Colin F Williams, PhD.
Colin is the Mineral Resources Program Coordinator. Colin was previously the Director of the Geology, Minerals, Energy, and Geophysics Science Center. Before that he led the Geothermal Resource Studies Project, which assessed the geothermal resources of the US and conducted research on geothermal systems.
Colin's primary research interest is in understanding the flow of heat and fluids through the Earth's crust and using those measurements to understand hydrothermal processes, mineral deposits, earthquakes, and groundwater flow. He joined the USGS after earning a PhD and MPhil in Geological Sciences from Columbia University, an MS in Mechanical Engineering from UC Berkeley, and a BS in Engineering from Harvey Mudd College.
Professional Experience
2022-Present, Program Coordinator for the Mineral Resources Program
2012-2022, Center Director, USGS Geology, Minerals, Energy, and Geophysics Science Center, Menlo Park, CA
2004-2012, Supervisory Research Geophysicist and Geothermal Project Chief, USGS, EQ Science Center, Menlo Park, CA
1989-2004, Research Geophysicist, Heat Flow Studies, USGS Branch of Tectonophysics, Menlo Park, CA
Education and Certifications
M.Phil, PhD., Geophysics, Columbia University, 1989
M.S., Mechanical Engineering, University of California-Berkeley, 1984
B.S., Engineering, Harvey Mudd College, 1983
Affiliations and Memberships*
American Geophysical Union
Geological Society of America
Geothermal Resources Council
International Geothermal Association
Society of Economic Geologists
Society for Mining, Metallurgy, and Exploration
Prospectors and Developers Association of Canada
NASA - Non-USGS
Department of Energy - Non-USGS
Science and Products
Filter Total Items: 45
Assessment of Moderate- and High-Temperature Geothermal Resources of the United States
Scientists with the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) recently completed an assessment of our Nation's geothermal resources. Geothermal power plants are currently operating in six states: Alaska, California, Hawaii, Idaho, Nevada, and Utah. The assessment indicates that the electric power generation potential from identified geothermal systems is 9,057 Megawatts-electric (MWe), distributed...
Authors
Colin F. Williams, Marshall J. Reed, Robert H. Mariner, Jacob DeAngelo, S. Peter Galanis
Putting it all together: Exhumation histories from a formal combination of heat flow and a suite of thermochronometers
A suite of new techniques in thermochronometry allow analysis of the thermal history of a sample over a broad range of temperature sensitivities. New analysis tools must be developed that fully and formally integrate these techniques, allowing a single geologic interpretation of the rate and timing of exhumation and burial events consistent with all data. We integrate a thermal model of...
Authors
Matthew A. D'Alessio, Colin F. Williams
The USGS national geothermal resource assessment: An update
The U. S. Geological Survey (USGS) is working with the Department of Energy's (DOE) Geothermal Technologies Program and other geothermal organizations on a three-year effort to produce an updated assessment of available geothermal resources. The new assessment will introduce significant changes in the models for geothermal energy recovery factors, estimates of reservoir volumes, and...
Authors
Colin F. Williams, M.J. Reed, S.P. Galanis, J. DeAngelo
Heat flow in Railroad Valley, Nevada and implications for geothermal resources in the south-central Great Basin
The Great Basin is a province of high average heat flow (approximately 90 mW m-2), with higher values characteristic of some areas and relatively low heat flow (
Authors
Colin F. Williams, John Harvey Sass
Frictional strength heterogeneity and surface heat flow: Implications for the strength of the creeping San Andreas fault
Heat flow measurements along much of the San Andreas fault (SAF) constrain the apparent coefficient of friction (??app) of the fault to 0.2 should be detectable even with the sparse existing observations, implying that ??app for the creeping section is as low as the surrounding SAF. Because the creeping section does not slip in large earthquakes, the mechanism controlling its weakness is...
Authors
Matthew A. D'Alessio, Colin F. Williams, Roland Burgmann
Prediction and discovery of new geothermal resources in the Great Basin: Multiple evidence of a large undiscovered resource base
Geothermal potential maps by themselves cannot directly be used to estimate undiscovered resources. To address the undiscovered resource base in the Great Basin, a new and relatively quantitative methodology is presented. The methodology involves three steps, the first being the construction of a data-driven probabilistic model of the location of known geothermal systems using weights of...
Authors
Mark F. Coolbaugh, G.L. Raines, R. E. Zehner, L.A. Shevenell, Colin F. Williams
Outstanding issues for new geothermal resource assessments
A critical question for the future energy policy of the United States is the extent to which geothermal resources can contribute to an ever-increasing demand for electricity. Electric power production from geothermal sources exceeds that from wind and solar combined, yet the installed capacity falls far short of the geothermal resource base characterized in past assessments, even though...
