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These are results 1 through 21 of 21 matches.

Publication
Scientific Investigations Report 2009-5116: Topographic Change Detection at Select Archeological Sites in Grand Canyon National Park, Arizona, 2006�2007

Description: Topographic change of archeological sites within the Colorado River corridor of Grand Canyon National Park (GCNP) is a subject of interest to National Park Service managers and other stakeholders in the Glen Canyon Dam Adaptive Management Program. Although long-term topographic change resulting from a variety of natural processes is typical in the Grand Canyon region, a continuing debate exists on whether and how controlled releases from Glen Canyon Dam, located immediately upstream of GCNP, are impacting rates of site erosion, artifact transport, and the preservation of archeological resources. Continued erosion of archeological sites threatens both the archeological resources and our future ability to study evidence of past cultural habitation. Understanding the causes and effects of archaeological site erosion requires a knowledge of several factors including the location and magnitude of the changes occurring in relation to archeological resources, the rate of the changes, and the relative contribution of several potential causes, including sediment depletion associated with managed flows from Glen Canyon Dam, site-specific weather patterns, visitor impacts, and long-term climate change. To obtain this information, highly accurate, spatially specific data are needed from sites undergoing change. Using terrestrial lidar data collection techniques and novel TIN- and GRID-based change-detection post-processing methods, we analyzed topographic data for nine archeological sites. The data were collected using three separate data collection efforts spanning 16 months (May 2006 to September 2007). Our results documented positive evidence of erosion, deposition, or both at six of the nine sites investigated during this time interval. In addition, we observed possible signs of change at two of the other sites. Erosion was concentrated in established gully drainages and averaged 12 cm to 17 cm in depth with maximum depths of 50 cm. Deposition was concentrated at specific locations outside of drainages but generally was spread over larger areas (tens to hundreds of square meters). Maximum depths of deposition averaged 12 cm to 15 cm and reached as much as 35 cm. Overall, we found that the spatial distribution and magnitudes of surface change are specific to each site and that a thorough understanding of the geomorphology, weather, and sand supply is requisite for a complete understanding of the data. Additional work in combining these results with site-specific weather, hydrology, and geomorphology data will assist in the development of working models for determining the causes of the documented topographic changes.
updated: 2009-06-16 pages include:

Map
National Seafloor Mapping and Characterization

Description: Images of the sea floor off the coasts of California, Hawaii, Florida, Mississippi, Alabama, Texas, Louisiana, and Washington; images of lake floor of Lake Michigan, Crater Lake, Lake Tahoe. Backscatter and swath bathymetry, regular and in 3-D view.
updated: 2009-05-11 pages include:

Publication
Professional Paper 1756: The Role of Eolian Sediment in the Preservation of Archeologic Sites Along the Colorado River Corridor in Grand Canyon National Park, Arizona

Description: This report summarizes a 3-year study of eolian sedimentary processes in the Colorado River corridor, Grand Canyon National Park, Ariz., and discusses the relevance of those processes to the preservation of archeologic sites. The results reported here are based on detailed sedimentologic and geomorphologic investigations in three reaches of the river corridor, as well as continuous measurements of wind, rainfall, and sand transport at six sites for as long as 26 months, short-term field study at 35 other sites, examination of historical aerial photographs, and review of data collected and analyzed during previous studies. The data generated by this study, which involved collaboration with scientists of the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) Grand Canyon Monitoring and Research Center, the National Park Service, Northern Arizona University, the Hopi Tribe, and GeoArch, Inc., were previously published by Draut and Rubin (2005, 2006, 2008) and Draut and others (2005, in press). This report, which supersedes that by Draut and Rubin (2007), provides an overview of the results and contains new conclusions regarding eolian sedimentary processes in the Colorado River ecosystem and their relevance to the preservation of archeologic sites.
updated: 2008-09-24 pages include:

Publication
Open-File Report 2007-1216: Side-scan Sonar Imaging of the Colorado River, Grand Canyon

Description: This paper presents data collection methods and side-scan sonar data collected along the Colorado River in Grand Canyon in August and September of 2000. The purpose of the data collection effort was to image the distribution of sand between Glen Canyon Dam and river mile 87.4 before and after the 31,600 cfs flow of September 6-8. The side-scan sonar imaging focused on pools between rapids but included smaller rapids where possible.
updated: 2008-01-11 pages include:

Educational Materials
USGS Coastal Change Hazards

Description: USGS Coastal Change Hazards - Focuses on hurricanes, tsunamis, sea-level rise, shoreline erosion, wetland destruction, and other issues relevant to coastal zone management and disaster preparedness.
updated: 2008-01-01 pages include:

