The United States Geological Survey (USGS), founded as the Geological Survey, is an agency of the United States Department of the Interior whose work spans the disciplines of biology, geography, geology, and hydrology. The agency was founded on March 3, 1879, to study the landscape of the United States, its natural resources, and the natural hazards that threaten it. The agency also makes maps of planets and moons, based on data from U.S. space probes.
The sole scientific agency of the U.S. Department of the Interior, USGS is a fact-finding research organization with no regulatory responsibility. It is headquartered in Reston, Virginia, with major offices near Lakewood, Colorado; at the Denver Federal Center; and in NASA Research Park in California. In 2009, it employed about 8,670 people.
The current motto of the USGS, in use since August 1997, is "science for a changing world".FY 1997 Annual Financial Report , U.S. Geological Survey. The agency's previous slogan, adopted on its hundredth anniversary, was "Earth Science in the Public Service".Suggestions to Authors of the Reports of the United States Geological Survey , U.S. Geological Survey (7th ed. 1991), pp. 247–248.
History Prior Surveys In the early-1800s, geological surveys were conducted by states and private individuals to support agriculture as a result of westward migration after the War of 1812. The first Federal survey was conducted in 1834 by George William Featherstonhaugh under the Topographical Bureau of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to create a geological map of the United States. This was followed by other geological explorations like the United States Exploring Expedition and the establishment of the Corps of Topographical Engineers led by John James Abert. As minerals like gold were being discovered in the west, land surveys became necessary as part of Manifest destiny. As a result, various states set up geological survey institutions in the mid-1800s, e.g., the Kentucky Geological Survey, established in 1854.
On March 2, 1867, Congress authorized explorations focused on the geology along the Transcontinental railroad under the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers led by Clarence King and a survey of the natural resources of Nebraska under the General Land Office led by Ferdinand Vandeveer Hayden. The explorations led to the creation of the United States Geological and Geographical Survey of the Territories which included surveys led by John Wesley Powell (Powell Geographic Expedition of 1869) and George Wheeler (Wheeler Survey). Hayden also received funding for the Hayden Geological Survey of 1871.
Creation In 1879, a National Academy of Sciences report suggested the creation of an agency dedicated to the study of geology and environmental resources on public domain. This agency would be distinct from the existing Coast and Geodetic Survey, which would focus on measurements of geodesy instead of geology.
The report prompted Congress to establish the USGS as a last-minute amendment to a sundry appropriations bill on March 3, 1879. The Organic Act of 1879 was signed into law by President Rutherford B. Hayes and established the Director of the U.S. Geological Survey under the Department of the Interior, it charged the new agency with the "classification of the public lands, and examination of the geological structure, mineral resources, and products of the national domain." The legislation also discontinued the existing surveys led by Hayden, Powell, and Wheeler on June 30, 1879.
The earliest responsibilities of the USGS was to survey and classify public lands for the existence of minerals following the Land Ordinance of 1785. At the time, the government owned 1.2 billion acres of land as a result of the Louisiana Purchase and the Mexican–American War, yet only 200 million acres were surveyed. Clarence King was appointed as the first director of USGS, assembling the new organization from disparate regional survey agencies. He focused on economic development for mining in the west, and resigned to pursue opportunities in the mining industry. After two years, King was succeeded by John Wesley Powell, who expanded the mission of the agency.
Organizational structure
The USGS is led by the Director which is appointed by the President with the consent of the Senate. The Director is not allowed to have personal or private interests in the lands being surveyed, and is not allowed to survey for private parties or corporations. The agency is headquartered in Reston, Virginia within the USGS National Center.
Science research is split into five "Mission Areas" that are aligned with themes in the USGS Science Strategy. This allows research to be interdisciplinary and groups science programs under a broad category. Each Mission Area is led by an Associate Director that reports directly to the Director.
Specific science research is further broken down into seven geographical regions which are led by Regional Directors that report to the Deputy Director of Operations. The regions are aligned with the Department of the Interior Unified Regions. Administrative services are centralized and report to the Deputy Director of Administration and Policy.
Regions
Each of the seven regions has a field office which focuses on research specific to that region's geography and conditions, supporting science programs and facilities located within each region.
Region 1: Northeast Region 2: Southeast Region 3: Midcontintent Region 4: Rocky Mountain Region 5: Southwest Region 6: Northwest-Pacific Islands Region 7: Alaska
Mission Areas The five Mission Areas categorize research into topics each with individual programs and facilities.
