Unified Interior Regions

Region 7: Upper Colorado Basin

Map of Region 7 Upper Colorado River Basin

Map of Region 7 Upper Colorado River Basin

Map Showing USGS/DOI Unified Region 7 and parts of adjoining Regions

Regions L2 Landing Page Tabs

The DOI Unified Region 7 - Upper Colorado Basin includes Wyoming, Utah, Colorado, and New Mexico.  The data, information, analyses, and tools developed by the USGS support land managers in making decisions on the landscape.  USGS Science Centers in the Region conduct multi- and interdisciplinary research and monitoring related to natural resources, ecology, and natural hazards.

News

Date published: January 13, 2021

Fort Collins Science Center Scientists have strong presence at AGU Fall Meeting 2020

Fort Collins Science Center scientists had multiple presentations and poster submissions, as well as one award, at the American Geophysical Union (AGU) Fall Meeting 2020. The Meeting was the largest worldwide virtual conference in the Earth and space sciences, with over 20,000 attendees. 

Date published: December 22, 2020

Mine Waste in the Eastern Adirondacks May be Untapped, Accessible Source of Rare Earth Element Minerals

Waste rock from long-closed mines in the eastern Adirondack Mountains, New York, may prove valuable due to its rare earth element content, according to newly published research. The results are from airborne and ground surveys conducted by the U.S. Geological Survey and collaborators.

Date published: November 5, 2020

Invasive Brown Treesnake Present on Cocos Island, Agencies Working to Prevent Further Spread

For the first time, an invasive brown treesnake population has been found on Cocos Island, an 83.1 acre atoll located 1.5 miles off the southwest coast of Guam.  

USGS Science Centers in Region 7-Upper Colorado Basin conduct a large number of cooperative and collaborative projects with other agencies and partners. A sampling of those projects are shown below on this web page.

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Date published: December 14, 2020
Status: Active

Biology, Impacts and Control of Invasive Reptiles in the Pacific

Research on Guam has led to development and validation of numerous effective control tools, including the advancement of reptile control to support native species recovery. 

Date published: September 14, 2020
Status: Active

USMIN Mineral Deposit Database

Our objective is to develop a national-scale, geospatial database that is the authoritative source of the most important mines, mineral deposits, and mineral districts of the United States.

Date published: August 21, 2020
Status: Active

Isotope and Chemical Methods for Mineral and Geoenvironmental Assessments and Support of USGS Science Strategy

This Project integrates several geochemical tools—stable isotope geochemistry, noble gas geochemistry, active gas geochemistry, single fluid inclusion chemistry, and fluid inclusion solute chemistry—in studies of the processes that form mineral deposits and the processes that disrupt them during mining or natural weathering. Research is directed toward fundamental scientific questions or, in...

Date published: August 20, 2020
Status: Active

National Geochemical Database

The National Geochemical Database project assembles, reformats, corrects, and archives historical data obtained from the geochemical analysis of millions of geologic samples collected for USGS studies. These data, representing hundreds of millions of dollars' worth of USGS research, are provided to USGS researchers; other Federal agencies; State Geological Surveys and Environmental Protection...

Contacts: Steven M Smith
Date published: August 20, 2020
Status: Active

Spectroscopy and Hyperspectral Imaging of Critical Mineral Resources

Our project will characterize the primary critical minerals (minerals that contain critical elements in their base structure) that are not yet in the USGS Spectral Library. We propose to increase understanding of the spectral indicators of critical minerals using lab-based studies of hand specimens and drill core, hyperspectral field...

Date published: August 3, 2020
Status: Active

Non-Traditional Stable Isotopes

Understanding the genesis of ore deposits and their behavior in the environment is a subject of great importance to the Nation. A relatively new tool to aid in these efforts to investigate the origin and environmental effects of ore deposits is the use of "heavy" metal stable isotopes. Our research objectives are to utilize various isotopic systems to advance our understanding of ore genesis...

