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Geology, Minerals, Energy, and Geophysics multi-media

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Lisa Zieman Profile Photo
Lisa Zieman Profile Photo
Lisa Zieman Profile Photo
Lisa Zieman Profile Photo

Lisa Zieman is wearing a pink sweatshirt, a teal backpack with black straps, yellow gloves and dark pants. Her blonde hair is in a ponytail. She is turned slightly left to look at the camera while on an incline in Stillwater Complex, Montana.

Lisa Zieman is wearing a pink sweatshirt, a teal backpack with black straps, yellow gloves and dark pants. Her blonde hair is in a ponytail. She is turned slightly left to look at the camera while on an incline in Stillwater Complex, Montana.

Geologic map of the Mesoproterozoic Mountain Pass intrusive system and Paleoproterozoic host rocks
Mountain Pass regional geologic map draped over topography
Mountain Pass regional geologic map draped over topography
Mountain Pass regional geologic map draped over topography

Geologic map overlaid on topography for the Mountain Pass region in California.

Thin section of a Mountain Pass carbonatite sample showing mineralogy and texture with slider for back-scattered electron map (black and white) and layered elemental map (colored). Note the large, euhedral, tabular crystal of bastnäsite.
Mountain Pass carbonatite thin section maps
Mountain Pass carbonatite thin section maps
Mountain Pass carbonatite thin section maps

Thin section of a Mountain Pass carbonatite sample showing mineralogy and texture with slider for back-scattered electron map (black and white) and layered elemental map (colored). Note the large, euhedral, tabular crystal of bastnäsite. 

Thin section of a Mountain Pass carbonatite sample showing mineralogy and texture with slider for back-scattered electron map (black and white) and layered elemental map (colored). Note the large, euhedral, tabular crystal of bastnäsite. 

Thin section of a Mountain Pass carbonatite sample showing mineralogy and texture with slider for back-scattered electron map (black and white) and layered elemental map (colored). Note the large, euhedral, tabular crystal of bastnäsite.
Mountain Pass carbonatite thin section maps
Mountain Pass carbonatite thin section maps
Mountain Pass carbonatite thin section maps

Thin section of a Mountain Pass carbonatite sample showing mineralogy and texture with slider for back-scattered electron map (black and white) and layered elemental map (colored). Note the large, euhedral, tabular crystal of bastnäsite. 

Thin section of a Mountain Pass carbonatite sample showing mineralogy and texture with slider for back-scattered electron map (black and white) and layered elemental map (colored). Note the large, euhedral, tabular crystal of bastnäsite. 

UAS Pre-flight check on Mosquito Ridge
Preflight Checks at Mosquito
Preflight Checks at Mosquito
Preflight Checks at Mosquito

Isaac Anderson (National Innovation Center) preforms a pre-flight check of a UAS before a photogrammetry mission in post-fire, landslide-prone terrain in Tahoe National Forest.

Isaac Anderson (National Innovation Center) preforms a pre-flight check of a UAS before a photogrammetry mission in post-fire, landslide-prone terrain in Tahoe National Forest.

UAS landing on Mosquito Ridge
Landing at Mosquito
Landing at Mosquito
Landing at Mosquito

Isaac Anderson and Liz Hyde (National Innovation Center) bring in a drone for a landing, after flying a photogrammetry mission over landslide-prone terrain recently burned in the Mosquito fire (2022).

Isaac Anderson and Liz Hyde (National Innovation Center) bring in a drone for a landing, after flying a photogrammetry mission over landslide-prone terrain recently burned in the Mosquito fire (2022).

Mosquito Ridge field area at golden hour
Mosquito Ridge at Sunset
Mosquito Ridge at Sunset
Mosquito Ridge at Sunset

USGS researches and remote pilots coordinate their operations during a break in the action during a photogrammetry flight campaign in post-fire terrain in Tahoe National Forest.

USGS researches and remote pilots coordinate their operations during a break in the action during a photogrammetry flight campaign in post-fire terrain in Tahoe National Forest.

