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Publications

Publications from the staff of the Geology, Minerals, Energy, and Geophysics Science Center

Filter Total Items: 2493

Cascadia subduction tremor muted by crustal faults Cascadia subduction tremor muted by crustal faults

Deep, episodic slow slip on the Cascadia subduction megathrust of western North America is accompanied by low-frequency tremor in a zone of high fluid pressure between 30 and 40 km depth. Tremor density (tremor epicenters per square kilometer) varies along strike, and lower tremor density statistically correlates with upper plate faults that accommodate northward motion and rotation of...
Authors
Ray E. Wells, Richard J. Blakely, Aaron G. Wech, Patricia A. McCrory, Andrew Michael

The Evergreen basin and the role of the Silver Creek fault in the San Andreas fault system, San Francisco Bay region, California The Evergreen basin and the role of the Silver Creek fault in the San Andreas fault system, San Francisco Bay region, California

The Evergreen basin is a 40-km-long, 8-km-wide Cenozoic sedimentary basin that lies mostly concealed beneath the northeastern margin of the Santa Clara Valley near the south end of San Francisco Bay (California, USA). The basin is bounded on the northeast by the strike-slip Hayward fault and an approximately parallel subsurface fault that is structurally overlain by a set of west-verging...
Authors
Robert C. Jachens, Carl M. Wentworth, Russell W. Graymer, Robert Williams, David A. Ponce, Edward A. Mankinen, William J. Stephenson, Victoria E. Langenheim

Reconnaissance sedimentology of selected tertiary exposures in the upland region bordering the Yukon Flats basin, east-central Alaska Reconnaissance sedimentology of selected tertiary exposures in the upland region bordering the Yukon Flats basin, east-central Alaska

This report summarizes reconnaissance sedimentologic and stratigraphic observations made during six days of helicopter-supported fieldwork in 2002 on Tertiary sedimentary rocks exposed in the upland region around the flanks of the Yukon Flats basin in east-central Alaska (fig. 1). This project was a cooperative effort between the Alaska Division of Geological & Geophysical Surveys (DGGS)...
Authors
David L. LePain, Richard G. Stanley

Pore-types and pore-network evolution in Upper Devonian-Lower Mississippian Woodford and Mississippian Barnett mudstones: Insights from laboratory thermal maturation and organic petrology Pore-types and pore-network evolution in Upper Devonian-Lower Mississippian Woodford and Mississippian Barnett mudstones: Insights from laboratory thermal maturation and organic petrology

Pore-evolution models from immature organic-matter (OM) -rich Barnett (0.42%Ro) and Woodford (0.49%Ro) mudstones were compared with models previously developed from low-maturity OM-lean Boquillas (Eagle Ford-equivalent) mudstones to investigate whether (1) different mineralogy (siliceous vs. calcareous) exerts different catalytic and sorption effects and influences OM-pore origin and...
Authors
Lucy T. Ko, Stephen C. Ruppel, Robert G. Loucks, Paul C. Hackley, Tongwei Zhang, Deyong Shao

Assessing the dietary bioavailability of metals associated with natural particles: Extending the use of the reverse labeling approach to zinc Assessing the dietary bioavailability of metals associated with natural particles: Extending the use of the reverse labeling approach to zinc

We extend the use of a novel tracing technique to quantify the bioavailability of zinc (Zn) associated with natural particles using snails enriched with a less common Zn stable isotope. Lymnaea stagnalis is a model species that has relatively fast Zn uptake rates from the dissolved phase, enabling their rapid enrichment in 67Zn during the initial phase of labeling. Isotopically enriched...
Authors
Marie Noele Croteau, Daniel J. Cain, Christopher C. Fuller

Controls on pore types and pore-size distribution in the Upper Triassic Yanchang Formation, Ordos Basin, China: Implications for pore-evolution models of lacustrine mudrocks Controls on pore types and pore-size distribution in the Upper Triassic Yanchang Formation, Ordos Basin, China: Implications for pore-evolution models of lacustrine mudrocks

