Publications
Here you will find publications, reports and articles produced by geology, energy, and mineral scientists. For a comprehensive listing of all USGS publications, click the button below.
Filter Total Items: 1427
Assessment of undiscovered tight-gas resources in the Berkine, Illizi, and Hamra Basins of northern Africa, 2026 Assessment of undiscovered tight-gas resources in the Berkine, Illizi, and Hamra Basins of northern Africa, 2026
Using a geology-based assessment methodology, the U.S. Geological Survey estimated undiscovered, technically recoverable mean resources of 114.1 trillion cubic feet of tight gas in the Berkine, Illizi, and Hamra Basins of northern Africa.
Authors
Michael E. Brownfield, Christopher J. Schenk, Tracey J. Mercier, Thomas M. Finn, Cheryl A. Woodall, Phuong A. Le, Heidi M. Leathers-Miller, Kristen R. Marra, Ronald M. Drake, Scott A. Kinney
USGS Geochron Database USGS Geochron Database
Authors
Leah E. Morgan, Kelly D. Thomson, Ian W. Hillenbrand, Amy K. Gilmer
Coal beneath Federal lands in the United States—Mines, reserves, and resources Coal beneath Federal lands in the United States—Mines, reserves, and resources
The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) compiled a list of coal mines and tabulated the coal reserves and available coal resources beneath Federal lands in the conterminous United States. Coal resources beneath Federal lands in Alaska are also discussed in this report. In 2024, the 34 coal mines on Federal lands produced more than 261 million short tons of coal. Surface mining is used at 23 of...
Authors
Brian N. Shaffer, Michelle N. Johnston, Scott A. Kinney
Structural evolution of iron coordination in proteins across Earth’s oxygenation history Structural evolution of iron coordination in proteins across Earth’s oxygenation history
Protein metal-binding sites support essential biological functions shaped by protein fold, subunit interactions, and cofactor chemistry. Because these sites encode both biochemical function and environmental constraint, they offer a route to connect protein evolution with changes in Earth’s surface environment through time. Of particular interest is iron (Fe), the most widely used metal...
Authors
Benjamin I. Jelen, Beth A. Christensen, Elisha Kelly Moore
Spatio-temporal modeling for assessing geoenergy resources: A workflow applied to gas in place variation in coal beds Spatio-temporal modeling for assessing geoenergy resources: A workflow applied to gas in place variation in coal beds
The ability to estimate spatio-temporal changes in hydrocarbon reservoir properties and energy resources within pore volumes is essential for optimizing production, reservoir management, geologic energy storage, and safety in underground mining operations. In coal seams, predicting remaining methane gas-in-place (GIP) is critical for quantifying producible gas and improving mine safety...
Authors
Oktay Erten, C. Özgen Karacan, Clayton V. Deutsch
Background and geologic model for the 2024 U.S. Geological Survey assessment of undiscovered conventional petroleum resources in the Norphlet Formation, U.S. Gulf Coast Background and geologic model for the 2024 U.S. Geological Survey assessment of undiscovered conventional petroleum resources in the Norphlet Formation, U.S. Gulf Coast
The Upper Jurassic Norphlet Formation is a stratigraphic unit located in the subsurface of the United States Gulf coastal plain and offshore Gulf of America (Gulf of Mexico). The Norphlet consists of clastic sediments derived from the southern Appalachian highlands, and was deposited in a continental dryland setting on the margins of the early Gulf of America rift basin. The formation...
Authors
John W. Counts
Apatite (U-Th)/He thermochronology from Marsh Creek anticline reconciles Cenozoic and Holocene strain patterns and elucidates the Cenozoic canning displacement zone of Arctic Alaska Apatite (U-Th)/He thermochronology from Marsh Creek anticline reconciles Cenozoic and Holocene strain patterns and elucidates the Cenozoic canning displacement zone of Arctic Alaska
The northeastern Brooks Range is a vast fold-thrust belt that records the northernmost expression of Cenozoic deformation in Alaska, likely with complex dynamic linkages to distant tectonic elements. The principal focus of this manuscript is the Marsh Creek anticline (MCA), which is a large and recently active structure within the broader northeastern Brooks Range. The MCA is a complex...
