Walruses in the Chukchi Sea during a tagging survey onboard the Norseman II in June 2010.

A just-released USGS film will take you on a journey along with USGS researchers tracking walruses going about their daily lives in the remote Chukchi Sea. The film, Tracking Pacific Walrus: Expedition to the Shrinking Chukchi Sea Ice, follows scientists as they travel to the Chukchi Sea to examine how these mammals are faring in an Arctic environment with sparse summer sea ice and increased human activity.

The USGS-produced film contains exclusive footage of the large mammals in their natural habitat, documenting the lives of these huge animals as they raise their young, dive for clams and worms on the ocean floor or congregate with other walruses.

A Changing Arctic Climate Means Changing Arctic Ecosystems

Arctic sea ice is melting faster than forecasted by many of the top climate models: the first ice- free summer is now predicted to occur by 2035, perhaps as soon as 2025.

But warming temperatures are causing other changes as well — increased coastal erosion, deteriorating permafrost, and major changes in the dynamics of freshwater flows. These changes influence biological communities and the ways in which human communities interact with them. For example, the longer open water season in the Arctic is allowing increased shipping, tourism, energy production and other human activities in this remote region.

As part of the USGS Changing Arctic Ecosystems initiative, USGS researchers are identifying and investigating the linkages among physical processes (such as sea ice melting at a faster rate), ecosystems and wildlife populations.  By understanding the degree to and manner in which wildlife species adapt to rapid environmental change, resource managers and policy makers will have a better foundation for making critical decisions now and in the future.

New Research on Pacific Walrus and Sea Ice

The information gained through tracking large marine mammals, such as polar bears and walruses, is helping USGS scientists understand how disappearing Arctic sea ice is affecting the region’s ecosystems and the species that inhabit these ecosystems.

Scientists prepare to radio-tag walruses in the Chukchi sea to track movements as sea ice is reduced in the region.

For example, recently published research by USGS and Russian scientists revealed that diminishing summer sea ice in the Arctic over the past 5 years has caused behavioral changes in Pacific walruses. The population-level effects of these changes are unknown and the subject of active investigation by USGS.

Using a simple darting system, scientists attached radio-tracking tags to 251 walruses in the Chukchi Sea. The tags transmitted the animals’ whereabouts and whether they were in the water and feeding. Using the tagging data gathered from 2008-2011, scientists created detailed maps of the walruses’ seasonal movements and feeding patterns relative to the location and amount of sea ice.

When Chukchi Sea Ice Retreats North of the Continental Shelf Edge, Walruses Haul Out

The study found that due to earlier melting of the ice in the summer, walruses arrived earlier in their northern feeding grounds on the broad continental shelf of the Chukchi Sea. When the sea ice over the continental shelf melted completely in the fall, however, they “hauled out” onshore in large aggregations and foraged for food closer to shore. [Hauling out refers to the behavior associated with seals and walruses of temporarily leaving the water for sites on land or ice.]

The specific effects of these behavioral changes are not yet understood; however, scientists do know that while onshore, young walruses are susceptible to mortality from trampling. USGS has recently published a study that examined the population effects of this type of mortality, finding that loss of young animals to haul-out mortality has a greater effect on the population than loss of adult females in the harvest.  In light of this finding, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is increasing its ongoing efforts to protect hauled-out walruses from disturbance.

Additionally, hauling out onshore and using nearshore feeding areas may require more energy for animals used to simply diving off their sea-ice platforms for food at the bottom of the shallow Chukchi Sea.

Data from this study will provide resource managers with basic information on areas important for walruses, such as the Hanna Shoal region, as human activities in the Arctic increase. The areas of walrus foraging observed in this study overlap with oil and gas lease blocks leased by BOEM (Bureau of Ocean Energy Management).

Adult female walrus on ice floe.

The study, published as this month’s feature article in the journal Marine Ecology Progress Series, is part of the USGS Changing Arctic Ecosystems initiative at the Alaska Science Center.

Some Polar bears in the Arctic can swim in excess of 200 miles.

Polar bears spend much of their lives in and around water, and they are well adapted for swimming. But recent findings of USGS  scientists demonstrate that they are even better swimmers than many imagined: In years of extreme sea-ice retreat in the southern Beaufort Sea region of Alaska, polar bears have been documented taking very long swims,   in excess of 30 miles.

Data collected from long distance swims by Polar bears suggest that they do not stop to rest during their journey.

