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    Integrating Groundwater Observations with Models of Soil-Water Dynamics to Examine Recharge Patterns through Glacial Sediments in a Humid Continental Climate
    (2015) Naylor, Shawn; Letsinger, S.L.; Ficklin, D.L.; Ellett, K.M.; Olyphant, G.A.
    Understanding the timing and magnitude of shallow groundwater recharge is critical for determining water balance and analyzing aquifer sensitivity for water resource planning. We analyzed data from six hydrometeorological monitoring stations using HYDRUS 1D to achieve physically based estimates of water-table recharge in various glaciated terrains in Indiana (USA). The models simulated runoff, root-water uptake, and flow through heterogeneous soil profiles to quantify water flux at the water table. Calibration by inverse modeling of data collected in 2013 yielded optimized hydraulic parameters that allowed accurate simulation of observed soil moisture (RMSE generally within 3%). The model validation period confirmed accurate simulation of soil moisture as well as correspondence between modeled recharge and observed water-table fluctuations. Additional modelling over a three-year study period indicated that diffuse water-table recharge in the region can be reasonably approximated as 35% of precipitation, but interannual and monthly variability can be significant depending on the glacial setting and pedological development. Soil parent material and horizon characteristics have a strong influence on average annual recharge primarily through their control on Ks, with clay-rich till parent materials producing values as low as 16% and coarse-grained outwash parent materials producing values as high as 58% of precipitation. The combined modelling and monitoring data reveal distinct seasonality of recharge, with most recharge occurring in the winter (seasonal mean of all sites was 66% of precipitation) and lesser but interannually stable amounts in the spring (44%), summer (13%), and autumn (16%). This ongoing research underscores the value of combining vadose zone characterization with hydrometeorological monitoring to more effectively represent how surface energy and moisture budgets influence the dynamics of surface water-groundwater interactions.
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    Quantifying the Influence of Near-Surface Water-Energy Budgets on Soil Thermal Properties Using a Network of Coupled Meteorological and Vadose-Zone Instrument Arrays in Indiana, USA
    (2012) Naylor, Shawn; Gustin, Andrew; Ellett, Kevin M.
    Weather stations that collect reliable, sustained meteorological data sets are becoming more widely distributed because of advances in both instrumentation and data server technology. However, sites collecting soil moisture and soil temperature data remain sparse with even fewer locations where complete meteorological data are collected in conjunction with soil data. Thanks to the advent of sensors that collect continuous in-situ thermal properties data for soils, we have gone a step further and incorporated thermal properties measurements as part of hydrologic instrument arrays in central and northern Indiana. The coupled approach provides insights into the variability of soil thermal conductivity and diffusivity attributable to geologic and climatological controls for various hydrogeologic settings. These data are collected to facilitate the optimization of ground-source heat pumps (GSHPs) in the glaciated Midwest by establishing publicly available data that can be used to parameterize system design models. A network of six monitoring sites was developed in Indiana. Sensors that determine thermal conductivity and diffusivity using radial differential temperature measurements around a heating wire were installed at 1.2 meters below ground surface— a typical depth for horizontal GSHP systems. Each site also includes standard meteorological sensors for calculating reference evapotranspiration following the methods by the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations. Vadose zone instrumentation includes time domain reflectometry soil-moisture and temperature sensors installed at 0.3-meter depth intervals down to a 1.8-meter depth, in addition to matric potential sensors at 0.15, 0.3, 0.6, and 1.2 meters. Cores collected at 0.3-meter intervals were analyzed in a laboratory for grain size distribution, bulk density, thermal conductivity, and thermal diffusivity. Our work includes developing methods for calibrating thermal properties sensors based on known standards and comparing measurements from transient line heat source devices. Transform equations have been developed to correct in-situ measurements of thermal conductivity and comparing these results with soil moisture data indicates that thermal conductivity can increase by as much as 25 percent during wetting front propagation. Thermal dryout curves have also been modeled based on laboratory conductivity data collected from core samples to verify field measurements, and alternatively, temperature profile data are used to calibrate near-surface temperature gradient models. We compare data collected across various spatial scales to assess the potential for upscaling near-surface thermal regimes based on available soils data. A long-term goal of the monitoring effort is to establish continuous data sets that determine the effect of climate variability on soil thermal properties such that expected ranges in thermal conductivity can be used to determine optimal ground-coupling loop lengths for GSHP systems.
