Celebrating 125 Years of the U.S. Geological Survey

U.S. Department of the Interior

U.S. Geological Survey

Circular 1274
Celebrating 125 Years of the U.S. Geological Survey

Compiled by Kathleen K. Gohn

Circular 1274

U.S. Department of the Interior

U.S. Geological Survey
U.S. Department of the Interior

Gale A. Norton, Secretary

U.S. Geological Survey

Charles G. Groat, Director

U.S. Geological Survey, Reston, Virginia: 2004

Free on application to U.S. Geological Survey, Information Services

Box 25286, Denver Federal Center

Denver, CO 80225

For more information about the USGS and its products:

Telephone: 1-888-ASK-USGS

World Wide Web: http://www.usgs.gov/

Any use of trade, product, or firm names in this publication is for descriptive purposes only and does not imply endorsement by the U.S. Government.

Although this report is in the public domain, permission must be secured from the individual copyright owners to reproduce any copyrighted materials contained 

within this report.

Suggested citation:

Gohn, Kathleen K., comp., 2004, Celebrating 125 years of the U.S. Geological Survey : U.S. Geological Survey Circular 1274, 56 p.

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

2001051109

ISBN 0-607-86197-5 
iii

Today, the USGS continues 

to map, measure, and monitor 

our land and its resources and 

to conduct research that builds 

fundamental knowledge about 

the Earth, its resources, and its 

processes, contributing relevant 

and impartial information to 

critical societal issues.

As we celebrate our 

contributions and those made 

in partnership with the broader 

science community, we look 

with renewed energy to the 

coming decades. The USGS 

and the Nation will face many 

challenges during the coming 

years: water availability, climate 

change, habitat alteration, 

emerging diseases, invasive 

species, prediction of natural 

hazards before they become 

disasters, and many as-yetunforeseen problems. We must 

be flexible and embrace new 

opportunities as they arise, to 

respond as new environmental 

challenges and concerns emerge 

and to seize new enhancements 

to information technology that 

make producing and presenting our science both easier and 

faster.

Through a wealth of longterm data and research, we have 

served the needs of society, 

the Earth, and its environment. 

This Circular captures a few of 

our past achievements, current research efforts, and hopes 

and challenges for the future. I 

invite you to celebrate our 125 

years of service to the Nation 

as you read these pages and to 

join us as we look forward with 

a renewed sense of commitment 

to our mission of science for a 

changing world.

Message from the 

Director

In the 125 years since its 

creation, the U.S. Geological 

Survey (USGS) has provided 

the science information needed 

to make vital decisions and 

safeguard society. In this anniversary year, we celebrate the 

mission that has guided us, the 

people and traditions that have 

shaped us, and the science and 

technology that will lead us into 

the future. 

The early leaders of the 

USGS—King, Powell, Walcott—set high standards for the 

new organization, instilling a 

desire to achieve excellence in 

science and in service to the 

Nation. USGS accomplishments over the past 125 years 

have lived up to the vision 

laid out by the first Directors. 

USGS Director Chip Groat.

Contents v

Message from the Director ................................................................................................................................................... iii

Introduction ..................................................................................................................................................................... 1

A Proud History of Service ................................................................................................................................................... 1

Resource Information for a Strong Economy ........................................................................................................................ 1

Biological Reconnaissance and Research ........................................................................................................................ 4

Geologic and Topographic Mapping ................................................................................................................................. 5

Measuring the Nation’s Streamflow ................................................................................................................................. 8

Natural Hazards ......................................................................................................................................................... 9

Protecting Biodiversity—Research on Endangered Species ................................................................................................... 10

North American Breeding Bird Survey .............................................................................................................................. 12

Ground Water—The Invisible Resource .............................................................................................................................. 13

Understanding and Classifying Wetlands ........................................................................................................................... 14

Mapping Beneath the Sea ............................................................................................................................................. 15

Geographic Tools for the Nation ....................................................................................................................................... 17

Challenges and Opportunities Today ....................................................................................................................................... 19

National Assessments—Looking at the Land ........................................................................................................................ 19

Ecosystem Assessment and Restoration ........................................................................................................................... 20

America’s Amphibians: Vanishing from the Landscape? ......................................................................................................... 22

Tracking Down Biological Information .............................................................................................................................. 23

Monitoring at Many Levels ............................................................................................................................................. 24

Real-Time Data—Critical for Many Users ........................................................................................................................... 25

Earthquake Monitoring for a Safer America ........................................................................................................................ 28

