Summary

Description

The National Weather Service (NWS) National Hurricane Center uses regularly updated RSS feeds to disseminate Marine Weather Discussions.

Summary

Description

The National Weather Service (NWS) National Hurricane Center uses regularly updated RSS feeds to disseminate North Atlantic High Seas Forecasts.

Summary

Description

A review, of the exotic ungulate industry in Florida was made by mailing questionnaires to exotic ungulate permittees, phone interviews, interviews with exotic ungulate ownermanagers, interviews with law enforcement wildlife inspectors, review of permit application forms on file with the Florida Game and Fresh Water Fish Commission, and review of the International Species Inventory System list. There were 3,649 wildlife exhibits, game farms, and hunting preserves in Florida. All of these are intensively managed pen operations where there is relatively little contact between exotic and native ungulates. Of these, 64 2 maintained a total of more than 6,000 exotic hoofedanimals representing 103 species. The number of new game farms with exotic ungulates has increased dramatically in the past 10 to 15 years. The most common species are fallow Cervus dama, axis C. axis, and sika C. nippon deer. These species have been shown to compete with native whitetailed deer in other states. The potential for competition probably is not as great in Florida. Florida has more of an abundance and diversity of vegetation types than most other states; therefore, even slight differences in food selection or habitat preferences would lessen competition between species. The biggest concern is the potential for introduction of diseases and parasites along with the exotic ungulates. Although there is not a market for the meat of exotic ungulates in Florida at this time, these animals are a potential source of high protein and low fat meat. Exotic ungulate operations in Florida provide additional income to some landowners, yeararound hunting opportunity, preservation of threatened and endangered species, and nonconsumptive recreational opportunities. The exotic ungulate industry needs to be monitored closely in the coming years, particularly with regards to diseases and parasites.

Summary

Description

Located approximately ten miles from downtown Denver, the Rocky Mountain Arsenal National Wildlife Refuge RMANWR encompasses 15,998 contiguous acres. Due to contamination from the production of chemical munitions and pesticides, significant portions of this site underwent environmental cleanup as stipulated in the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act of 1980 CERCLA administered by the Environmental Protection Agency EPA. With the exception of about 1,084 acres that will be retained by the U.S. Army, the balance of land within the boundary was transferred to U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service jurisdiction following completion of remediation activities. Although most environmental cleanup was completed by the fall of 2011, native plant restoration activities continue on most lands.Restoration of short and mixedgrass prairie are considered to be of primary importance in achieving the purposes of RMANWR because these habitats provide the life requisites of numerous migratory bird species, many of which are considered to be species of conservation concern due to population declines. The large disturbance that occurred on this site has created conditions leading to high prairie dog populations, which is in conflict with larger goals for grassland restoration. Given that nonlethal methods have not been effective in controlling prairie dogs to the extent necessary to restore grasslands critical to achieving the purposes of RMANWR, alternative means of prairie dog control must be considered. Therefore, the goal of this adaptive management strategy is to develop a method, or combination of methods, that 1 increase the probability of restoration success and 2 sustain viable prairie dog populations that provide functions necessary to perpetuate native grasslands and associated migratory birds. The method selected to achieve the balance of active restoration within a landscape that includes prairie dogs in the RMANWR habitat management plan 2013 is to establish and maintain permanently designated prairie dog zones of 2,585 acres. The 2,585 acres represents approximately 16 of the total refuge, which is consistent with the historical accounts. These zones overlap much of the historical locations of prairie dog colonies on the RMANWR, and would be protected from sylvatic plague by application of appropriate insecticides to kill fleas, the intermediate host for the plague bacterium Yersinia pestis.

Summary

Description

This Comprehensive Conservation Plan CCP was written to guide management on Pearl Harbor National Wildlife Refuge for the next 15 years. This plan outlines the Refuge vision and purpose and describes how the Complex will contribute to the overall mission of the Refuge System. The plan provides an introduction to the Refuge, an overview of the CCP process, Refuge facilities and public use programs, goals and objectives, information about the management direction, and strategies for implementation.

