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Publications

These publications showcase the significant science conducted in our Science Centers.

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Evaluating water-quality trends in agricultural watersheds prioritized for management-practice implementation Evaluating water-quality trends in agricultural watersheds prioritized for management-practice implementation

Many agricultural watersheds rely on the voluntary use of management practices (MPs) to reduce nonpoint source nutrient and sediment loads; however, the water-quality effects of MPs are uncertain. We interpreted water-quality responses from as early as 1985 through 2020 in three agricultural Chesapeake Bay watersheds that were prioritized for MP implementation, namely, the Smith Creek...
Authors
James S. Webber, Jeffrey G. Chanat, John W. Clune, Olivia Devereux, Natalie Celeste Hall, Robert D. Sabo, Qian Zhang

Aligning renewable energy expansion with climate-driven range shifts Aligning renewable energy expansion with climate-driven range shifts

Fossil fuel dependence can be reduced, in part, by renewable energy expansion. Increasingly, renewable energy siting seeks to avoid significant impacts on biodiversity but rarely considers how species ranges will shift under climate change. Here we undertake a systematic literature review on the topic and overlay future renewable energy siting maps with the ranges of two threatened...
Authors
Uzma Ashraf, Toni Lyn Morelli, Adam B Smith, Rebecca Hernandez

Modeled coastal-ocean pathways of land-sourced contaminants in the aftermath of Hurricane Florence Modeled coastal-ocean pathways of land-sourced contaminants in the aftermath of Hurricane Florence

Extreme precipitation during Hurricane Florence, which made landfall in North Carolina in September 2018, led to breaches of hog waste lagoons, coal ash pits, and wastewater facilities. In the weeks following the storm, freshwater discharge carried pollutants, sediment, organic matter, and debris to the coastal ocean, contributing to beach closures, algae blooms, hypoxia, and other...
Authors
Melissa Moulton, Joseph B. Zambon, Zuo Xue, John C. Warner, Daoyang Bao, Dongxiao Yin, Zafer Defne, Ruoying He, Christie Hegermiller

Exploring landscape and geologic controls on spatial patterning of streambank groundwater discharge in a mixed land use watershed Exploring landscape and geologic controls on spatial patterning of streambank groundwater discharge in a mixed land use watershed

Preferential groundwater discharge features along stream corridors are ecologically important at local and stream network scales, yet we lack quantification of the multiscale controls on the spatial patterning of groundwater discharge. Here we identify physical attributes that best explain variation in the presence and lateral extent of preferential groundwater discharges along two 5th...
Authors
Kevin E. Jackson, Eric M. Moore, Ashley M. Helton, Adam B. Haynes, Janet R. Barclay, Martin A. Briggs

Development and calibration of HEC–RAS hydraulic, temperature, and nutrient models for the Mohawk River, New York Development and calibration of HEC–RAS hydraulic, temperature, and nutrient models for the Mohawk River, New York

In support of a preliminary analysis performed by New York State Department of Environmental Conservation that found elevated nutrient levels along selected reaches of the Mohawk River, a one-dimensional, unsteady hydraulic and water-quality model (Hydrologic Engineering Center River Analysis System Nutrient Simulation Module 1 [HEC–RAS NSM I]) was developed by the U.S. Geological Survey...
Authors
Thomas P. Suro, Michal J. Niemoczynski, Anna Boetsma

Revisiting the physical processes controlling the tropical atmospheric circulation changes during the Mid-Piacenzian Warm Period Revisiting the physical processes controlling the tropical atmospheric circulation changes during the Mid-Piacenzian Warm Period

The Mid-Piacenzian Warm Period (MPWP; 3.0–3.3 Ma), a warm geological period about three million years ago, has been deemed as a good past analog for understanding the current and future climate change. Based on 12 climate model outputs from Pliocene Model Intercomparison Project Phase 2 (PlioMIP2), we investigate tropical atmospheric circulation (TAC) changes under the warm MPWP and...
Authors
Ke Zhang, Yong Sun, Xuan Zhang, Christian Stepanek, Ran Feng, Daniel Hill, Gerrit Lohmann, Aisling M Dolan, Alan M Haywood, Ayako Abe-Ouchi, Bette Otto-Bliesner, Camille Contoux, Deepak Chandan, Gilles Ramstein, Harry J. Dowsett, Julia C. Tindall, Michiel Baatsen, Ning Tan, William Richard Peltier, Qiang Liu, Wing-Le Chan, Xin Wang, Xu Zhang