Partnerships for Collecting Geographic Data ........................................................................................................................ 30

GIS Technology ......................................................................................................................................................... 31

Understanding Landscape Change .................................................................................................................................... 33

America’s Least Wanted: Invasive Species ........................................................................................................................ 35

Science: the Foundation for Sound Decisions ..................................................................................................................... 36

USGS and Native Americans—We Are All Related ............................................................................................................... 38

Science Around the World ............................................................................................................................................. 40

An Exciting Future ............................................................................................................................................................ 43

Linking Science and Society: The USGS Science Impact Program ............................................................................................. 43

New, Emerging, and Resurging Diseases ........................................................................................................................... 43

Tracking Emerging Contaminants .................................................................................................................................... 45

Water Availability ...................................................................................................................................................... 46

Energy and Minerals for the Future ................................................................................................................................. 47

Making Wise Use of New Technologies .............................................................................................................................. 48

Earthquake Predictability ............................................................................................................................................. 50

Remote Sensing ......................................................................................................................................................... 51

Mapping the Nation in the 21st Century: The National Map ...................................................................................................... 52

Geographic Research for Tomorrow ................................................................................................................................. 52

Serving USGS Information to the Nation ........................................................................................................................... 53

Conclusion ..................................................................................................................................................................... 53

For More Information, Figure Information, and Acknowledgments ...................................................................................................... 54
vi Sidebars

John Wesley Powell ................................................................................................................................................... 2

Spencer F. Baird ......................................................................................................................................................... 3

C. Hart Merriam ......................................................................................................................................................... 3

Florence Bascom ...................................................................................................................................................... 4

Henry Gannett ............................................................................................................................................................ 5

Grove Karl Gilbert ...................................................................................................................................................... 6

Frederick Haynes Newell ............................................................................................................................................. 7

Luna Leopold ............................................................................................................................................................ 8

David A. Johnston ...................................................................................................................................................... 9

Lucille Stickel ............................................................................................................................................................ 10

Patuxent Wildlife Research Center ................................................................................................................................. 11

Denver Federal Center ................................................................................................................................................ 12

Oscar E. Meinzer ...................................................................................................................................................... 13

The USGS Library ...................................................................................................................................................... 14

Menlo Park Center ...................................................................................................................................................... 15

William Thomas Pecora ................................................................................................................................................ 16

Eugene M. Shoemaker ................................................................................................................................................ 17

James R. Balsley ...................................................................................................................................................... 18

Jayne Belnap ............................................................................................................................................................ 20

National Wildlife Health Center ....................................................................................................................................... 21

Timothy L. King ......................................................................................................................................................... 22

L. David Mech ......................................................................................................................................................... 23

Cooperative Research Units .......................................................................................................................................... 24

Jean Parcher ............................................................................................................................................................ 25

Web Accessibility ...................................................................................................................................................... 26

Thomas Loveland ...................................................................................................................................................... 27

David J. Wald ............................................................................................................................................................ 28

National Ice Core Laboratory .......................................................................................................................................... 29

Robert I. Tilling ......................................................................................................................................................... 29

Thomas S. Ahlbrandt ................................................................................................................................................... 30

National Wetlands Research Center ................................................................................................................................. 31

Roger L. Payne ......................................................................................................................................................... 32

Arlen W. Harbaugh ................................................................................................................................................... 33

Flagstaff Science Center ............................................................................................................................................. 34

June M. Thormodsgard ................................................................................................................................................ 35

Mary Lou Zoback ...................................................................................................................................................... 36

Robert H. Meade ......................................................................................................................................................... 37

Samuel N. Luoma ...................................................................................................................................................... 38

Thomas C. Winter ...................................................................................................................................................... 39

Alaska Volcano Observatory .......................................................................................................................................... 40

Woods Hole Science Center .......................................................................................................................................... 41

Employees of the Future ................................................................................................................................................ 44

Diversity .................................................................................................................................................................. 45

EROS Data Center ...................................................................................................................................................... 46

Mobile Computing ...................................................................................................................................................... 47

Keeping USGS Information Secure and Accessible ............................................................................................................... 49

Patents and Inventions ................................................................................................................................................ 51
In addition, 1879 saw the 

start of comprehensive studies of three important mining 

districts—Leadville in Colorado 

and Comstock and Eureka in 

Nevada. In 1882, the USGS 

created a new division of mining statistics and technology 

to study the mineral resources 

of the United States. Studies 

focused on iron ore, coal, building stone, and petroleum—commodities that are still of interest 

today. Annual volumes describing the mineral resources of the 

United States were published 

beginning in 1882, and the 

series continues to this day. 

