Hydrogeologic inferences from drillers` logs and from gravity and resistivity surveys in the Amargosa Desert, southern Nevada
The Amargosa Desert of southern Nevada, in the Basin and Range province, is hydraulically downgradient from Yucca Mountain, the potential site of a repository for high-level nuclear waste. Ground-water flow paths and flow rates beneath the Amargosa Desert are controlled in part by the total saturated thickness and the hydraulic properties of basin-fill alluvial sediments. Drillers` logs of water wells completed in alluvium were analyzed to help characterize the hydrogeologic framework underlying the Amargosa Desert. Fractions of coarse-grained sediments, calculated from each of these logs, were contoured using a universal-kriging routine to interpolate values. Results from a previous electrical sounding survey also were contoured, including the estimated depth to Paleozoic basement rocks. The vertical electric sounding results were obtained from individual depth-to-resistivity profiles, from which the average resistivity of the total profile and the resistivity of the upper 75 meters were calculated. the distribution and variations in average resistivity of the total depth correlated reasonably well with the distribution of variations in regional gravity. 24 refs., 17 figs.
- Research Organization:
- US Geological Survey, Denver, CO (United States)
- DOE Contract Number:
- AI08-78ET44802
- OSTI ID:
- 137792
- Report Number(s):
- USGS-OFR-89-234; ON: DE90015533; TRN: 90:025977
- Resource Relation:
- Other Information: PBD: 1989
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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Related Subjects
54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES
WATER WELLS
GRAVITY LOGGING
RESISTIVITY LOGGING
HIGH-LEVEL RADIOACTIVE WASTES
UNDERGROUND DISPOSAL
ALLUVIAL DEPOSITS
HYDROLOGY
WELL LOGGING
ELECTRICAL SURVEYS
GRAVITY SURVEYS
NEVADA
DESERTS
GEOLOGIC SURVEYS
GROUND WATER
FLOW RATE
YUCCA MOUNTAIN
Yucca Mountain Project