Educational Materials
Coastal and Marine Knowledge Bank

Description: An initiative to develop and present a national-scale, interdisciplinary scientific framework for marine environments, the coastal zone, and coastal watersheds
updated: 2007-11-28 pages include:

Publication
Open-File Report 2007-1001: The Role of Aeolian Sediment in the Preservation of Archaeological Sites in the Colorado River Corridor, Grand Canyon, Arizona: Final Report on Research Activities, 2003-2006

Description: This report summarizes a three-year study of aeolian sedimentary processes in the Colorado River corridor, Grand Canyon, Arizona, and discusses the relevance of those processes to the preservation of archaeological sites. Findings are based upon detailed sedimentary and geomorphic investigations conducted in three areas of the river corridor, continuous measurements of wind, precipitation, and aeolian sediment transport at six locations for up to 26 months, short-term field study at 35 other sites, examination of historical aerial photographs, and review of data collected and analyzed by previous studies. Detailed results of this study, which involved collaboration with scientists at the Grand Canyon Monitoring and Research Center, National Park Service, Northern Arizona University, the Hopi Tribe, and GeoArch, Inc., have been published previously in topical USGS Open-File Reports (Draut and Rubin, 2005, 2006), a USGS Scientific Investigations Report (Draut and others, 2005), and will be discussed in two forthcoming journal articles. This report serves as an overview of the results and contains new conclusions regarding aeolian sedimentary processes in the Colorado River Ecosystem and their relevance to many archaeological sites.
updated: 2007-03-20 pages include:

Publication
Surficial Geology and Analysis, post-impoundment sediment, Lake Mohave, USGS OF 2004-1256, Title Page

Description: This USGS Open-File Report contains the results and analysis of post-impoundment sedimentation of the Lake Mahove reservoir based on a sidescan sonar mosaic and seismic-reflection profiles.
updated: 2006-10-20 pages include:

Publication
Open-File Report 2006-1188: Measurements of Wind, Aeolian Sand Transport, and Precipitation in the Colorado River Corridor, Grand Canyon, Arizona; January 2005 to January 2006

Description: This report presents measurements of aeolian sediment-transport rates, wind speed and direction, and precipitation records from six locations that contain aeolian deposits in the Colorado River corridor through Grand Canyon, Grand Canyon National Park, Arizona. Aeolian deposits, many of which contain and preserve archaeological material, are an important part of the Grand Canyon ecosystem. This report contains data collected between January 2005 and January 2006, and is the second in a series; the first contained data that were collected between November 2003 and December 2004.
updated: 2006-07-27 pages include:

Research Project
Research Projects: Coastal Evolution: Process-based Multi-scale Modeling - USGS WCMG

Description: Description of research project.
updated: 2006-07-15 pages include:

Research Project
Research Projects: Coastal Watershed Restoration - USGS WCMG

Description: Description of research project.
updated: 2006-01-31 pages include:

Research Project
Research Projects: Coastal and Marine Catastrophic Hazards - USGS WCMG

Description: Description of research project.
updated: 2005-07-25 pages include:

General Information
USGS Open-File Report 03-320, Mapping the floor of Lake Mead (Nevada and Arizona): Preliminary discussion and GIS data release, Title Page

Description: This USGS Open-File Report describes the morphology of the floor of Lake Mead concentrating on post-impoundment sediment distribution and thickness.
updated: 2004-05-07 pages include:

Publication
USGS OFR 03-265 - Grand Canyon Riverbed Sediment Changes, Experimental Release of September 2000 - A Sample Data Set

Description: An experimental water release from the Glen Canyon Dam into the Colorado River above Grand Canyon was conducted in September 2000 by the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation. The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) conducted sidescan sonar surveys between Glen Canyon Dam (mile -15) and Diamond Creek (mile 220), Arizona (mile designations after Stevens, 1998) to determine the sediment characteristics of the Colorado River bed before and after the release. The first survey (R3-00-GC, 28 Aug to 5 Sep 2000) was conducted before the release when the river was at its Low Summer Steady Flow (LSSF) of 8,000 cfs. The second survey (R4-00-GC, 10 to 18 Sep 2000) was conducted immediately after the September 2000 experimental release when the average daily flow was as high as 30,800 cfs as measured below Glen Canyon Dam (Figure 2). Riverbed sediment properties interpreted from the sidescan sonar images include sediment type and sandwaves; overall changes in these properties between the two surveys were calculated.
updated: 2003-10-29 pages include:

Publication
Fact Sheet 020-98: Popular Beach Disappears Underwater in Huge Coastal Landslide--Sleeping Bear Dunes, Michigan

