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.
Filter Total Items: 177637
Insights from more than a year of ongoing episodic lava fountaining at Kilauea Insights from more than a year of ongoing episodic lava fountaining at Kilauea
Episodic lava fountaining is rare globally, with only three occurrences from Kīlauea (Hawaii) since 1823. Beginning in December 2024, an eruption within the summit crater, Halemaʻumaʻu, has produced 52 fountaining episodes to date, each lasting typically for hours and separated by days to weeks. Although multiple mechanisms have been proposed, fundamental questions remain about how magma...
Authors
Ashton F. Flinders, Natalia I. Deligne, Ken Hon, Drew T. Downs, Kendra J. Lynn, Patricia A. Nadeau, Katie Mulliken, Jefferson C. Chang, Peter J. Dotray, Marco Bagnardi, Ingrid A. Johanson, Michael H. Zoeller, Kyle Anderson, Matthew R. Patrick, Christoph Kern, Christine Ruth Sealing, Michael P. Poland, David Alan Phillips, Michael Cappos, Liliana G. Desmither, Andria P. Ellis, Steven Fuke, Pauline N. Fukunaga, Madeline Kaliko Hawk, Thomas-Jon Kekoa Hiroaki Hoomanawanui, John David Jamora, Albert Keliiaimoku Kamake'eaina, Kevan Kamibayashi, William Tollett, Kody Rubio, Seth Soren Swaney, S. Miki Warren, Heather Brianne Winslow, Ninfa Lucia Bennington, Arthur Jolly, R.G. Adams, M. Decker, L. Forster, Elisabeth Gallant, Cheryl Gansecki, Richard W. Hazlett, B.F. Houghton, N. Kohagura, S. Lundblad, N.G. Pasqualon, K. Poepoe, Hannah Kelsay Neuman, C. Cauley, K. Wilde
Improving estimates of spatially distributed agricultural land use using pesticide data Improving estimates of spatially distributed agricultural land use using pesticide data
Accurate, spatially resolved agricultural land-use data are essential for estimating water demand, evaluating agricultural production, and understanding long-term changes in managed landscapes. However, existing land-use datasets are often temporally discontinuous, particularly for historical periods, and remotely sensed classifications face persistent challenges distinguishing...
Authors
Stefan Voss, Wesley R. Henson
Detecting polar bears on land using satellite imagery and deep learning Detecting polar bears on land using satellite imagery and deep learning
Summer land use is increasing for polar bears in the Beaufort Sea, which may lead to increases in human-bear interactions. Remote methods may enable noninvasive approaches to monitor polar bear abundance and distribution on land. We examined the potential of using very high-resolution optical satellite imagery to detect polar bears on land from images collected at three sites on the...
Authors
Anthony M. Pagano, Ryan H. Wilson, Anthony S. Fischbach, Todd C. Atwood
Re-evaluation of shaking, dynamic strain, and the source of the 1886 Charleston, South Carolina, earthquake Re-evaluation of shaking, dynamic strain, and the source of the 1886 Charleston, South Carolina, earthquake
As the largest historical event in the eastern United States, the 1886 Charleston, South Carolina, earthquake, plays a prominent role in our nation’s seismological and human history and an outsized role in our probabilistic ground‐motion hazard estimates, affecting building codes, insurance rates, and geophysical monitoring. Thus, constraining the characteristics of the 1886 earthquake...
Authors
David J. Wald
On the fidelity of oxygen isotope-based sea level reconstructions: A case study of Marine Isotope Stage 3 On the fidelity of oxygen isotope-based sea level reconstructions: A case study of Marine Isotope Stage 3
Although foraminiferal oxygen isotope records (δ18OF) have long been used to develop time-continuous estimates of past global ice volume, growing evidence indicates that the ice volume and temperature contributions to δ18OF diverge considerably over the last glacial cycle. Across Marine Isotope Stage 3 (MIS 3; 57 to 29 ka), estimates of peak global sea level based on δ18OF are ∼30 m...
Authors
Tamara Pico, Jesse R. Farmer, Sarah Shackleton, Robert K. Poirier, Bradley R. Markle, Lorraine E. Lisiecki
Improving predictions of insect harassment for barren-ground caribou in the Arctic Improving predictions of insect harassment for barren-ground caribou in the Arctic
Many populations of barren-ground caribou (Rangifer tarandus) have declined or are declining, which is concerning given their ecological role in Arctic ecosystems and their societal role in northern communities. Insect harassment is an important driver of the behavior, energetics, and demographic rates of caribou, and yet, due to challenges in predicting harassment, there is limited...
