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.
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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Ice sheet dynamics drive pronounced changes in the subsurface freshwater-saltwater interface Ice sheet dynamics drive pronounced changes in the subsurface freshwater-saltwater interface
Saltwater is migrating into freshwater aquifers globally with water quality and biogeochemical implications, yet saltwater intrusion in glaciated regions is sparsely investigated. Field observations suggest that groundwater head in glaciated systems is influenced by ice sheet forcings and provides evidence that seawater infiltrated into offshore aquifers during past deglaciation events...
Authors
Julia Guimond, Aaron Mohammed, Barret L. Kurylyk, Michelle A. Walvoord, Victor F. Bense
Spatial and temporal geochemical variations of lava flows and tephra deposits from the December 2020 to September 2024 eruptions of Kīlauea volcano Spatial and temporal geochemical variations of lava flows and tephra deposits from the December 2020 to September 2024 eruptions of Kīlauea volcano
Kīlauea volcano underwent dramatic morphological changes in 2018. That year recorded the end of the 35-year-long eruption of Puʻuʻōʻō (1983–2018) and 10-year-long (2008–2018) Halemaʻumaʻu lava lake and emplacement of the ~4-month-long lower East Rift Zone lava flows that coincided with ~500 m of summit caldera collapse. Starting on December 20, 2020, eruptions resumed at Kīlauea’s summit...
Authors
Drew T. Downs, Kendra J. Lynn, Heather Brianne Winslow, Steven P. Lundblad, Meghann F.I. Decker
The U.S. Geological Survey 2025 Puerto Rico and U.S. Virgin Islands time-independent earthquake rupture forecast The U.S. Geological Survey 2025 Puerto Rico and U.S. Virgin Islands time-independent earthquake rupture forecast
We present the 2025 U.S. Geological Survey Puerto Rico and U.S. Virgin Islands (PRVI) time‐independent earthquake rupture forecast (ERF), developed for the 2025 update to the National Seismic Hazard Model (NSHM) for PRVI. The updated ERF improves upon a prior model from 2003, including an expanded fault inventory with slip‐rate estimates, updated seismicity catalogs, and refined...
Authors
Kevin Ross Milner, Alexandra Elise Hatem, Richard W. Briggs, Jessica Ann Thompson Jobe, Andrea L. Llenos, Andrew J. Michael, Allison Shumway, Edward H. Field, Kirstie Lafon Haynie
Depositional interplay between the Ancestral Rocky Mountains and Ouachita–Marathon–Sonora orogenies: Insights from provenance records in the late Paleozoic Marfa Basin, West Texas, U.S.A. Depositional interplay between the Ancestral Rocky Mountains and Ouachita–Marathon–Sonora orogenies: Insights from provenance records in the late Paleozoic Marfa Basin, West Texas, U.S.A.
The Marfa Basin in West Texas is a late Palaeozoic synorogenic depocenter associated with regional deformation linked to the Ancestral Rocky Mountains (ARM) and Ouachita–Marathon–Sonora (OMS) orogenies in southwestern Laurentia. Basin strata range in age from Middle Pennsylvanian to the middle Permian and include the Cieneguita, Alta, Pinto Canyon, Rose Mine and Mina Grande Formations...
Authors
Sandra Juárez-Zúñiga, Daniel F. Stockli, Benjamin G. Johnson, Timothy F. Lawton
Dog attacks on wild desert tortoises: A risk model Dog attacks on wild desert tortoises: A risk model
We retrospectively compiled a database of 6,727 live, wild Agassiz's desert tortoises (Gopherus agassizii) and evaluated them for clinical signs of trauma to shell and limbs at 50 sites in the Mojave and Colorado (western Sonoran) deserts of California, USA, spanning the years 1977–2006. Our objectives were to 1) identify tortoises with severe trauma to shell, limbs, and gular horns...
Authors
Andrea S. Carlson, Kristin H. Berry, Jeremy S. Mack
Invasion resistance varies by fuel break type in sagebrush ecosystems Invasion resistance varies by fuel break type in sagebrush ecosystems
Background Wildfire is an increasingly important driver of changes within sagebrush (Artemisia spp. L.) ecosystems of the western USA, often resulting in increased spread of exotic annual grasses, such as cheatgrass (Bromus tectorum L.), and subsequent losses of native vegetation and wildlife habitat. Fuel breaks— areas of land treated to reduce or redistribute fuel loads — are widely...
