Keith A Howard
Keith A. Howard is a Research Geologist Emeritus at the Geology, Minerals, Energy, and Geophysics Science Center in Menlo Park, CA. Since joining the USGS in 1966, he had a diverse geologic career investigating a wide range of geologic processes. Presently, his reasearch includes volcanology, Colorado River evolution, granite, and extensional tectonics.
Keith has conducted lunar and planetary investigations, Apollo astronaut training and mission support (1960s and 1970s), and field studies of volcanic and impact structures. He led a team that made the first national map of active faults and fault provinces of the United States and Puerto Rico. He conceived the USGS climate-research program and led the effort to gain support for the program and its acceptance by Congress (1970s). He led the Pacific to Arizona Crustal Experiment, geologic-geophysical transect across the SW USA (1980s-1990s). He has authored a range of studies of landscape evolution, crustal structure, planetology, and igneous and tectonic processes.
Research Partners:
- Arizona Geological Survey
- National Science Foundation
- University of Wyoming
- University of Oregon
- Queensland Technical Institute
- Texas Tech University
- University of Florida
Professional Experience
2007-current, USGS Scientist Emeritus, Menlo Park, CA
2014, Lecturer, San Jose State University
1966-2006, USGS Research Geologist
1974, Visiting Faculty, University of South Florida
1962, USGS Geologist
1961, Engineering Geologist, McCreary-Koretsky Engineering
1960, Geologic Field Assistant, UC Berkeley
Education and Certifications
PhD, Geology, Yale, 1966
MS, Geological Engineering, University of California, Berkeley, 1962
BS, Geological Engineering, University of California, Berkeley, 1961
Affiliations and Memberships*
Geological Society of America, Elected Fellow, 1972
American Geophysical Union, 1969
Peninsula Geological Society, 1967; President 2008-2009
Geological Society of WA since 1975
Fullbright Asso.
Science and Products
Stratigraphy of Colorado River deposits in lower Mohave Valley, Arizona and California
Overview: The Chemehuevi Formation along the lower Colorado River
Wild, scenic and rapid trip down the Colorado River trough: Desert Symposium field trip
Birth of the lower Colorado River–Stratigraphic and geomorphic evidence for its inception near the conjunction of Nevada, Arizona, and California
The upper crust laid on its side: tectonic implications of steeply tilted crustal slabs for extension in the basin and range
Preliminary geologic map of the Nevada and Arizona parts of the Mount Manchester quadrangle
Hydrogeologic factors that influence ground water movement in the desert southwest United States
Geologic map of the Hiller Mountain Quadrangle, Clark County, Nevada, and Mohave County, Arizona
Lower Colorado River: Framework, neogene deposits, incision, and evolution
Vertical axis rotations in the Mojave: Evidence from the Independence dike swarm: Comment and Reply
Preliminary geologic map of the Little Piute Mountains, California: A digital database
Sources of the Early Cretaceous plutons in the Turtle and West Riverside Mountains, California
Science and Products
Stratigraphy of Colorado River deposits in lower Mohave Valley, Arizona and California
Overview: The Chemehuevi Formation along the lower Colorado River
Wild, scenic and rapid trip down the Colorado River trough: Desert Symposium field trip
Birth of the lower Colorado River–Stratigraphic and geomorphic evidence for its inception near the conjunction of Nevada, Arizona, and California
The upper crust laid on its side: tectonic implications of steeply tilted crustal slabs for extension in the basin and range
Preliminary geologic map of the Nevada and Arizona parts of the Mount Manchester quadrangle
Hydrogeologic factors that influence ground water movement in the desert southwest United States
Geologic map of the Hiller Mountain Quadrangle, Clark County, Nevada, and Mohave County, Arizona
Lower Colorado River: Framework, neogene deposits, incision, and evolution
Vertical axis rotations in the Mojave: Evidence from the Independence dike swarm: Comment and Reply
Preliminary geologic map of the Little Piute Mountains, California: A digital database
Sources of the Early Cretaceous plutons in the Turtle and West Riverside Mountains, California
*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