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    Modeling Water Flux at the Base of the Rooting Zone for Soils with Varying Glacial Parent Materials
    (2013) Naylor, Shawn; Ellett, Kevin M.; Ficklin, Darren L.; Plyphant, Greg A.
    Soils of varying glacial parent materials in the Great Lakes Region (USA) are characterized by thin unsaturated zones and widespread use of agricultural pesticides and nutrients that affect shallow groundwater. To better our understanding of the fate and transport of contaminants, improved models of water fluxes through the vadose zones of various hydrogeologic settings are warranted. Furthermore, calibrated unsaturated zone models can be coupled with watershed models, providing a means for predicting the impact of varying climate scenarios on agriculture in the region. To address these issues, a network of monitoring sites was developed in Indiana that provides continuous measurements of precipitation, potential evapotranspiration (PET), soil volumetric water content (VWC), and soil matric potential to parameterize and calibrate models. Flux at the base of the root zone is simulated using two models of varying complexity: 1) the HYDRUS model, which numerically solves the Richards equation, and 2) the soil-water-balance (SWB) model, which assumes vertical flow under a unit gradient with infiltration and evapotranspiration treated as separate, sequential processes. Soil hydraulic parameters are determined based on laboratory data, a pedo-transfer function (ROSETTA), field measurements (Guelph permeameter), and parameter optimization. Groundwater elevation data are available at three of six sites to establish the base of the unsaturated zone model domain. Initial modeling focused on the groundwater recharge season (Nov–Feb) when PET is limited and much of the annual vertical flux occurs. HYDRUS results indicate that base of root zone fluxes at a site underlain by glacial ice-contact parent materials are 48% of recharge season precipitation (VWC RMSE=8.2%), while SWB results indicate that fluxes are 43% (VWC RMSE=3.7%). Due in part to variations in surface boundary conditions, more variable fluxes were obtained for a site underlain by alluvium with the SWB model (68% of recharge season precipitation, VWC RMSE=7.0%) predicting much greater drainage than HYDRUS (38% of recharge season precipitation, VWC RMSE=6.6%). Results also show that when calculating drainage flux over the recharge period, HYDRUS is highly sensitive to model initialization using observed water content from in-situ instrumentation. Simulated recharge season drainage flux is as much as 3.5 times higher when a one-month spin-up period was performed in the HYDRUS model for the same site. SWB results are less sensitive to water content initialization, but drainage flux is 1.6 times higher at one site using the same spin-up analysis. The long-term goals of this effort are to leverage the robust calibration data set to establish optimal approaches for determining hydraulic parameters such that water fluxes in the lower vadose zone can be modeled for a wider range of geomorphic settings where calibration data are unavailable.
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    Surficial geology of the Bainbridge quadrangle, Ohio
    (Ohio Department of Natural Resources, Division of Geological Survey, 2015) Pavey, R. R.; Martin, D. R.
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    Digital elevation model of the Bainbridge quadrangle, Ohio
    (Ohio Department of Natural Resources, Division of Geological Survey, 2015) Pavey, R. R.; Martin, D. R.
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    Drift thickness of the Bainbridge quadrangle, Ohio
    (Ohio Department of Natural Resources, Division of Geological Survey, 2015) Pavey, R. R.; Martin, D. R.
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    Bedrock topography of the Bainbridge quadrangle, Ohio
    (Ohio Department of Natural Resources, Division of Geological Survey, 2015) Pavey, R. R.; Martin, D. R.