Summary

Description

The Digital Flood Insurance Rate Map (DFIRM) Database depicts flood risk information and supporting data used to develop the risk data. The primary risk classifications used are the 1-percent-annual-chance flood event, the 0.2-percent-annual- chance flood event, and areas of minimal flood risk. The DFIRM Database is derived from Flood Insurance Studies (FISs), previously published Flood Insurance Rate Maps (FIRMs), flood hazard analyses performed in support of the FISs and FIRMs, and new mapping data, where available. The FISs and FIRMs are published by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA). In addition to the preceding, required text, the Abstract should also describe the projection and coordinate system as well as a general statement about horizontal accuracy.

Summary

Description

This is a public dataset for the Department of Transportation, Office of the Assistant Secretary for Research and Technology's Bureau of Transportation Statistics (NTAD 2015). The public database consists of four tables. One of the tables is a spatial table: INTERMODAL_FACILITY. The three other tables consist of attribute data for the database: INTERMODAL_CARGO, INTERMODAL_COMMODITY and INTERMODAL_DIRECTIONALITY. This database was based on the requirements from the Commodity Flow Survey and with the different modes of DOT, supervised by OST-R/BTS. The database will extend its design to support all of the modes within the DOT and in reference to modes involved with Intermodal transfer.

Summary

Description

NNDSS - Table II. Varicella to West Nile virus disease - 2014. In this Table, all conditions with a 5-year average annual national total of more than or equals 1,000 cases but less than or equals 10,000 cases will be displayed (≥ 1,000 and ≤ 10,000). The Table includes total number of cases reported in the United States, by region and by states, in accordance with the current method of displaying MMWR data. Data on United States exclude counts from US territories. Note: These are provisional cases of selected national notifiable diseases, from the National Notifiable Diseases Surveillance System (NNDSS). NNDSS data reported by the 50 states, New York City, the District of Columbia, and the U.S. territories are collated and published weekly as numbered tables printed in the back of the Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (MMWR). Cases reported by state health departments to CDC for weekly publication are provisional because of ongoing revision of information and delayed reporting. Case counts in this table are presented as they were published in the MMWR issues. Therefore, numbers listed in later MMWR weeks may reflect changes made to these counts as additional information becomes available. Footnotes: C.N.M.I.: Commonwealth of Northern Mariana Islands. U: Unavailable. -: No reported cases. N: Not reportable. NN: Not Nationally Notifiable Cum: Cumulative year-to-date counts. Med: Median. Max: Maximum. * Case counts for reporting years 2013 and 2014 are provisional and subject to change. For further information on interpretation of these data, see http://wwwn.cdc.gov/nndss/document/ProvisionalNationaNotifiableDiseasesS.... Data for TB are displayed in Table IV, which appears quarterly. † Updated weekly from reports to the Division of Vector-Borne Infectious Diseases, National Center for Zoonotic, Vector-Borne, and Enteric Diseases (ArboNet Surveillance). Data for California serogroup, eastern equine, Powassan, St. Louis, and western equine diseases are available in Table I. § Not reportable in all states. Data from states where the condition is not reportable are excluded from this table, except starting in 2007 for the Arboviral diseases and influenza-associated pediatric mortality, and in 2003 for SARS-CoV. Reporting exceptions are available at http://wwwn.cdc.gov/nndss/document/SRCA_FINAL_REPORT_2006-2012_final.xlsx. More information on NNDSS is available at http://wwwn.cdc.gov/nndss/.

Summary

Description

This data set is part of a larger set of data called the MultiBeam Bathymetric Data Base (MBBDB) where other similar data can be found at http://maps.ngdc.noaa.gov/viewers/multibeam/

Summary

Description

The Digital Flood Insurance Rate Map (DFIRM) Database depicts flood risk information and supporting data used to develop the risk data. The primary risk classifications used are the 1-percent-annual-chance flood event, the 0.2-percent-annual- chance flood event, and areas of minimal flood risk. The DFIRM Database is derived from Flood Insurance Studies (FISs), previously published Flood Insurance Rate Maps (FIRMs), flood hazard analyses performed in support of the FISs and FIRMs, and new mapping data, where available. The FISs and FIRMs are published by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA).The file is georeferenced to earth's surface using the State Plane projection and coordinate system. The specifications for the horizontal control of DFIRM data files are consistent with those required for mapping at a scale of 1:12,000.