Authors
Austin L. Nash, Brianne E. Brussee, Cali L. Weise, Douglas J. Shinneman, Susan K. McIlroy, Sarah C. Webster, Steven R. Mathews, Seth J. Dettenmaier, Lea A. Condon, Michele R. Crist, Cameron L. Aldridge, Julie A. Heinrichs, Mark A. Ricca, Shawn T. O’Neil, Peter S. Coates
Intertidal community responses to perturbations along Alaska park coastlines Intertidal community responses to perturbations along Alaska park coastlines
Nearshore ecosystems are highly productive zones with strong connections to both terrestrial and open ocean ecosystems. The rocky intertidal is a highly dynamic ecosystem and changes over a variety of spatial and temporal scales depending on the factors contributing to the change. Here we summarize how nearshore communities and species responded to several perturbations to intertidal...
Authors
Sarah Beth Traiger, Brenda Ballachey, Heather Coletti, Daniel Esler
Investigating the role of lake environments and food chains on the transfer of mercury to lake trout Investigating the role of lake environments and food chains on the transfer of mercury to lake trout
Mercury contamination can pose threats to fish, wildlife, and people. Methylmercury, found in fish, can be particularly detrimental, especially to children. This study explores the sources and concentrations of mercury and proposes how people can become aware and limit their exposure.
Authors
Sarah M. Laske, Krista K. Bartz, Daniel Young
Cyanobacteria and aquatic ecosystem dynamics across 28,000 years of environmental changes in subtropical North America Cyanobacteria and aquatic ecosystem dynamics across 28,000 years of environmental changes in subtropical North America
Ecological pressures on aquatic ecosystems have increased over recent centuries due to human activities and climate change. However, contextualizing ecosystem deterioration is often challenging due to limited knowledge of environmental changes over millennial timescales. Subtropical Carolina bays in North Carolina, USA, have remained unglaciated, preserving paleolimnological records that...
Authors
Savvas Paradeisis-Stathis, Matthew N. Waters, Debra A. Willard, Richard S. Vachula
Evaluating drivers of environmental change in a lake sediment core: Insights from spectroscopic metrics of water-extractable organic matter and stable carbon isotopes Evaluating drivers of environmental change in a lake sediment core: Insights from spectroscopic metrics of water-extractable organic matter and stable carbon isotopes
Freshwater lakes play a critical role in the global carbon cycle by storing and transforming organic matter (OM) from both terrestrial and aquatic sources. Small lakes in northern temperate regions, despite their limited surface area, disproportionately influence regional carbon budgets. Buried sediments integrate OM inputs over time and archive ecosystem responses to natural and...
Authors
A.C. Collins, Sabina R. Gifford, Morgan Schaller, Aron Stubbins, Sasha Wagner, Kevin Alexander Ryan
Summertime methane and carbon dioxide emission rates and associated variables from a national-scale survey of 146 reservoirs in the United States Summertime methane and carbon dioxide emission rates and associated variables from a national-scale survey of 146 reservoirs in the United States
Reservoirs are globally important sources of greenhouse gases, but the magnitude of their emissions is highly uncertain. Here we present data for 146 reservoirs from two surveys of reservoir methane and carbon dioxide emissions, one at the regional scale in the midwestern United States and one at the national scale in the conterminous United States, plus data from one reservoir in...
Authors
Jake J. Beaulieu, Bridget R. Deemer, R.M. Pilla, Kenneth J. Forshay, J.W. Hollister, S.A. Jacobs, J.T. Walker, P.T. Leinenbach, Natalie A. Griffiths, S.D. Shivers, A.O. Tatters, K.N. Buckler, J.W. Corra, Ryan W. Daly, A.N. Djurkovic, S.R. Fulgham, P.L. Goodwin, L.G. Herger, M.W. Jones, N.J. Jones, L.A. Juilfs, C.M. Langstroth, M.E. Mitchell, J.R. Oliveria, B.M. Richmond, J.W. Schroeder
Resilience thinking for human-wildlife coexistence: Bridging dynamic systems, archetypes, and transformations Resilience thinking for human-wildlife coexistence: Bridging dynamic systems, archetypes, and transformations
As human activities and wildlife increasingly overlap in the Anthropocene, conventional conservation paradigms focused on land-sparing are shifting toward strategies that support human–wildlife coexistence. However, achieving sustainable coexistence is often hindered by a limited understanding of the dynamic social–ecological processes that drive integrated human–wildlife systems. This...
Authors
Neil H. Carter, Erin K. Buchholtz, Jenny Anne Glikman, A. Sofía Nanni, Mahi Puri