Date published: July 31, 2020
Status: Active

Metal Transport in Mineralized Mountain Watersheds

The central objective of this project is to develop a greater understanding of deep bedrock groundwater circulation and its contribution to surface water metal loads in mineralized mountain blocks composed of sedimentary rocks. This work is being performed in cooperation with Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory as part of a broader research program aimed at understanding processes...

Date published: July 31, 2020
Status: Active

Integrated Hyperspectral, Geophysical and Geochemical Studies of Yellowstone National Park Hydrothermal Systems

We are researching the subsurface groundwater flow systems in Yellowstone and the relation of these systems to understanding the regional movement of water in a volcanic center. New geophysical data will be integrated with existing data sets from hyperspectral data from Yellowstone's thermal areas and thermal water geochemistry to help define regionally extensive mineral assemblages, the...

Contacts: JoAnn Holloway
Date published: July 1, 2020
Status: Active

Quantitative Disease Ecology

Researchers at the USGS are working on developing new quantitative methods to study disease dynamics in wildlife systems as well as systems at the wildlife-domestic-human interface. Much of our work focuses on how host population structure affects disease invasion, persistence and control in wildlife disease systems. We tackle these issues with a combination of simulation and statistical...

Date published: June 19, 2020
Status: Active

Critical Elements in Carbonatites: From Exploration Targets to Element Distribution

Critical elements are essential to the modern economy and have potential supply chain disruptions, but compared to most base and precious metals, little work has been done in understanding ore-grade enrichments. Carbonatites are the primary source of the worlds light rare earth elements and niobium, and a potential source for heavy rare earths, scandium, tantalum, and thorium. Project...

Date published: June 15, 2020
Status: Active

Microbial Source Tracking and Escherichia coli Monitoring in the Rio Grande in the South Valley, Albuquerque, New Mexico

The Rio Grande, in southern Albuquerque, is an impaired reach for bacteria. Escherichia coli (E. coli) bacteria are elevated in this reach of the Rio Grande even without stormwater present, during what is referred to as “dry season”. Samples will be collected over a range of flows including during the dry season (November 1st-June30th). Water samples will be analyzed for E. coli and microbial...

Contacts: Rebecca Travis
Date published: May 11, 2020
Status: Active

Denali National Park Geohazards Geologic Mapping

Denali National Park (DENA) is a major draw for tourism and recreation and a major economic engine for central Alaska. However, the geologic forces that created the steep landscape of DENA also make it prone to geologic hazards (geohazards) like landslides, debris flows, and earthquakes. DENA has only one major road, called the ‘Park Road’, that serves nearly all of its infrastructure.

...

USGS Science Centers in Region 7-Upper Colorado Basin collect a wide variety of natural resource data types including spatial, geologic, hydrologic, and biologic data. Data included in USGS-series publications that are not publically available in USGS databases are published in Data Releases. Tools are USGS products that can be used to analyze those types of data.

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Date published: December 4, 2020

Bayesian modeling of NURE airborne radiometric data for the conterminous United States: predictions and grids

This data release includes estimates of potassium (K), equivalent uranium (eU), and equivalent thorium (eTh) for the conterminous United States derived from the U.S. Geological Survey's (USGS) national airborne radiometric data compilation (Duval and others, 2005). Airborne gamma ray spectrometry (AGRS) measures the gamma-rays that are emitted from naturally occurr

Date published: December 2, 2020

Biomes simulated by BIOME4 using CESM2 lig127k, midHolocene, and piControl climate data on a global 0.5-degree grid

This data set consists of simulated biomes for the last interglacial (127 ka), middle Holocene (6 ka), and preindustrial (1850 CE) time periods displayed in Figure 14 of Otto-Bliesner et al. (2020). Biomes were simulated with BIOME4 (ver. 4.2, https://pmip2.lsce.ipsl.fr/synth/biome4.shtml; Kaplan et al., 2003,...

