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Publications

This list of Water Resources Mission Area publications includes both official USGS publications and journal articles authored by our scientists. A searchable database of all USGS publications can be accessed at the USGS Publications Warehouse.

Filter Total Items: 19018

Modeled future peak streamflows in four coastal Maine rivers Modeled future peak streamflows in four coastal Maine rivers

To safely and economically design bridges and culverts, it is necessary to compute the magnitude of peak streamflows that have specified annual exceedance probabilities (AEPs). These peak flows are also needed for effective floodplain management. Annual precipitation and air temperature in the northeastern United States are in general projected to increase during the 21st century (Hayhoe...
Authors
Glenn A. Hodgkins, Robert W. Dudley

How runoff begins (and ends): characterizing hydrologic response at the catchment scale How runoff begins (and ends): characterizing hydrologic response at the catchment scale

Improved understanding of the complex dynamics associated with spatially and temporally variable runoff response is needed to better understand the hydrology component of interdisciplinary problems. The objective of this study was to quantitatively characterize the environmental controls on runoff generation for the range of different streamflow-generation mechanisms illustrated in the...
Authors
Benjamin B. Mirus, Keith Loague

Microbial community composition and endolith colonization at an Arctic thermal spring are driven by calcite precipitation Microbial community composition and endolith colonization at an Arctic thermal spring are driven by calcite precipitation

Environmental conditions shape community composition. Arctic thermal springs provide an opportunity to study how environmental gradients can impose strong selective pressures on microbial communities and provide a continuum of niche opportunities. We use microscopic and molecular methods to conduct a survey of microbial community composition at Troll Springs on Svalbard, Norway, in the...
Authors
Verena Starke, Julie Kirshtein, Marilyn L. Fogel, Andrew Steele

Numerical flow models and their calibration using tracer based ages Numerical flow models and their calibration using tracer based ages

Any estimate of ‘age’ of a groundwater sample based on environmental tracers requires some form of geochemical model to interpret the tracer chemistry (chapter 3) and is, therefore, referred to in this chapter as a tracer model age. the tracer model age of a groundwater sample can be useful for obtaining information on the residence time and replenishment rate of an aquifer system, but...
Authors
W. Sanford

Radiocarbon dating in groundwater systems Radiocarbon dating in groundwater systems

The radioactive isotope of carbon, radiocarbon (14C), was first produced artificially in 1940 by Martin Kamen and Sam Ruben, who bombarded graphite in a cyclotron at the Radiation Laboratory at Berkeley, CA, in an attempt to produce a radioactive isotope of carbon that could be used as a tracer in biological systems (Kamen (1963) [101]; Ruben and Kamen (1941) [102]). Carbon-14 of...
Authors
Niel Plummer, P. D. Glynn

Characterization and conceptualization of groundwater flow systems Characterization and conceptualization of groundwater flow systems

This chapter discusses some of the fundamental concepts, data needs and approaches that aid in developing a general understanding of a groundwater system. Principles of the hydrological cycle are reviewed; the processes of recharge and discharge in aquifer systems; types of geological, hydrological and hydraulic data needed to describe the hydrogeological framework of an aquifer system...
Authors
Niel Plummer, W. E. Sanford, P. D. Glynn

Defining groundwater age Defining groundwater age

This book investigates applications of selected chemical and isotopic substances that can be used to recognize and interpret age information pertaining to ‘old’ groundwater (defined as water that was recharged on a timescale from approximately 1000 to more than 1 000 000 a). However, as discussed below, only estimates of the ‘age’ of water extracted from wells can be inferred. These...
Authors
T. Torgersen, R. Purtschert, F. M. Phillips, Niel Plummer, W. E. Sanford, A. Suckow

Case study Middle Rio Grande Basin, New Mexico, USA Case study Middle Rio Grande Basin, New Mexico, USA

Chemical and isotopic patterns in groundwater can record characteristics of water sources, flow directions, and groundwater-age information. This hydrochemical information can be useful in refining conceptualization of groundwater flow, in calibration of numerical models of groundwater flow, and in estimation of paleo and modern recharge rates. This case study shows how chemical and...
Authors
Niel Plummer, W. Sanford

Book review: The year without summer: 1816 and the volcano that darkened the world and changed history Book review: The year without summer: 1816 and the volcano that darkened the world and changed history

No abstract available. Review info: The year without summer: 1816 and the volcano that darkened the world and changed history. By Klingaman, W.K and Klingaman, N.P., 2013. ISBN: 9781250042750, 338 p.
Authors
Martha A. Scholl

Groundwater quality in western New York, 2011 Groundwater quality in western New York, 2011

Water samples collected from 16 production wells and 15 private residential wells in western New York from July through November 2011 were analyzed to characterize the groundwater quality. Fifteen of the wells were finished in sand and gravel aquifers, and 16 were finished in bedrock aquifers. Six of the 31 wells were sampled in a previous western New York study, which was conducted in...
Authors
James E. Reddy

A historical perspective on precipitation, drought severity, and streamflow in Texas during 1951-56 and 2011 A historical perspective on precipitation, drought severity, and streamflow in Texas during 1951-56 and 2011

The intense drought throughout Texas during 2011 resulted in substantial declines in streamflow. By April 2011, nearly all of the State was experiencing severe to extreme drought according to data from the University of Nebraska–Lincoln Drought Monitor. By the end of July 2011, more than 75 percent of the State was experiencing exceptional drought. The worst of the drought occurred...
Authors
Karl E. Winters

Water resources of St. Bernard Parish, Louisiana Water resources of St. Bernard Parish, Louisiana

In 2010, about 261 million gallons per day (Mgal/d) of water were withdrawn in St. Bernard Parish, Louisiana, almost entirely from surface-water sources. Industrial use accounted for about 97 percent (253 Mgal/d) of the total water withdrawn. Other categories of use included public supply, rural domestic, and livestock. Water-use data collected at 5-year intervals from 1960 to 2010...
Authors
Larry B. Prakken
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