Description: In February 1995, a 1,600-foot stretch of popular beach at Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore suddenly slid into the waters of northeastern Lake Michigan. The National Park Service (NPS) immediately requested the assistance of the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) in evaluating the hazard at the lakeshore. To protect the public, USGS and NPS scientists are conducting studies that will help predict when the landslide-prone area will move again
updated: 2003-03-18 pages include:

General Information
USGS - Lake Pontchartrain Geochemistry

Description: Lake Pontchartrain, as the largest estuary in southern Louisiana, is an important recreational, commercial, and environmental resource for New Orleans, southeastern Louisiana, and the Nation. This publication is one of the products resulting from a 5-year cooperative program started in 1995 by the U.S. Geological Survey (http://coastal.er.usgs.gov/pontchartrain/). The program is focused on the geological framework and sedimentary processes of the Lake Pontchartrain Basin. Detailed documentation of selected aspects of the cooperative program are provided here.
updated: 2002-10-16 pages include:

Research Project
USGS Sediment Studies in Lake Mead

Description: Lake Mead is one of the world's largest man-made reservoirs at about 600 sq km, roughly the size of Chicago. Lake Mead started to form on the Colorado River in 1935, upon completion of the Hoover Dam. Since then, the lake has supplied water to agricultural, industrial, recreational, and municipal users in the southwestern United States.
updated: 2002-05-15 pages include:

Publication
Surficial Geology and Distribution of Post-Impoundment Sediment in Las Vegas Bay, Lake Mead, U.S. Geological Open-File Report 01-070, Title Page

Description: Sidescan sonar imagery and seismic-reflection profiles were collected in the northwestern part of Las Vegas Bay to map the distribution and volume of sediment that has accumulated in this part of Lake Mead since impoundment. The mapping suggests that three ephemeral streams are the primary source of this sediment, and of these, Las Vegas Wash is the largest. Two deltas off the mouth of Las Vegas Wash formed at different lake elevations and account for 41% of the total volume of post-impoundment sediment within the study area. Deltas off the other two washes (Gypsum and Government) account for only 6% of the total volume. The sediment beyond the front of the deltas is primarily mud, and it only occurs in valley floors, where it forms a flat-lying blanket that is mostly less than 1.5 m thick. Although a thin layer, the fine-grained sediment accounts for approximately 53% of the total post-impoundment sediment volume of 5.7 x 106 m3 that has accumulated in the study area. This sediment appears to have been transported several kilometers from the river sources by density flows.
updated: 2001-09-07 pages include:

Educational Materials
USGS TerraWeb for Kids!

Description: Satellite and sonar images, remote sensing education, and activities just for KIDS!
updated: 2001-08-01 pages include:

Publication
Digital Data Series 55: Sea-Floor Images and Data from Multibeam Surveys in San Francisco Bay, Southern California, Hawaii, the Gulf of Mexico, and Lake Tahoe, California-Nevada

Description: Accurate base maps are a prerequisite for any geological study, regardless of the objectives. Land-based studies commonly utilize aerial photographs, USGS 7.5-minute quadrangle maps, and satellite images as base maps. Until now, studies that involve the ocean floor have been at a disadvantage due to an almost complete lack of accurate marine base maps. Many base maps of the sea floor have been constructed over the past century but with a wide range in navigational and depth accuracies. Only in the past few years has marine surveying technology advanced far enough to produce navigational accuracy of 1 meter and depth resolutions of 50 centimeters. The Pacific Seafloor Mapping Project, U.S. Geological Survey, Western Coastal and Marine Geology Program, Menlo Park, California, U.S.A. in cooperation with the Ocean Mapping Group, University of New Brunswick, Canada is using this new technology to systematically map the ocean floor and lakes. This type of marine surveying, called Multibeam surveying, collects high-resolution bathymetry and backscatter data that can be used for a variety of basemaps, GIS coverages, and scientific visualization methods. This is an interactive CD-ROM that contains images, movies, and data of all the surveys the Pacific Seafloor Mapping Project has completed up to January 1999. Images and movies on this CD-ROM, such as shaded relief of the bathymetry, backscatter, oblique views, 3-D views, and Quicktime movies (San Francisco, Los Angeles, and Lake Tahoe) help the viewer to visualize the multibeam data. This CD-ROM also contains ARC/INFO export (.e00) files and full resolution TIFF images of all the survey sites that can be downloaded and used in many GIS software.
updated: 2000-03-13 pages include:

Research Project
Grand Canyon Colorado River Studies

Description: Studies of sediment transport in the Grand Canyon, Arizona - using ocean research techniques to study a river system.
updated: 1997-06-09 pages include:

These are results 1 through 21 of 21 matches.

Coastal and Marine Geology Program > Online Science Resource Locator > U.S. Inland