Open pit rare earth element mine at Mountain Pass, California. Stepped sides of the pit and access for mining vehicles shown.
Mountain Pass REE mine in California
Mountain Pass REE mine in California
Mountain Pass REE mine in California

Open pit rare earth element mine at Mountain Pass, California. Stepped sides of the pit and access for mining vehicles are shown.

Open pit rare earth element mine at Mountain Pass, California. Stepped sides of the pit and access for mining vehicles are shown.

Open pit REE mine at Mountain Pass, California
Mountain Pass mine in California
Mountain Pass mine in California
Mountain Pass mine in California

Open pit rare earth element mine at Mountain Pass, California. Stepped sides of the pit and access for mining vehicles are shown.

Open pit rare earth element mine at Mountain Pass, California. Stepped sides of the pit and access for mining vehicles are shown.

Aerial photo of a portion of Southern California, Palm Springs Landers.  A colored lidar hillshade outlines the mapping region.
Hillshade of lidar acquired within the Pinto Mountain Fault Zone
Hillshade of lidar acquired within the Pinto Mountain Fault Zone
Hillshade of lidar acquired within the Pinto Mountain Fault Zone

The image shown displays a portion of the lidar data collected by the USGS for the SAFSOC Project. Our goal is to study and map surficial processes and landforms related to tectonism, specifically the San Andreas Fault system.

The image shown displays a portion of the lidar data collected by the USGS for the SAFSOC Project. Our goal is to study and map surficial processes and landforms related to tectonism, specifically the San Andreas Fault system.

Photograph of the Columbia River flowing through the Pasco Basin, Washington
Upstream view of the Columbia River flowing through the Hanford reach
Upstream view of the Columbia River flowing through the Hanford reach
Upstream view of the Columbia River flowing through the Hanford reach

The Columbia River flowing through the Hanford reach of the arid Columbia River basin, eastern Washington. This reach is one of the few undammed segments of the Columbia River within the United States. Photograph taken from the White Bluffs, composed of sediment deposited in late Miocene and Pliocene Lake Ringold which occupied the Pasco Basin.

The Columbia River flowing through the Hanford reach of the arid Columbia River basin, eastern Washington. This reach is one of the few undammed segments of the Columbia River within the United States. Photograph taken from the White Bluffs, composed of sediment deposited in late Miocene and Pliocene Lake Ringold which occupied the Pasco Basin.

Geologic Map and Borehole Stratigraphy of Hinkley Valley and Vicinity, San Bernardino County, California
Geologic Map and Borehole Stratigraphy of Hinkley Valley and Vicinity,
Geologic Map and Borehole Stratigraphy of Hinkley Valley and Vicinity,
Geologic Map and Borehole Stratigraphy of Hinkley Valley and Vicinity,

Hinkley Valley, in the central to western Mojave Desert of southeastern California, has a long historical record owing to its position as a crossroads for rail and road traffic and its position adjacent to the Mojave River.

Hinkley Valley, in the central to western Mojave Desert of southeastern California, has a long historical record owing to its position as a crossroads for rail and road traffic and its position adjacent to the Mojave River.

Map
Flight area for Trans-Pecos aeromagnetic and radiometric survey
Flight area for Trans-Pecos aeromagnetic and radiometric survey
Flight area for Trans-Pecos aeromagnetic and radiometric survey

Map indicating flight area for Trans-Pecos aeromagnetic and radiometric survey. The survey area includes parts of El Paso and Hudspeth counties, Texas, and Otero County, New Mexico. Flights will begin in November 2020 and are expected to conclude in mid-January 2021. 

Map indicating flight area for Trans-Pecos aeromagnetic and radiometric survey. The survey area includes parts of El Paso and Hudspeth counties, Texas, and Otero County, New Mexico. Flights will begin in November 2020 and are expected to conclude in mid-January 2021. 

