{"accessLevel": "public", "bureauCode": ["010:12"], "contactPoint": {"@type": "vcard:Contact", "fn": "Michael T. Moreo", "hasEmail": "mailto:mtmoreo@usgs.gov"}, "description": "Abstract from SIR 2017-5079: This report documents methodology and results of a study to evaluate groundwater discharge by evapotranspiration (GWET) in sparsely vegetated areas of Amargosa Desert and improve understanding of hydrologic-continuum processes controlling groundwater discharge. Evapotranspiration and GWET rates were computed and characterized at three sites over 2 years using a combination of micrometeorological, unsaturated zone, and stable-isotope measurements. One site (Amargosa Flat Shallow [AFS]) was in a sparse and isolated area of saltgrass (Distichlis spicata) where the depth to groundwater was 3.8 meters (m). The second site (Amargosa Flat Deep [AFD]) was in a sparse cover of predominantly shadscale (Atriplex confertifolia) where the depth to groundwater was 5.3 m. The third site (Amargosa Desert Research Site [ADRS]), selected as a control site where GWET is assumed to be zero, was located in sparse vegetation dominated by creosote bush (Larrea tridentata) where the depth to groundwater was 110 m. \nResults indicated that capillary rise brought groundwater to within 0.9 m (at AFS) and 3 m (at AFD) of land surface, and that GWET rates were largely controlled by the slow but relatively persistent upward flow of water through the unsaturated zone in response to atmospheric-evaporative demands. Greater GWET at AFS (50 \u00b1 20 millimeters per year [mm/yr]) than at AFD (16 \u00b1 15 mm/yr) corresponded with its shallower depth to the capillary fringe and constantly higher soil-water content. The stable-isotope dataset for hydrogen (\u03b42H) and oxygen (\u03b418O) illustrated a broad range of plant-water-uptake scenarios. The AFS saltgrass and AFD shadscale responded to changing environmental conditions and their opportunistic water use included the time- and depth-variable uptake of unsaturated-zone water derived from a combination of groundwater and precipitation. These results can be used to estimate GWET in other areas of Amargosa Desert where hydrologic conditions are similar.", "distribution": [{"@type": "dcat:Distribution", "accessURL": "https://doi.org/10.5066/F7R49NZN", "description": "Landing page for access to the data", "format": "XML", "mediaType": "application/http", "title": "Digital Data"}, {"@type": "dcat:Distribution", "description": "The metadata original format", "downloadURL": "https://data.usgs.gov/datacatalog/metadata/USGS.5953eccde4b062508e3c7bed.xml", "format": "XML", "mediaType": "text/xml", "title": "Original Metadata"}], "identifier": "http://datainventory.doi.gov/id/dataset/USGS_5953eccde4b062508e3c7bed", "keyword": ["Amargosa Desert", "Amargosa Flat", "Evapotranspiration", "Groundwater levels", "Nevada", "Nye County", "Soil chemical properties", "Soil hydraulic properties", "Soil physical properties", "USGS:5953eccde4b062508e3c7bed", "Unsaturated zone"], "modified": "2020-09-25T00:00:00Z", "publisher": {"@type": "org:Organization", "name": "U.S. Geological Survey"}, "spatial": "-116.63909912004, 36.25056544696, -115.68878173727, 36.859495100253", "theme": ["geospatial"], "title": "Evapotranspiration, Groundwater, and Unsaturated-Zone Data, Amargosa Desert, Nye County, Nevada, 2011-13"}