Publications
Browse more than 160,000 publications authored by our scientists over the past 100+ year history of the USGS. Publications available are: USGS-authored journal articles, series reports, book chapters, other government publications, and more.
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Science Quality and Integrity
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Mission Area Publications
Mission Area Publications
We are focused on some of the most significant issues society faces, and our science is making a substantial contribution to the well-being of the Nation and the world. Learn more about the major topics our research covers and the programs focused on those topics.
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Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Units Program—2023 Year-in-Review
Introduction Established in 1935, the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Units Program is a unique cooperative partnership among State fish and wildlife agencies, host universities, the Wildlife Management Institute, USGS, and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. Designed to meet the scientific needs of natural resource management agencies and to produce...
Authors
Elise R. Irwin, Caroline E. Murphy, Dawn E. Childs, Donald E. Dennerline, Jonathan R. Mawdsley
Using high-resolution geospatial imagery and data to document the evolution of the Wilderness Breach that was created by Hurricane Sandy in 2012 at Fire Island National Seashore, New York
The U.S. Geological Survey’s National Civil Applications Center obtained remote sensing data and imagery collected from 1939 through 2023 to monitor changes at Fire Island National Seashore, New York. On October 29, 2012, an inlet was created during Hurricane Sandy on Fire Island that remained open for 10 years. This inlet, named the “Wilderness Breach,” formed at the same location where...
Authors
Gary B. Fisher
Effects of nonmotorized recreation on ungulates in the western United States—A science synthesis to inform National Environmental Policy Act analyses
The U.S. Geological Survey is working with Federal land management agencies to develop a series of science syntheses to support National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) analyses. This report synthesizes science information about the potential effects of nonmotorized recreation on ungulates in the western United States. We conducted a structured literature search to find published science...
Authors
Samuel E. Jordan, Taylor R. Ganz, Tait K. Rutherford, Matthew J. Blocker, Christopher T. Domschke, Frederick L. Klasner, Elroy H. Masters, Tye A. Morgan, Daryl R. Ratajczak, Elisabeth C. Teige, Sarah K. Carter
Enhanced geothermal systems electric-resource assessment for the Great Basin, southwestern United States
The U.S. Geological Survey recently (2025) completed a provisional assessment of the geothermal-electric resources associated with high-temperature, low-permeability rock formations of the Great Basin, Southwestern United States. If sufficient technological advances to commercialize enhanced geothermal systems occur, then a current best provisional estimate for electric-power generation...
Authors
Erick R. Burns, Colin F. Williams, Jacob DeAngelo
Assessment of conventional and continuous oil and gas resources in the Mowry Composite Total Petroleum System in the Southwestern Wyoming Province, Wyoming, Colorado, and Utah, 2024
Using a geology-based assessment methodology, the U.S. Geological Survey estimated undiscovered, technically recoverable mean conventional and continuous resources of 473 million barrels of oil and 27 trillion cubic feet of gas in the Mowry Composite Total Petroleum System in the Southwestern Wyoming Province, Wyoming, Colorado, and Utah.
Authors
Jane S. Hearon, Christopher J. Schenk, Sarah E. Gelman, Benjamin G. Johnson, Jenny H. Lagesse, Tracey J. Mercier, Heidi M. Leathers-Miller, Kira K. Timm, Ronald M. Drake, Andrea D. Cicero, Phuong A. Le
Flood-inundation maps for 14.8 miles of Little and Big Papillion Creeks in Omaha, Nebraska, 2023
Digital flood-inundation map libraries for two reaches that constitute 14.8 miles of Little and Big Papillion Creeks in Omaha, Nebraska, were created by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) in cooperation with the Papio-Missouri River Natural Resource District. The flood-inundation maps, which can be accessed through the USGS Flood Inundation Mapping Program website at https://www.usgs.gov...
Authors
Kellan R. Strauch, Bradley R. Hoefer
Framework for assessing intranational risk of critical mineral sectors: Case study of India
Recent geopolitical actions regarding the supply of critical minerals have highlighted both the threats posed by countries dominating a critical mineral supply chain, and the potential mitigations served by alternative supplier countries. However, no systematic quantification exists for the intranational factors that determine such threats or mitigations. This study outlines a...
Authors
Keita Federico Decarlo
Clarifying the role of the resist–accept–direct framework in supporting resource management planning processes
No abstract available.
Authors
Gregor W. Schuurman, Wylie Carr, Cat Hawkins Hoffman, David J. Lawrence, Brian W. Miller, Erik A. Beever, Jean Brennan, Katherine R. Clifford, Scott Covington, Shelley D. Crausbay, Amanda E. Cravens, John E. Gross, Linh Hoang, Stephen Jackson, Abraham J. Miller-Rushing, Wendy Morrison, Elizabeth A. Nelson, Robin O'Malley, Jay O. Peterson, Mark T. Porath, Karen Prentice, Joel H. Reynolds, Suresh A. Sethi, Helen Sofaer, Jennifer L. Wilkening
Kiloyear cycles of carbonate and Mg-silicate replacement at Von Damm hydrothermal vent field
The Von Damm vent field (VDVF) on the Mid-Cayman Rise in the Caribbean Sea is unique among modern hydrothermal systems in that the chimneys and mounds are almost entirely composed of talc. We analyzed samples collected in 2020 and report that in addition to disordered talc of variable crystallinity, carbonates are a major class of mineral at VDVF. The carbonate minerals include aragonite...
Authors
Amy Gartman, Terrence Blackburn, Kiana Frank, Susan Q. Lang, Jeffrey S. Seewald
Flood of July 2023 in Vermont
A major storm caused catastrophic flooding in many parts of Vermont on July 9–12, 2023, resulting in millions of dollars in damages. The high amount of rainfall caused several rivers to peak at record levels, in some cases exceeding records set during Tropical Storm Irene in 2011. The U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the Federal Emergency Management Agency, collected and...
Authors
Travis L. Smith, Scott A. Olson, James M. LeNoir, Rena D. Kalmon, Elizabeth A. Ahearn
Peak streamflow trends in Montana and northern Wyoming and their relation to changes in climate, water years 1921–2020
Frequency analysis on annual peak streamflow (hereinafter, peak flow) is essential to water-resources management applications, including critical structure design (for example, bridges and culverts) and floodplain mapping. Nonstationarity is a statistical property of a peak-flow series such that the distributional properties (the mean, variance, or skew) change either gradually...
Authors
Steven K. Sando, Nancy A. Barth, Roy Sando, Katherine J. Chase
Effects of riparian forest thinning on resident salmonid fishes in coastal northern California catchments
Resource managers are interested in whether thinning second-growth forests may be a viable restoration strategy for stream and riparian habitats, but may be concerned about the potential impacts that increases in stream temperature associated with riparian thinning treatments may have on cold-water salmonid fishes.We evaluated the effects of riparian forest thinning on resident...
Authors
David A. Roon, Jason B. Dunham, Joseph R. Benjamin, Bret C. Harvey, James R Bellmore