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.
Science Quality and Integrity
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.
Filter Total Items: 171604
System characterization report on Vision-1
Executive Summary This report addresses system characterization of the Airbus Vision-1 satellite and is part of a series of system characterization reports produced and delivered by the U.S. Geological Survey Earth Resources Observation and Science Cal/Val Center of Excellence. These reports present and detail the methodology and procedures for characterization; present technical and operational i
Authors
James C. Vrabel, Paul Bresnahan, Aparajithan Sampath, Minsu Kim, Seonkyung Park, Jeff Clauson
Using citizen scientists to collect oxygen and hydrogen isotope data in southern Nevada
What is Citizen Science?Citizen science programs provide a means for Federal and non-Federal government agencies to make science more engaging, transparent, and accessible by partnering with the public for the purpose of problem solving, data collection, and monitoring. Public volunteers become directly involved in local research, thereby engaging in scientific projects. The public has already bee
Authors
Joshua M. Gonzales, Katherine J. Earp, Sade K. Cromratie Clemons
Managing basin-scale carbon sequestration: A tragedy of the commons approach
The Tragedy of the Commons is a well studied problem in the literature of ecology, economics, and environmental policy which illustrates the deleterious consequences of managing common pool resources when individual and social incentives are misaligned. In this work, we apply a simple model of carbon sequestration in a deep saline aquifer by two neighboring geologic CO2 storage (GCS) operators to
Authors
Joseph E. Duggan, Jonathan D. Ogland-Hand, Steven T. Anderson, Richard S. Middleton
Visual interpretation of high-resolution aerial imagery: A tool for land managers
Remotely sensed imagery from various collection platforms (e.g., satellites, crewed and uncrewed aircraft) are used by biologists and other conservation personnel to support management activities ranging from monitoring invasive species to assessing land cover and vegetation characteristics. Although remote sensing–based vegetation indices and models have been developed and used for some managemen
Authors
Brian Tangen, Rebecca L. Esser, Benjamin A. Walker
Mapping karst groundwater flow paths and delineating recharge areas for springs in the Little Sequatchie and Pryor Cove watersheds, Tennessee
The Little Sequatchie River and Pryor Cove Branch, in southern Tennessee, drain the eastern escarpment of the Cumberland Plateau to the Sequatchie River near the southern end of the Sequatchie Valley. The Little Sequatchie River is the largest tributary to the Sequatchie River by drainage area, covering over 120 square miles. The hydrology of the two drainage areas has been largely altered by kars
Authors
Benjamin V. Miller
Hydrodynamic model of the Colorado River, Glen Canyon Dam to Lees Ferry in Glen Canyon National Recreation Area, Arizona
The U.S. Geological Survey constructed a two-dimensional hydrodynamic model that was applied to a 15.8-mile tailwater reach of the Colorado River in Glen Canyon that begins 0.25 mile downstream from Glen Canyon Dam and extends to Lees Ferry in Glen Canyon National Recreation Area, Arizona. The model used the Flow and Sediment Transport with Morphological Evolution of Channels (FaSTMECH) solver in
Authors
Scott A. Wright, Matthew A. Kaplinski, Paul E. Grams
Semi-automated methods to develop a unified geographic information system dataset
Geospatial data describing the topography, natural features, human-built features, and land uses of a particular area or region can come from independent data providers and, therefore, vary in format, data encoding, and geographic coverage. Because of the complexity of the processes and procedures required for unifying these heterogeneous data into a dataset with consistent format, encoding, and c
Authors
Jason L. Shapiro, David I. Donato
Assessment of fresh groundwater discharge and saline surface-water intrusion at Operable Unit 2, North Chevalier Field Disposal Area (Site 11), Naval Air Station Pensacola, Florida, 2018–22
Site 11 is a former landfill at North Chevalier Field Disposal Area in Operable Unit 2 at Naval Air Station Pensacola, in northwest Florida. Site 11 is adjacent to Bayou Grande, a shallow, tidally influenced, saline estuary of the Pensacola Bay watershed. Federal and Florida regulators have expressed concern that contaminants detected in groundwater beneath the inland parts of Site 11 may discharg
Authors
James E. Landmeyer, W. Scott McBride, Chad H. Tripp, Michael A. Singletary
Anatidae brood records in Maine during studies of Anas rubripes (American black duck), 1977–94
This report describes a compilation of brood observations for Anatidae species breeding in Maine during an 18-year period (1977–94) that were made by the U.S. Geological Survey’s Patuxent Wildlife Research Center while it was operated by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. During four focused studies, variables affecting the declining Anas rubripes (Brewster, 1902) (American black duck, hereafter
Authors
Jerry R. Longcore, Christine M. Bunck, Daniel G. McAuley, David A. Clugston
U.S. Geological Survey Earthquake Hazards Program decadal science strategy, 2024–33
Executive Summary Earthquakes represent one of our Nation’s most significant and costly natural hazards, with estimated annual loses from earthquakes close to $15 billion in 2023. Over the past two centuries, 37 U.S. States have experienced an earthquake exceeding a magnitude of 5, and 50 percent of States have a significant potential for future damaging shaking; these statistics speak to the need
Authors
Gavin P. Hayes, Annemarie S. Baltay Sundstrom, William D. Barnhart, Michael L. Blanpied, Lindsay A. Davis, Paul S. Earle, Ned Field, Jill M. Franks, Douglas D. Given, Ryan D. Gold, Christine A Goulet, Michelle M. Guy, Jeanne L. Hardebeck, Nico Luco, Frederick Pollitz, Adam T. Ringler, Katherine M. Scharer, Steven Sobieszczyk, Valerie I. Thomas, Cecily J. Wolfe
Projections of multiple climate-related coastal hazards for the US Southeast Atlantic
Faced with accelerating sea level rise and changing ocean storm conditions, coastal communities require comprehensive assessments of climate-driven hazard impacts to inform adaptation measures. Previous studies have focused on flooding but rarely on other climate-related coastal hazards, such as subsidence, beach erosion and groundwater. Here, we project societal exposure to multiple hazards along
Authors
Patrick L. Barnard, Kevin M. Befus, Jeffrey J. Danielson, Anita C Engelstad, Li H. Erikson, Amy C. Foxgrover, Maya Kumari Hayden, Daniel J. Hoover, Tim Leijnse, Chris Massey, Robert T. McCall, Norberto Nadal-Caraballo, Kees Nederhoff, Andrea C. O'Neill, Kai Alexander Parker, Manoochehr Shirzaei, Leonard O. Ohenhen, Peter W Swarzenski, Jennifer Anne Thomas, Maarten van Ormondt, Sean Vitousek, Killian Vos, Nathan J. Wood, Jeanne M. Jones, Jamie Jones
Database of surface water diversion sites and daily withdrawals for the upper Colorado River Basin, 1980–2022
The Colorado River drains about 8% of the conterminous United States, provides water for 40 million people, and is one of the most overallocated rivers in the world. As the upper Colorado River Basin (UCOL) contributes an estimated 92% of the total basin natural streamflow, knowledge of the location and amount of surface water withdrawals in the UCOL is important for managing the Colorado River sy
Authors
Samuel Francisco Lopez, Jacob E. Knight, Fred D. Tillman, Melissa D. Masbruch, Daniel Wise, Casey J.R. Jones, Matthew P. Miller