Geosciences and Environmental Change Science Center
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GECSC researchers conduct multi-purpose geologic mapping and topical scientific studies to address issues concerning geologic, climatic, ecosystem, and land surface changes; human interactions with the environment; and physical, chemical, and biological characterization of the Earth's surface and upper crust.
News
Low-Level Flights to Image 3D Geology in Northern Arkansas
Editor: In the public interest and in accordance with the Federal Aviation Administration regulations, the USGS is announcing this low-level airborne project. Your assistance in informing the local communities is appreciated.
Big Thompson Floods of 1976 and 2013 - A Visual Comparison
The Big Thompson Floods of 1976 and 2013 shown visually. The inundation images reflect the location and peak streamflows at certain points between Estes Park and Loveland, Colorado.
Follow National Wildfire Information in the Palm of Your Hand: GeoMAC Goes Mobile
The public can now access information about active wildfires across the country using a smartphone.
Publications
Coexisting seismic behavior of transform faults revealed by high-resolution bathymetry
Transform faults are known to have anomalously low rates of seismicity, but no direct observations reveal why this is the case. We use new, autonomous underwater vehicle high-resolution seafloor mapping to image the morphology of and offsets along transform fault segments in the Gulf of California. Fault splays display a varied history of...
Hilley, George E.; Sare, Robert M.; Aron, Felipe; Baden, Curtis W; Caress, Dave; Castillo, Chris; Dobbs, Stephen C; Gooley, Jared T; Johnstone, Samuel A.; Liu, Frances; McHargue, Tim; Nevitt, Josie M; Paull, Charles K.; Shumaker, Lauren E.; Traer, Miles M; Young, Holly H Persistence and plasticity in conifer water-use strategies
The selective use of seasonal precipitation by vegetation is critical to understanding the residence time and flow path of water in watersheds, yet there are limited datasets to test how climate alters these dynamics. Here, we use measurements of the seasonal cycle of tree ring 18O for two widespread conifer species in the Rocky Mountains of North...
Berkelhammer, Max ; Still, Chris ; Ritter, Francois ; Winnik, Matthew ; Anderson, Lesleigh; Carroll, Rosemary ; Carbone, Mariah ; Williams, Kenneth Progress in natural capital accounting for ecosystems
Reversing the ongoing degradation of the planet's ecosystems requires timely and detailed monitoring of ecosystem change and uses. Yet, the System of National Accounts (SNA), first developed in response to the economic crisis of the 1930s and used by statistical offices worldwide to record economic activity (for example, production, consumption,...
Hein, Lars; Bagstad, Kenneth J.; Obst, Carl; Edens, Bram; Schenau, Sjoerd; Castillo, Gem; Soulard, Francois; Brown, Claire; Driver, Amanda; Bordt, Michael; Steurer, Anton; Harris, Rocky; Capparros, Alejandro