In addition to being an impressive feat, this provides some tantalizing clues into the polar bear’s future in an Arctic with less sea ice. That these bears can swim such long distances might mean that they are not as vulnerable to being stranded at sea as has been depicted by the media. Scientists wonder, however, if polar bears might be expending essential energy in swimming long distances.

A USGS-led study tracked 52 adult female polar bears outfitted with global positioning system collars from 2004 to 2009. Getting a satellite telemetry collar on a polar bear is no simple matter. Scientists use helicopters to fly over the sea ice to find and tranquilize bears. While the bear is tranquilized, scientists attach a radio collar with multiple antennae and give the bear a small identifying tattoo on the inside of the upper lip.

Later, when the bears are swimming, one of the antennae is submerged so that the swims appear as gaps in the data that is transmitted. Overlaying this data onto maps of sea ice shows scientists approximately where the bears are swimming. Researchers documented 50 swims with an average length of 96 miles. While long-distance swims were relatively uncommon, 38 percent of the collared bears took at least one long swim. Results from the study appear in the current issue of the Canadian Journal of Zoology.

Data collected from long distance swims by Polar bears suggest that they do not stop to rest during their journey.

Scientists have no way of knowing if long-distance swims are a new feature of polar bear life. “We did not have the GPS technology on collars to document this type of swimming behavior in polar bears in prior decades,” explains Karen Oakley, of the USGS Alaska Science Center . “However, summer sea ice conditions in the southern Beaufort Sea have changed considerably over the last 20 to 30 years, such that there is much more open water during summer and fall. Historically, there had not been enough open water for polar bears in this region to swim the long distances we observed in these recent summers of extreme sea ice retreat.”

While it is encouraging that polar bears can swim so far, it is also a potential risk for the bears, the researchers noted. The energy and physical costs of such long-distance swimming are unknown, but scientists did note polar bears moved, on average, 2.3 times more than when the same individuals were on sea ice. The movement data also suggest the bears were not pausing to rest or feed during long-distance swims. Twelve of the twenty documented swimming bears were adult females that had yearlings or cubs-of-the-year at the time they were outfitted with the GPS collar.

“We were able to recapture or observe 10 of these females within a year of collaring, and 6 of these females still had their cubs,” said Anthony Pagano, a USGS scientist and lead author of the study.  “These observations suggest that some cubs are also capable of swimming long distances. For the other four females with cubs, we don’t know if they lost their cubs before, during, or at some point after their long swims.”

Scientists track Polar bears with by attaching GPS equipped collars to a sample population. These collars transmit data that help develop maps like this one that shows a swim of nearly 220 miles long.

This and other USGS-sponsored polar bear research projects are aimed at refining and enhancing models to project the future status of polar bears in a rapidly changing Arctic environment in which sea ice is continuing to retreat faster than forecasted.

Icebergs immediately offshore from Illulissat, Greenland. This area was included in the USGS report, “An Estimate of Undiscovered Conventional Oil and Gas Resources of the World, 2012.” Photograph by Chris Schenk, U.S. Geological Survey.

The U.S. Geological Survey released today a new global estimate for conventional oil and gas resources.  The USGS estimates that the undiscovered, conventional resources in the world total 565 billion barrels of oil (bbo), 5,606 trillion cubic feet (tcf) of natural gas, and 167 billion barrels of natural gas liquids.

All of these numbers represent technically recoverable resources, which are those quantities of oil and gas producible using currently available technology and industry practices, regardless of economic or accessibility considerations.

“In the twelve years since the last assessment, the steady progress in technology now allows additional resources to be regarded as technically recoverable,” said USGS Director Marcia McNutt.  “By placing this information in the public domain, government leaders, investors, public and private corporations, and citizens have a common information base for planning and decisions that affect the global environment and market place.”

Vertical limestone beds forming cliffs along Three Pagodas-Fault Zone near Hua Hin, Thailand. This area was included in the USGS report, “An Estimate of Undiscovered Conventional Oil and Gas Resources of the World, 2012.” Photograph by Chris Schenk, U.S. Geological Survey.

This new assessment is complete reassessment of the world since the last World Petroleum Assessment in 2000 by the USGS.

The report includes mean estimates of resources in 171 geologic provinces of the world.  These estimates include resources beneath both onshore and offshore areas.

Resources in the United States

This assessment does not include undiscovered, conventional resources in the United States, which the USGS currently estimates holds 27 bbo and 388 tcf of natural gas onshore and in State waters.  Additionally, there are an estimated 81 bbo and 398 tcf of natural gas in the U.S. Outer Continental Shelf (OCS), according to the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management.

