Publications
These publications showcase the significant science conducted in our Science Centers.
Filter Total Items: 16783
Maximum entropy derived statistics of sound speed structure in a fine-grained sediment inferred from sparse broadband acoustic measurements on the New England continental shelf
Marginal probability distributions for parameters representing an effective sound-speed structure of a fine-grained sediment are inferred from a data ensemble maximum entropy method that utilizes a sparse spatially distributed set of received pressure time series resulting from multiple explosive sources in a shallow-water ocean environment possessing significant spatial variability of the seabed.
Authors
David P. Knobles, Preston S. Wilson, J.A. Goff, L. Wan, M.J. Buckingham, Jason Chaytor, Mohsen Badiey
Urban stormwater: An overlooked pathway of extensive mixed contaminants to surface and groundwaters in the United States
Increasing global reliance on stormwater control measures to reduce discharge to surface water, increase groundwater recharge, and minimize contaminant delivery to receiving waterbodies necessitates improved understanding of stormwater-contaminant profiles. A multi-agency study of organic and inorganic chemicals in urban stormwater from 50 runoff events at 21 sites across the United States demonst
Authors
Jason R. Masoner, Dana W. Kolpin, Isabelle M. Cozzarelli, Larry B. Barber, D.S. Burden, William T. Foreman, Kenneth J. Forshay, Edward Furlong, Justin F. Groves, Michelle Hladik, Matthew E. Hopton, Jeanne B. Jaeschke, Steffanie H. Keefe, David Krabbenhoft, Richard Lowrance, Kristin Romanok, David L. Rus, William R. Selbig, Brad Williams, Paul Bradley
By
Water Resources Mission Area, Science Synthesis, Analysis and Research Program, Contaminant Biology, Science Analytics and Synthesis (SAS) Program, Toxic Substances Hydrology, California Water Science Center, Central Midwest Water Science Center, New Jersey Water Science Center, Oklahoma-Texas Water Science Center, South Atlantic Water Science Center (SAWSC), Upper Midwest Environmental Sciences Center, Upper Midwest Water Science Center, Reston Biogeochemical Processes in Groundwater Laboratory
Molecular identification of fecal contamination in the Elks Run Watershed, Jefferson County, West Virginia, 2016–17
The U.S. Geological Survey conducted a study using modern methods of molecular analysis aimed at attempting to identify the source(s) of fecal contamination that had been identified in previous studies conducted by the West Virginia Conservation Agency in the Elk Run watershed, Jefferson County, West Virginia. Water samples from multiple sites showing elevated fecal coliform counts were analyzed u
Authors
W. Bane Schill, Deborah D. Iwanowicz
Spatial distribution of water level impact to back-barrier bays
Water level in semi-enclosed bays, landward of barrier islands, is mainly driven by offshore sea level fluctuations that are modulated by bay geometry and bathymetry, causing spatial variability in the ensuing response (transfer). Local wind setup can have a secondary role that depends on wind speed, fetch, and relative orientation of the wind direction and the bay. Inlet geometry and bathymetry p
Authors
Alfredo Aretxabaleta, Neil K. Ganju, Zafer Defne, Richard P. Signell
The effects of seasonal temperature and photoperiod manipulation on reproduction in the eastern elliptio Elliptio complanata
The eastern elliptio Elliptio complanata is a species of freshwater mussel common to streams and rivers of the Atlantic Coast. Egg fertilization, larval brooding, and glochidial release are reported to occur within a period of several weeks during early to midsummer. In this study, mussels were exposed to manipulated photoperiod and water temperatures to prolong the availability of glochidia for u
Authors
Carrie J. Blakeslee, William A. Lellis
Phytoplankton community structure response to groundwater-borne nutrients in the inland bays, Delaware
To determine the impacts of groundwater-borne nutrients on phytoplankton biomass and community structure, we conducted a series of mesocosm experiments in the Inland Bays of Delaware. Four treatments were tested, including mesocosms coupled directly to submarine groundwater seepage, mesocosms with the addition of pumped submarine groundwater, mesocosms with the addition of phosphate, and control m
Authors
Daniel Torre, Kathryn Coyne, Kevin D. Kroeger, Joanna K. York
Paleoliquefaction field reconnaissance in eastern North Carolina—Is there evidence for large magnitude earthquakes between the central Virginia seismic zone and Charleston seismic zone?
