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Mercer Parker

I am Geologist at the Florence Bascom Geoscience Center where I work under the New England Regional Bedrock Mapping Task as a geologic mapper and carbonate petrologist. 

May 2014 – Present United States Geological Survey, Florence Bascom Geoscience Center - Geologist

Perform preliminary petrographic analysis of rock and sediment samples.

Compile, organize, and produce digital images/files/data for use in publications.

Assist in organizing and leading field courses for students and professional geologists.

Education and Certifications

  • A.S. Geology, Northern Virginia Community College, 2014

  • B.S. Geology and Environmental Science, James Madison University, 2018 

  • MSc. Geoscience, Ohio University, 2023

Abstracts and Presentations

  • Parker, Mercer, Orndorff, Randall, C., Valley, Peter, M., Walsh, Gregory, J., 2023, A lithostratigraphic, biostratigraphic, and petrographic analysis of the Middle and Upper Ordovician strata in the southern Champlain Valley, New York, and a preliminary 1:24,000 scale geologic map of the Port Henry quadrangle, Geological Society of America Abstracts and Programs, v. 55, no. 2, doi:10.1130/abs/2023

Science and Products

Designation of a composite-stratotype section for the lower Paleocene (Danian) Brightseat Formation in Prince George’s County, Maryland, U.S.A.

The lower Paleocene (Danian) Brightseat Formation consists of fine-grained, dark-gray, micaceous sand and silty clay, with glauconite and abundant, but generally poorly preserved, fossils. The Brightseat Formation represents deposition of lower, but not lowermost, Paleocene sediments that were deposited on the middle to outer shelf of what is now the Atlantic Coastal Plain. A basal disconformity s
Authors
Jean Self-Trail, Mercer Parker, David L. Govoni, Laurel M. Bybell, Kristina Frank Gardner, Gregory S. Gohn
By
Florence Bascom Geoscience Center

Hydrogeology, karst, and groundwater availability of Monroe County, West Virginia

Monroe County is in southeastern West Virginia, encompassing an area of 474 square miles. The area consists of karst and siliciclastic aquifers of Ordovician, Silurian, Devonian, and Mississippian age and is in parts of two physiographic provinces: the Valley and Ridge Province to the east of Peters Mountain, and the Appalachian Plateau Province to the west of Peters Mountain. This study was devel
Authors
Mark D. Kozar, Daniel H. Doctor, William K. Jones, Nathan Chien, Cheyenne E. Cox, Randall C. Orndorff, David J. Weary, Mitchell R. Weaver, Mitchell A. McAdoo, Mercer Parker
By
Virginia and West Virginia Water Science Center

Geology and biostratigraphy of the Upper Floridan aquifer in the greater Savannah region, Georgia and South Carolina

The Upper Floridan aquifer (UFA) of South Carolina, Georgia, Alabama, Mississippi, and Florida has been considered a regionally continuous stratigraphic sequence of Eocene to Miocene carbonate strata, with documented unconformities based on lithology and biostratigraphy.  As part of an investigation of the regional subsurface geologic framework in the Atlantic Coastal Plain Province, three deep co
Authors
Jean Self-Trail, Mercer Parker, John T. Haynes, Arthur P. Schultz, Paul. F. Huddleston
By
Florence Bascom Geoscience Center

Chesapeake Bay impact structure—Development of "brim" sedimentation in a multilayered marine target

The late Eocene Chesapeake Bay impact structure was formed in a multilayered target of seawater underlain sequentially by a sediment layer and a rock layer in a continental-shelf environment. Impact effects in the “brim” (annular trough) surrounding and adjacent to the transient crater, between the transient crater rim and the outer margin, primarily were limited to the target-sediment layer. Anal
Authors
Henning Dypvik, Gregory Gohn, Lucy Edwards, J. Wright Horton,, David Powars, Ronald Litwin
By
Florence Bascom Geoscience Center

A brief geological history of Cockspur Island at Fort Pulaski National Monument, Chatham County, Georgia

Fort Pulaski National Monument is located on Cockspur Island in Chatham County, Georgia, within the Atlantic Coastal Plain province. The island lies near the mouth of the Savannah River, and consists of small mounds (hummocks), salt marshes, and sediment dredged from the river. A 1,017-foot (ft) (310-meter [m])-deep core drilled at Cockspur Island in 2010 by the U.S. Geological Survey revealed sev
Authors
Christopher S. Swezey, Ellen Seefelt, Mercer Parker
By
Energy Resources Program, Geology, Energy & Minerals Science Center

Non-USGS Publications**

François, Camille, Pubellier, Manuel, Robert, Christian, Zahirovic, S., St-Onge, M., Orndorff, Randall, Parker, Mercer, Porter, D., Oberhansli, R., Gomez-Tapias, J., Mateus-Zabala, D., Delvaux, D., Akame, J., Jamaludin, S., Tugend, J. and Sautter, B., 2024, Orogenic deformation and kinematic reconstructions – Is there a good match?: International Union of Geological Sciences, 37th International Geological Congress, Busan, South Korea, Abstracts, Keynote address, p 4538-4539.

