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Publications

Products (journal articles, reports, fact sheets) authored by current and past scientists are listed below. Please check the USGS Pubs Warehouse for other USGS publications.

Filter Total Items: 1909

Preliminary estimates of benthic fluxes of dissolved metals in Coeur d'Alene Lake, Idaho Preliminary estimates of benthic fluxes of dissolved metals in Coeur d'Alene Lake, Idaho

This report presents porewater and selected water column data collected from Coeur d'Alene Lake in September of 1992. Despite probable oxidation of the porewater samples during collection and handling, these data are used to calculate molecular diffusive fluxes of dissolved metals (that is, Zn, Pb, Cu, and Mn) across the sediment-water interface. While these data and calculations provide
Authors
Laurie S. Balistrieri

Non-water-ice constituents in the surface material of the icy Galilean satellites from the Galileo near-infrared mapping spectrometer investigation Non-water-ice constituents in the surface material of the icy Galilean satellites from the Galileo near-infrared mapping spectrometer investigation

We present evidence for several non‐ice constituents in the surface material of the icy Galilean satellites, using the reflectance spectra returned by the Galileo near infrared mapping spectrometer (NIMS) experiment. Five new absorption features are described at 3.4, 3.88, 4.05, 4.25, and 4.57 μm for Callisto and Ganymede, and some seem to exist for Europa as well. The four absorption...
Authors
T. B. McCord, G. B. Hansen, Roger N. Clark, P. D. Martin, C. A. Hibbitts, F. P. Fanale, J. C. Granahan, M. Segura, D. L. Matson, T. V. Johnson, R. W. Carlson, W. D. Smythe, G. E. Danielson

U.S. Geological Survey studies of water co-produced with oil and gas: Implications for future petroleum resource development U.S. Geological Survey studies of water co-produced with oil and gas: Implications for future petroleum resource development

The U.S. Geological Survey is conducting research on the impacts of produced waters on petroleum resource development and the environment. Ongoing multidisciplinary investigations are focused on the 1) quantity and quality of current water production, 2) geologic and geochemical parameters that influence the viability of injection wells, and 3) processes that affect the dispersion of...
Authors
George N. Breit, Yousif K. Kharaka, Robert A. Zielinski, C. A. Rice, Bruce D. Smith, Jennie L. Ridgley

Hydrologic inferences from strontium isotopes in pore water from the unsaturated zone at Yucca Mountain, Nevada Hydrologic inferences from strontium isotopes in pore water from the unsaturated zone at Yucca Mountain, Nevada

Calcite is ubiquitous at Yucca Mountain, occurring in the soils and as fracture and cavity coatings within the volcanic tuff section. Strontium is a trace element in calcite, generally at the tens to hundreds of ppm level. Because calcite contains very little rubidium and the half-life of the 87Rb parent is billions of years, the 87Sr/86Sr ratios of the calcite record the ratio in the...
Authors
Brian D. Marshall, Kiyoto Futa, Zell E. Peterman

Distribution and mobility of molybdenum in the terrestrial environment Distribution and mobility of molybdenum in the terrestrial environment

Molybdenum (Mo) is an essential element for many plants and animals (Newton and Otsuka, 1980). Because of its chemical properties, Mo readily provides sites for reactions and catalysis in biochemical systems (Haight and Boston, 1973). It is therefore important to understand the processes that control the distribution, speciation, and behavior of Mo in the surficial environment. These...
Authors
Kathleen S. Smith, Laurie S. Balistrieri, Steven M. Smith, Ronald C. Severson

Sulfur isotope analyses using the laser microprobe Sulfur isotope analyses using the laser microprobe

Since the first studies of sulfur isotope variations in natural materials (Thode, 1949), it has been apparent that there are large and dramatic variations of 34S/32S ratios and that sulfur isotope studies are a powerful tool for interpreting the origins of sulfur-bearing minerals. However, sulfur is such a common element in the Earth's crust (sixteenth most abundant, averaging 0.03 wt %...
Authors
W.C. Pat Shanks, D.E. Crowe, Craig A. Johnson

Deep regional resistivity structure across the Carlin Trend Deep regional resistivity structure across the Carlin Trend

The genesis of gold deposits along the Carlin trend is not fully understood. Many of the significant mineral deposits in the Carlin trend were formed during the Tertiary as a result of interrelated high-angle basin-and-range faulting, intrusive igneous activity, and hydrothermal processes (Radtke, 1985). According to Shawe (1991), the linearity of the gold deposits along the Carlin trend...
Authors
Brian D. Rodriguez

Geochemical processes controlling uranium mobility in mine drainages Geochemical processes controlling uranium mobility in mine drainages

Comprehensive models of ore genesis incorporate metal sources, transport and concentration mechanisms, and preservation mechanisms. Analogous concepts apply to the problem of metal migration from mines, mine wastes, and mine tailings, including: the concentrations, mineralogical occurrence, and availability of metals in mineral deposits, host rocks, mine wastes, and tailings (the source)...
Authors
Richard B. Wanty, W. R. Miller, P. H. Briggs, J. B. McHugh

Seasonal variation in metal concentrations in a stream affected by acid mine drainage, St. Kevin Gulch, Colorado Seasonal variation in metal concentrations in a stream affected by acid mine drainage, St. Kevin Gulch, Colorado

Mining of mineral deposits in the Rocky Mountains has left a legacy of acidic inflows to otherwise pristine upland watersheds. Since 1986, the U.S. Geological Survey has studied physical, chemical, and biological processes that affect the transport and transformation of metals in St. Kevin Gulch, an acidic, metal-rich stream near Leadville, Colorado. Well-known chemical processes have...
Authors
B. A. Kimball
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