Authors
Colin F. Williams, M.J. Reed
Ground-water quality of coastal aquifer systems in the West Coast Basin, Los Angeles County, California, 1999-2002
The extensive use of ground water throughout the Central and West Coast Basins of Los Angeles County during the first half of the 20th century resulted in declining water levels, widespread seawater intrusion, and deterioration of water quality along most reaches of the coast. In order to control seawater intrusion in the West Coast Basin, freshwater is injected into a series of wells at...
Authors
Michael Land, Eric G. Reichard, Steven M. Crawford, Rhett R. Everett, Mark W. Newhouse, Colin F. Williams
Geologic, water-chemistry, and hydrologic data from multiple-well monitoring sites and selected water-supply wells in the Santa Clara Valley, California, 1999-2003
To better identify the three-dimensional geohydrologic framework of the Santa Clara Valley, lithologic, geologic, geophysical, geomechanical, hydraulic, and water-chemistry data were collected from eight ground-water multiple-well monitoring sites constructed in Santa Clara County, California, as part of a series of cooperative studies between the U.S. Geological Survey and the Santa...
Authors
M.W. Newhouse, R. T. Hanson, Carl Wentworth, Rhett R. Everett, Colin F. Williams, J. C. Tinsley, T.E. Noce, B.A. Carkin
Heat flow in the SAFOD pilot hole and implications for the strength of the San Andreas Fault
Detailed thermal measurements have been acquired in the 2.2-km-deep SAFOD pilot hole, located 1.8 km west of the SAF near Parkfield, California. Heat flow from the basement section of the borehole (770 to 2160 m) is 91 mW m-2, higher than the published 74 mW m -2 average for the Parkfield area. Within the resolution of the measurements, heat flow is constant across faults that intersect...
Authors
Colin F. Williams, F.V. Grubb, S.P. Galanis
Geothermal resources of California sedimentary basins
The 2004 Department of Energy (DOE) Strategic Plan for geothermal energy calls for expanding the geothermal resource base of the United States to 40,000 MW of electric power generating potential. This will require advances in technologies for exploiting unconventional geothermal resources, including Enhanced Geothermal Systems (EGS) and geopressured geothermal. An investigation of...
Authors
Colin F. Williams, F.V. Grubb, S.P. Galanis
By
Santa Clara Valley water district multi-aquifer monitoring-well site, Coyote Creek Outdoor Classroom, San Jose, California
The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), in cooperation with the Santa Clara Valley Water District (SCVWD), has completed the first of several multiple-aquifer monitoring-well sites in the Santa Clara Valley. This site monitors ground-water levels and chemistry in the one of the major historic subsidence regions south of San Jose, California, at the Coyote Creek Outdoor Classroom (CCOC) (fig...
Authors
R. T. Hanson, M.W. Newhouse, Carl Wentworth, Colin F. Williams, T.E. Noce, M.J. Bennett
Science and Products
Filter Total Items: 45
Assessment of Moderate- and High-Temperature Geothermal Resources of the United States
Scientists with the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) recently completed an assessment of our Nation's geothermal resources. Geothermal power plants are currently operating in six states: Alaska, California, Hawaii, Idaho, Nevada, and Utah. The assessment indicates that the electric power generation potential from identified geothermal systems is 9,057 Megawatts-electric (MWe), distributed...
Authors
Colin F. Williams, Marshall J. Reed, Robert H. Mariner, Jacob DeAngelo, S. Peter Galanis
Putting it all together: Exhumation histories from a formal combination of heat flow and a suite of thermochronometers
A suite of new techniques in thermochronometry allow analysis of the thermal history of a sample over a broad range of temperature sensitivities. New analysis tools must be developed that fully and formally integrate these techniques, allowing a single geologic interpretation of the rate and timing of exhumation and burial events consistent with all data. We integrate a thermal model of...
Authors
Matthew A. D'Alessio, Colin F. Williams
The USGS national geothermal resource assessment: An update
The U. S. Geological Survey (USGS) is working with the Department of Energy's (DOE) Geothermal Technologies Program and other geothermal organizations on a three-year effort to produce an updated assessment of available geothermal resources. The new assessment will introduce significant changes in the models for geothermal energy recovery factors, estimates of reservoir volumes, and...