Monitoring of wave, current, and sediment dynamics along the Fog Point Living Shoreline, Glenn Martin National Wildlife Refuge, Maryland Monitoring of wave, current, and sediment dynamics along the Fog Point Living Shoreline, Glenn Martin National Wildlife Refuge, Maryland

Living shorelines with salt marsh species, rock breakwaters, and sand nourishment were built along the coastal areas in the Glenn Martin National Wildlife Refuge, Maryland, in 2016 in response to Hurricane Sandy (2012). The Fog Point living shoreline at Glenn Martin National Wildlife Refuge was designed with the “headland - breakwater - embayment” pattern. Scientists from the U.S...
Authors
H. Wang, Q. Chen, W.D. Capurso, N. Wang, L.M. Niemoczynski, M. Whitbeck, L. Zhu, Gregg A. Snedden, C.A. Wilson, M.S. Brownley

A brief note on substantial sub-daily arsenic variability in pumping drinking-water wells in New Hampshire A brief note on substantial sub-daily arsenic variability in pumping drinking-water wells in New Hampshire

Large variations in redox-related water parameters, like pH and dissolved oxygen (DO), have been documented in New Hampshire (United States) drinking-water wells over the course of a few hours under pumping conditions. These findings suggest that comparable sub-daily variability in dissolved concentrations of redox-reactive and toxic arsenic (As) also may occur, representing a...
Authors
Paul M. Bradley, Emily C. Hicks, Joseph P. Levitt, David C. Lloyd, Mhairi M. McDonald, Kristin M. Romanok, Kelly L. Smalling, Joseph D. Ayotte

Life-history connections to long-term fish population trends in a species-rich temperate river Life-history connections to long-term fish population trends in a species-rich temperate river

Fishes exhibit a diverse range of traits encompassing life-history strategies, feeding behaviours and spawning behaviours. These traits mediate fish population responses to changing environmental conditions such as those caused by anthropogenic stressors. The Conasauga River, located in northwestern Georgia and southeastern Tennessee, USA, hosts a diverse assemblage of over 75 species of
Authors
Andrew J. Nagy, Mary Freeman, Brian J. Irwin, Seth J. Wenger

Pesticides in small volume plasma samples: Method development and application to smallmouth bass (Micropterus dolomieu) from the Chesapeake Bay watershed, USA Pesticides in small volume plasma samples: Method development and application to smallmouth bass (Micropterus dolomieu) from the Chesapeake Bay watershed, USA

Nontarget organisms are exposed to pesticides following applications in agricultural and urban settings, potentially resulting in deleterious effects. Direct measurements of pesticides in biological tissues may aid in characterizing exposure, accumulation, and potential toxicity versus analyses in environmental media alone (e.g., water, soil, and air). Plasma represents a nonlethal...
Authors
Michael S. Gross, Vicki S. Blazer, Michelle L. Hladik

Short-term sediment dispersal on a large retreating coastal river delta via 234Th and 7Be sediment geochronology: The Mississippi River Delta Front Short-term sediment dispersal on a large retreating coastal river delta via 234Th and 7Be sediment geochronology: The Mississippi River Delta Front

Many Mississippi River Delta studies have shown recent declines in fluvial sediment load from the river and associated land loss. In contrast, recent sedimentary processes on the subaqueous delta are less documented. To help address this knowledge gap, multicores were collected offshore from the three main river outlets at water depths of 25–280 m in June 2017 just after the peak river...
Authors
Andrew Courtois, Samuel J. Bentley, Jillian Maloney, Kehui Xu, Jason Chaytor, Ioannis Y. Georgiou, Michael Miner, Jeffery Obelcz, Navid H. Jafari, Melanie Damour
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