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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

Monitoring polar ice change in the twilight zone

Landsat’s new extended data collection program is mapping Arctic and Antarctic regions year-round, even in polar twilight.
Authors
Theodore A. Scambos, Christopher Shuman, Mark Fahnestock, Tasha Snow, Christopher J. Crawford

Defining the hafnium isotopic signature of the Appalachian orogen through analysis of detrital zircons from modern fluvial sediments

Fluvial sediments are the product of erosion, weathering, and transport of bedrock within a well-defined catchment area, and their constituent grains may therefore record valuable information about the lithological and geochemical properties of geologic units within the upstream drainage. Analysis of U-Pb ages and Lu/Hf isotopic values in detrital zircon grains from major rivers in the eastern USA
Authors
John W. Counts, William H. Craddock, Jared T. Gooley

Exposure to and biomarker responses from legacy and emerging contaminants along three drainages in the Milwaukee Estuary, Wisconsin, USA

Legacy contaminants and contaminants of emerging concern (CECs) were assessed in tree swallow (Tachycineta bicolor) tissue and diet samples from three drainages in the Milwaukee estuary, Wisconsin, USA, to understand exposures and possible biomarker responses. Two remote Wisconsin lakes were assessed for comparative purposes. Bioaccumulative classes of contaminants, such as polybrominated diphenyl
Authors
Christine M. Custer, Thomas W. Custer, Paul Dummer, Sandra L. Schultz, Natalie K. Karouna-Renier, Chi Yen Tseng, Cole W. Matson

Novel approach for ranking DEMs: Copernicus DEM improves one arc second open global topography

We present a practical approach to intercompare a range of candidate digital elevation models (DEMs) based on predefined criteria and a statistically sound ranking approach. The presented approach integrates the randomized complete block design (RCBD) into a novel framework for DEM comparison. The method presented provides a flexible, statistically sound, and customizable tool for evaluating the q
Authors
Conrad Bielski, Carlos López-Vázquez, Carlos H. Grohmann, Peter L. Guth, Laurence Hawker, Dean B. Gesch, Sebastiano Trevisani, Virginia Herrera-Cruz, Serge Riazanoff, Axel Corseaux, Hannes I. Reuter, Peter Strobl

PFAS river export analysis highlights the urgent need for catchment-scale mass loading data

Source apportionment of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) requires an understanding of the mass loading of these compounds in river basins. However, there is a lack of temporally variable and catchment-scale mass loading data, meaning identification and prioritization of sources of PFAS to rivers for management interventions can be difficult. Here, we analyze PFAS concentrations and loads
Authors
Patrick Byrne, William M. Mayes, Alun L. James, Sean Comber, Emma Biles, Alex Riley, Robert L. Runkel

How quickly do oil and gas wells “Water Out”? Quantifying and contrasting water production trends

Water production from petroleum (oil and natural gas) wells is a topic of increasing environmental and economic importance, yet quantification efforts have been limited to date, and patterns between and within petroleum plays are largely unscrutinized. Additionally, classification of reservoirs as “unconventional” (also known as “continuous”) carries scientific and regulatory importance, but in so
Authors
Seth S. Haines, Brian A. Varela, Marilyn Tennyson, Nicholas J. Gianoutsos

Adaptive resource management: Achieving functional eradication of invasive snakes to benefit avian conservation

Natural resource management often co-occurs with considerable uncertainty. One approach to mitigating uncertainty is through adaptive resource management (ARM), a specialized form of structured decision-making that modifies management decisions or actions through monitoring and implementation.Here, we present a case study on the attempted eradication of an invasive brown treesnake (Boiga irregular
Authors
Melia Gail Nafus, Amanda Reyes, Thomas Fies, Scott Michael Goetz

Revisiting the physical processes controlling the tropical atmospheric circulation changes during the Mid-Piacenzian Warm Period

The Mid-Piacenzian Warm Period (MPWP; 3.0–3.3 Ma), a warm geological period about three million years ago, has been deemed as a good past analog for understanding the current and future climate change. Based on 12 climate model outputs from Pliocene Model Intercomparison Project Phase 2 (PlioMIP2), we investigate tropical atmospheric circulation (TAC) changes under the warm MPWP and associated und
Authors
Ke Zhang, Yong Sun, Xuan Zhang, Christian Stepanek, Ran Feng, Daniel Hill, Gerrit Lohmann, Aisling M Dolan, Alan M Haywood, Ayako Abe-Ouchi, Bette Otto-Bliesner, Camille Contoux, Deepak Chandan, Gilles Ramstein, Harry J. Dowsett, Julia C. Tindall, Michiel Baatsen, Ning Tan, William Richard Peltier, Qiang Liu, Wing-Le Chan, Xin Wang, Xu Zhang

Precipitation uncertainty estimation and rainfall-runoff model calibration using iterative ensemble smoothers

The introduction of iterative ensemble smoothers (IES) for parameter calibration opens avenues for expanding parameter space in surface water hydrologic modeling. Here, we have introduced independent parameters into a model calibration experiment to estimate errors in rainfall forcing data. This approach has the potential to estimate rainfall errors using other hydrological observations and to imp
Authors
Davide Zoccatelli, Daniel B. Wright, Jeremy T. White, Michael N. Fienen, Guo Yu

Assessing trade-offs in developing a landscape-scale nest monitoring programme for a threatened shorebird

Effective monitoring of wildlife species requires thorough planning and development of survey programmes that can address management and conservation objectives. Decisions about monitoring programmes include where to survey, survey design and how much effort to allocate at survey sites are typically predicated on limited budgets and available resources. When the scope of inference requires monitor
Authors
Kristen S. Ellis, Michael J. Anteau, Garrett J. MacDonald, Megan Ring, Mark H. Sherfy, Rose J. Swift, Dustin L. Toy

Comparison of longitudinal stream temperature profiles and significant thermal features from airborne thermal infrared and float surveys of the Skykomish, Snoqualmie, and Middle Fork Snoqualmie Rivers, King and Snohomish Counties, Washington, summer 2020

Summer water temperatures in the Skykomish, Snoqualmie, and Middle Fork Snoqualmie Rivers in western Washington have in recent decades exceeded the water temperature criteria for aquatic life uses set by the Washington Department of Ecology. This temperature increase is of particular concern because these rivers provide critical habitat for several salmonid populations, including Endangered Specie
Authors
Daniel E. Restivo, Mousa Diabat, Chris Miwa, Valerie A.L. Bright

Nitrate exposure from drinking water and dietary sources among Iowa farmers using private wells

Nitrate levels are increasing in water resources across the United States and nitrate ingestion from drinking water has been associated with adverse health risks in epidemiologic studies at levels below the maximum contaminant level (MCL). In contrast, dietary nitrate ingestion has generally been associated with beneficial health effects. Few studies have characterized the contribution of both dri
Authors
T. Skalaban, D.A. Thompson, J. Madrigal, B. Blount, M.M. Espinosa, Dana W. Kolpin, N.C. Deziel, R.R. Jones, L.B. Freeman, J.N. Hofmann, M.H. Ward