Summary

Description

To address the NASA Johnson Space Center's need for a space auscultation capability, Physical Optics Corporation proposes to develop a Hybrid High-Fidelity Auscultation Scope (AUSCU-SCOPE) based on a unique combination of multiple auscultation mechanisms with a novel sensor-fusion algorithm. This system incorporates a hybridized sensor configuration and novel signal processing algorithm that will separate low-intensity body sounds (<25 dBA) from a noisy background (>70 dBA) experienced in spaceflights with a 20-dB signal-to-noise ratio. The non-invasive and space-qualified AUSCU-SCOPE is safe, easy-to-use for a non-expert crew member and does not require extra training of clinicians to Doppler sounds. Additionally, the system easily connects with space telemetry systems via Ethernet, firewire, USB, and wireless 802.11 for transmitting sound data for distance diagnosis. In Phase I, POC will demonstrate feasibility of AUSCU-SCOPE through system design, simulation, assembly, and testing of a benchtop prototype, which will reach TRL-level 4 by the end of Phase I. In Phase II, POC will develop a fully functional prototype at TRL-6 and demonstrate high-fidelity spaceflight auscultation capability in the presence of a 70-dBA noise. The results will enable NASA to perform spaceflight auscultation even against significant background noise.

Summary

Description

The Digital Flood Insurance Rate Map (DFIRM) Database depicts flood risk information and supporting data used to develop the risk data. The primary risk classifications used are the 1-percent-annual-chance flood event, the 0.2-percent-annual-chance flood event, and areas of minimal flood risk. The DFIRM Database is derived from Flood Insurance Studies (FISs), previously published Flood Insurance Rate Maps (FIRMs), flood hazard analyses performed in support of the FISs and FIRMs, and new mapping data, where available. The FISs and FIRMs are published by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA). The file is georeferenced to earth's surface using the State Plane projection and coordinate system. The specifications for the horizontal control of DFIRM data files are consistent with those required for mapping at a scale of 1:12000.

Summary

Description

Hydrology data include spatial datasets and data tables necessary for documenting the hydrologic procedures for estimating flood discharges for a flood insurance study, which includes the hydrologic data expected by FEMA for new riverline studies. (Source: FEMA Guidelines and Specifications, Appendix N)

Summary

Description

The Total Petroleum System is used in the National Assessment Project and incorporates the Assessment Unit, which is the fundamental geologic unit used for the assessment of undiscovered oil and gas resources. The Total Petroleum System is shown here as a geographic boundary defined and mapped by the geologist responsible for the province and incorporates not only the set of known or postulated oil and (or) gas accumulations, but also the geologic interpretation of the essential elements and processes within the petroleum system that relate to source, generation, migration, accumulation, and trapping of the discovered and undiscovered petroleum resource(s).

Summary

Description

Protects the public's right to high quality health care by licensing and mandating standards of operation for nurse agencies which refer, employ, or assign registered nurses, licensed practical nurses or certified nurse aides to Illinois health care facilities.

Summary

Description

A major component of a species fitness is its ability to utilize time effectively. Through the process of natural selection a species becomes efficient at organizing its activities to suit habitat, temperature, competition, and the availability of food. In an area such as the Harney Basin, where temperatures may rise an fall 45 degrees Fahrenheit in a 24 hour period, time budgeting is especially important. A bird must organize its time so as to minimize water and energy loss maintaining body temperature , yet still being efficient when feeding. To exemplify this time budgeting two species were studies the Says Phoebe and the western Kingbird. Two general questions were considered: 1 What effect does the time of day have on the patterns of activity and habitat utilization of these two species, and 2 What effects does caring for nestlings have on the activity patterns of two very similar species.

Summary

Description

Soda ash is a pulverized mineral, commonly referred to as trona, and harvested from underground deposits in southwestern Wyoming. Four companies own 5 mining operations in the vicinity of Green River, Wyoming, and produce 90 percent of the soda ash in the United States, which accounts for more than 30 percent of the world supply. Trona refining produces tailings water that is either discharged into open evaporation ponds or recycled back into the mining operation and used to facilitate trona ore extraction. As water evaporates from the ponds, chemical residues become concentrated. At cooler temperatures generally 40F sodium decahydrate precipitates out of the water and crystallizes on solid objects in the ponds or on the water surface. Migratory birds landing on the evaporation ponds and being exposed to the water are affected by the sodium decahydrate and other chemical precipitates. Water samples collected from multiple evaporation ponds had similar physical and chemical composition with the exception of phytoplankton species present. Representative total dissolved solids TDS ranged from approximately 40,000 ppm parts per million to greater than 300,000 ppm depending on the pond and time of year. Eared grebe mean serum sodium, chloride, bicarbonate, aspartate aminotransferase, creatine kinase, and uric acid were elevated immediately after capture compared to serum biochemical parameters from eared grebes collected from a reference site in British Columbia, Canada. Histopathologic evidence consistent with drowning was observed in all grebes, but it is not known whether this was a direct mortality factor or a late terminal event.