Photograph of scientists standing on rocks above a steep canyon
Confluence of the Deschutes and Columbia rivers
Confluence of the Deschutes and Columbia rivers
Confluence of the Deschutes and Columbia rivers

An enigmatic outcrop of 5 million year old basalt sits 300 meters above the Deschutes and Columbia rivers. USGS scientists are carefully studying this basalt flow to determine if it came all the way from central Oregon, 160 kilometers away.

An enigmatic outcrop of 5 million year old basalt sits 300 meters above the Deschutes and Columbia rivers. USGS scientists are carefully studying this basalt flow to determine if it came all the way from central Oregon, 160 kilometers away.

UAS over flux tower
UAS over flux tower
UAS over flux tower
UAS over flux tower

Looking up at a drone hovering near an open-path methane analyzer mounted on a flux tower. Instruments mounted on both the towers and on the drones are measuring gases emitted from the soil.

Looking up at a drone hovering near an open-path methane analyzer mounted on a flux tower. Instruments mounted on both the towers and on the drones are measuring gases emitted from the soil.

Airborne Radiometric Maps of Mountain Pass, California
Airborne Radiometric Maps of Mountain Pass, California
Airborne Radiometric Maps of Mountain Pass, California
Airborne Radiometric Maps of Mountain Pass, California

Geophysical investigations of Mountain Pass, California, were conducted as part of an effort to study regional crustal structures as an aid to understanding the geologic framework and mineral resources of the eastern Mojave Desert. The study area encompasses Mountain Pass, which is host to one of the world’s largest rare earth element (REE) carbonatite deposits.

Geophysical investigations of Mountain Pass, California, were conducted as part of an effort to study regional crustal structures as an aid to understanding the geologic framework and mineral resources of the eastern Mojave Desert. The study area encompasses Mountain Pass, which is host to one of the world’s largest rare earth element (REE) carbonatite deposits.

A view of the Columbia River and Miller Island
The Columbia River and Miller Island
The Columbia River and Miller Island
The Columbia River and Miller Island

A panoramic view of the Columbia River and Miller Island near the eastern end of the Columbia River Gorge National Scenic Area. The island and cliff walls on both sides of the Columbia River are composed of stacked lava flows of the Columbia River Basalt Group. 

A panoramic view of the Columbia River and Miller Island near the eastern end of the Columbia River Gorge National Scenic Area. The island and cliff walls on both sides of the Columbia River are composed of stacked lava flows of the Columbia River Basalt Group. 

Geologists examining a carbonatite dike in the Lemitar Mountains, New Mexico
Geologists examining a carbonatite dike
Geologists examining a carbonatite dike
Geologists examining a carbonatite dike

Geologists from the USGS and the New Mexico Bureau of Geology and Mineral Resources examining a carbonatite dike in the Lemitar Mountains, New Mexico

Geologists from the USGS and the New Mexico Bureau of Geology and Mineral Resources examining a carbonatite dike in the Lemitar Mountains, New Mexico

Scientist studying a carbonatite dike
Scientist studying a carbonatite dike
Scientist studying a carbonatite dike
Scientist studying a carbonatite dike

Virginia McLemore, New Mexico Bureau of Geology and Mineral Resources, discussing a carbonatite dike in the Lemitar Mountains, New Mexico

Virginia McLemore, New Mexico Bureau of Geology and Mineral Resources, discussing a carbonatite dike in the Lemitar Mountains, New Mexico

Rain clouds and red sky over the Northern Bristol Mountains in the Mojave Desert, California
Twilight in the Northern Bristol Mountains
Twilight in the Northern Bristol Mountains
Twilight in the Northern Bristol Mountains

Rain clouds at twilight over the Norhtern Bristol Mountains. THese types of winter storms provide water to the desert ecosystem, but are not usually intense enough to transport sediment or do other geomorphic work.

Rain clouds at twilight over the Norhtern Bristol Mountains. THese types of winter storms provide water to the desert ecosystem, but are not usually intense enough to transport sediment or do other geomorphic work.