Authors
William H. Craddock, Julie C Fosdick, Christopher D. Connors, Richard O. Lease, David W. Houseknecht, Megan Mueller, Andrew R C Kylander-Clark
Characterisation of bituminite and testing reproducibility of vitrinite and bituminite reflectance measurements in organic‑carbon-rich intervals of the Kimmeridge Clay Formation: ICCP Identification of Dispersed Organic Matter Working Group round robin ex Characterisation of bituminite and testing reproducibility of vitrinite and bituminite reflectance measurements in organic‑carbon-rich intervals of the Kimmeridge Clay Formation: ICCP Identification of Dispersed Organic Matter Working Group round robin ex
Three round robin exercises (RRE) aimed at characterizing bituminite and testing the reproducibility of random vitrinite (VRo %) and bituminite (BitRo %) reflectance measurements on samples of dispersed organic matter from organic‑carbon rich shale intervals of Kimmeridge Clay Formation were conducted in 2016, 2018, and 2020. This work was conducted by the Identification of Dispersed...
Authors
Jolanta Kus, A.G. Borrego, Barbara Bielowicz, Peter J. Crosdale, M.-E. Damoulianou, Deolinda Flores, Carolina Fonseca, Paula Gonçalves, Paul C. Hackley, Maria Hámor-Vidó, Stefanie Henne, Bjoern Holstein, Iwona Jelonek, Stavros Kalaitzidis, M. Luzhbina, J.G. Mendonça Filho, T.R. Menezes, Magdalena Misz-Kennan, R. Orban, Walter Pickel, N.V. Pronina, P. N. Ranasinghe, Julito Reyes, George Siavalas, A.K. Singh, P.K. Singh, Isabel Suárez-Ruiz, I. Sýkorová, Qingyong Luo, Dragana Životić, P. Wignall, ICCP
Lithium brine potential of North Dakota: Results from the 2025 sampling program Lithium brine potential of North Dakota: Results from the 2025 sampling program
Lithium (Li), classified as a critical mineral and key in energy storage applications because of its high energy density, faces unprecedented demand. This has driven interest in unconventional sources of Li, especially brines from sedimentary basins. Accordingly, the spatial distribution of basinal brinehosted Li resources across North America is becoming better defined, including the...
Authors
Brendan A. Bishop, Timothy O. Nesheim, Ismail H. Faruqi, Andrew L. Masterson, Aaron M. Jubb, Bonnie McDevitt, Amanda Sha Herzberg, Colin A. Doolan, Jessica Chenault, Daniel S. Alessi
Assessment of undiscovered conventional oil and gas resources in the Buda Limestone of Texas, 2025 Assessment of undiscovered conventional oil and gas resources in the Buda Limestone of Texas, 2025
Using a geology-based assessment methodology, the U.S. Geological Survey estimated undiscovered, technically recoverable mean conventional resources of 12 million barrels of oil and 184 billion cubic feet of gas in the Buda Limestone of Texas.
Authors
Celeste D. Lohr, Colin A. Doolan, Matthew D. Merrill, William H. Craddock, Rand Gardner, Christopher P. Anderson, Phuong A. Le, Tracey J. Mercier, Christopher J. Schenk
Mid-Cretaceous porphyritic magmatism in the Beartooth Mountains of the northern Laramide foreland and its connection to Frontier Formation sediment dispersal in Bighorn basin, Montana-Wyoming (USA), and Cordilleran tectonism Mid-Cretaceous porphyritic magmatism in the Beartooth Mountains of the northern Laramide foreland and its connection to Frontier Formation sediment dispersal in Bighorn basin, Montana-Wyoming (USA), and Cordilleran tectonism
Porphyritic intrusions in the southeast Beartooth Mountains and porphyritic cobbles from the Torchlight conglomerate of the Cenomanian Frontier Formation in Bighorn basin (Montana-Wyoming, USA) bear striking resemblance. We utilize geologic mapping, petrography, geochemistry, and geochronology to characterize rocks from both locations and test whether the Beartooth Mountains area was the
Authors
Jacob O. Thacker, Nicholas A. Brailer, Gary S. Michelfelder, Barry Shaulis, Rebecca A. VanderLeest, Snir Attia, Eddy Cunningham
Evidence for a biological origin of uranium-rich carbon masses within the Ediacaran Salt Range Formation of Pakistan Evidence for a biological origin of uranium-rich carbon masses within the Ediacaran Salt Range Formation of Pakistan
Thucholites are unique organic structures found in igneous and sedimentary rocks composed of a U-C-rich interior enclosed by an organic outer shell. Their formation and occurrence have perplexed scientists for over 100 years. Typically, thucholites are sparse in sedimentary rocks but where found in abundance, they may be the result of rapid paleoecological disruptions, e.g., volcanic...
Authors
Brett Valentine, Paul C. Hackley, Martha Stokes, Maitrayee Bose, Ryan J. McAleer, Imran Khan