Date published: December 2, 2020

Influence of wildfire and beetle-caused canopy mortality on water temperature regimes in cutthroat trout streams, Rocky Mountain National Park, CO.

This dataset was collected to build on past and ongoing monitoring and research efforts within Colorado’s Rocky Mountain National Park (RMNP). Specifically, the data were collected to test the hypothesis that reductions in canopy cover due to natural disturbances (i.e. wildfire and beetle kill) result in increases in water temperature, or the longitudinal thermal gradient of a

Date published: November 20, 2020

Landscape inputs and simulation output for the LANDIS-II model in the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem

This data release provides inputs needed to run the LANDIS-II landscape change model, NECN and Base Fire extensions for the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem (GYE), USA, and simulation results that underlie figures and analysis in the accompanying publication. We ran LANDIS-II simulations for 112 years, from 1988-2100, using interpolated weather station data for 1988-2015 and downscale

Date published: November 17, 2020

Hydrologic and geophysical data from high-elevation boreholes in Redwell Basin near Crested Butte, Colorado: Hydraulic test data

Boreholes were drilled in 2017 and 2018 in Redwell Basin, a headwater catchment underlain by mineralized and hydrothermally altered sedimentary rock in the Elk Mountains near the town of Crested Butte, Colorado. Site locations and well construction are documented under the main page of this data release. Hydraulic data were acquired during drilling and on core samples to estimate the hydrauli...

Date published: October 15, 2020

Data release for: Spatially explicit reconstruction of post-megafire forest recovery through landscape modeling

This data release provides inputs needed to run the LANDIS PRO forest landscape model and the LINKAGES 3.0 ecosystem process model for the area burned by the Black Dragon Fire in northeast China in 1987, and simulation results that underlie figures and analysis in the accompanying publication. The data release includes the fire perimeter of Great Dragon Fire; input data for LINKAGES including...

Date published: October 15, 2020

Data release for Accounting for Land in the United States: Integrating Physical Land Cover, Land Use, and Monetary Valuation

Land plays a critical role in both economic and environmental accounting. As an asset, it occupies a unique position at the intersection of the System of National Accounts (SNA), the System of Environmental-Economic Accounting Central Framework (SEEA-CF), and (as a spatial unit) SEEA Experimental Ecosystem Accounting (SEEA-EEA), making land a natural starting point for dev

Date published: October 13, 2020

Data release for tracking rates of post-fire conifer regeneration distinct from deciduous vegetation recovery across the western U.S.

Post-fire shifts in vegetation composition will have broad ecological impacts. However, information characterizing post-fire recovery patterns and their drivers are lacking over large spatial extents. In this analysis we used Landsat imagery collected when snow cover (SCS) was present, in combination with growing season (GS) imagery, to distinguish evergreen vegetation from deciduou

Date published: October 9, 2020

Elevation of top of Precambrian rocks from previous USGS studies of the Colorado Plateau

For use as part of a regional petroleum assessment, the USGS in the early 1990’s developed a dataset reporting elevation on the surface of the Precambrian basement of the central and southern Colorado Plateau and vicinity (Butler, 1991). This dataset was released as paper report that included a table of basement elevations at more than 3,700 control points, including outcrop d

Date published: September 29, 2020

Data release for Integrating physical and economic data into experimental water accounts for the United States: lessons and opportunities

Water provides society with economic benefits that increasingly involve tradeoffs, making accounting for water quality, quantity, and their corresponding economic productivity more relevant in our interconnected world. In the past, physical and economic data about water have been fragmented, but integration is becoming more widely adopted internationally through application of the Syste

Date published: September 29, 2020

Environmental tracer data from surface water and groundwater samples collected in Redwell Basin near Crested Butte, Colorado, 2017-2019

This dataset contains environmental tracer data from surface water and groundwater samples collected by the U.S. Geological Survey in Redwell Basin, an alpine watershed in the Elk Mountains near the town of Crested Butte, Colorado. The basin is underlain by interbedded shale and sandstone that have been variably hydrothermally altered and silicified by local magmatic intrusions. Samples were...