75 Percent of Oil Resources in Four Regions

The assessment results indicate that about 75 percent of the undiscovered and technically recoverable conventional oil of the world is in four regions: South America and the Caribbean (126 bbo); sub-Saharan Africa (115 bbo); the Middle East and North Africa (111 bbo); and the Arctic provinces portion of North America (61 bbo).

Significant undiscovered, conventional gas resources remain in all of the world’s regions.

Conventional and Unconventional Resources

These new estimates are for conventional oil and gas resources only.  Unconventional oil and gas resources, such as shale gas, tight oil, tight gas, coalbed gas, heavy oil, oil sands, may be significant around the world, but are not included in these numbers.

Eolian dunes of the An Nefud sand sea, northern Saudi Arabia. This area was included in the USGS report, “An Estimate of Undiscovered Conventional Oil and Gas Resources of the World, 2012.” Photograph by Chris Schenk, U.S. Geological Survey.

More Information

The USGS is the only provider of publicly available estimates of undiscovered and technically recoverable oil and gas resources of the world.  This global assessment was undertaken as part of a project assessing global petroleum basins using standardized methodology and protocol.

The Department of the Interior released a press release on this new assessment.

To learn more about this or other geologic assessments, please visit the Energy Resources Program website.

Recorded Press Conference

Listen to a podcast recording of the press conference held on April 18, 2012, to announce this report. Speakers were Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar, USGS Director Marcia McNutt, USGS Energy Resources Program Coordinator Brenda Pierce, and USGS Research Geologist Chris Schenk.

USGS scientists Doug Halm, Paul Schuster, and Kathy Kelsey collecting melt water samples from Gulkana Glacier. Results of recent analyses identified old carbonin the Yukon River, but also indicated that the chemical source was not derived from ancient plant material stored in the glacier, but from fossil fuel sources derived from atmospheric deposition. This add new complications to the interpretation of carbon sources and sinks in high latitudes and of the apparent sources of old organic carbon exported by arctic rivers.

A new study concludes that fossil fuel emissions are likely contributors to a substantial amount of organic carbon found on glaciers in Alaska.

Fossil fuel emissions, which contain organic carbon, can speed up the rate of glacier melt when deposited on glacier surfaces. In addition, the organic molecules associated with these deposits can be transported in rivers and streams, affecting downstream aquatic ecosystems. Knowledge of the source and age of organic carbon in glaciers allows for a better understanding of these and other impacts.

Prior research suggested that the main sources of organic carbon in Alaska’s glaciers were from forests and peatlands overrun by glaciers as far back as ten thousand years ago. While old soil and plant material are still possible sources of glacial organic carbon, new research indicates that human-created, or anthropogenic, sources are also important.

“We knew the organic carbon present in Alaska’s glaciers was old, but identifying the sources of this material has been difficult due to the lack of chemical data,” said USGS scientist George Aiken.

While extensive burning of fossil fuels is, geologically speaking, a relatively modern practice, the fuels themselves and the resulting carbon emissions are ancient. This is because the fuels are formed from plants and microorganisms that lived millions of years ago.

“Now we know that a substantial amount of ancient organic matter associated with these and other glaciers is of anthropogenic origin,” continued Aiken.

Why Study Carbon Levels?

When organic matter and other materials from the atmosphere are deposited on the surface of a glacier, less sunlight can be reflected and, therefore, more radiation and heat are absorbed. Having these materials on snow and ice surfaces causes them to melt faster.

Another concern is impacts to ecosystems and species habitats. As an example, organic matter exported to coastal areas is a potential nutrient or food source for aquatic bacteria, phytoplankton, and small grazing zooplankton. Climate warming or other factors may change the amount and quality of organic carbon available to these organisms. These aquatic organisms are also the base of the food web for all aquatic communities.

“When trying to understand climate change and decipher the carbon cycle puzzle, we need to make sure that we are using all of the right pieces,” said USGS scientist Rob Striegl. “As part of that puzzle, we are studying the source and amount of carbon flowing into the Arctic Ocean. An understanding of the complete picture allows for the most informed decisions to protect our environment.”

Melt water stream discharging from Gulkana Glacier, Alaska. USGS research of the Yukon River has had a long term goal of determining the source and fate of organic carbon transported by the river to the Bering Sea and ultimately the Arctic Ocean.

“The Arctic is of special interest because what happens there, such as extensive glacier melt, has impacts on the rest of the world,” continued Striegl. “Glacier environments, especially those in the high latitudes of the Arctic, are also among the most sensitive to climate warming.”