Studies of gold and coal in 

Alaska began in 1895; more 

than a century later, the USGS 

is still involved in assessing the 

resources of that vast region. In 

the late 19th century, developing industries in the United 

States were making growing 

demands on the Nation’s natural 

resources, and assessments 

were increasingly needed. By 

1900, geologists were beginning to develop models for how 

ores were formed.

Interest in non-metal 

resources, including fossil fuels, 

1849

On March 3, Congress 

establishes the Department of 

the Interior (DOI). 

1879

The Organic Act of March 3 

establishes the U.S. Geological 

Survey to classify the public lands 

and examine the geological 

structure, mineral resources, and 

products within and outside the 

national domain.

1879–1881

Clarence King is the 1st Director 

of the USGS.

Introduction

The USGS has been 

dedicated to providing credible, impartial science to inform 

critical decisions since its 

establishment by the Organic 

Act in 1879. Throughout its 

history, its functions have 

been expanded and altered 

in response to Congressional 

and Executive direction. The 

earliest activities of the USGS 

were geologic mapping and 

economic geology. Under John 

Wesley Powell, the second 

Director, topographic mapping 

and monitoring of the Nation’s 

water resources became part of 

the USGS mandate. 

Over the next century, 

parts of the USGS were incorporated into separate bureaus, 

including the Bureau of Reclamation, the Bureau of Mines, 

the Bureau of Land Management, and the Minerals Management Service. In the past 

decade, this trend has reversed, 

and parts of the Bureau of 

Mines and the National Biological Service have been incorporated into the USGS. The 

addition of biological research 

to geology, hydrology, and 

geography has strengthened the 

USGS by enabling an integrated 

approach to multidisciplinary 

science programs. The resulting 

synergy improves our ability to 

understand complex processes 

and systems and increases the 

value and applicability of USGS 

science.

This Circular presents 

the history of a wide range of 

scientific investigations in support of the Nation and shows 

how science has informed vital 

decisions about public health, 

public safety, public prosperity, and the use and conservation of natural resources. The 

topics highlighted here provide 

a glimpse of the rich legacy of 

research, current science efforts, 

and exciting opportunities for 

the future that will continue to 

provide solid dividends of progress in science and technology 

to the American public. 

A Proud History of 

Service

Resource Information for 

a Strong Economy

One of the most critical needs recognized by the 

Organic Act of March 3, 1879, 

was for an understanding of the 

Nation’s mineral and energy 

resources, as the economy 

moved from an agricultural to 

an industrial basis. The Federal 

Government began collecting 

and analyzing data and providing economic evaluation of 

mineral commodities in 1866. 

This effort was continued by the 

newly established USGS, which 

collected mineral statistics 

throughout the United States. 

Corbis Images Library of Congress
2 Celebrating 125 Years of the U.S. Geological Survey

increased during the early 20th 

century; by the mid-1920s, 

so much oil and gas had been 

located in the Gulf Coast, midcontinent, and California that 

there was a gas surplus. The 

two World Wars and the Korean 

War focused USGS and national 

attention on strategic minerals 

such as tin, nickel, platinum, 

nitrates, and potash that were 

needed for the war effort; 

the search for new resources 

expanded to Central and South 

America. After World War II, 

exploration for fossil fuels and 

uranium increased dramatically; 

an area of particular interest 

was the 23 million acres of 

Alaska’s North Slope in Naval 

Petroleum Reserve No. 4—now 

better known as the National 

Petroleum Reserve–Alaska. 

In 1964, Congress passed 

the Wilderness Act setting 

more than 9 million acres of 

national forest lands aside from 

permanent roads, buildings, 

and commercial activities. The 

USGS and the U.S. Bureau of 

Mines were asked to assess the 

mineral resources in each area 

of the proposed or established 

wilderness by the end of 1983, 

after which time no new mining 

claims would be allowed. The 

amount of land to be assessed 

kept growing, finally reaching 

45 million acres that included 

Bureau of Land Management 

and other Federal lands in addition to the national forest areas. 

To complete the assessments 

by the due date of 1983, USGS 

scientists developed tools and 

techniques that combined geology, geochemistry, geophysics, and computer modeling 

to produce estimates of the 

potential for undiscovered mineral resources on the wilderness 

lands. These tools and techniques continue to be refined by 

scientists working with Federal 

partners such as the Forest 

Service and other DOI bureaus 

to provide science for informed 

decisions. 