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    Lake Erie bluff profile for North Kingsville quadrangle
    (ODNR Division of Geological Survey, 2013-09) Pavey, R. R.; Stone, B. D
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    Web-Based Geologic Maps, Databases, and HTML Pages for Marion County, Indiana
    (Indiana Academy of Science, 2011-03-04) Rupp, R. F.; Hasenmueller, N. R.; Walls, A. C.; Karaffa, M. D.; Brown, S. E.; Fleming, A. H.; Ferguson, V. R.; Hasenmueller, W. A.; Daniels, M. S.; Rohwer, P. D.
    The Indiana Geological Survey (IGS) has created an internet map server for Marion County in central Indiana. The site provides detailed geologic information needed to address environmental issues, resource management issues, and land-use conflicts related to a growing population. Marion County is the location of Indianapolis, the state capital and largest city. The IGS anticipates that the Web site will be widely used by the general public, industry, and government entities concerned about the geology, groundwater, and other natural resources. The Marion County Web site links an Internet map server (IMS) and database to provide a portal to the IGS‘s enterprise geodatabases, which allow users to efficiently create, manage, update, and distribute maps and data. The IMS site retrieves maps of bedrock and surficial geology completed during earlier IGS mapping projects. Hydrogeology, infrastructure, and imagery map layers are also included. Database information includes lithologic information (iLITH) compiled from water-well records stored in the Indiana Department of Natural Resources, Division of Water archives and natural gamma-ray geophysical log data, stratigraphic test hole data, and petroleum well-record data from the IGS. Currently, the following products are being prepared: (1) illustrated Web pages discussing the surficial geology, bedrock geology, and bedrock topography; (2) illustrated Web pages discussing digital elevation model terrain, gamma-ray log, iLITH, and clay thickness data sets; (3) online glossary; and (4) metadata for the map layers. The development of the Web site is funded by the IGS and the Great Lakes Geologic Mapping Coalition.
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    Using the Fluvial-Lacustrine Interface in a Glaciodeltaic Deposit to Redefine the Valparaiso Moraine, Berrien County, Michigan, USA
    (University of Nebraska Conservation and Survey Division, 2001-08-06) Kincare, K. A.; Stone, B. D.; Newell, W. L.
    The Valparaiso morainic system in eastern Berrien County, southwestern Michigan, is a 10-18 km-wide continuous belt of collapsed glacial landforms. Previously, the composition of the moraine belt was inferred to be of unsorted materials, including coarse- to fine-textured tills, and some stratified deposits. The moraine boundary was defined primarily on classical geomorphic evidence of relative high elevation, "kettled" or "swell & sag" topography, presence of boulders at the surface, steep ice-contact face, etc. Recent mapping, which included well records, geophysics, and test drilling, revealed the moraine to be composed of glacial meltwater deposits, commonly 30 m thick. The deposits include >50 separate glaciodeltaic morphosequences, mostly ice-marginal deltas, graded to proglacial Lakes Madron (new name) and Dowagiac. Both Lake Madron and younger Lake Dowagiac were dammed to the south by the older Kalamazoo moraine and to the west by the retreating edge of the Michigan ice lobe. Each delta grades from ice-contact landforms underlain by coarse-grained facies at its head to non-collapsed landforms underlain distally by fine-grained facies. Proximal deltaic deposits are coarse grained, locally containing boulders and lenses of poorly sorted flowtill with zones of collapsed bedding along ice-contact slopes. A composite section of a delta, derived from a gravel pit exposure extended by a drillhole showed, from top to bottom: 6 m glaciofluvial sand and gravel; 4.5 m deltaic foreset sand, silt, and gravel, dipping 10o SSE; 9 m pebbly sand; 10.5 m ft coarse to medium sand; 8 m medium to very fine sand and silt at the base; overlying 1.7 m of gray silty diamicton. Deltaic glaciofluvial plains of Lake Madron grade from 256 m altitude to distal distributary plains at 241 m, controlled by the lake level and spillway at 239 m. Lake Dowagiac deltas have fluvial plains as high as 250 m graded to distal plain altitudes of 225 m. The Lake Dowagiac spillway crossed older deposits south of Niles, MI. Both lakes discharged through the St. Joseph River valley south across the regional drainage divide. Wide heads of deltas trending ENE within the Valparaiso moraine belt document ice-margin retreat positions, similar to older ice margins within the outer Kalamazoo Moraine. Correlating the elevations of the heads of deltas and the fluvial/lacustrine interface allowed us to group glaciodeltaic morphosequences by outlet/proglacial lake level and therefore, infer the location of nine ice margins at various stages during construction of the Valparaiso Moraine. The resulting map shows shingled deposits from a highly undulating ice margin, rather than the single, linear margin shown on older maps.
