Frederick D Day-Lewis
Fred Day-Lewis is the Acting Chief and a Research Hydrologist with the Hydrogeophysics Branch of the USGS Water Resources Mission Area Earth System Processes Division. Fred provides leadership to USGS hydrologists nationally on hydrogeophysical methods, and conducts research on groundwater/surface-water interaction and fractured-rock hydrology.
Biography
Fred Day-Lewis, Ph.D., is Research Hydrologist with the Hydrogeophysics Branch of the USGS Water Resources Mission Area Earth System Processes Division. Fred provides leadership to USGS hydrologists nationally on development and application of hydrogeophysical methods to USGS groundwater studies through applied research, training, and technology transfer.
Fred is also currently Acting Chief of the Hydrogeophysics Branch, providing oversight and guidance on the Branch’s applied research, technical support, and technology transfer programs utilizing borehole, surface, waterborne, and airborne geophysical methods for USGS groundwater studies.
Fred conducts applied research on characterization, monitoring, and understanding of hydrologic processes, with current emphases on groundwater/surface-water interactions and fractured rock. Recent activities include studies to improve understanding of hyporheic zone processes and measurement of properties controlling contaminant storage in geologic materials through the application of electrical resistivity and distributed temperature sensing methods. As part of this work, Fred also develops software for improved analysis and visualization of related data (1DTempPro, DTSGUI, FLASH-R).
As part of his technology transfer work, Fred collaborates with state and federal partners including SERDP, ESTCP, DOE, EPA, and others to support informed decision making on the selection and application of hydrogeophysical tools and methods. Fred also develops decision support tools (SEER, FRGT-MST) to help practitioners and environmental site managers identify near-surface geophysical methods appropriate for a given project’s goals and site conditions.
Science and Products
Fiber-Optic Distributed Temperature Sensing Technology Demonstration and Evaluation Project
Fiber-optic distributed temperature sensing (FO-DTS) is an emerging technology that has promise for characterizing estuary-aquifer and stream-aquifer interaction and for identifying transmissive fractures in bedrock boreholes.
Geophysics for USGS Groundwater/Surface Water Interaction Studies
Understanding the interaction of groundwater and surface water is essential to water managers and hydrologists for the development of effective water-resource policy, protection, and management. The USGS conducts applied research to evaluate the use of new or emerging hydrogeophysical tools and methods to improve our understanding of groundwater/surface-water exchange.
Optimized Enhanced Bioremediation through 4D Geophysical Monitoring and Autonomous Data Collection, Processing, and Analysis
The USGS Office of Ground Water, Branch of Geophysics (OGW BG) is collaborating on an applied research project to evaluate the use of new hydrogeophysical tools to remotely monitor and visualize subsurface bioremediation amendment emplacement and transport in near real-time. The project, funded by the U.S. Department of Defense Environmental Security Technology Certification Program, could...
Fiber-Optic Distributed Temperature Sensing in Waquoit Bay, Massachusetts
In 2006 the USGS Office of Groundwater, Branch of Geophysics (OGW BG) conducted a technology demonstration and evaluation project in Waquoit Bay, East Falmouth, Massachusetts, to evaluate the use of fiber-optic distributed temperature sensing (FO-DTS). In this project, the USGS used FO-DTS to investigate aquifer-estuary interaction by monitoring submarine groundwater discharge in Waquoit Bay....
Hydrogeochemical data for the characterization of stream, groundwater, and beaver-induced floodplain exchange in the East River Science Focus Area, Crested Butte, CO
The U.S. Geological Survey, along with scientists from Rutgers University, collected water chemistry, electromagnetic, redox-potential, dissolved oxygen, water flow rate, and water temperature data along stream and river corridors in multiple sub-watersheds of the East River Science Focus Area (SFA) near Crested Butte, CO. The concept of ‘river corridor’ scienc
Electrical geophysical data collected in the shallow sediments of Snake Pond, Cape Cod, USA
Quantification of mobile/less-mobile porosity dynamics at the sediment/water interface is critical to predicting contaminant storage, release, and transformation processes. Zones in groundwater flow-through lakes where lake water recharges the aquifer can strongly control aquifer water quality. Less-mobile porosity has previously been characterized in aquifers using flow path scale (10%
Bulk electrical conductivity data
Tracking changes in bulk electrical conductivity (EC) during tracer tests in saturated sediments allows for direct observation of both mobile and less-mobile pore space exchange dynamics. Electrode arrays made up of four stainless steel rods (insulated with the exception of exposed 0.5 cm tips) were installed vertically at depths of interest and apparent electrical resistivity data (the
Fluid electrical conductivity data
When water is pumped slowly from saturated sediment-water inteface sediments, the more highly connected, mobile porosity domain is prefferentially sampled, compared to less-mobile pore spaces. Changes in fluid electrical conductivity (EC) during controlled downward ionic tracer injections into interface sediments can be assumed to represent mobile porosity dynamics, which are therefor
Example data from MoisturEC: a new R program for moisture content estimation from electrical conductivity data
This dataset includes example data used for demonstration of the moisturEC program. This includes inverted electrical resistivity data, model resolution from the inversion, point moisture information, and conductivity-saturation calibration information. The data are from a field site in Coventry, CT outfitted with five, Decagon 5TE moisture probes, arranged along a 28 m transect at
Model data for pore network modeling of the electrical signature of solute transport in dual-domain media, U.S. Geological Survey data release: U.S. Geological Survey data release
Pore network simulations were performed to investigate the electrical geophysical
signature of solute-transport in dual-domain media. This data release includes model
results, source code, and laboratory data used in the accompanying paper, as
explained in the upper-level "readme" file.