New Twist to Understanding Carbon in Glaciers

“Our new paper describes, for the first time, the detailed chemical composition of dissolved organic matter associated with glaciers and glacial meltwater in coastal Alaska and in Wyoming,” said Aiken.

“This study adds a twist to previous understandings, showing there is another source of organic carbon out there that needs to be considered,” said Striegl.

This study, published in the journal Nature Geosciences, was a collaborative effort of many institutions led primarily by the University of Alaska Southeast, Skidaway Institute of Oceanography, Woods Hole Research Center, and the USGS.

The Role of USGS Science

Earlier studies by the USGS, in collaboration with university researchers, found the presence of ancient organic carbon in the Yukon River and traced it back to meltwater from glaciers. For further analyses, USGS scientists continued those collaborations to sample meltwater from Mendenhall Glacier and Herbert Glacier in southeastern Alaska. The samples were then analyzed at USGS and university laboratories to develop the conclusions outlined in this new study.

“This truly is a collaborative effort, taking the expertise of many scientists to put the story together on the source of the carbon,” said Striegl. “The original work of the USGS in the Yukon basin helped form the questions and lab results contributed to answering the questions; but it took specialized instrumentation and scientific expertise from several other organizations to determine the final answer.”

Additional samples used for age dating and for other chemical characterization of the organic carbon of glaciers from other locations came from Gulkana Glacier in Alaska and from Fremont Glacier in Wyoming.

USGS scientists Doug Halm, Paul Schuster, Peter Murdoch, and Kathy Kelsey collecting melt water samples from Gulkana Glacier.

The Big Picture of Aquatic Carbon

The USGS has a long term goal of determining the source and fate of organic and inorganic carbon transported to coastal areas and oceans across the entire Nation. USGS research on the Yukon and other Arctic rivers is particularly focused on climate warming effects on mobilizing ancient carbon from permafrost to coastal regions and the Arctic Ocean. The USGS participates in the Arctic Great Rivers Observatory project, which is an international effort to study the six largest rivers, including the Yukon, which flow into the Arctic Ocean.

Learn more about USGS Yukon River Basin studies.

Contact: Jessica Robertson

USGS Scientist Paul Hsieh, 2011 Federal Employee of the Year

The USGS scientist Dr. Paul Hsieh was named Federal Employee of the Year, highlighting the value of our science to the Nation. Hsieh was recognized by the Partnership for Public Servicefor his timely scientific analysis that convinced Federal leaders responding to the 2010 Deepwater Horizon oil spill that the cap placed over the Macondo well was working, allowing for a safe shutdown.

DOI Assistant Secretary Anne Castle Christens the USGS R/V Kaho. The Kaho is one of two sister ships that will begin research work in the Great Lakes.

USGS scientists worked on several regional and national issues. We contributed to the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative, including new treatment tools to help control Asian carp, an invasive species, and launch of new research vessels being deployed to understand the deep-water ecosystems and fishes of Lake Erie and Lake Ontario. USGS water quality monitoring and analysis, and water availability monitoring is taking place in waterways across the Nation at seven pilot locations that are part of the Urban Waters Federal Partnership: the Anacostia, Patapsco, Harlem, Bronx, and Los Angeles watersheds; the South Platte River, and the Lake Pontchartrain area. In the Grand Canyon, USGS science on uranium resources, hydrology, and the past impacts of mining informed the decision to withdraw Federal lands around the Grand Canyon from new mining claims. USGS science also played a significant role in Department of the Interior Natural Resource Damage Assessmentsettlements including the Deepwater Horizon oil spill and the Tyrone Mine area in New Mexico.

Wind turbines at certain sites in North America each cause dozens of bat fatalities per year.

On the new energy frontier the USGS continues to lead the way in the Department of the Interior with the release of “Wind Energy in the United States and Materials Required for the Land Based Wind Turbine Industry from 2010 Through 2030.” The data suggest that, with the exception of rare earth elements, there should not be a shortage of the principal materials required for electricity generation from wind energy. In the area of wind and wildlife, our scientists are using near-infrared videography to monitor and research bat activity at wind turbines, as a side effect of the expansion of wind energy is increased bird and bat mortality at turbines. We also continue to focus on conventional sources of energy development, evidenced in our summary report of the science needs for conventional energy development for the Chukchi and Beaufort seas. In the area of unconventional gas, the USGS worked with the Department of Energy and provided information for their report on the needed reforms for unconventional gas production, and the USGS is working with the Environmental Protection Agency and DOE on a strategy to fill those research gaps.

