Re-examining Shoreline Elevations at Ancient Lake Chewaucan in Central Oregon, USA
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Date
2019-06
Authors
Kendrick, Brianna
Journal Title
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Abstract
The Chewaucan Basin in Eastern Oregon provides a unique environment for pluvial lake geomorphology research, as lake oscillations in the last 30,000 years have formed shoreline features that wrap around the basin. Over the last century, multiple scholars have published works describing shorelines of the ancient lakes using various elevation data collection methods, including USGS topographic maps, Digital Elevation Models, and survey equipment. By revisiting accessible shoreline sites and measuring elevations using a TopCon RTK GPS I found that topographic maps vary between 0.2 and 11 meters off and Digital Elevation Models, which are developed using the historical topographic maps, vary in accuracy between 2.5 and 12.25 meters, when compared to the TopCon measurements. These discrepancies reveal that historical elevation data needs to be evaluated when studying the geomorphology and other issues in the basin.
Description
40 pages
Keywords
Paleogeomorphology, Great Basin, USGS, Geography