**Disclaimer: The views expressed in Non-USGS publications are those of the author and do not represent the views of the USGS, Department of the Interior, or the U.S. Government.

link
Team of scientists stand in front of outcrop

Appalachian Basin Geologic Mapping Project

The Appalachian Basin Geologic Mapping Project performs geologic mapping at local and regional scales, and geologic research in The Valley and Ridge and Appalachian Plateaus physiographic provinces. These provinces include parts of 11 states and mainly borders the Blue Ridge / Piedmont and North Interior Lowlands Provinces. Only one state has Valley and Ridge geology (NJ), two have Appalachian...
By
Core Science Systems Mission Area, Water Resources Mission Area, National Cooperative Geologic Mapping Program, Florence Bascom Geoscience Center
link

Appalachian Basin Geologic Mapping Project

The Appalachian Basin Geologic Mapping Project performs geologic mapping at local and regional scales, and geologic research in The Valley and Ridge and Appalachian Plateaus physiographic provinces. These provinces include parts of 11 states and mainly borders the Blue Ridge / Piedmont and North Interior Lowlands Provinces. Only one state has Valley and Ridge geology (NJ), two have Appalachian...
Learn More
two people standing outside taking notes
Geologists taking field notes
Geologists taking field notes
two people standing outside taking notes

Geologists taking field notes

Geologists taking field notes

USGS Geologists Jean Self-Trail and Mercer Parker taking field notes, Prince George’s County

By
Florence Bascom Geoscience Center
two people standing outside taking notes

Geologists taking field notes

Geologists taking field notes

USGS Geologists Jean Self-Trail and Mercer Parker taking field notes, Prince George’s County

By
Florence Bascom Geoscience Center
two people measuring a rock outcrop, one is on a ladder
Geologists measuring and sampling the Paleocene Aquia Formation, Prince George’s County, Maryland
Geologists measuring and sampling the Paleocene Aquia Formation, Prince George’s County, Maryland
two people measuring a rock outcrop, one is on a ladder

Geologists measuring and sampling the Paleocene Aquia Formation, Prince George’s County, Maryland

Geologists measuring and sampling the Paleocene Aquia Formation, Prince George’s County, Maryland

USGS geologists Jean Self-Trail and Mercer Parker measuring and sampling the Paleocene Aquia Formation, Prince George’s County, Maryland

By
Florence Bascom Geoscience Center, Florence Bascom Geoscience Center
two people measuring a rock outcrop, one is on a ladder

Geologists measuring and sampling the Paleocene Aquia Formation, Prince George’s County, Maryland

Geologists measuring and sampling the Paleocene Aquia Formation, Prince George’s County, Maryland

USGS geologists Jean Self-Trail and Mercer Parker measuring and sampling the Paleocene Aquia Formation, Prince George’s County, Maryland

By
Florence Bascom Geoscience Center, Florence Bascom Geoscience Center

Science and Products

Designation of a composite-stratotype section for the lower Paleocene (Danian) Brightseat Formation in Prince George’s County, Maryland, U.S.A.

The lower Paleocene (Danian) Brightseat Formation consists of fine-grained, dark-gray, micaceous sand and silty clay, with glauconite and abundant, but generally poorly preserved, fossils. The Brightseat Formation represents deposition of lower, but not lowermost, Paleocene sediments that were deposited on the middle to outer shelf of what is now the Atlantic Coastal Plain. A basal disconformity s
Authors
Jean Self-Trail, Mercer Parker, David L. Govoni, Laurel M. Bybell, Kristina Frank Gardner, Gregory S. Gohn
By
Florence Bascom Geoscience Center

Hydrogeology, karst, and groundwater availability of Monroe County, West Virginia

Monroe County is in southeastern West Virginia, encompassing an area of 474 square miles. The area consists of karst and siliciclastic aquifers of Ordovician, Silurian, Devonian, and Mississippian age and is in parts of two physiographic provinces: the Valley and Ridge Province to the east of Peters Mountain, and the Appalachian Plateau Province to the west of Peters Mountain. This study was devel
Authors
Mark D. Kozar, Daniel H. Doctor, William K. Jones, Nathan Chien, Cheyenne E. Cox, Randall C. Orndorff, David J. Weary, Mitchell R. Weaver, Mitchell A. McAdoo, Mercer Parker
By
Virginia and West Virginia Water Science Center

Geology and biostratigraphy of the Upper Floridan aquifer in the greater Savannah region, Georgia and South Carolina

The Upper Floridan aquifer (UFA) of South Carolina, Georgia, Alabama, Mississippi, and Florida has been considered a regionally continuous stratigraphic sequence of Eocene to Miocene carbonate strata, with documented unconformities based on lithology and biostratigraphy.  As part of an investigation of the regional subsurface geologic framework in the Atlantic Coastal Plain Province, three deep co
Authors
Jean Self-Trail, Mercer Parker, John T. Haynes, Arthur P. Schultz, Paul. F. Huddleston
By
Florence Bascom Geoscience Center

