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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.

Filter Total Items: 171176

Numerical modeling of debris flows: A conceptual assessment

Real-world hazard evaluation poses many challenges for the development and application of numerical models of debris flows. In this chapter we provide a conceptual overview of physically based, depth-averaged models designed to simulate debris-flow motion across three-dimensional terrain. When judiciously formulated and applied, these models can provide useful information about anticipated depths,
Authors
Richard M. Iverson, David L. George

A comparison of contemporary and historical hydrology and water quality in the foothills and coastal plain of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, Arctic Slope, northern Alaska

The Arctic National Wildlife Refuge is a unique landscape in northern Alaska with limited water resources, substantial biodiversity of rare and threatened species, as well as oil and gas resources. The region has unique hydrology related to perennial springs, and the formation of large aufeis fields—sheets of ice that grow in the river channels where water reaches the surface in the winter and fre
Authors
Joshua C. Koch, Heather Best, Carson Baughman, Charles Couvillion, Michael P. Carey, Jeff Conaway

Evaluation of an impulse-response emulator for groundwater contaminant transport modeling

There is a significant need to develop decision support tools capable of delivering accurate representations of environmental conditions, such as ground and surface water solute concentrations, in a timely and computationally efficient manner. Such tools can be leveraged to assess a large number of potential management strategies for mitigating non-point source pollutants. Here, we assess the effe
Authors
Brent Porter Heerspink, Michael N. Fienen, Howard W. Reeves

Performance-based earthquake early warning for tall buildings

The ShakeAlert Earthquake Early Warning (EEW) system aims to issue an advance warning to residents on the West Coast of the United States seconds before the ground shaking arrives, if the expected ground shaking exceeds a certain threshold. However, residents in tall buildings may experience much greater motion due to the dynamic response of the buildings. Therefore, there is an ongoing effort to
Authors
S. Farid Ghahari, Khachik Sargsyan, Grace Alexandra Parker, Dan Swensen, Mehmet Çelebi, Hamid Haddadi, Ertugrul Taciroglu

New uses for ancient middens: Bridging ecological and evolutionary perspectives

Rodent middens provide a fine-scale spatiotemporal record of plant and animal communities over the late Quaternary. In the Americas, middens have offered insight into biotic responses to past environmental changes and historical factors influencing the distribution and diversity of species. However, few studies have used middens to investigate genetic or ecosystem level responses. Integrating midd
Authors
Katie M. Becklin, Julio L. Betancourt, Joseph Braasch, Olivier Dézerald, Francisca Díaz, Angélica L. González, Robert Harbert, Camille A. Holmgren, Angela D. Hornsby, Claudio L. Latorre, Marjorie D. Matocq, Felisa A. Smith

Evaluation of in vitro treatments against the causative agent of Diadema antillarum scuticociliatosis (DaSc)

ABSTRACT: In the 1980s, a mass die-off of the long-spined sea urchin Diadema antillarum occurred on Florida and Caribbean coral reefs. D. antillarum populations largely did not recover, and in 2022, remaining populations experienced another mass mortality event. A ciliate most similar to Philaster apodigitiformis was identified as the causative agent of the 2022 event, which was named D. antillaru
Authors
James S. Evans, Julie Jenice Voelschow, Isabella T. Ritchie, Mya Breitbart, Ian Hewson, Christina A. Kellogg

Assessing influence from wastewater treatment facilities on Glorieta Creek and the Pecos River within Pecos National Historical Park, New Mexico, February–October 2022

The Pecos National Historical Park protects 2.9 miles of the Pecos River and part of Glorieta Creek within the park boundaries. Updated water-quality data can assist resource managers in determining if effluent from two nearby wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) is affecting the quality of the water in the Pecos River and Glorieta Creek within the park. Water samples were collected four times in 2
Authors
K. Wilkins, K.R. Beisner, R.E. Travis

Preface to focus section on new frontiers and advances in global seismology

Over the last century, many of the fundamental advances in our understanding of the solid Earth have been underpinned by seismic observations recorded on long‐running networks of globally distributed seismic instruments (e.g., Agnew et al., 1976; Romanowicz et al., 1984; Hanka and Kind, 1994; Peterson and Hutt, 2014; Ringler et al., 2022a). During this time, seismic data quality and the speed of d
Authors
Robert E. Anthony, Nicolas Leroy, Robert Mellors, Adam T. Ringler, Joachim Saul, Martin Vallée, David C. Wilson

Seabirds and humpback whales give early warning to marine heatwaves

Between 2014 and 2016, an extreme marine heatwave struck the North Pacific Ocean, affecting nearshore and pelagic (offshore, open ocean) ecosystems from southern California to Alaska. This unprecedented event, characterized by unusually warm ocean temperatures over a large area, was the longest-duration marine heatwave recorded to date. The Gulf of Alaska endured some of the most severe consequenc
Authors
Lauren Bien, Rob Suryan, Mayumi L. Arimitsu, John Moran

Water cycle processes [poster]

DescriptionThe water cycle describes how water moves from Earth’s surface into the atmosphere, then back to the surface again or to below Earth’s surface. This educational poster depicts five key water-cycle processes that transport or transform water between states: evaporation, transpiration, condensation, precipitation, and infiltration. It illustrates examples of natural and human interactions
Authors
Eliza Anderson, Sophie Hill, Ryan Nixon, Benjamin Abbott, Raymond Lee, Rachel Wood, Gregory Carling, Bryan Hopkins, Hayley Corson-Dosch, Cee Nell, Elizabeth Bailey

Where is the water? Agriculture [poster]

DescriptionWater is an integral part of how we interact with the environment and live our everyday lives. This educational poster illustrates agricultural water use, how water moves, and different ways that water is used both naturally and through human interaction. This poster is intended for eighth-grade audiences and younger.
Authors
Simona Love, Sophie Hill, Bryan Hopkins, Benjamin Abbott, Raymond Lee, Rachel Wood, Elizabeth Bailey, Hayley Corson-Dosch, Cee Nell, Ryan Nixon

Where is the water? Coast [poster]

DescriptionWater is an integral part of how we interact with the environment and live our everyday lives. This educational poster illustrates where water is on the coast, how water moves, and different ways that water is used both naturally and through human interaction. This poster is intended for eighth-grade audiences and younger.
Authors
Simona Love, Sophie Hill, Richard Gill, Benjamin Abbott, Raymond Lee, Rachel Wood, Elizabeth Bailey, Hayley Corson-Dosch, Cee Nell, Ryan Nixon