John Wesley Powell

In the spring of 1869, a 35-year-old, one-armed, Civil War veteran led an expedition down the 

Colorado River into a great, unknown, uncharted territory. Ninety-nine days later, after one of the 

most daring journeys in American history, John Wesley Powell emerged from the Grand Canyon to 

become a contemporary American hero.

Powell was born in 1834 at Mount Morris in New York. He sporadically attended Wheaton and 

Oberlin Colleges but never earned a degree. Interested in botany and geology at an early age, he 

began his scientific investigations with a series of self-directed field trips, including a rowboat 

voyage that covered the length of the Mississippi River. In 1861, Powell enlisted in the Union Army 

and was commissioned as captain. He lost his right arm at the elbow 

in the Battle of Shiloh but returned to active duty and was promoted 

to the rank of major. 

Powell led geological and ethnological explorations in Arizona and 

Utah under the auspices of the Smithsonian Institution. His efforts 

toward reorganizing early surveys in the West helped establish the 

USGS in 1879. In March 1881, Powell became Director of the USGS 

when the first Director, Clarence King, resigned. Powell championed 

a nationwide program of topographic mapping, promoted systematic 

studies and data collection in hydrography, and advocated 

conservation and careful planning in the use of Western lands. His 

cautionary views regarding settlement in the West antagonized 

influential Western politicians, and Powell resigned from the USGS 

in 1894. 

Powell was widely recognized as one of the leading scientists 

of his age. He was a founder and president of the Cosmos Club 

in Washington, a founder and president of the Anthropological Society of Washington, one of the 

earliest members of the Biological Society of Washington, and an organizer of the Geological Society 

of Washington. He helped establish the National Geographic Society and the Geological Society of 

America. In 1888, he was elected president of the American Association for the Advancement of 

Science, then considered the highest honor for an American scientist, and he received honorary 

degrees from several universities at home and abroad. Throughout his career, in combination with 

his work in geology, geography, and botany, Powell studied the West’s Native Americans and their 

languages. He founded and, in 1879, was named the first director of the Smithsonian Institution’s 

Bureau of Ethnology, a position he held until his death in 1902.

1879

The first USGS National Center is established at 803 G St., NW., in 

DOI-rented space in the Patent Office Building. King establishes 

regional centers in Denver, Salt Lake City, and San Francisco. King 

also establishes the Mining and General Geology Divisions.
A Proud History of Service 3

Smithsonian Institution

C. Hart Merriam

Like many naturalists, C. Hart Merriam began his studies as a 

boy exploring the woods around his home. He joined the Hayden 

Survey at age 16 and traveled to Yellowstone and the Western 

Territories. At 18, he published a 50-page scientific report of his 

studies. Though he spent several years practicing medicine, 

Merriam returned to his biological and ecological roots, where 

his work was controversial, influential, and essential to the 

foundation of what is now the USGS Biological Resources 

discipline. 

He was a charter member of the 

American Ornithologists’ Union (AOU), 

where he served as chairman of the 

Committee on the Migration of Birds. In 

1885, he was appointed to head what 

was then the Section of Economic 

Ornithology with the U.S. Department 

of Agriculture. Merriam’s wide interests 

led to the section’s expansion into the 

Division of Economic Ornithology and 

Mammalogy, which was later renamed 

the Division of Biological Survey. 

Merriam’s scientific work has had 

long-lasting effects. Research on bird 

distribution and migration that he started 

at AOU continued at the Biological Survey and developed into 

a network of volunteer observers spanning the United States. 

The program served as the foundation for modern surveys that 

support national and international bird conservation efforts. 

Perhaps Merriam’s most noted work is his delineation of life 

zones for North America. These life zones, originally drawn 

on USGS base maps, furthered ecological understanding and 

continue to influence biologists and ecologists even today. Library of Congress, Ruthven Deane Collection

1879

The mining geology program begins with (1) the collection 

of mineral statistics in both the Eastern and Western States 

and (2) comprehensive 

studies of the geology and 

technology of three great 

mining districts—Leadville 

in Colorado and Comstock 

and Eureka in Nevada.

1880

The first chemistry laboratory 

is established in the USGS, 

and the first geophysical work 

begins as part of the study of 

the Comstock mining district.