Chesapeake Bay impact structure—Development of "brim" sedimentation in a multilayered marine target

The late Eocene Chesapeake Bay impact structure was formed in a multilayered target of seawater underlain sequentially by a sediment layer and a rock layer in a continental-shelf environment. Impact effects in the “brim” (annular trough) surrounding and adjacent to the transient crater, between the transient crater rim and the outer margin, primarily were limited to the target-sediment layer. Anal
Authors
Henning Dypvik, Gregory Gohn, Lucy Edwards, J. Wright Horton,, David Powars, Ronald Litwin
By
Florence Bascom Geoscience Center

A brief geological history of Cockspur Island at Fort Pulaski National Monument, Chatham County, Georgia

Fort Pulaski National Monument is located on Cockspur Island in Chatham County, Georgia, within the Atlantic Coastal Plain province. The island lies near the mouth of the Savannah River, and consists of small mounds (hummocks), salt marshes, and sediment dredged from the river. A 1,017-foot (ft) (310-meter [m])-deep core drilled at Cockspur Island in 2010 by the U.S. Geological Survey revealed sev
Authors
Christopher S. Swezey, Ellen Seefelt, Mercer Parker
By
Energy Resources Program, Geology, Energy & Minerals Science Center

Non-USGS Publications**

François, Camille, Pubellier, Manuel, Robert, Christian, Zahirovic, S., St-Onge, M., Orndorff, Randall, Parker, Mercer, Porter, D., Oberhansli, R., Gomez-Tapias, J., Mateus-Zabala, D., Delvaux, D., Akame, J., Jamaludin, S., Tugend, J. and Sautter, B., 2024, Orogenic deformation and kinematic reconstructions – Is there a good match?: International Union of Geological Sciences, 37th International Geological Congress, Busan, South Korea, Abstracts, Keynote address, p 4538-4539.

**Disclaimer: The views expressed in Non-USGS publications are those of the author and do not represent the views of the USGS, Department of the Interior, or the U.S. Government.

link
Team of scientists stand in front of outcrop

Appalachian Basin Geologic Mapping Project

The Appalachian Basin Geologic Mapping Project performs geologic mapping at local and regional scales, and geologic research in The Valley and Ridge and Appalachian Plateaus physiographic provinces. These provinces include parts of 11 states and mainly borders the Blue Ridge / Piedmont and North Interior Lowlands Provinces. Only one state has Valley and Ridge geology (NJ), two have Appalachian...
By
Core Science Systems Mission Area, Water Resources Mission Area, National Cooperative Geologic Mapping Program, Florence Bascom Geoscience Center
link

Appalachian Basin Geologic Mapping Project

The Appalachian Basin Geologic Mapping Project performs geologic mapping at local and regional scales, and geologic research in The Valley and Ridge and Appalachian Plateaus physiographic provinces. These provinces include parts of 11 states and mainly borders the Blue Ridge / Piedmont and North Interior Lowlands Provinces. Only one state has Valley and Ridge geology (NJ), two have Appalachian...
Learn More
two people standing outside taking notes
Geologists taking field notes
Geologists taking field notes
two people standing outside taking notes

Geologists taking field notes

Geologists taking field notes

USGS Geologists Jean Self-Trail and Mercer Parker taking field notes, Prince George’s County

By
Florence Bascom Geoscience Center
two people standing outside taking notes

Geologists taking field notes

Geologists taking field notes

USGS Geologists Jean Self-Trail and Mercer Parker taking field notes, Prince George’s County

By
Florence Bascom Geoscience Center
two people measuring a rock outcrop, one is on a ladder
Geologists measuring and sampling the Paleocene Aquia Formation, Prince George’s County, Maryland
Geologists measuring and sampling the Paleocene Aquia Formation, Prince George’s County, Maryland
two people measuring a rock outcrop, one is on a ladder

Geologists measuring and sampling the Paleocene Aquia Formation, Prince George’s County, Maryland

Geologists measuring and sampling the Paleocene Aquia Formation, Prince George’s County, Maryland

USGS geologists Jean Self-Trail and Mercer Parker measuring and sampling the Paleocene Aquia Formation, Prince George’s County, Maryland

By
Florence Bascom Geoscience Center, Florence Bascom Geoscience Center
two people measuring a rock outcrop, one is on a ladder

Geologists measuring and sampling the Paleocene Aquia Formation, Prince George’s County, Maryland

Geologists measuring and sampling the Paleocene Aquia Formation, Prince George’s County, Maryland

USGS geologists Jean Self-Trail and Mercer Parker measuring and sampling the Paleocene Aquia Formation, Prince George’s County, Maryland

By
Florence Bascom Geoscience Center, Florence Bascom Geoscience Center
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