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The USGS provides unbiased, objective, and impartial scientific information upon which our audiences, including resource managers, planners, and other entities, rely.
Browse more than 65,000 articles authored by our scientists over the past 100+ year history of the USGS and refine search by topic, location, year, and advanced search.
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Insights on the characteristics and sources of gas from an underground coal mine using compositional data analysis Insights on the characteristics and sources of gas from an underground coal mine using compositional data analysis
Coal mine gas originates from the gas emission zone (GEZ) of the mine, as well as the longwall face and pillars. Gas emissions are controlled directly at the sources using horizontal or vertical boreholes drilled from surface or from the entries in advance of mining, or it is captured from the fractured and caved zones (gob) using ventholes during mining. The rest of the gas, especially...
Authors
C. Ozgen Karacan, Josep Antoni Martín-Fernández, Leslie F. Ruppert, Ricardo A. Olea
A novel framework to predict relative habitat selection in aquatic systems: Applying machine learning and resource selection functions to acoustic telemetry data from multiple shark species A novel framework to predict relative habitat selection in aquatic systems: Applying machine learning and resource selection functions to acoustic telemetry data from multiple shark species
Resource selection functions (RSFs) have been widely applied to animal tracking data to examine relative habitat selection and to help guide management and conservation strategies. While readily used in terrestrial ecology, RSFs have yet to be extensively used within marine systems. As acoustic telemetry continues to be a pervasive approach within marine environments, incorporation of...
Authors
Lucas P. Griffin, Grace A. Casselberry, Kristen Hart, Adrian Jordaan, Sarah L. Becker, Ashleigh J. Novak, Bryan M. DeAngelis, Clayton G. Pollock, Ian Lundgren, Zandy Hillis-Starr, Andy J. Danylchuk, Gregory B. Skomal
Quantifying Great Lakes sea lamprey populations using an index of adults Quantifying Great Lakes sea lamprey populations using an index of adults
Effective control of aquatic invasive species requires knowledge of the population throughout the infested area. Lake-wide assessments of invasive sea lampreys (Petromyzon marinus) are used to assess their status in the Laurentian Great Lakes, informing fisheries managers and decision makers in the sea lamprey control program. Initially these assessments focused on an estimate of...
Authors
Jean V. Adams, Jessica M. Barber, Gale A Bravener, Sean A. Lewandoski
Capturing the transient hydrological response in sandy soils during a rare cloudburst associated with shallow slope failures; A case study in the Atlantic Highlands, New Jersey, USA Capturing the transient hydrological response in sandy soils during a rare cloudburst associated with shallow slope failures; A case study in the Atlantic Highlands, New Jersey, USA
A cloudburst on 7 August 2018 in the coastal bluffs of the Atlantic Highlands, New Jersey, induced flooding, erosion and multiple shallow slope failures that adversely affected the surrounding hillside residential area. Historically, short-duration deluges are rare in the New York Bay region, with only eight cloudbursts of greater magnitude documented since 1948. The coastal bluffs...
Authors
Francis Ashland, Pamela A. Reilly, Alex R. Fiore
Demethylation of methylmercury in bird, fish, and earthworm Demethylation of methylmercury in bird, fish, and earthworm
Toxicity of methylmercury (MeHg) to wildlife and humans results from its binding to cysteine residues of proteins, forming MeHg-cysteinate (MeHgCys) complexes that hinder biological functions. MeHgCys complexes can be detoxified in vivo, yet how this occurs is unknown. We report that MeHgCys complexes are transformed into selenocysteinate (Hg(Sec)4) complexes in multiple animals from two...
