Publications

The purpose of this report is to make available fluid-inclusion information from drill holes in five geothermal areas: The Geysers and Long Valley caldera in northern California; Steamboat Springs, Nevada; the Ahuachapan field of El Salvador, Central America; and the Mutnovsky geothermal field, Kamchatka Peninsula, Russia. These data were produced at the request of various individuals to...

This video provides a thorough discussion of storm surge, one of the most dangerous elements of hurricanes and major storms. This video illustrates basic storm surge principles, shows actual footage of storm surge damage and relates high-water level data collection by the U.S. Geological Survey to the task of recreating the storm surge event.

New heat-capacity measurements are reported for four rock types; Westerly granite from Bradford, RI, andesite from Lake County, OR, peridotite from Sonoma County, CA, and basalt from the Columbia River Group. Measurements were made on powders of the rocks in the temperature range of 340 to about 1000 K. Our measured heat-capacity values for rocks and other measurements of heat capacity...

Recirculating flow in lateral separation eddies is typically weaker than main stem flow and provides an effective environment for trapping sediment. Observations of recirculating flow and sedimentary structures demonstrate that eddies pulsate in size and in flow velocity even when main stem flow is steady. Time series measurements of flow velocity and location of the reattachment point...

No abstract available.

Almost 75 percent of Utah's population lives near the Wasatch Fault. Earth scientists have shown that this fault has repeatedly experienced strong earthquakes of magnitude 7 or larger and will continue to do so in the future. Efforts to increase public awareness of earthquake hazards in Utah have resulted in residents and community leaders taking actions that will save lives and reduce...

Alaska has more than 40 active volcanoes, many of which are close to the major population centers of south-central Alaska. This bibliography was compiled to assist in the preparation of volcano hazard evaluations at Cook Inlet volcanoes. It lists articles, reports, and maps about the geology and hydrology of Hayes, Spurr, Redoubt, Iliamna, Augustine, and Douglas volcanoes in the Cook...

No abstract available.

Landslides with volumes exceeding 1000 km3 have occurred on the flanks of Hawaiian volcanoes. Because the flanks typically slope seaward no more than 12 °, the mechanics of slope failure are problematic. Limit-equilibrium analyses of wedge-shaped slices of the volcano flanks show that magma injection at prospective headscarps might trigger the landslides, but only under very restrictive...

The Geothermal Program of the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) is revisiting the Basin and Range Province after a hiatus of over a decade. The Basin and Range is a region of Neogene extension and generally high, but regionally and locally variable heat flow. The northern Basin and Range (Great Basin) has higher mean elevation and more intense Quaternary extension than does the southern...

Isotope tracer methods were used to determine flow paths, recharge areas, and relative age for ground water in the Kilauea volcano area on the Island of Hawaii. Stable isotopes in rainfall show three distinct isotopic gradients with elevation, which are correlated with trade-wind, rain shadow, and high-elevation climatological patterns. Temporal variations in isotopic composition of...

Condensate samples were collected in 1992 from a high-temperature (300° C) fumarole on the floor of the Halemaumau Pit Crater at Kilauea. The emergence about two years earlier of such a hot fumarole was unprecedented at such a central location at Kilauea. The condensates have hydrogen and oxygen isotopic compositions which indicate that the waters emitted by the fumarole are composed...