-growing species have become increasingly important in Southeast Asia to meet global demand for wood and wood fiber products. There is a growing need to understand more about their value for wildlife and how they can be managed for biodiversity. We evaluated the effects of landscape attributes on mammal communities in a timber concession consisting of 83 % second
Authors
Wilvia Olivia William, Frank T. van Manen, Stuart P. Sharp, Shyamala Ratnayeke
Evaluation of hydrologic processes in the eastern Snake River Plain aquifer using uranium and strontium isotopes, Idaho National Laboratory, eastern Idaho
Waste constituents discharged to the eastern Snake River Plain aquifer at the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Idaho National Laboratory (INL) pose risks to the water quality of the aquifer. To understand these risks, the U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the DOE, is conducting geochemical studies to better understand the hydrologic processes at the INL that affect the movement of groundw
Authors
Gordon W. Rattray, James B. Paces
Determining three-dimensional hydrologic processes in the eastern Snake River Plain aquifer using geochemical mass-balance modeling, Idaho National Laboratory, eastern Idaho, with contributions by Treinen, K.C.
Waste constituents discharged to the eastern Snake River Plain aquifer at the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Idaho National Laboratory (INL) pose risks to the water quality of the aquifer. To understand these risks, the U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the DOE, used geochemical mass-balance modeling to identify three-dimensional hydrologic processes in that portion of the aquifer under
Authors
Gordon W. Rattray
The 2022 Hunga-Tonga megatsunami: Near-field simulation of a once-in-a-century event
The Hunga Tonga–Hunga Ha’apai (HTHH) volcanic eruption in January 2022 generated catastrophic tsunami and contends for the largest natural explosion in more than a century. The main island, Tongatapu, suffered waves up to 17 m, and Tofua Island suffered waves up to 45 m, comfortably placing HTHH in the “megatsunami” league. We present a tsunami simulation of the Tongan Archipelago calibrated by fi
Authors
Sam Purkis, Steven N Ward, Nathan M. Fitzpatrick, James B. Garvin, Dan Slayback, Shane J. Cronin, Monica Palaseanu-Lovejoy, Alexandra Dempsey
Vital rates of a burgeoning population of Humpback Chub in western Grand Canyon
The Colorado River ecosystem has experienced habitat alterations and non-native species invasions, and as a result, many of its native species have experienced extirpations, abundance declines, and range constrictions. Despite these pitfalls, Humpback Chub, Gila cypha, have persisted and, in the last 10-15 years, expanded their range to become abundant in western Grand Canyon, a river segment in w
Authors
Maria C. Dzul, Charles Yackulic, Mariah Aurelia Giardina, David R. Van Haverbeke, Michael D. Yard
Predicting baseflow recession characteristics at ungauged stream locations using a physical and machine learning approach
Prediction of short- (i.e., aquifer is near or at saturated conditions) and long-time (i.e., aquifer is not near or at saturated conditions) baseflow recession characteristics at ungauged stream locations is a current challenge that has been primarily addressed by empirical approaches that relate these characteristics to basin attributes. However, the performance of these models is often only fair
Authors
Ken Eng, David M. Wolock, Michael Wieczorek
Assessment of riparian vegetation patterns and change downstream from Glen Canyon Dam from 2014 to 2019
Changes in riparian vegetation cover and composition occur in relation to flow regime, geomorphic template, and climate, and can have cascading effects on aquatic and terrestrial ecosystems. Tracking such changes over time is therefore an important part of monitoring the condition and trajectory of riparian ecosystems. Maintaining diverse, self-sustaining riparian vegetation comprised of mostly na
Authors
Emily C. Palmquist, Bradley J. Butterfield, Barbara E. Ralston
Bivalve effects on the food web supporting delta smelt—A long-term study of bivalve recruitment, biomass, and grazing rate patterns with varying freshwater outflow
Phytoplankton are an important and limiting food source in the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta and San Francisco Bay in California. Decreasing phytoplankton biomass is one possible factor for the pelagic organism decline and the decline of the protected Hypomesus transpacificus (delta smelt). Bivalves Corbicula fluminea and Potamocorbula amurensis (hereafter C. fluminea and P. amurensis, respectively
Authors
Emily L. Zierdt Smith, Kelly H. Shrader, Janet K. Thompson, Francis Parchaso, Karen Gehrts, Elizabeth Wells
Monitoring of wave, current, and sediment dynamics along the Chincoteague living shoreline, Virginia
Nature-based features, also called living shorelines, are increasingly applied in coastal protection and restoration. However, the processes and mechanisms (feedbacks and interactions) of wave attenuation, current velocity change, and sediment deposition and erosion along the living shoreline remain unclear, thus limiting the adaptive management of living shoreline restoration projects for coastal
Authors
Hongqing Wang, Q. Chen, Nan Wang, William D. Capurso, L.M. Niemoczynski, Ling Zhu, G.A. Snedden, Kevin S. Holcomb, Bowdoin W. Lusk, Carol W. Wilson, Sean R. Cornell
Re-prioritization of the U.S. Geological Survey Federal Priority Streamgage Network, 2022
The Federal Priority Streamgage (FPS) network of the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), created in 1999 as the National Streamflow Information Program, receives Congressional appropriations to support the operation of a federally-funded “backbone” network of streamflow gages across the United States that are designated to meet the “Federal needs” or priorities of the country. Anticipating the evolutio
Authors
Jonathan J.A. Dillow, Brian E. McCallum, Cory E. Angeroth