Summary

Description

U.S. Enhanced Hourly Wind Station Data is digital data set DSI-6421, archived at the National Centers for Environmental Information (NCEI; formerly National Climatic Data Center, NCDC). During earlier work at NCDC, it was noted that anemometer elevations at U.S. weather stations (for which metadata related to anemometer height was available) varied widely with time. Between 1931 and 2000, there were up to 12 significant anemometer height changes at some of these stations, and on average there was one change per decade at any station with more than 10 years of record. For example, at Los Angeles International Airport, the anemometer height changed 4 times during the 60 years, varying from 59 ft to 20 ft, while at Edwards Air Force Base, the anemometer height was changed 10 times and varied from 13 ft to 75 ft. Therefore, the elevation homogenization of the near-surface wind time series is a necessary pre-requisite for any climatological assessments. This was done at NCDC, creating the DSI-6421 data set. Stations were included in DSI-6421 on a year-by-year basis, depending upon the availability of anemometer metadata and the number of observations made during a year. The earliest data was from 1931, with very few stations. The number of stations increased during World War II to about 200, decreased briefly after the war, and increased to about 350 during the period 1948-1972 because most first-order (primary) stations qualified for inclusion. After 1972, as the importance of metadata was more widely recognized, the number of qualified stations rose to near 1000 by 1985, and continued at about that number through year 2000. The formulae used were U10g = Ua log[(10-Hsnod)/z0]/log[(Ha - Hsnod)/z0], and U10s = Ua log[10/z0]/log[(Ha - Hsnod)/z0], where z0 is the surface roughness (a function of the presence of snow cover at the site); Hsnod is the snow depth; Ha is the anemometer height above the ground; Ua is the wind speed at the anemometer height; U10g is the speed at 10 m above the ground; and U10s is the speed at 10 m above the surface.

Summary

Description

These daily gridded observations at 1/8 degree spatial resolution (about 12 km) are a baseline dataset to be compered to downscaled climate predictions. The grid used is the same as has been used by other 1/8th degree spatial resolution downscaling projects. Before using this dataset, please review the material summarized here: https://my.usgs.gov/confluence/display/GeoDataPortal/2014/04/16/Notice%3A+Evaluation+of+Maurer+gridded+observational+datasets+and+their+impacts+on+downscaled+products

Summary

Description

This shapefile contains polygons that describe the spatial extent of Jurassic age evaporite facies (Gaurdak formation) in the Afghan-Tajik and Amu Darya basins.

Summary

Description

Historic Marine Geologic data reports available are from academia, government, and non-U.S. sources. These reports were originally in paper or film form and were scanned to Portable Document Format (PDF) to enable online browse/download and archive in digital form. The following are examples of the types of analyses of sediment or rock from the ocean floor or lakebeds worldwide which may be included in individual data reports: descriptions of composition and/or lithology, grain size and other physical properties, mineralogy, geochemistry, paleontology, petrology, paleomagnetism and acoustics of sediment. They may also contain low-resolution photographs of cores or dredges, or the ocean floor. Reports are searchable via the Marine Geology Digital Inventory and may also be linked to/discoverable via the Index to Marine and Lacustrine Geological Samples (IMLGS). Scanned images of most paper data reports are available to view online, however, some Copyrighted reports contributed through the World Data Center System are available for on-site inspection only. For these reports, the geologic inventory provides links to the contributing institution for ordering.