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    Web-based glacial and bedrock geologic map products and databases for Marion County, Indiana
    (Geological Society of America, 2010-04-12) Rupp, R. F.; Hasenmueller, N. R.; Walls, A. C.; Karaffa, M. D.; Brown, S. E.; Fleming, A. H.; Ferguson, V. R.; Hasenmueller, W. A.
    The Internet has become a medium of choice for delivering geologic information to both technical users and the general public. The Indiana Geological Survey (IGS) is creating a Web-based glacial and bedrock geologic map site for Marion County in central Indiana to provide detailed geologic information needed to address environmental and resource management issues related to a growing population and land-use conflicts. Marion County is the location of Indianapolis, the state capital and largest city. The IGS anticipates that the information available via the Web site will be widely used by the general public, industry, and government entities concerned about the geology, groundwater, and other natural resources in this county. The Marion County Web site links an Internet map server (IMS) and database to provide a portal to the IGS’s enterprise geodatabases that allows users to efficiently create, manage, update, and distribute maps and data. The IMS site retrieves maps and cross sections of Marion County completed during earlier IGS mapping projects. Map layers pertaining to bedrock geology, surficial geology, hydrology, infrastructure, and imagery are included. Database information includes (1) lithologic information compiled from water-well records stored in the Indiana Department of Natural Resources, Division of Water archives, (2) natural gamma-ray geophysical log data, (3) stratigraphic test hole data, and (4) petroleum-well-record data. The development of the Web site is funded by the IGS and the Great Lakes Geologic Mapping Coalition.
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    An Integrated Architectural Element Approach to Three-Dimensional Geologic Mapping of the Huntertown Aquifer System In Northeastern Indiana
    (2008-10-08) Naylor, Shawn; Nelson, Greg C.; Gustin, Andrew R.
    A three-dimensional geologic model of the Huntertown glacial aquifer system is being developed. Permeable hydrostratigraphic units within the Huntertown Formation (Quaternary) comprise the principal ground-water resource for an expanding population in northern Allen County, Indiana. The Huntertown aquifer system lies predominantly between the less permeable Lagro and Trafalgar Formations. The Huntertown Formation and corresponding aquifer system are located in an interlobate setting characterized by complex glacial stratigraphy, consisting of coarse-grained proglacial sediments and loamy till intercalated with glaciofluvial and glaciolacustrine facies. To construct the model, a database of more than 2,500 lithologic logs from public and private water supply wells and more than 200 down-hole natural gamma-ray logs was compiled for the study area (~500 km2). The lithologic logs were plotted to construct 110 hand-drawn cross sections (total length of about 900 km) that were used to map the bounding surfaces of the three formations (high-order architectural elements) as well as to constrain the scale and geometry of intratill sand and gravel aquifer units. The base of the Lagro Formation was determined from well logs by a shift from massive clays to loam-textured sediments or by the presence of laterally and vertically extensive underlying sand and gravel units. A prominent shift toward higher counts in natural gamma-ray profiles was also used to determine the base of the Lagro. The top of the Trafalgar Formation was defined by a ubiquitously present overlying outwash package depicted in gamma-ray logs or by lithologic descriptions reflecting the Trafalgar's overconsolidated nature. Previously mapped areal extents of hydrogeologic facies are currently being used in conjunction with both lithologic and natural gamma-ray cross sections, rendered at various orientations across the study area, to determine the geometry of individual morphosequences or lower-order architectural elements (e.g., ice marginal fans and outwash channels).