Date published: September 25, 2020

Geochemical data for alkaline igneous rock units in the Cripple Creek district, Colorado USA: 1989-2016

This data release includes new major and trace element geochemical data acquired by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) for igneous rocks in the Cripple Creek district in Colorado. Cripple Creek is among the largest epithermal districts in the world, with more than 800 metric tons (t) Au (>26.4 Moz). The ores are associated spatially, temporally, and genetically with ~34 to 28

This Maps web page contains descriptions of and links to USGS topographic maps, the National Map, and other types of maps that are not official USGS publication series, including online interactive maps related to Region 7-Upper Colorado Basin. To access USGS publications series maps related to Region 7, please visit the Publications page of this web site.

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Screenshot of San Juan River Basin Sites
March 4, 2019

The USGS monitors current streamflow and water-quality conditions at various sites in the Animas and San Juan River Basins in Colorado, New Mexico, and Utah, including areas below the Gold King Mine release area. These streamgages provide continuous data on streamflow and select water-quality constituents including specific conductance, water temperature, pH, and turbidity.

Aquifers: Map of the Principal Aquifers of the United States
March 13, 2018

The areal and vertical location of the major aquifers is fundamental to the determination of groundwater availability for the Nation. The map, which is derived from the Ground Water Atlas of the United States, indicates the areal extent of the uppermost principal aquifers on a national scale.

USGS StreamStats New Mexico
March 13, 2018

StreamStats version 4 is a Web application that provides access to an assortment of Geographic Information Systems (GIS) analytical tools that are useful for water-resources planning and management, and for engineering and design purposes. 

NMBGMR Interactive Map
March 12, 2018

These geospatial data are provided to the public to aid in the understanding of the geologic resources of New Mexico.

The National Map
March 12, 2018

The National Map is a collaborative effort among the USGS and other Federal, State, and local partners to improve and deliver topographic information for the Nation. It has many uses ranging from recreation to scientific analysis to emergency response. The National Map is easily accessible for display on the Web, as products and services, and as downloadable data.

USGS
February 23, 2018

Topographic maps are a signature product of the USGS. They were essential for integrating and analyzing place-based information, and were widely used by receationalists. After 125-year legacy of topographic mapping (1884-2009), the USGS embarked on an innovative future of integrating historical maps with computer-generated maps from a national geographical information system (GIS) database.

Colorado StreamStats Screen Capture
May 17, 2017

The map-based user interface can be used to delineate drainage areas, get basin characteristics and estimates of flow statistics, and more. 

Funding partners: Colorado Department of Transportation and Colorado Water Conservation Board

Digital Elevation Model in the Atchafalaya Basin, LA
April 19, 2016

The 3DEP products and services available through The National Map consist of standard digital elevation models (DEMs) at various horizontal resolutions, elevation source and associated datasets, an elevation point query service and bulk point query service. All 3DEP products are available, free of charge and without use restrictions.

Colorado. The location of the 188 streamgages used to develop the peak-streamflow equations
September 15, 2015

The location of the 188 streamgages used to develop the peak-streamflow equations, of which 44 streamgages have paleoflood or non-exceedance bound data.

Colorado Flood Database
October 24, 2010

An easy-to-use, Web-based geodatabase of historical flood and paleoflood information which includes links to sources of flood data.  The interface makes this collection of information useful to water-resource managers to better understand the historic events for improved flood-frequency estimates of the largest floods in Colorado.

USGS Science Centers in Region 7-Upper Colorado Basin produce hundreds of USGS-series publications, journal papers, and books each year that are subject to rigorous review by USGS specialists. The publications shown below on this page are related to study areas and staff members of USGS Science Centers in Region 7 compiled from the USGS Publications Warehouse.