Core Science Systems The Core Science Systems Mission Area is the fundamental research division for everything in the Earth's critical zone. Its activities focus on structural geology, geomorphology, geophysics, and geography. In addition to evaluating land through remote sensing, as well as analyzing evolutionary biology and biogeography. The work is supported by computer science and aims to distribute data through maps or other mediums as foundation for all other Mission Areas. The Mission Area is formed around a "Modular Science Framework" with the goal of contributing to the Digital Earth.
The programs under the Core Science Systems Mission Area include: National Geospatial Program: Responsible for topographic mapping through management of The National Map, United States Board on Geographic Names, and the Geographic Names Information System. National Cooperative Geologic Mapping Program: Responsible for geologic mapping through the National Geologic Map Database. Gap Analysis Project National Geological and Geophysical Data Preservation Program National Land Imaging Program: Manages remote sensing research through missions like Landsat. Science Synthesis, Analysis, and Research Program
The science centers under the Core Science Systems Mission Area include: Center of Excellence for Geospatial Information Science Earth Resources Observation and Science Center National Geospatial Technical Operations Center National Ice Core Laboratory Core Research Center USGS Library
Ecosystems Climate Adaptation Science Centers The National and regional Climate Adaptation Science Centers (CASCs) is a partnership-driven program that teams scientific researchers with natural and cultural resource managers to help fish, wildlife, waters, and lands across the country adapt to climate change. The National CASC (NCASC), based at USGS headquarters in Reston, Virginia, serves as the national office for the CASC network, while nine regional CASCs comprising federal-university consortiums located across the U.S., U.S. Pacific Islands, and U.S. Caribbean deliver science that addresses resource management priorities of the states within their footprints.
National Wildlife Health Center The USGS also operates the National Wildlife Health Center, whose mission is "to serve the nation and its natural resources by providing sound science and technical support, and to disseminate information to promote science-based decisions affecting wildlife and ecosystem health. The NWHC provides information, technical assistance, research, education, and leadership on national and international wildlife health issues." It is the agency primarily responsible for surveillance of H5N1 avian influenza outbreaks in the United States. The USGS also runs 17 biological research centers in the United States, including the Patuxent Wildlife Research Center.
Geology, Energy, and Minerals Geochronology In collaboration with Stanford University, the USGS operates the USGS-Stanford Ion Microprobe Laboratory, an analytical facility for U-(Th)-Pb geochronology and trace element analyses of minerals and other earth materials.
Natural Hazards The programs under the Natural Hazards Mission Area include:
Earthquake Hazards Program
The Earthquake Hazards Program monitors earthquake activity worldwide. The National Earthquake Information Center (NEIC) in Golden, Colorado, on the campus of the Colorado School of Mines detects the location and magnitude of global earthquakes. The USGS also runs or supports several regional monitoring networks in the United States under the umbrella of the Advanced National Seismic System (ANSS). The USGS informs authorities, emergency responders, the media, and the public, both domestic and worldwide, about significant earthquakes. It maintains long-term archives of earthquake data for scientific and engineering research. It also conducts and supports research on long-term seismic hazards. USGS has released the UCERF California earthquake forecast.
ShakeMaps The USGS is investigating collaboration with the social networking site Twitter to allow for more rapid construction of ShakeMaps.Mahalia Miller, Lynne Burks, and Reza Bosagh Zadeh Rapid Estimate of Ground Shaking Intensity by Combining Simple Earthquake Characteristics with Tweets , Tenth U.S. National Conference on Earthquake Engineering ShakeMaps are an interactive tool allowing users to visually observe the distribution and severity of shaking resulting from earthquakes.
Volcano Hazards Program the agency is working to create a National Volcano Early Warning System by improving the instrumentation monitoring the 169 volcanoes in U.S. territory and by establishing methods for measuring the relative threats posed at each site.
The USGS also operates five volcano observatories throughout the nation: the Alaska Volcano Observatory (covering volcanoes in Alaska and the Northern Mariana Islands) in Anchorage, Alaska (on the campus of Alaska Pacific University); the California Volcano Observatory in Menlo Park, California; the Cascades Volcano Observatory (covering volcanoes in Idaho, Oregon, and Washington) in Vancouver, Washington; the Hawaiian Volcano Observatory (covering volcanoes in Hawaii and American Samoa) in Hilo, Hawaii; and the Yellowstone Volcano Observatory (covering volcanoes in Arizona, Colorado, Montana, New Mexico, Utah, and Wyoming) in Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming.
The Volcano Disaster Assistance Program helps developing countries experiencing volcanic eruptions through response, capacity building, training, and volcano research.Tilling, R.I. 1989, Volcanic hazards and their mitigation: Progress and problems, Reviews of Geophysics, 27,2 The program is based out of the Cascades Volcano Observatory.
Coastal and Marine Hazards and Resources Program