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    GIS-based Three-dimensional Geologic and Hydrogeologic Modeling of the Milan, Ohio 1:24,000 Quadrangle
    (2008) Pavey, Richard R.; Olyphant, Greg A.; Letsinger, Sally L.
    The Central Great Lakes Geologic Mapping Coalition (CGLGMC) is a partnership among the state geological surveys of Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, and Michigan, and the U.S. Geological Survey. The mission of the CGLGMC is to produce detailed three-dimensional geologic maps and information, along with related digital databases, that support informed decision-making involving ground water, mineral-resource availability and distribution, geological hazards, and environmental management. The initial Ohio project for the CGLGMC was the geologic and ground-water modeling of the Milan Quadrangle in north-central Ohio. This area was modeled as ten lithologic units, including alluvium, beach ridges, lacustrine sand and clayey silt units, Wisconsinan till, and a significant pre-Wisconsinan buried valley aquifer. Tools in ESRI ArcGIS, including the Spatial Analyst extension, were used to analyze borehole and outcrop data, construct the bounding surfaces of each lithologic unit, and to produce raster data layers representing the three-dimensional framework of these units. We used the detailed three-dimensional geologic model and merged it with an equally detailed groundwater-flow model to produce a more realistic understanding of the controls that glacial geology and geomorphology exert on shallow ground-water flow systems. The top of the geologic model was the surface topography (digital elevation model), which was also used to derive the drainage network that is an important boundary condition in the ground-water flow model. The bottom of the geologic model was the top surface of the Devonian Ohio Shale. Flow in the shallow saturated zone reflected strong control by surface topography and assumed hydraulic properties of the mapped sedimentary units. In contrast, the flow at depth was not strongly influenced by the topography of the Ohio Shale but did show some tendency for regional flow toward Lake Erie. The resultant three-dimensional geologic model and companion ground-water modeling results can be used to produce a range of derivative products such as maps of recharge and discharge areas. Such products can be used to address the wide variety of water management, land use, environmental, and resource issues that are crucial to local, state, and federal agencies, private industry, and the general public.
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    Dressing the Emperor: The Role of Three-Dimensional Information Visualization Software in the Development of Three-Dimensional Hydrogeologic Models
    (2006-11-20) Medina, Cristian R.; Olyphant, Greg A.; Letsinger, Sally L.
    The goal of this research is to develop a model that describes the saturated and unsaturated groundwater flow in Berrien County, Michigan (1,350 km2), an area containing a complex sequence of glacio-lacustrine deposits. Stone and others (2001) mapped the morphosequences in Berrien County at a scale of 1:24,000, which includes georeferenced structure contours for 20 individual units. We have developed a methodology to translate this detailed morphostratigraphy into a solid three-dimensional geologic model, and then into a three-dimensional block of data that can be used as input to a finite-difference groundwater-flow model. Letsinger and others (2006) describe the process of using geographic information system software to convert the structure contours into georeferenced raster layers that describe each unit. At this stage of the reconstruction, only the bounding surfaces between the units are defined. In order to stack the units in vertical space using customized computer code, a “virtual well field” (regularized two-dimensional array of points) samples each x-y location in each of the 20 rasterized data layers. Units that are intersected from the top bounding surface (surface topography) to the bottom bounding surface (bedrock surface) are then identified. The result of this step is a vector (one-dimensional array) at each virtual well location that describes the elevation of each morphostratigraphic unit boundary intersected at that location. However, at this stage, the model is essentially a regularized three-dimensional point cloud, and three-dimensional information visualization software (3DIVS) is then utilized to generate a solid geologic model by interpolating the vertical geologic “samples” throughout the model domain. A finite-difference grid (“brickpile”) at the chosen resolution of the groundwater-flow model is then generated from the solid geologic model using data-processing functions of the 3DIVS.
