Geology News
USGS Current Events

“Standard atomic weights for chemical elements have commonly been considered as constants of nature, along with the speed of light and the attraction of gravity. Hold on to your Newtonian hat and prepare for the possibility of elementary nuances.” Quoted from the USGS press release.

USGS has published: “Critical Analysis of World Uranium Resources”. World requirements have been outpacing world production for more than two decades.

This is a video tutorial that will demonstrate how to use USGS topographic maps in PDF format.

“A unique deposit of heavy rare earth elements at Alaska’s Bokan Mountain could help scientists understand how rare earth element deposits form. [...] Currently, very little is known about the geologic setting in which REE deposits form. Understanding these geologic settings and how they come to be is a crucial step to being able to determine where mineable concentrations of REE might be found.” Quoted from the USGS press release.

This video demonstrates how USGS can apply advanced computer applications, hydrographic surveys, and SWAT visualizations that will enhance the integration of knowledge and models of river life of the Mekong Basin from the headwaters to the delta.

USGS has published an open file report titled: “Residential and service-population exposure to multiple natural hazards in the Mount Hood region of Clackamas County, Oregon“.

USGS image

“The first-ever estimate of how fast frogs, toads and salamanders in the United States are disappearing from their habitats reveals they are vanishing at an alarming and rapid rate.” Quoted from the USGS press release.

The United States Geological Survey has published a study on the depletion rates of ground water in the United States between 1900 and 2008. The rate of depletion is accelerating.

“A new study by scientists at Duke University and the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) finds no evidence of groundwater contamination from shale gas production in Arkansas.” Quoted from the Duke University press release.

“Mount St. Helens seized the world’s attention in 1980 when the largest historical landslide on Earth and a powerful explosive eruption reshaped the volcano, created its distinctive crater, and dramatically modified the surrounding landscape.” Quoted from the USGS Fact Sheet titled…. Mount St. Helens, 1980 to Now—What’s Going On?

USGS has redesigned their PDF topo maps! Just released are complete map sets for Tennessee (694 maps) and Kentucky (671 maps) with more states coming soon (Alaska and Hawaii).

These maps are beautiful. If you want to see a sample we have Mammoth Cave, Kentucky unzipped and ready for you to download – but be warned that it is a really big file (30 megs) and will take quite a while to download – but well worth the wait…

If you have Adobe Reader or equivalent software, click here, get the download started, go for coffee, come back to a great map. Be sure to zoom in to see the great detail.

2007 Eruption

“Seismic activity at Pavlof Volcano increased this morning commensurate with the presence of an intense thermal anomaly at the summit observed in latest satellite imagery. Similar patterns of seismicity and elevated surface temperatures have previously signaled the onset of eruptive activity at Pavlof. Although not yet visually confirmed, a low-level eruption of lava has likely begun from a summit vent.” Quoted from the Alaska Volcano Observatory.

The Alaska Volcano Observatory does not have seismic monitoring on Chuginadak Island where Mount Cleveland Volcano is located; however, they “heard” small eruptions this weekend using infrasound.

“Android and iPhone users can now use their mobile devices as digital topo maps, leveraging USGS maps together with the power of GPS to zoom in on their precise location while hiking, biking, running, or any other activity that benefits from precision navigation.” Quoted from the USGS announcement.

“The U.S. Geological Survey released an analysis of the Watts Branch of the Anacostia River in Prince Georges County, Maryland that documents how restoration work on this urban tributary has had a substantial impact on the local economy, directly or indirectly accounting for 45 jobs, $2.6 million in local labor income and $3.4 million in value added to the area in 2011.” Quoted from the USGS announcement.

Stranded gas is natural gas in discovered conventional gas and oil fields that is currently not commercially producible for either physical or economic reasons. USGS has published a new report titled: Role of Stranded Gas in Increasing Global Gas Supplies.

The United States Geological Survey has published: “Landscape Consequences of Natural Gas Extraction in Allegheny and Susquehanna Counties, Pennsylvania, 2004–2010″. This document explains metrics used to assess the disturbance caused by drilling pads, access roads, pipelines and other gas related activities.

A magnitude 6.6 earthquake in China killed over 150 people and injured more than 5,000 on Saturday morning. USGS reports that the earthquake is likely to have occurred on the Longmenshan Fault or a tectonically related fault.

“Dynamic modeling of sea-level rise, which takes storm wind and wave action into account, paints a much graver picture for some low-lying Pacific islands under climate-change scenarios than the passive computer modeling used in earlier research.” Quote from the USGS press release.

Three of the most catastrophic volcanic eruptions in geologic history occurred at a place now visited by nearly four million people a year: Yellowstone National Park.

“The newest sets of US Topo maps cover the states of Texas and New York. The 4,309 quadrangles for Texas and 972 quads covering New York replace the existing US Topo maps for those states, and will be added to the USGS Historical Topographic Map Collection. All of these maps are available for free download from The National Map.” Quoted from the USGS press release.

“Over a trial period of ten months, 143 volunteers collected, improved, or deleted data on more than 6,400 structures in Colorado. The volunteers’ actions were accurate and exceeded USGS quality standards. In the Colorado pilot project the volunteer-collected data showed an improvement of approximately 25 percent in both location and attribute accuracy for existing data points. Completeness, or the extent to which all appropriate features were identified and recorded, was nearly perfect.” Quoted from the USGS summary.

“A new video from the U.S. Geological Survey illustrates Lake Mead’s healthy and robust ecosystem and the aquatic science research and monitoring that happens on the lake.” Quoted from the USGS video release.

The report can be downloaded and is titled: “A Synthesis of Aquatic Science for Management of Lakes Mead and Mohave”

USGS authors have authored a book chapter titled: “Occurrence and mobility of mercury in groundwater”.

USGS authors have authored a book chapter titled: “Arsenic in groundwater: a summary of sources and the biogeochemical and hydrogeologic factors affecting arsenic occurrence and mobility”.

USGS has a new article titled: “Measuring the Flow: Uses of Streamflow Information“. It is a great article to accompany their real time stream flow data system.

USGS has an interesting article on why streamgages are important. “The uses of streamflow information touch every citizen’s life every day in countless ways.”

A collection of some of the most interesting photos of volcanic eruptions that we have seen from USGS, NASA and NOAA.

Photo by Scot Izuka, USGS.

Scoria is a dark-colored igneous rock with abundant gas vesicles. It is used to make lightweight concrete and as a landscape aggregate. Nature uses it as the construction material for cinder cones.

“For the first time, anyone can find out the current conditions on thousands of rivers and streams across the country, right from their phone, using USGS’ latest system WaterNow. WaterNow makes the water conditions monitored by more than 16,000 streamgages and other sites across the country available via text or email.” Quoted from the USGS press release.