Summary

Description

Gridded multibeam bathymetry is integrated with gridded LiDAR bathymetry and bathymetry derived from multispectral IKONOS satellite data. Gridded (5 m cell size) multibeam bathymetry collected aboard NOAA Ship Hiialaka'i and R/V AHI. Lidar bathymetry were collected by the Naval Oceanographic Office. Bathymetry values shallower than 25 m were derived by gauging the reletive attenuation of blue and green spectral radiance as a function of depth. A multiple linear regression analysis of linearized blue and green band spectral values against depth determined the variables of y-intercept, blue slope and green slope values. Variables then used in multivariate slope intercept formula to derive depth. Variables were adjusted to improve the statistical accuracy and spatial coverage of the final derived bathymetry product. Digital image processing to derive depths conducted with the ENVI 4.5 software program while data editing and integration was performed using ArcGIS 9.3. This dataset is for the shelf environment of Saipan Island, Commonwealth of Northern Mariana Islands, USA

Summary

Description

The Niagara River Environmental Contaminants Study is an ongoing effort by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Service emphasizing the use of biological indicators to assess the impacts of environmental contaminants on fish and wildlife resources. Reported here are the results of the wildlife bioindicator portion of the study. The goals of the study were to determine the nature and extent of environmental contaminant burdens in the Common Tern Sterna hirundo population of the upper Niagara River area, and to evaluate the potential for negative impacts to that population. Reproductive parameters and contaminant burdens of the upper Niagara River area Common Tern populations are compared to the Atlantic coast and lower Great Lakes populations. Between 1986 and 1988, 62 Common Tern eggs, nine Herring Gull eggs and 17 forage fish samples from the upper Niagara River area were collected and analyzed for organic and elemental residues. The results indicate that organochlorine, heavy metal, and polyaromatic and aliphatic hydrocarbon contamination in upper Niagara River Common Terns is low and does not appear to impair reproduction. A comparison of the P,PDDE:PCBs polychlorinated biphenyls ratios for Common Tern and Herring Gull Larus argentatus eggs showed them to be nearly the same. Those for Common Tern eggs and forage fish were similar and showed a parallel decline between 1986 and 1988. These comparisons suggest that the concentration of contaminants found in Common Tern eggs reflected local levels rather than contaminant levels on their wintering grounds. Hence, Common Terns were good indicators of upper Niagara River contaminants. Despite the low levels of contaminants found in the Common Tern eggs and forage fish sampled, the terns experienced poor hatching and fledging success. Predation and poor habitat quality may be the primary factors affecting the breeding success of terns in the upper Niagara River population. However, the high incidence of egg and chick predation and the indirect effects of predation at the tern colonies studied may have masked any observable linkage between poor reproductive performance of Common Terns with local contaminant burdens. Other factors, such as behavioral abnormalities, embryotoxicity, and embryonic mortality that are known to be pollutioninduced, should not be ruled out as having contributed to the poor reproductive success of the Common Terns. In particular, a study should be initiated to investigate parental nest attentiveness, prehatching mortality, and eggshell structure of the Common Terns nesting in the upper Niagara River area to further address the concern over the decline in the population.

Summary

Description

The United States Geological Survey (USGS) is working cooperatively with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) to interpret the surficial geology in estuaries along the coast of the northeastern United States. The purpose of our present study is to define the sea floor morphology and sedimentary environments in an area of central Rhode Island Sound using sidescan-sonar imagery, multibeam bathymetry and seismic records. The mosaic, bathymetry, and their interpretations serve many purposes, including: (1) defining the geological variability of the sea floor, which is one of the primary controls of benthic habitat diversity; (2) improving our understanding of the processes that control the distribution and transport of bottom sediments and the distribution of benthic habitats and associated infaunal community structures; and (3) providing a detailed framework for future research, monitoring, and management activities. The sidescan-sonar mosaics and bathymetry images also serve as base maps for subsequent sedimentological, geochemical, and biological observations, because precise information on environmental setting is important for selection of sampling sites and for accurate interpretations of point measurements.

Summary

Description

FEMA Framework Basemap datasets comprise six of the seven FGDC themes of geospatial data that are used by most GIS applications (Note: the seventh framework theme, orthographic imagery, is packaged in a separate NFIP Metadata Profile): cadastral, geodetic control, governmental unit, transportation, general structures, hydrography (water areas & lines. These data include an encoding of the geographic extent of the features and a minimal number of attributes needed to identify and describe the features. (Source: Circular A16, p. 13)