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    Dressing the Emperor: The Role of GIS in the Development of Three-Dimensional Hydrogeologic Models
    (2006-11-20) Letsinger, Sally L.; Olyphant, Greg A.; Medina, Cristian R.
    The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) (2001) mapped structure contours for the tops of each of 20 individual units in intersecting and overlapping glacial morphosequences in Berrien County, Michigan (1,350 km2), as part of the mapping program of the Central Great Lakes Geologic Mapping Coalition (CGLGMC). We have developed a methodology to translate this detailed morphostratigraphy first into a solid three-dimensional geologic model, and then into a three-dimensional block of data that can be used as input to a finite-difference groundwater-flow model. The technique involves a hybrid approach involving geographic information systems (GIS), three-dimensional information visualization software (3DIVS), and customized data-processing code. The methodology begins by converting Stone’s structure contours (they are attributed vector contours) for each individually mapped unit into a raster surface at a defined grid resolution (200 m x 200 m). The top of the geologic model is the surface topography (digital elevation model), which is also used to derive the drainage network that is an important boundary condition in the groundwater-flow model. The bottom of the geologic model is the bedrock topography, which was also mapped and contoured by USGS (2001). Stone constructed his structure contour model such that the bottom of each map unit is described by the surface contours of the unit that lies immediately below it. Complex interrelationships dictate that the tops of a number of individually mapped units are sometimes required to describe the bottom surfaces of laterally more extensive units. Once all of the requisite raster grids have been derived, they can be manipulated to provide input that is necessary for development of a detailed solid geologic model using 3DIVS. GIS software and custom code are also used to assign hydrogeologic attributes to the elements of the final three-dimensional finite-difference geologic model.
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    Web-Based Glacial and Bedrock Geologic Map Products and Databases for Allen County, Indiana
    (2008) Rupp, Robin F.; Olejnik, Jennifer; Hasenmueller, Nancy R.; Karaffa, Marni D.; Walls, A. Chris; Radhakrishnan, Premkrishnan; Eaton, Nathan K.
    The Internet is becoming the medium of choice for delivering geologic information to both technical users and the general public. The Indiana Geological Survey (IGS) is currently creating a Web-based glacial and bedrock geologic map site for Allen County in northeastern Indiana. Allen County is the site of Fort Wayne, Indiana’s second largest city, and lies within IGS mapping and outreach priority areas based on population density and transportation corridors. This Web site provides detailed geologic information in an area that continues to experience pressure on natural resources by a large population and expanding transportation network. It is anticipated that the information from the Web site will be widely used by the general public and by industry and government entities. The Allen County Web site includes an Internet map server (IMS), as well as illustrations, educational summaries, and discussions of geologic maps, terrain images, and databases that complement the IMS. The site provides a front-end to the IGS enterprise geodatabases, which contain information used simultaneously for research and for viewing by the general public. The geodatabase systems allow maps and data to be efficiently created, managed, updated, and distributed. Maps provided on the Allen County Web site include: (1) digital elevation model terrain, (2) Landsat imagery, (3) surficial geology, (4) drift thickness, (5) bedrock topography, (6) bedrock geology, and (7) water-table elevation. Technical database information includes: (1) lithologic information compiled from water-well information in the Indiana Department of Natural Resources, Division of Water well records, (2) natural gamma-ray geophysical log data, (3) stratigraphic test hole data, and (4) petroleum-well data. The development of the Web site was funded by the IGS and the Central Great Lakes Geologic Mapping Coalition.