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Table 2.   Average EPMA chemical analyses and calculated mineral formulas of selected unexpanded vermiculite ores.

Notes: Compositions of bulk samples not individual minerals.  n = number of microprobe spot analyses collected on multiple mica flakes used to calculate the averaged composition of each sample.   ---- = not enough cation Al and/or Mg to assign to this

Table 1.  Expanded vermiculite ores examined in this study: their sources and amphibole, talc, and/or serpentine impurities.

Notes: XRD = X-ray diffraction analysis of bulk ore samples (B) and sink fractions (S).  SEM-EDS = Scanning Electron Microscope – Energy-Dispersive X-Ray Spectroscopy.  Band Depth Ratio = 1.40/1.42-µm band depth ratio.  The use of "sodic-

Annual number of earthquakes with a magnitude of 3.0 or larger in the central and eastern United States, 1970–2016. The long-term rate of approximately 25 earthquakes per year increased sharply starting around 2009.

After Hurricane Michael obliterated Fish Inn, the sea turtle research team's field station, team members salvaged some of the building's floor tiles and made this sea turtle mosaic, which they plan to eventually install in a new field station.

Location (A, B) of Pend Oreille River and tributaries assessed in this study as a spatial network of habitat patches and barriers (C) for which reintroduction of bull trout (Salvelinus confluentus) (D) was simulated. Bull trout illustration by Joseph R. Tomelleri.

USGS Hydrologic Technician Chris Broz attempting to find flow at the Rush River at Amenia, ND (USGS streamgage 05060500).  It took the technicians an hour to dig through the snow drift under the wire weight gage just to get to the ice. Then they drilled holes in the ice so they could see if there was any water to measure. 

Mohawk River at Lock 9 at Rotterdam Junction, NY

On February 8, 2019, USGS hydrologic technicians Joel Petersen and Sarah Davis measured a streamflow of 368 cubic feet per second at the Belle Fourche River near Elm Springs (USGS streamgage 06438000). Because of the depth of the ice, at times staff needed to lay flat on the snow and ice to ensure the equipment reaches to the stream bed.  And because of the extreme cold

USGS hydrologist Erich Kessler prepares to measure the stream stage (the height of the water surface) of the Middle Fork Crow River near Spice, Minnestota.

USGS EROS contractor Minsu Kim, left, and USGS Scientist Jeffrey Danielson stand with a GPS device in northern Idaho, where they were part of a research project to conduct topobathymetric research along the Kootenai River of northern Idaho.

Mohawk RIver at Vischer Ferry Dam Ice Jam camera

An ice jam in place at Buffalo Creek at Gardenville (gage 04214500) Photo by Elizabeth Nystrom (Public Domain)

2019 GLB NOSB 1st Place Winner Troy High School.

USGS Hydrologic technician Sarah Davis measuring streamflow at the South Fork Grand River near Cash, SD (streamgage 06356500) on January 31, 2019.  Measuring the streamflow under ice requires drilling holes across the width of the stream and then collecting data from each hole.  At times streams can freeze solid but drilling holes are necessary to verify that. The

Root nodules are a symbiotic relationship between a plant and nitrogen-fixing bacteria. A symbiotic relationship is one where both organisms benefit. Nitrogen-fixing bacteria change inorganic nitrogen from the air into ammonia, a form of nitrogen most organisms can use. They also use a process called rock dissolution to release other nutrients, such as calcium and

 Coastal storms can severely alter the topography and ecosystems along heavily populated coastal regions. Seamless integrated elevation data for both land and submerged areas in Barnegat Bay, New Jersey, are fundamental to coastal planning of the northeastern U.S. Atlantic coast.

Scientist surveying the presence and behavior of birds at Pelican Island, Alabama. The CMHRP is working with personnel within the Ecosystems Mission Area on this project to identify how physical characteristics of barrier islands influence use by wintering shorebirds.

Coastal wetland ecosystems in Jamaica Bay, New York, provide important ecosystem services along the highly urbanized Atlantic coast.