Authors
Alain Manceau, Jean-Paul Bourdineaud, Ricardo B. Oliveira, Sandra LF Sarrazin, David P. Krabbenhoft, Collin A. Eagles-Smith, Joshua T. Ackerman, Robin Stewart, Christian Ward-Deitrich, M Estela del Castillo Busto, Heidi Goenaga-Infante, Aude Wack, Marius Retegan, Blanka Detlefs, Pieter Glatzel, Paco Bustamante, Kathryn L. Nagy, Brett Poulin
A morphodynamic model to evaluate long-term sandbar rebuilding using controlled floods in the Grand Canyon A morphodynamic model to evaluate long-term sandbar rebuilding using controlled floods in the Grand Canyon
Controlled floods released from dams have become a common restoration strategy in river systems worldwide. Here we present a morphodynamic model of sandbar volume change for a subset of sandbars of the Colorado River in Grand Canyon National Park, where controlled floods are part of a management strategy focused on sandbar maintenance. We simulate sandbars as a triangular wedge, where...
Authors
Erich R. Mueller, Paul E. Grams
Performance of bedload sediment transport formulas applied to the Lower Minnesota River Performance of bedload sediment transport formulas applied to the Lower Minnesota River
Despite limitations in reproducing complex bedload sediment transport processes in rivers, formulas have been preferred over collection and analysis of field data due to the high cost and time-consuming nature of bedload discharge measurements. However, the performance of such formulas depends on the hydraulic and sedimentological conditions they attempt to describe. The availability of...
Authors
Elisa Armijos, Gustavo Henrique Merten, Joel T. Groten
Single-well production history matching and geostatistical modeling as proxy to multi-well reservoir simulation for evaluating dynamic reservoir properties of coal seams Single-well production history matching and geostatistical modeling as proxy to multi-well reservoir simulation for evaluating dynamic reservoir properties of coal seams
Reservoir properties of coal seams such as gas and water effective permeabilities and gas content, as well as spatial distributions thereof, affect the success of gas production and CO2-enhanced gas recovery (EGR) with simultaneous CO2 sequestration. These properties change during production and injection operations due to variations in reservoir pressure, matrix shrinkage/swelling, and...
Authors
C. Ozgen Karacan
Emerging perspectives on resource tracking and animal movement ecology Emerging perspectives on resource tracking and animal movement ecology
Resource tracking, where animals increase energy gain by moving to track phenological variation in resources across space, is emerging as a fundamental attribute of animal movement ecology. However, a theoretical framework to understand when and where resource tracking should occur, and how resource tracking should lead to emergent ecological patterns, is lacking. We present a framework...
Authors
Briana Abrahms, Ellen O. Aikens, Jonathan B. Armstrong, William W. Deacy, Matthew J. Kauffman, Jerod A. Merkle
Age-related reproductive performance of the Adélie penguin, a long-lived seabird exhibiting similar outcomes regardless of individual life-history strategy Age-related reproductive performance of the Adélie penguin, a long-lived seabird exhibiting similar outcomes regardless of individual life-history strategy
Age-related variation in reproductive performance in long-lived iteroparous vertebrate species is common, with performance being influenced by within-individual processes, such as improvement and senescence, in combination with among-individual processes, such as selective appearance and disappearance. Few studies of age-related reproductive performance have compared the role of these...
Authors
Peter J. Kappes, Katie M. Dugger, Amélie Lescroël, Grant Ballard, Kerry J Barton, Phil O’B. Lyver, Peter R. Wilson
Nest site selection of White-tailed Hawks (Geranoaetus albicaudatus) on Texas barrier islands Nest site selection of White-tailed Hawks (Geranoaetus albicaudatus) on Texas barrier islands
The distribution of the White-tailed Hawk (Geranoaetus albicaudatus) in the United States is restricted to the prairies and savannas of the Gulf Coastal Plain of Texas. Although listed as a state threatened species, it remains one of the least studied raptors in North America. It appears to reach high densities on some Texas barrier islands despite the island vegetation communities being
Authors
C.L. Haralson-Strobel, Clint W. Boal, C. C. Fraquhar
lsforce: A Python-based single-force seismic inversion framework for massive landslides lsforce: A Python-based single-force seismic inversion framework for massive landslides
We present an open‐source Python package, lsforce, for performing single‐force source inversions of long‐period (tens to hundreds of seconds) seismic signals. Although the software is designed primarily for landslides, it can be used for any single‐force seismic source. The package allows users to produce estimates of the three‐component time series of forces exerted on the Earth by a...
Authors
Liam Toney, Kate E. Allstadt