Florence Bascom Geoscience Center
The primary mission of the Florence Bascom Geoscience Center (FBGC) is to provide detailed scientific data and assessments to support natural resource management, public safety, and national security. The FBGC specializes in:
Geologic mapping and hazards
Paleontology, stratigraphy, and environmental geology
Special geologic studies at the intersection of national security and mineral resources
USGS Scientists Help Address Conflict Mining
USGS Scientists Help Address Conflict Mining
The USGS has collaborated with several international organizations working to track and monitor illegal mining and armed groups funded by natural resources around the world.
Mid-Atlantic Stream & Sediment Science
Mid-Atlantic Stream & Sediment Science
FBGC's ecologist Greg Noe's work is highlighted in this great article discussing legacy erosion and sedimentation in Mid-Atlantic watersheds.
Climate Change Impacts on Mangrove Forests
Climate Change Impacts on Mangrove Forests
FBGC scientists Miriam Jones and Lynn Wingard were recently interviewed by NPR regarding climate change and mangrove forests.
Publications
East Greenland Ice Sheet retreat history from Scoresby Sund and Storstrømmen Glacier during the last deglaciation East Greenland Ice Sheet retreat history from Scoresby Sund and Storstrømmen Glacier during the last deglaciation
The lack of geological constraints on past ice-sheet change in marine-based sectors of the Greenland Ice Sheet (GrIS) following the Last Glacial Maximum limits our ability to assess (1) the drivers of ice-sheet change, and (2) the performance of ice-sheet models that are benchmarked against the paleo-record of GrIS change. Here, we provide new in situ 10Be surface exposure chronologies...
Cosmic dust reveals dynamic shifts in central Arctic sea-ice coverage over the past 30,000 years Cosmic dust reveals dynamic shifts in central Arctic sea-ice coverage over the past 30,000 years
Arctic sea-ice loss affects biological productivity, sustenance in coastal communities, and geopolitics. Forecasting these impacts requires mechanistic understanding of how Arctic sea ice responds to climate change, but this is limited by scarce long-term records. We present continuous 30,000-year reconstructions of sea-ice coverage from the Arctic Ocean based on measurements of two...
A high-resolution late Paleocene–early Eocene organic-walled dinoflagellate cyst zonation of the United States Atlantic Coastal Plain A high-resolution late Paleocene–early Eocene organic-walled dinoflagellate cyst zonation of the United States Atlantic Coastal Plain
Over the past decades, many expanded sedimentary records from the US Atlantic Coastal Plain (ACP) have been studied in detail to assess causes and consequences of the Paleocene–Eocene Thermal Maximum (PETM; ∼ 56 Ma). In ACP sections, the PETM, which is globally marked by a distinct negative carbon isotope excursion (CIE) lasting ∼ 180 kyr following a large input of 13C-depleted carbon...
Science
Coastal Wetland Vulnerability to Climate Change and Sea-Level Rise: Understanding Ecological Thresholds and Ecosystem Transformations
Eighteen USGS coastal scientists from all four coasts of the conterminous United States are working together to advance the understanding of climate change and sea-level rise impacts to coastal wetlands.
By
California Water Science Center, Chesapeake Bay Activities, Eastern Ecological Science Center, Florence Bascom Geoscience Center, Great Lakes Science Center, Pacific Coastal and Marine Science Center, St. Petersburg Coastal and Marine Science Center, Western Ecological Research Center (WERC), Western Geographic Science Center, Wetland and Aquatic Research Center , Woods Hole Coastal and Marine Science Center
Quaternary Geologic Mapping of the Glaciated Regions Project
Quaternary Geologic Mapping of the Glaciated Regions Project
Task 3 - Geologic Mapping of the (other) Non-Coalition Glaciated States
The area encompassed by Task 3 comprises the non-coalition (other) states within the glaciated region, including Montana, North Dakota, South Dakota, Iowa, Kansas, Missouri, Nebraska, and New Jersey. The primary objective of Task 3 is to continue the compilation of existing and create new 1:500,000-scale Quaternary geologic maps for the region, and to conduct new 1:24,000-scale mapping in areas of...