USGS scientists retrieve and process samples from an ecological processing monitoring station. Each station includes a caged native mussel (shown attached to the buoy rope) and a sampler for measuring invertebrate consumers

On September 18, Congressman Jimmy Panetta (20th district, California) and staffer Emmanuel Garcia visited the USGS Pacific Coastal and Marine Science Center in Santa Cruz.

USGS research geologist Erika Lentz being interviewed by WBZ about the future impacts of sea level rise.

USGS scientist making a presentation on natural and coastal hazards in wetlands and estuaries to participants at the  Smithsonian Science Education Academies for Teachers (SSEATs). 

Lidar surveys of (left) the northern Chandeleur Islands, located in the northern Gulf of Mexico off the coast of Louisiana; and (right) Crocker Reef, a senile (dead) coral reef located southeast of the Florida Keys. Surveys such as these can resolve features of varying spatial scales, while repeat surveys can be used to analyze seafloor change over time. 

East end of Fire Island, showing white sandy beaches and marshes, depicted with airborne imagery, and lidar-derived bathymetric features in the estuary behind the island, in the offshore region, and in the channel connecting the estuary to the ocean. 

Beach simulation of topography and bathymetry change during a storm. Pre-storm lidar data can be used to set up elevation grids for the model and post-storm lidar can be used in assessing how well the model performs. 

Coastal bathymetry, St. Thomas, US Virgin Islands, mapped using lidar and depicted with false-color (purple is deep, orange is shallow). Land areas are depicted with satellite imagery.

Screen cature of the USGS Core Viewer v.3 web page showing an example frame of the data holdings for Fowey Reef.

Aerial view of a southeast Louisiana coastal marsh.

Area of the northern Gulf of Mexico where the CMHRP applied techniques developed to predict the mobility, seafloor interaction, and alongshore transport of sand and oil agglomerates.

Cuyahoga River at Independence OH -  view from edge of river

Two divers work to collect a long core sample from a coral reef in Florida.

Deploying environmental monitoring equipment in a mesic (between wet and dry) forest in western Puerto Rico. Characterizing fine-scale moisture gradients between dry and wet forests is critical to understand which habitats are likely to remain suitable for vulnerable amphibian species as the climate changes. 

Location of proposed study area (includes Flaxville aquifer and Lustre oil fields) and sampling sites from previous USGS studies

Elevated water levels during Hurricane Florence likely did not reach the base of the dune along this portion of North Myrtle Beach. The beach is narrower, but the dunes do not appear to have been eroded. The probability of dune erosion was only 23% for this location.

Waves and surge from Hurricane Florence caused dune erosion leading to the collapse of the pool deck in North Topsail Beach. To the south of the pool, the dunes field is narrower, indicating dune erosion, while to the north, the dunes are missing, indicating overwash. Walkways in front of the homes were also damaged by large waves. The probabilities of dune erosion and

High water levels during Hurricane Florence overwashed this location at Camp Lejeune, transporting sand over 200 meters inland. Waves, on top of the storm surge, also eroded the dunes to either side of the overwash fan. To the right of the fan a small breach in the island occured. Water appears to be draining from the backshore at the time of the post-storm photograph. The

These two NOAA satellite images show Cape San Blas Road in the Florida Panhandle town of Cape San Blas before Hurricane Michael, and after the Category 5 storm. The red circle shows where the USGS sea turtle researchers' field station and seasonal home once stood. The building was demolished down to the concrete slab.

Captive Japanese quail (Coturnix japonica), and wheat seeds with (brown) and without (cream) pesticide coatings used to treat insect pests. 

Chippewa Dunes Multibeam Survey downstream of Durand bridge.

Hydrologic Technician Chris Peskuski making a discharge measurement above Gallinas Creek near Montezuma, NM (site data available at: https://waterdata.usgs.gov/nm/nwis/uv?site_no=08380500)

Animation of Twelvemile Lake in the Yukon Flats ecoregion in Alaska, created using USGS Landsat data.

Sagebrush, Wyoming

Researchers examine tree rings for anomalies.

AK CASC and USGS researchers select a field site.

UAS undergraduate student Mckenzie Wilson examines a cross section.

USGS researcher Erich Peitzsch holds a tree cross section to look for irregular rings.

Lauren Flynn measures a trout.