Authors
Colin F. Williams, M.J. Reed, S.P. Galanis, J. DeAngelo
Heat flow in Railroad Valley, Nevada and implications for geothermal resources in the south-central Great Basin
The Great Basin is a province of high average heat flow (approximately 90 mW m-2), with higher values characteristic of some areas and relatively low heat flow (
Authors
Colin F. Williams, John Harvey Sass
Frictional strength heterogeneity and surface heat flow: Implications for the strength of the creeping San Andreas fault
Heat flow measurements along much of the San Andreas fault (SAF) constrain the apparent coefficient of friction (??app) of the fault to 0.2 should be detectable even with the sparse existing observations, implying that ??app for the creeping section is as low as the surrounding SAF. Because the creeping section does not slip in large earthquakes, the mechanism controlling its weakness is...
Authors
Matthew A. D'Alessio, Colin F. Williams, Roland Burgmann
Prediction and discovery of new geothermal resources in the Great Basin: Multiple evidence of a large undiscovered resource base
Geothermal potential maps by themselves cannot directly be used to estimate undiscovered resources. To address the undiscovered resource base in the Great Basin, a new and relatively quantitative methodology is presented. The methodology involves three steps, the first being the construction of a data-driven probabilistic model of the location of known geothermal systems using weights of...
Authors
Mark F. Coolbaugh, G.L. Raines, R. E. Zehner, L.A. Shevenell, Colin F. Williams
Outstanding issues for new geothermal resource assessments
A critical question for the future energy policy of the United States is the extent to which geothermal resources can contribute to an ever-increasing demand for electricity. Electric power production from geothermal sources exceeds that from wind and solar combined, yet the installed capacity falls far short of the geothermal resource base characterized in past assessments, even though...
Authors
Colin F. Williams, M.J. Reed
Ground-water quality of coastal aquifer systems in the West Coast Basin, Los Angeles County, California, 1999-2002
The extensive use of ground water throughout the Central and West Coast Basins of Los Angeles County during the first half of the 20th century resulted in declining water levels, widespread seawater intrusion, and deterioration of water quality along most reaches of the coast. In order to control seawater intrusion in the West Coast Basin, freshwater is injected into a series of wells at...
Authors
Michael Land, Eric G. Reichard, Steven M. Crawford, Rhett R. Everett, Mark W. Newhouse, Colin F. Williams
Geologic, water-chemistry, and hydrologic data from multiple-well monitoring sites and selected water-supply wells in the Santa Clara Valley, California, 1999-2003
To better identify the three-dimensional geohydrologic framework of the Santa Clara Valley, lithologic, geologic, geophysical, geomechanical, hydraulic, and water-chemistry data were collected from eight ground-water multiple-well monitoring sites constructed in Santa Clara County, California, as part of a series of cooperative studies between the U.S. Geological Survey and the Santa...
Authors
M.W. Newhouse, R. T. Hanson, Carl Wentworth, Rhett R. Everett, Colin F. Williams, J. C. Tinsley, T.E. Noce, B.A. Carkin
Heat flow in the SAFOD pilot hole and implications for the strength of the San Andreas Fault
Detailed thermal measurements have been acquired in the 2.2-km-deep SAFOD pilot hole, located 1.8 km west of the SAF near Parkfield, California. Heat flow from the basement section of the borehole (770 to 2160 m) is 91 mW m-2, higher than the published 74 mW m -2 average for the Parkfield area. Within the resolution of the measurements, heat flow is constant across faults that intersect...
Authors
Colin F. Williams, F.V. Grubb, S.P. Galanis
Geothermal resources of California sedimentary basins
The 2004 Department of Energy (DOE) Strategic Plan for geothermal energy calls for expanding the geothermal resource base of the United States to 40,000 MW of electric power generating potential. This will require advances in technologies for exploiting unconventional geothermal resources, including Enhanced Geothermal Systems (EGS) and geopressured geothermal. An investigation of...
Authors
Colin F. Williams, F.V. Grubb, S.P. Galanis
By
Santa Clara Valley water district multi-aquifer monitoring-well site, Coyote Creek Outdoor Classroom, San Jose, California
The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), in cooperation with the Santa Clara Valley Water District (SCVWD), has completed the first of several multiple-aquifer monitoring-well sites in the Santa Clara Valley. This site monitors ground-water levels and chemistry in the one of the major historic subsidence regions south of San Jose, California, at the Coyote Creek Outdoor Classroom (CCOC) (fig...
Authors
R. T. Hanson, M.W. Newhouse, Carl Wentworth, Colin F. Williams, T.E. Noce, M.J. Bennett
*Disclaimer: Listing outside positions with professional scientific organizations on this Staff Profile are for informational purposes only and do not constitute an endorsement of those professional scientific organizations or their activities by the USGS, Department of the Interior, or U.S. Government