Formation criteria for hyporheic anoxic microzones: Assessing interactions of hydraulics, nutrients and biofilms
Recent experimental studies have detected the presence of anoxic microzones in hyporheic sediments. These microzones are small‐scale anoxic pores, embedded within oxygen‐rich porous media and can act as anaerobic reaction sites producing reduction compounds such as nitrous oxide, a potent greenhouse gas. Microbes are a key control on nutrient...
Chowdhury, S.R.; Zarnetske, J.; Phanikumar, M.S.; Briggs, Martin A.; Day-Lewis, Frederick D.; Singha, K. Geophysical mapping of plume discharge to surface water at a crude oil spill site: Inversion versus machine learning
The interpretation of geophysical survey results to answer hydrologic, engineering, and geologic questions is critical to diverse problems for management of water, energy, and mineral resources. Although geophysical images provide valuable qualitative insight into subsurface architecture and conditions, translating geophysical images into...
Terry, Neil; Day-Lewis, Frederick D.; Lane, Jr., John W.; Trost, Jared J.; Bekins, Barbara A. Return flows from beaver ponds enhance floodplain-to-river metals exchange in alluvial mountain catchments
River to floodplain hydrologic connectivity is strongly enhanced by beaver- (Castor canadensis) engineered channel water diversions. The hydroecological impacts are wide ranging and generally positive, however, the hydrogeochemical characteristics of beaver-induced flowpaths have not been thoroughly examined. Using a suite of complementary ground...
Briggs, Martin; Wang, Cheng-Hui; Day-Lewis, Frederick; Williams, Kenneth H.; Dong, Wenming; Lane, John Residence time controls on the fate of nitrogen in flow‐through lakebed sediments
For many glacial lakes with highly permeable sediments, water exchange rates control hydrologic residence times within the sediment‐water interface (SWI) and the removal of reactive compounds such as nitrate, a common pollutant in lakes and groundwater. Here we conducted a series of focused tracer injection experiments in the upper 20 cm of...
Hampton, Tyler B.; Zarentske, Jay P.; Briggs, Martin A.; Singha, Kamini; Harvey, Judson W.; Day-Lewis, Frederick D.; Dehkordy, Farzaneh MahmoodPoor; Lane, John W. Multi-scale preferential flow processes in an urban streambed under variable hydraulic conditions
Spatially preferential flow processes occur at nested scales at the sediment-water interface (SWI), due in part to sediment heterogeneities, which may be enhanced in flashy urban streams with heavy road sand influence. However, several factors, including the flow-rate dependence of preferential hyporheic flow and discrete groundwater discharge...
Dehkordy, Farzaneh MahmoodPoor; Briggs, Martin A.; Day-Lewis, Frederick D.; Singha, Kamini; Krajnovich, Ashton; Hampton, Tyler B.; Zarnetske, Jay P.; Scruggs, Courtney R.; Bagtzoglou, Amvrossios C. The dual‐domain porosity apparatus: Characterizing dual porosity at the sediment/water interface
The characterization of pore-space connectivity in porous media at the sediment/water interface is critical to understanding contaminant transport and reactive biogeochemical processes in zones of groundwater and surface-water exchange. Previous in situ studies of dual-domain (i.e., mobile/less-mobile porosity) studies have been limited to...
Scruggs, Courtney R.; Briggs, Martin A.; Day-Lewis, Frederick D.; Werkema, Dale D.; Lane, Jr., John W. Evaluating long-term patterns of decreasing groundwater discharge through a lake-bottom permeable reactive barrier
Identifying and quantifying groundwater exchange is critical when considering contaminant fate and transport at the groundwater/surface-water interface. In this paper, areally distributed temperature and point seepage measurements are used to efficiently assess spatial and temporal groundwater discharge patterns through a glacial-kettle lakebed...