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Year Published: 2021

An assessment of the economic potential of lignite and leonardite resources in the Williston Basin, North Dakota

The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) requested assistance from the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) to conduct an assessment study to identify areas that may have economic potential for the future extraction of lignite and leonardite resources in the Williston Basin in North Dakota. The study will be used by the BLM to assist with the preparation of a...

Shaffer, Brian N.
Shaffer, B.N., 2021, An assessment of the economic potential of lignite and leonardite resources in the Williston Basin, North Dakota: U.S. Geological Survey Open-File Report 2020–1135, 14 p., https://doi.org/10.3133/ofr20201135.

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Year Published: 2021

DGMETA (version 1)—Dissolved gas modeling and environmental tracer analysis computer program

DGMETA (Dissolved Gas Modeling and Environmental Tracer Analysis) is a Microsoft Excel-based computer program that is used for modeling air-water equilibrium conditions from measurements of dissolved gases and for computing concentrations of environmental tracers that rely on air-water equilibrium model results. DGMETA can solve for the...

Jurgens, Bryant C.; Böhlke, J.K.; Haase, Karl; Busenberg, Eurybiades; Hunt, Andrew G.; Hansen, Jeffrey A.
Jurgens, B.C., Böhlke, J., Haase, K., Busenberg, E., Hunt, A.G., and Hansen, J.A., 2020, DGMETA (version 1)—Dissolved gas modeling and environmental tracer analysis computer program: U.S. Geological Survey Techniques and Methods 4-F5, 50 p., https://doi.org/10.3133/tm4F5.

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Year Published: 2021

LA-ICPMS U-Pb dating reveals cassiterite inheritance in the Yazov granite, Eastern Siberia: Implications for tin mineralization

U-Pb dating of cassiterite and zircon from the Yazov granite (Transbaikalia region, Eastern Siberia, Russia) and cassiterite from spatially associated tin mineralization in the Tuyukan ore district in the Tonod uplift was conducted using in situ laser ablation inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry. These analyses allow comparison of...

Neymark, Leonid; Holm-Denoma, Christopher S.; Larin, Anatoly; Moscati, Richard J.; Plotkina, Yulia

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Year Published: 2021

Modeling hydrologic processes associated with soil saturation and debris flow initiation during the September 2013 storm, Colorado Front Range

Seven days of extreme rainfall during September 2013 produced more than 1100 debris flows in the Colorado Front Range, about 78% of which occurred on south-facing slopes (SFS). Previously published soil moisture (volumetric water content) observations suggest that SFS were wetter than north-facing slopes (NFS) during the event, which contrasts...

Timilsina, Sujana; Niemann, Jeffrey D.; Rathburn, Sara L.; Rengers, Francis K.; Nelson, Peter A.

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Year Published: 2021

Geology and genesis of the Shalipayco evaporite-related Mississippi Valley-type Zn–Pb deposit, Central Peru: 3D geological modeling and C–O–S–Sr isotope constraints

The Shalipayco Zn–Pb deposit, in central Peru, is composed of several stratabound orebodies, the largest of which are the Resurgidora and Intermedios, contained in carbonate rocks of the Upper Triassic Chambará Formation, Pucará group. Petrography suggests that a single ore-forming episode formed sphalerite and galena within vugs, open spaces, and...

de Oliveira, Saulo B; Johnson, Craig A.; Juliani, Caetano; Monteiro, Lena VS; Leach, David L; Caran, Marianna G.N.

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Year Published: 2021

Evaluation of simulated ground motions using probabilistic seismic demand analysis: CyberShake (ver. 15.12) simulations for Ordinary Standard Bridges

There is a need for benchmarking and validating simulated ground motions in order for them to be utilized by the engineering community. Such validation may be geared towards a specific ground motion simulation method, a target engineering application, and a specific location; the validation presented herein focuses on a bridge engineering...

