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Publications

Here you will find publications, reports and articles produced by Core Science System scientists. For a comprehensive listing of all USGS publications please click the button below.

Filter Total Items: 291

An ontology design pattern for surface water features An ontology design pattern for surface water features

Surface water is a primary concept of human experience but concepts are captured in cultures and languages in many different ways. Still, many commonalities exist due to the physical basis of many of the properties and categories. An abstract ontology of surface water features based only on those physical properties of landscape features has the best potential for serving as a...
Authors
Gaurav Sinha, David Mark, Dave Kolas, Dalia Varanka, Boleslo E. Romero, Chen-Chieh Feng, E. Lynn Usery, Joshua Liebermann, Alexandre Sorokine

Generalisation operators Generalisation operators

This chapter summarises cartographic generalisation operators used to generalise geospatial data. It includes a review of recent approaches that have been tested or implemented to generalise networks, points, or groups. Emphasis is placed on recent advances that permit additional flexibility to tailor generalisation processing in particular geographic contexts, and to permit more...
Authors
Larry V. Stanislawski, Barbara P. Buttenfield, Pia Bereuter, Sandro Savino, Cynthia A. Brewer

Integrating recent land cover mapping efforts to update the National Gap Analysis Program's species habitat map Integrating recent land cover mapping efforts to update the National Gap Analysis Program's species habitat map

Over the past decade, great progress has been made to develop national extent land cover mapping products to address natural resource issues. One of the core products of the GAP Program is range-wide species distribution models for nearly 2000 terrestrial vertebrate species in the U.S. We rely on deductive modeling of habitat affinities using these products to create models of habitat...
Authors
Alexa McKerrow, A. Davidson, Todd Earnhardt, Abigail L. Benson

Standard for the U.S. Geological Survey Historical Topographic Map Collection Standard for the U.S. Geological Survey Historical Topographic Map Collection

This document defines the digital map product of the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) Historical Topographic Map Collection (HTMC). The HTMC is a digital archive of about 190,000 printed topographic quadrangle maps published by the USGS from the inception of the topographic mapping program in 1884 until the last paper topographic map using lithographic printing technology was published in...
Authors
Gregory J. Allord, Kristin A. Fishburn, Jennifer L. Walter

A new map of global ecological land units — An ecophysiographic stratification approach A new map of global ecological land units — An ecophysiographic stratification approach

In response to the need and an intergovernmental commission for a high resolution and data-derived global ecosystem map, land surface elements of global ecological pattern were characterized in an ecophysiographic stratification of the planet. The stratification produced 3,923 terrestrial ecological land units (ELUs) at a base resolution of 250 meters. The ELUs were derived from data on...
Authors
Roger Sayre, Jack Dangermond, Charlie Frye, Randy Vaughan, Peter Aniello, Sean P. Breyer, Douglas Cribbs, Dabney Hopkins, Richard Nauman, William Derrenbacher, Dawn J. Wright, Clint Brown, Charles Convis, Jonathan H. Smith, Laurence Benson, D. Paco VanSistine, Harumi Warner, Jill Janene Cress, Jeffrey J. Danielson, Sharon L. Hamann, Thomas Cecere, Ashwan D. Reddy, Devon Burton, Andrea Grosse, Diane TRUE, Marc Metzger, Jens Hartmann, Nils Moosdorf, Hans Durr, Marc Paganini, Pierre Defourny, Olivier Arino, Simone Maynard, Mark Anderson, Patrick Comer

Developing an outcome-based biodiversity metric in support of the field to market project: Final report Developing an outcome-based biodiversity metric in support of the field to market project: Final report

Our objective was to create a metric that would calculate the relative impact of common commercial agricultural practices on terrestrial vertebrate richness. We sought to define impacts in fields (including field borders) of the southeastern region’s commercial production of corn, wheat, soy, and cotton. The metric is intended to serve as an educational tool, allowing producers to see...
Authors
C. Ashton Drew, Louise B. Alexander-Vaughn, Jaime A. Collazo, Alexa McKerrow, John Anderson

Tools and data for meeting America's conservation challenges Tools and data for meeting America's conservation challenges

The Gap Analysis Project (GAP) produces data and tools that help meet critical national challenges such as biodiversity conservation, renewable energy development, climate change adaptation, and infrastructure investment. The GAP is managed by the U.S. Geological Survey, Department of the Interior. GAP supports a wide range of national, State, and local agencies as well as...
Authors
Kevin J. Gergely, Alexa McKerrow

Species data: National inventory of range maps and distribution models Species data: National inventory of range maps and distribution models

The Gap Analysis Project (GAP) produces data and tools that help meet critical national challenges such as biodiversity conservation, renewable energy development, climate change adaptation, and infrastructure investment. The GAP species data includes vertebrate range maps and distribution models for the continental United States, as well as Alaska, Hawaii, Puerto Rico, and U.S. Virgin...
Authors
Kevin J. Gergely, Alexa McKerrow

PAD-US—National inventory of protected areas PAD-US—National inventory of protected areas

The Gap Analysis Project produces data and tools that help meet critical national challenges such as biodiversity conservation, renewable energy development, climate change adaptation, and infrastructure investment. The Protected Areas Database of the United States (PAD-US) is the official inventory of public parks and other protected open space. Consisting of more than 7 billion acres...
Authors
Kevin J. Gergely, Alexa McKerrow

Terrestrial ecosystems: national inventory of vegetation and land use Terrestrial ecosystems: national inventory of vegetation and land use

The Gap Analysis Project (GAP)/Landscape Fire and Resource Management Planning Tools (LANDFIRE) National Terrestrial Ecosystems Data represents detailed data on the vegetation and land-use patterns of the United States, including Alaska, Hawaii, and Puerto Rico. This national dataset combines detailed land cover data generated by the GAP with LANDFIRE data (http://www.landfire.gov/)...
Authors
Kevin J. Gergely, Alexa McKerrow

Integrating complexity into data-driven multi-hazard supply chain network strategies Integrating complexity into data-driven multi-hazard supply chain network strategies

Major strategies in the wake of a large-scale disaster have focused on short-term emergency response solutions. Few consider medium-to-long-term restoration strategies that reconnect urban areas to the national supply chain networks (SCN) and their supporting infrastructure. To re-establish this connectivity, the relationships within the SCN must be defined and formulated as a model of a...
Authors
Suzanna K. Long, Thomas G. Shoberg, Varun Ramachandran, Steven M. Corns, Hector J. Carlo
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