In June 2016, approximately 64 kilometers (km) of riverbank were examined along the Tar and Neuse Rivers near Tarboro and Kinston, North Carolina, for evidence of liquefaction-forming earthquakes. The study area is in the vicinity of the Grainger’s fault zone in eastern North Carolina. The Grainger’s fault zone is a fault zone in the inner Coastal Plain Province that has well-documented Paleogene
Authors
Mark W. Carter, Brett T. McLaurin
Soil mineralogy and geochemistry along a north-south transect in Alaska and the relation to source-rock terrane
Soils collected along a predominately north-south transect in Alaska were used to evaluate regional differences in the soil mineralogy and geochemistry in the context of a geotectonic framework for Alaska. The approximately 1,395-kilometer-long transect followed the Dalton, Elliott, and Richardson Highways from near Prudhoe Bay to Valdez. Sites were selected with a site spacing of approximately 10
Authors
Bronwen Wang, Chad P. Hults, Dennis D. Eberl, Laurel G. Woodruff, William F. Cannon, Larry P. Gough
Eviction notice: Observation of a Common Tern (Sterna hirundo) usurping an active Least Tern (Sternula antillarum) Nest
Although nest usurpation is common in some species and orders of birds, usurpation has rarely been reported for Sterninae. We observed a Sterna hirundo (Common Tern) egg in an active Sternula antillarum(Least Tern) nest with a complete clutch in a mixed-species Sterninae colony in Chesapeake Bay, MD, in May 2018. Based on observations from a game camera following usurpation, Common Terns incubated
Authors
Georgia J. Riggs, Jeffery D. Sullivan, Kayla M. Harvey, Dimitri A. Pappas, Jennifer L. Wall, Peter C. McGowan, Carl R. Callahan, Craig A. Koppie, Diann Prosser
Confronting models with data: The challenges of estimating disease spillover
For pathogens known to transmit across host species, strategic investment in disease control requires knowledge about where and when spillover transmission is likely. One approach to estimating spillover is to directly correlate observed spillover events with covariates. An alternative is to mechanistically combine information on host density, distribution, and pathogen prevalence to predict where
Authors
Paul C. Cross, Diann Prosser, Andrew M. Ramey, Ephraim M. Hanks, Kim M. Pepin
Mid-piacenzian of the north Atlantic Ocean
The Piacenzian Age (Pliocene) represents a past climate interval within which frequency and magnitude of environmental changes during a period of past global warmth can be analyzed, climate models can be tested, and results can be placed in a context to better prepare for future change. Here we focus on the North Atlantic region, incorporating new and existing faunal assemblage and alkenone data f
Authors
Harry J. Dowsett, Marci M. Robinson, Kevin M. Foley, Timothy D. Herbert, Bette L. Otto-Bliesner, Whittney Spivey
Use of set blanks in reporting pesticide results at the U.S. Geological Survey National Water Quality Laboratory, 2001-15
Executive SummaryBackground.—Pesticide results from the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) National Water Quality Laboratory (NWQL) are used for water-quality assessments by many agencies and organizations. The USGS is committed to providing data of the highest possible quality to the consumers of its data. A cooperator’s inquiries about specific pesticide detections in water revealed potential laborat
Authors
Laura Medalie, Mark W. Sandstrom, Patricia L. Toccalino, William T. Foreman, Rhiannon C. ReVello, Laura M. Bexfield, Melissa L. Riskin