Fayaz, Jawad; Rezaeian, Sanaz; Zareian, Farzin

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Year Published: 2021

Rapid sensitivity analysis for reducing uncertainty in landslide hazard assessments

One of the challenges in assessing temporal and spatial aspects of landslide hazard using process-based models is estimating model input parameters, especially in areas where limited measurements of soil and rock properties are available. In an effort to simplify and streamline parameter estimation, development of a simple, rapid approach to...

Baum, Rex L.

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Year Published: 2021

Effect of organic matter concentration and characteristics on mercury mobilization and methylmercury production at an abandoned mine site

Thousands of abandoned mines throughout the western region of North America contain elevated total-mercury (THg) concentrations. Mercury is mobilized from these sites primarily due to erosion of particulate-bound Hg (THg-P). Organic matter-based soil amendments can promote vegetation growth on mine tailings, reducing erosion and subsequent loading...

Eckley, Chris S.; Luxton, Todd P.; Stanfield, Brooks; Baldwin, Austin K.; Holloway, JoAnn; McKernan, John; Johnson, Mark

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Year Published: 2021

Quantifying model structural uncertainty using airborne electromagnetic data

The ability to quantify structural uncertainty in geological models that incorporate geophysical data is affected by two primary sources of uncertainty: geophysical parameter uncertainty and uncertainty in the relationship between geophysical parameters and geological properties of interest. Here, we introduce an open-source, trans-dimensional...

Minsley, Burke J.; Foks, N. Leon; Bedrosian, Paul A.

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Year Published: 2020

Optimization assessment of a groundwater-level observation network in the Middle Rio Grande Basin, New Mexico

The U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the Albuquerque Bernalillo County Water Utility Authority (ABCWUA), measures groundwater levels continuously (hourly) and discretely (semiannually and annually) at a network of wells and piezometers (hereafter called the observation network) within the Middle Rio Grande Basin in central New Mexico....

Ritchie, Andre B.; Pepin, Jeff D.
Ritchie, A.B., and Pepin, J.D., 2020, Optimization assessment of a groundwater-level observation network in the Middle Rio Grande Basin, New Mexico (ver. 2, December 2020): U.S. Geological Survey Scientific Investigations Report 2020–5007, 113 p., https://doi.org/10.3133/sir20205007.

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Year Published: 2020

Geomorphic survey of North Fork Eagle Creek, New Mexico, 2018

About one-quarter of the water supply for the Village of Ruidoso, New Mexico, is from groundwater pumped from wells located along North Fork Eagle Creek in the National Forest System lands of the Lincoln National Forest near Alto, New Mexico. Because of concerns regarding the effects of groundwater pumping on surface-water hydrology in the North...

Graziano, Alexander P.
Graziano, A.P., 2020, Geomorphic survey of North Fork Eagle Creek, New Mexico, 2018: U.S. Geological Survey Open-File Report 2020–1121, 37 p., https://doi.org/10.3133/ofr20201121.

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Year Published: 2020

Structure contour and isopach maps of the Wolfcamp shale and Bone Spring Formation of the Delaware Basin, Permian Basin Province, New Mexico and Texas

A series of structure contour and isopach maps for the Wolfcamp shale and the Bone Spring Formation of the Delaware Basin, Permian Basin Province, were generated in support of the U.S. Geological Survey 2018 assessment of undiscovered continuous oil and gas resources. The interpreted formation tops used to generate the maps are from the IHS Markit...

Gaswirth, Stephanie B.
Gaswirth, S.B., 2020, Structure contour and isopach maps of the Wolfcamp shale and Bone Spring Formation of the Delaware Basin, Permian Basin Province, New Mexico and Texas: U.S. Geological Survey Open-File Report 2020–1126, 37 p., https://doi.org/ 10.3133/ ofr20201126.

This web page has descriptions of and links to computer programs that may be downloaded online. To view USGS-series publications related to software, please visit the publications page of this website.

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USGS
March 9, 2018

Various projects on the USGS's public GitHub.