A submarine berg emerges from the advancing terminus of Yahtse Glacier. Iceberg calving is a key process in the global sea level budget.

In the area of climate change, the USGS completed the establishment of the eight climate science centers across the country with universities and consortia in Alaska, Colorado, Massachusetts, Oregon, Hawaii, Oklahoma, North Carolina, and Arizona. We also completed a study measuring the amount of stored carbon in the ecosystems of the Great Plains. This study was the first regional report that applied a comprehensive methodology designed by the USGS in 2010.

Scientists hike up the Little Colorado River to assist in installing remote PIT tag readers to more efficiently keep track of native, endangered fish populations.

Water continues to be a contentious issue in various parts of the country. In 2011, the USGS launched a geographic focus study on the Colorado River basin, part of the WaterSMART availability and land use assessment, a three-year study that will provide an inventory of water supply and demand. The effort includes assessing water needed to support ecosystems and will report significant competition over water resources and the factors causing the competition. Water information can also be sent to your email inbox or your phone, thanks to WaterAlert. This tool allows users to be notified daily of water levels at any of our 7,600 real-time streamgages across the country. Addressing the Nation’s water resource challenges is a priority for the USGS, and in 2011 we formed an innovative partnership to do just that with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. This partnership will provide a one-stop portal to integrated water information for stakeholders with forecasts showing where water for drinking, industry, and ecosystems will be available.

Josh Latimore stands in front of Burney Falls. Latimore started at the USGS as a summer intern and now serves as a USGS hydrologic technician while pursuing his bachelor of science.

The USGS engaged in a wide array of youth activities nationwide in 2011. From the collaboration with GeoFORCE at the University of Texas-Austin, to the National Cooperative Geologic Mapping Program’s EDMAP training component, to the Rocky Mountain Science and Sustainability Summer Academy (RMSSN). GeoFORCE engages minority high school students in the earth sciences, the EDMAP encourages high school graduates of this program to continue to work with the USGS throughout their college careers, and RMSSN provides training in field observation, data entry, and scientific communication to diverse students.

This map shows the various reported levels of shaking around Oklahoma City after the November 5 M5.6 earthquake

The Great Central U.S. ShakeOut drill, held in April of 2011, is just one example of the USGS’s role in preparing for and responding to natural hazards. Another example is the National Earthquake Information Center’s provision of real-time data to on the magnitude and potential damage of the August earthquake in Virginia, and the November earthquake and aftershocks in Oklahoma. To better monitor aftershocks, mobile seismic monitors were deployed, bringing the total of earthquake sensors in the Advanced National Seismic System to over 2,200. Flooding was also a concern last year, with more than 30 states affected. To educate Congress about the 2011 floods, we conducted a congressional briefing titled “2011 — The Year of the Flood?” For more than 100 years the USGS has played a critical role in reducing flood losses by operating a nationwide streamgage network that monitors the water level and flow of the Nation’s rivers and streams. This information was critical to the Army Corps of Engineers’ decision to simultaneously open the Mississippi River floodgates for the first time.

The 2006 image (left) show the river in a more normal state, while the 2011 image (right) shows the massive flooding. The dark blue tones represent water or flooded areas, the light green is cleared fields, and light tones are clouds.

During the heavy flooding that occurred on the Mississippi River, Missouri River, and other major waterways, the USGS’s Landsat satellites produced images of the affected areas to provide an overview of the situation. Landsat has often helped provide a big-picture perspective on natural hazards both domestic and foreign and ranging from tornados to tsunamis to wildfires. Landsat is a joint effort of both USGS and NASA. In addition to imagery of natural hazard events, Landsat provides valuable data for land use research and advances the Department of the Interior’s important role in land remote sensing under the President’s National Space Policy. Landsat images provide complete global coverage, they are available for free, and they span nearly 40 years of continuous earth observation. No other satellite imagery has that combination of attributes. To date, over 6 million scenes have been downloaded; over 2.6 million were downloaded in 2011.

These highlights are but a few of the USGS’s significant accomplishments and activities in 2011. Keep up with what we do in 2012 by visiting www.usgs.gov and following us on Twitter @usgs or on Facebook.

Gagehouse at 06225500 Wind River near Crowheart WY right before it washed away.

The Canadian Coast Guard Ship Louis S. St-Laurent ties up to the Coast Guard Cutter Healy in the Arctic Ocean Sept. 5, 2009.

USGS scientists are collecting water samples and other data to determine trends in ocean acidification from the least explored ocean in the world.

Learn more