McCobb, Timothy D.; Briggs, Martin A.; LeBlanc, Denis R.; Day-Lewis, Frederick D.; Johnson, Carole D. Direct observations of hydrologic exchange occurring with less‐mobile porosity and the development of anoxic microzones in sandy lakebed sediments
Quantifying coupled mobile/less‐mobile porosity dynamics is critical to the prediction of biogeochemical storage, release, and transformation processes in the zone where groundwater and surface water exchange. The recent development of fine‐scale geoelectrical monitoring paired with pore‐water sampling in groundwater systems enables direct...
Briggs, Martin A.; Day-Lewis, Frederick D.; Dehkordy, Farzaneh Mahmood Poor; Hampton, Tyler B.; Zarnetske, Jay P.; Scruggs, Courtney R.; Singha, Kamini; Harvey, Judson W.; Lane, Jr., John W. Simulation of less‐mobile porosity dynamics in contrasting sediment water interface porous media
Considering heterogeneity in porous media pore size and connectivity is essential to predicting reactive solute transport across interfaces. However, exchange with less‐mobile porosity is rarely considered in surface water/groundwater recharge studies. Previous research indicates that a combination of pore‐fluid sampling and geoelectrical...
Dehkordy, Farzaneh MahmoodPoor; Briggs, Martin A.; Day-Lewis, Frederick D.; Bagtzoglou, Amvrossios C. MoisturEC: a new R program for moisture content estimation from electrical conductivity data
Noninvasive geophysical estimation of soil moisture has potential to improve understanding of flow in the unsaturated zone for problems involving agricultural management, aquifer recharge, and optimization of landfill design and operations. In principle, several geophysical techniques (e.g., electrical resistivity, electromagnetic induction, and...
Terry, Neil; Day-Lewis, Frederick D.; Werkema, Dale D.; Lane, John W. Scenario Evaluator for Electrical Resistivity survey pre-modeling tool
Geophysical tools have much to offer users in environmental, water resource, and geotechnical fields; however, techniques such as electrical resistivity imaging (ERI) are often oversold and/or overinterpreted due to a lack of understanding of the limitations of the techniques, such as the appropriate depth intervals or resolution of the methods....
Terry, Neil; Day-Lewis, Frederick D.; Robinson, Judith L.; Slater, Lee D.; Halford, Keith J.; Binley, Andrew; Lane, John W.; Werkema, Dale D. Surface geophysical methods for characterising frozen ground in transitional permafrost landscapes
The distribution of shallow frozen ground is paramount to research in cold regions, and is subject to temporal and spatial changes influenced by climate, landscape disturbance and ecosystem succession. Remote sensing from airborne and satellite platforms is increasing our understanding of landscape-scale permafrost distribution, but typically...
Briggs, Martin A.; Campbell, Seth; Nolan, Jay; Walvoord, Michelle Ann; Ntarlagiannis, Dimitrios; Day-Lewis, Frederick D.; Lane, John W.
FLASH-R: Flow-Log Analysis of Single Holes
FLASH-R (Flow-Log Analysis of Single Holes) is an R app for the analysis of borehole vertical flow logs to estimate fracture (or layer) transmissivities and far-field hydraulic heads.
DTSGUI
DTSGUI is a USGS software tool to import, manage, parse/cull, georeference, analyze and visualize fiber-optic distributed temperature sensor data.
MoisturEC: R-based GUI to combine electrical conductivity data with point moisture measurements
MoisturEC is an R-based GUI used to combine electrical conductivity (EC) data with point moisture measurements for an updated moisture estimate capitalizing on the accuracy of point moisture measurements and the spatial coverage of EC data.
Scenario Evaluator for Electrical Resistivity (SEER) Survey Pre-Modeling Tool
The USGS Scenario Evaluator for Electrical Resistivity (SEER) is a quick and simple Excel-based decision support tool practitioners can use to assess the likely outcome of using two-dimensional (2D) electrical resistivity imaging for site characterization and remediation monitoring.
Fractured Rock Geophysical Toolbox Method Selection Tool (FRGT-MST)
The Fractured Rock Geophysical Toolbox Method Selection Tool (FRGT-MST) is an Excel-based tool for identification of geophysical methods most likely to be appropriate for project goals and site conditions.
1DTempPro: A program for analysis of vertical one-dimensional (1D) temperature profiles
1DTempPro is a computer program for the analysis of one-dimensional vertical temperature profiles.
FLASH: A Computer Program for Flow-Log Analysis of Single Holes
FLASH (Flow-Log Analysis of Single Holes) is a computer program for the analysis of borehole vertical flow logs.