View of three USGS Visual Identity items
March 9, 2018

The software and related documentation on these Web pages were developed by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) for use by the USGS in fulfilling its mission. The software can be used, copied, modified, and distributed without any fee or cost.

USGS science for a changing world
November 20, 2017

The is a useful tool designed to facilitate FGDC metadata creation for spatial and non-spatial data sets. It is a cross-platform desktop application built using an open-source Python architecture.

Upstream view of Fountain Creek in Colorado
May 10, 2017

The transit-loss accounting program, which has been in continuous daily use in some form since April 1989, has provided water-rights administrators with a tool to effectively manage RRFs and administer water diversion priorities along Fountain Creek on a daily basis.

USGS science for a changing world
March 23, 2012

Smart River GIS allows simultaneous views of river hydraulics, species-specific habitat, and fish population simulations, for a better understanding of complex ecological interactions. We used existing data sets from the South Platte River in Colorado to develop a multi-layered geographic information system (GIS) that resource managers can use to improve their understanding of river ecosystems.

USGS science for a changing world
January 1, 1999

CloseTest is a Windows program for testing capture-recapture data

Photos and videos described and linked on this webpage come from a wide variety of USGS science activities and presentations performed by USGS Science Center staff members in the Region 7-Upper Colorado Basin.

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Scientist holding brown treesnake
October 21, 2020

Scientist holding brown treesnake

A USGS scientist holds an invasive brown treesnake.

Image shows a rock core in a trough
October 19, 2020

Austin Chalk Core

Bedding features in the core from the USGS Gulf Coast #4 Bonham borehole, in the Eagle Ford Group mudstones from a depth of about 401 feet, Fannin County, Texas. The Eagle Ford Group lies underneath the Austin Chalk and serves as the source rock for much of the Austin Chalk's petroleum.

Image shows three men in safety equipment standing next to a drill rig
October 19, 2020

USGS Technicians Prepare to Take a Core of the Austin Chalk in Texas

USGS technicians at the USGS Gulf Coast #4 Bonham borehole in preparation for geophysical logging of the Austin Chalk Group and the Eagle Ford Group mudstones, Fannin County, Texas.

January 2, 2020

Yellowstone Volcano Observatory Monthly Update: January 2, 2020

Mike Poland, Scientist-in-Charge of the Yellowstone Volcano Observatory, gives an overview of activity at Yellowstone during 2019, with an emphasis on the month of December.

Map showing ice cover in the Yellowstone region
December 31, 2019

Map showing ice cover in the Yellowstone region

Map showing ice cover in the Yellowstone region. Light shaded areas bounded by black and red lines indicate areas covered during the Pinedale (about 20,000-15,000 years ago) and Bull Lake (about 150,000 years ago) glaciations, respectively. Blue lines are contours in thousands of feet on the maximum reconstructed Pinedale glacier surface. The circled numbers schematically

...
Tyson Hatch and Fletcher Brinkerhoff sampling suspended-sediment concentration upstream of the Buckman Diversion
December 31, 2019

Sampling Suspended-sediment Concentration

Tyson Hatch and Fletcher Brinkerhoff sampling suspended-sediment concentration upstream of the Buckman Diversion for the city of Santa Fe on the Rio Grande (08313150 Rio Grande above Buckman Diversion, near White Rock, NM)

A group of people gather around a list of climate adaptation strategies inside of a conference room.
December 5, 2019

Collaborating on Climate Adaptation

RAMPS expands drought adaptation project with national parks in the 4-Corners area. National parks across the desert Southwest are experiencing ecological impacts due to climate change. Since late 2018, USGS RAMPS scientists have been working with Southeast Utah Group of national parks to better understand climate change impacts and build a suite of science-driven

...
December 2, 2019

Yellowstone Volcano Observatory Monthly Update: December 2, 2019

Mike Poland, Scientist-in-Charge of the Yellowstone Volcano Observatory, describes activity at Yellowstone during the month of November 2019.