Our main objectives are to (1) learn if pore-evolution models developed from marine mudrocks can be directly applied to lacustrine mudrocks, (2) investigate what controls the different pore types and sizes of Chang 7 organic matter (OM)-rich argillaceous mudstones of the Upper Triassic Yanchang Formation, and (3) describe the texture, fabric, mineralogy, and thermal maturity variation in...
Authors
Lucy T. Ko, R. R. Loucks, Kitty L. Milliken, Quansheng Liang, Tongwei Zhang, Xun Sun, Paul C. Hackley, Stephen C. Ruppel, Sheng Peng

Paleomagnetism and 40Ar/39Ar geochronology of the Plio-Pleistocene Boring Volcanic Field: Implications for the geomagnetic polarity time scale and paleosecular variation Paleomagnetism and 40Ar/39Ar geochronology of the Plio-Pleistocene Boring Volcanic Field: Implications for the geomagnetic polarity time scale and paleosecular variation

Paleomagnetic directions and 40Ar/39Ar ages have been determined for samples of lava flows from the same outcrops, where possible, for 84 eruptive units ranging in age from 3200 ka to 60 ka within the Boring Volcanic Field (BVF) of the Pacific Northwest, USA. This study expands upon our previous results for the BVF, and compares the combined results with the current geomagnetic polarity...
Authors
Jonathan T. Hagstrum, Robert J. Fleck, Russell C. Evarts, Andrew T. Calvert

Geology of Seattle, a field trip Geology of Seattle, a field trip

Seattle’s geologic record begins with Eocene deposition of fluvial arkosic sandstone and associated volcanic rocks of the Puget Group, perhaps during a time of regional strike-slip faulting, followed by late Eocene and Oligocene marine deposition of the Blakeley Formation in the Cascadia forearc. Older Quaternary deposits are locally exposed. Most of the city is underlain by up to 100 m...
Authors
Ralph A. Haugerud, Kathy Goetz Troost, William T. Laprade

Lidar-Based Rock-Fall Hazard Characterization of Cliffs Lidar-Based Rock-Fall Hazard Characterization of Cliffs

Rock falls from cliffs and other steep slopes present numerous challenges for detailed geological characterization. In steep terrain, rock-fall source areas are both dangerous and difficult to access, severely limiting the ability to make detailed structural and volumetric measurements necessary for hazard assessment. Airborne and terrestrial lidar survey methods can provide high...
Authors
Brian D. Collins, Greg M.Stock

Element migration of pyrites during ductile deformation of the Yuleken porphyry Cu deposit (NW-China) Element migration of pyrites during ductile deformation of the Yuleken porphyry Cu deposit (NW-China)

The strongly deformed Yuleken porphyry Cu deposit (YPCD) occurs in the Kalaxiangar porphyry Cu belt (KPCB), which occupies the central area of the Central Asian Orogenic Belt (CAOB) between the Sawu’er island arc and the Altay Terrane in northern Xinjiang. The YPCD is one of several typical subduction-related deposits in the KPCB, which has undergone syn-collisional and post-collisional
Authors
Tao Hong, Xing-Wang Xu, Jungang Gao, Stephen Peters, Jilei Li, Mingjian Cao, Peng Xiang, Chu Wu, Jun You

Dynamics of permeability evolution in stimulated geothermal reservoirs Dynamics of permeability evolution in stimulated geothermal reservoirs

Spatially and temporally evolving permeability fields are fundamentally associated with the operation of enhanced geothermal systems. This chapter explores the resulting magnitude and patterns of permeability alteration as well as the coupled physical processes that control the evolution of permeability during shear stimulation and long-term evolution of a geothermal reservoir. It also...
Authors
Joshua M. Taron, Steven E. Ingebritsen, Stephen H. Hickman, Colin F. Williams
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