Authors
William H. Hein, Murray M. Humphries, Heather E. Johnson, Gabrielle L. Coulombe, Michael J. Suitor
Arctic Grayling, scared to death: Are Brown Trout an impediment to Arctic Grayling reintroduction success in Michigan? Arctic Grayling, scared to death: Are Brown Trout an impediment to Arctic Grayling reintroduction success in Michigan?
Introduction: Arctic Grayling Thymallus arcticus were extirpated from Michigan in 1936. Their demise was caused by over-fishing, habitat destruction from large-scale logging, and Brook Trout Salvelinus fontinalis and Brown Trout Salmo trutta. Subsequently, Brook and Brown trout have become the dominant salmonid species in Michigan streams. Past attempts to restore Grayling to Michigan...
Authors
Nicole M. Watson, Daniel B. Hayes, Troy G. Zorn
Petrologic and geochemical characterization of the first year of the 2024–ongoing episodic Halemaumau eruption of Kilauea (Episodes 1–39) Petrologic and geochemical characterization of the first year of the 2024–ongoing episodic Halemaumau eruption of Kilauea (Episodes 1–39)
Kīlauea has been erupting episodically since December 23, 2024 (and is ongoing at the time of this writing in 2026) with two consistently active vents in Halema‘uma‘u producing lava fountains ranging in height from 40 to 540 m. In the first year of the eruption (through December 24, 2025, episode 39), the U.S. Geological Survey's Hawaiian Volcano Observatory collected 178 samples for...
Authors
Kendra J. Lynn, Drew T. Downs, Meghann F.I. Decker, Lichen Forster, Heather Brianne Winslow, Elisabeth Gallant, Emily Renee Johnson, Christina N. Cauley, Dawn Catherine Sweeney Ruth, Kamalani K. Poepoe, Allan Lerner, Holly Valgardson, Charlotte DeVitre, Penny E. Wieser, Michael H. Zoeller, Brianna Lopez, Steven P. Lundblad
From transcriptomic dysregulation to behavioral impairment: Mechanistic effects of weathered Brazilian oil on early life stage fish From transcriptomic dysregulation to behavioral impairment: Mechanistic effects of weathered Brazilian oil on early life stage fish
The 2019–2020 oil spill along the northeastern coast of Brazil affected coastal reef ecosystems and the organisms that inhabit these environments. To characterize the toxicity of persistent weathered oil residues to early life stage fish, embryonic zebrafish (Danio rerio) were exposed to environmentally relevant concentrations of a water-accommodated fraction (WAF) prepared from...
Authors
Célio F. Mariz, Jason Tyler Magnuson, Paul S.M. Carvalho
Long-term trends of selected pesticides in the Little Arkansas River, south-central Kansas, 1995–2023 Long-term trends of selected pesticides in the Little Arkansas River, south-central Kansas, 1995–2023
The eastern part of the High Plains Aquifer, herein called the Equus beds aquifer, is currently a primary source of water (2026) for the city of Wichita, Kansas. The Equus Beds Aquifer Storage and Recovery Project was developed in the early 1990s to meet future water demands by using the Little Arkansas River as an artificial aquifer recharge water source during above-base-flow...
Authors
Mandy L. Stone, Brian J. Klager
Authoritative knowledge infrastructure for GeoAI: Implications for scientific spatial data providers Authoritative knowledge infrastructure for GeoAI: Implications for scientific spatial data providers
Geospatial Artificial Intelligence (GeoAI) increasingly relies on automated analysis of authoritative geospatial data, exposing limitations in data infrastructures originally designed for simple dissemination rather than for knowledge-driven use. From the perspective of scientific spatial data providers, the challenge is enabling GeoAI responsibly while retaining semantic clarity...
Authors
Samantha T. Arundel, Lilit Veghiazarian, Torsten Hahmann, Bryan B Campbell
Quantifying free-roaming horse body condition: A methodological investigation using game cameras and observer bias corrections Quantifying free-roaming horse body condition: A methodological investigation using game cameras and observer bias corrections
Large populations of free-roaming horses (Equus caballus) inhabit the western United States, Australia, and other arid and semi-arid rangelands globally. In the United States, horse body condition has been the impetus for gathering and removing horses under an emergency designation and has been noted as a common chronic mortality-causing condition. The Henneke body condition scoring (BCS...
Authors
Wade Lieurance, Karl Hoopes, Tamzen K. Stringham, David Stoner, John Derek Scasta, Jeffrey L. Beck, Kathryn A. Schoenecker, Eric Thacker, Alexander Hernandez