Photo showing close ups of hemorrhage and necrosis in pink in purple colors.
November 29, 2019

Photomicrographs from a Great-Horned Owl

Photomicrographs from a Great-Horned Owl showing (A) moderate acute hemorrhage in the right atrial epicardium extending into the myocardium and (B) a focally extensive area of coagulative necrosis of the epidermis and dermis (arrow) consistent with an electrical burn.

A group of people stand around a map laid out in the back of a truck while on a field trip.
November 13, 2019

Managing Fire on the US Mexico Borderlands

RAMPS met with DOI Office of Wildland Fire, US Customs and Border Patrol, and US Fish & Wildlife Service staff at Buenos Aires National Wildlife Refuge in southern AZ last November. The group is developing tools to reduce wildfire risk, conserve wildlife habitat and natural resources, and increase safety and security of border operations.

...
November 1, 2019

Yellowstone Volcano Observatory Monthly Update: November 1, 2019

Mike Poland, Scientist-in-Charge of the Yellowstone Volcano Observatory, describes activity at Yellowstone during the month of October 2019
 

News items shown on this page are highlights of selected studies conducted and publications produced by USGS Science Center staff members in Region 7-Upper Colorado Basin.

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Fort Collins Science Center and USGS Logo Stock Image
January 13, 2021

Fort Collins Science Center scientists had multiple presentations and poster submissions, as well as one award, at the American Geophysical Union (AGU) Fall Meeting 2020. The Meeting was the largest worldwide virtual conference in the Earth and space sciences, with over 20,000 attendees. 

Mill Tailings Pile, Town of Moriah, New York
December 22, 2020

Waste rock from long-closed mines in the eastern Adirondack Mountains, New York, may prove valuable due to its rare earth element content, according to newly published research. The results are from airborne and ground surveys conducted by the U.S. Geological Survey and collaborators.

Invasive brown treesnake
November 5, 2020

For the first time, an invasive brown treesnake population has been found on Cocos Island, an 83.1 acre atoll located 1.5 miles off the southwest coast of Guam.  

Image shows three men in safety equipment standing next to a drill rig
October 29, 2020

The Austin Chalk and Tokio and Eutaw Formations of the Gulf Coast Basin contain a mean of 6.9 billion barrels of oil and 41.5 trillion cubic feet of natural gas according to a new assessment by the U.S. Geological Survey. In comparison, the U.S. Energy Information Administration estimates that the United States used 7.5 billion barrels of petroleum products in 2019.

An infographic summarizing activities of the RAMPS program.
August 10, 2020

This season's edition of the Restoration Assessment and Monitoring Program for the Southwest Newsletter contains recent program highlights including research updates, new projects, field updates and more.

To subscribe to our newsletter, please visit: https://listserv.usgs.gov/mailman/listinfo/ramps

Read more about how the network or RAMPS is enhancing restoration in drylands.

Invasive Burmese Python
July 10, 2020

Washington – Today, the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), U.S. National Park Service (NPS), U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) and Conservancy of Southwest Florida announced they have teamed up to radio-track Burmese pythons in Big Cypress National Preserve, Crocodile Lake National Wildlife Refuge and other areas of Southwest Florida.

 Map of June 23, 2020 Oaxaca, Mexico Earthquake
June 23, 2020

A magnitude 7.4 earthquake struck offshore Oaxaca, Mexico, on June 23, 2020, at 11:30 a.m. ET. Seismic instruments indicate the earthquake originated at a depth of 16 miles (26 km).  

This page includes links to Social Media accounts (top of page), Science Centers (middle of page), and Regional Office staff members (bottom of page) of the USGS Region 7--Upper Colorado Basin.

USGS Science Centers in Region 7-Upper Colorado Basin conduct a large number of cooperative, co-funded science and monitoring projects with many other Federal, Tribal, State, and local agencies. Please scroll below to see the agencies with which those Science Centers currently have cooperative agreements.

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