Skip to main content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Publications

Browse more than 160,000 publications authored by our scientists over the past 100+ year history of the USGS.  Publications available are: USGS-authored journal articles, series reports, book chapters, other government publications, and more.

Filter Total Items: 170923

Peak streamflow trends in Illinois and their relation to changes in climate, water years 1921–2020

This report characterizes changes in peak streamflow in Illinois and the relation of these changes to climatic variability, and provides a foundation for future studies that can address nonstationarity in peak-flow frequency analysis in Illinois. Records of annual peak and daily streamflow at streamgages and gridded monthly climatic data (observed and modeled) were examined across four trend perio
Authors
Mackenzie K. Marti, Thomas M. Over

Accuracy assessment of three-dimensional point cloud data collected with a scanning total station on Shinnecock Nation Tribal lands in Suffolk County, New York

A combined point cloud of about 85.6 million points was collected during 27 scans of a section of the western shoreline along the Shinnecock Peninsula of Suffolk County, New York, to document baseline geospatial conditions during July and October 2022 using a scanning total station. The three-dimensional accuracy of the combined point cloud is assessed to identify potential systematic error source
Authors
Michael L. Noll, William D. Capurso, Anthony Chu

Groundwater, surface-water, and water-chemistry data, Black Mesa area, northeastern Arizona—2019–2021

The Navajo (N) aquifer is an extensive aquifer and the primary source of groundwater in the 5,400-square-mile Black Mesa area in northeastern Arizona. Water availability is an important issue in the Black Mesa area because of the arid climate, past industrial water use, and continued water requirements for municipal use by a growing population. Precipitation in the area typically ranges from less
Authors
Jon P. Mason

Yellowstone Volcano Observatory 2023 annual report

The Yellowstone Volcano Observatory (YVO) monitors volcanic and hydrothermal activity associated with the Yellowstone magmatic system, carries out research into magmatic processes occurring beneath Yellowstone caldera, and issues timely warnings and guidance related to potential future geologic hazards. YVO is a collaborative consortium that includes the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), Yellowstone
Authors
Yellowstone Volcano Observatory

Evaluation of coal mine drainage and associated precipitates for radium and rare earth element concentrations

Coal mine drainage (CMD) and associated metal-rich precipitates have recently been proposed as unconventional sources of rare earth elements (REEs). However, the potential occurrence of radium (Ra), a known carcinogen, with the REE-bearing phases has not been investigated. We hypothesized that Ra may occur in solids that are precipitated from CMD as a “radiobarite” solid solution ((Ba,Sr,Ra)SO4) a
Authors
Bonnie McDevitt, Charles A. III Cravotta, Ryan J. McAleer, John C Jackson, Aaron M. Jubb, Glenn D. Jolly, Benjamin C. Hedin, Nathaniel R. Warner

The U.S. Geological Survey Ohio Water Microbiology Laboratory

The U.S. Geological Survey Ohio Water Microbiology Laboratory is a part of the Ohio-Kentucky-Indiana Water Science Center. The mission of the laboratory is to provide microbiological data of public health significance from surface waters, groundwaters, and sediments for a variety of study objectives. The laboratory conducts internal projects, works with external cooperators, and assists U.S. Geolo
Authors
Braden M. Lanier, Amie M.G. Brady, Jessica R. Cicale, Christopher M. Kephart, Lauren D. Lynch, Maxim W. Schroeder, Erin A. Stelzer

Bees of the Buenos Aires National Wildlife Refuge—A preliminary report on a bee survey in a vulnerable semi-desert grassland of the Sonoran Desert

Pollinators are vital to the continued existence and seed production of about 87.5 percent of all flowering plants (Ollerton and others, 2011). In the semi-desert grasslands of Buenos Aires National Wildlife Refuge, in the Sonoran Desert of the United States, flowering forbs provide seed vital to the food base of wildlife, including the 136 species of resident and migratory birds using the Refuge’
Authors
Kathryn A. Thomas, Angela M. Hoover, M. Kathryn Busby

Neotropical migratory bird monitoring study at Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton, California—2021 annual data summary

Executive SummaryTwo Monitoring Avian Productivity and Survivorship (MAPS) stations were operated at Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton (MCBCP), California, in 2021: one at De Luz Creek and one at the Santa Margarita River. The stations were established to provide data on Neotropical migratory birds at MCBCP to support the dual missions of environmental stewardship and military readiness.A total of
Authors
Shannon Mendia, Barbara E. Kus

Source, migration pathways, and atmospheric release of geologic methane associated with the complex permafrost regimes of the outer Mackenzie River Delta, Arctic, Canada

Sources and fluxes of methane to the atmosphere from permafrost are significant but poorly constrained in global climate models. We present data collected from the variable permafrost setting of the outer Mackenzie River Delta, including observations of aquatic methane seepage, core determinations of in situ methane occurrence and seep gas isotope geochemistry. The sources and locations of in situ
Authors
Scott Dallimore, Laura Lapham, Michelle Côté, Robert Bowen, Roger MacLeod, Hadley Marcek, C. Geoffrey Wheat, Timothy Collett

Chlorophyll a in lakes and streams of the United States (2005–2022)

The concentration of chlorophyll a in phytoplankton and periphyton represents the amount of algal biomass. We compiled an 18-year record (2005–2022) of pigment data from water bodies across the United States (US) to support efforts to develop process-based, machine learning, and remote sensing models for prediction of harmful algal blooms (HABs). To our knowledge, this dataset of nearly 84,000 sit
Authors
Sarah Spaulding, Lindsay R.C. Platt, Jennifer C. Murphy, S. Alex. Covert, Judson Harvey

Environmental monitoring of groundwater, surface water, and soil at the Ammonium Perchlorate Rocket Motor Destruction Facility at the Letterkenny Army Depot, Chambersburg, Pennsylvania, 2021

Letterkenny Army Depot in Chambersburg, Pennsylvania, built an Ammonium Perchlorate Rocket Motor Destruction (ARMD) Facility in 2016 to centralize rocket motor destruction and contain all waste during the destruction process. The U.S. Geological Survey has collected environmental samples from groundwater, surface water, and soils at ARMD since 2016.During 2021, samples were collected from four gro
Authors
Daniel G. Galeone, Shaun J. Donmoyer

Status of greater sage-grouse in the Bi-State Distinct Population Segment—An evaluation of population trends, habitat selection, and efficacy of conservation actions

PrefaceThis study was completed to provide timely scientific information regarding greater sage-grouse population trends, habitat selection, and the efficacy of previous conservation actions implemented to benefit the Bi-State Distinct Population Segment (DPS). Specifically, we provide these analyses to inform the current (2024) status review and pending listing decision for the DPS being undertak
Authors
Peter S. Coates, Megan C. Milligan, Brian G. Prochazka, Brianne E. Brussee, Shawn T. O'Neil, Carl G. Lundblad, Sarah C. Webster, Cali L. Weise, Steven R. Mathews, Michael P. Chenaille, Cameron L. Aldridge, Michael S. O'Donnell, Shawn P. Espinosa, Amy C. Sturgill, Kevin E. Doherty, John C. Tull, Katherine Miller, Lief A. Wiechman, Steve Abele, John Boone, Heather Stone, Michael L. Casazza