Spencer F. Baird

While many of us are talented collectors and enthusiastic pack 

rats, it’s doubtful that any of us will rival the 89,000 pounds of 

natural history specimens that Spencer F. Baird brought with 

him to the Smithsonian in 1850—that takes a special kind of commitment. Baird was a naturalist 

who demonstrated extraordinary dedication and initiative from an early age. His enthusiasm 

for biological research would lead him to positions regardless of whether he was paid for the 

work, and his contributions to the Nation’s understanding of its biological resources would 

be tremendous. At age 16, he began a daily journal, recording his expeditions and the natural 

specimens he collected. At 17, the same year Baird graduated from Dickinson College, he humbly 

contacted John James Audubon concerning two species of birds that he couldn’t identify. The 

birds proved to be new to Audubon and to science. Baird’s discoveries sparked a collaboration 

and friendship with Audubon, with Audubon even naming a new-found sparrow after Baird. At 

19, Baird was elected to the Philadelphia Academy of Natural Sciences. In 1845, he received an 

unpaid position as professor of natural history and other science at Dickinson College. Though 

he became a popular and salaried professor, Baird moved on in 1850 to become the Assistant 

Secretary of the Smithsonian Institution at age 27. He put his extensive natural-history collection 

on boxcars and brought it with him to Washington, D.C., thereby forming the nucleus of the 

current National Museum of Natural History.

While serving at the Smithsonian, Baird undertook fish studies at Woods Hole, Mass. In 1870, 

the coastal fisheries in southern New England were declining, and there was concern over the 

dwindling food source. Baird saw this as the perfect opportunity to serve the Nation by tackling 

the problem with science. In 1871, he persuaded Congress to create the U.S. Commission of Fish 

and Fisheries, where he served as Commissioner without additional pay until his death in 1887.
4 Celebrating 125 Years of the U.S. Geological Survey

The analytical techniques 

and deposit models that were 

developed for assessing wilderness lands enabled USGS 

scientists to conduct a national 

mineral assessment in 1998 estimating that the United States 

still had as much undiscovered 

gold, silver, copper, lead, and 

zinc as had already been identified to date; a national oil and 

gas assessment in 1995 and a 

world petroleum assessment in 

2000 showed that more undiscovered energy resources were 

left than had been used to date. 

The techniques, analytical procedures, and models that have 

been developed, and the resulting assessments of national and 

global resources, are valued 

by domestic and international 

customers and stakeholders. 

USGS scientists lead 

the world in the 

ability to 

conduct 

mineral 

and 

energy resource assessments, 

providing essential information 

for sound energy policy, environmental decisions, and land 

and resource management.

Biological 

Reconnaissance 

and Research 

In the early years of the 

Nation, little was known about 

the species of plants and animals that occurred in the United 

States and their distributions 

across the landscape. The Lewis 

and Clark expedition in 1804–

1806 made exceptional breakthroughs, but it was not 

until after 

the Civil War that the Federal 

Government established agencies with responsibility for scientific research and exploration. 

Naturalists Spencer F. Baird 

and Clinton Hart Merriam were 

pioneers who laid the foundations for research that continues 

in the USGS today. While serving as Assistant Secretary of 

the Smithsonian, Baird became 

concerned about declining 

fisheries in New England and 

persuaded Congress to create 

the U.S. Commission of Fish 

and Fisheries in 1871; Baird 

was selected to lead the commission. In 1886, the Division 

of Economic Ornithology and 

Mammalogy was established in 

the Department of Agriculture, 

with Merriam appointed as 

its first Chief. Much of 

the Division’s 

USFWS

1881

The second USGS National 

Center is established in the 

National Museum Building 

(now the Arts and Industries 

Building of the Smithsonian 

Institution).

1881–1894

John Wesley Powell is the 2d Director 

of the USGS. Powell looks on geology 

and topography as independent, 

although closely related, parts of the 

greater field of geography and makes 

the topographic work of the USGS 

independent of geologic studies.

Florence Bascom

Florence Bascom collected many “firsts” in 

her geological career: she was the first 

woman to receive a Ph.D. from Johns 

Hopkins University (sitting behind a 

screen so the male students wouldn’t 

know she was there), the first woman 

geologist hired by the USGS, the first 

woman to present a scientific paper at 

the Geological Society of Washington, 

and the first woman officer of the 

Geological Society of America.

Bascom was born in 1862 in Williamstown, 

Mass., and died in Northampton 83 years 

later. Her father, president first of Williams 

College and later of the University of Wisconsin, encouraged 

her interest in geology, and she earned bachelor’s and master’s 

degrees in geology from the University of Wisconsin in the 1880s. 

Her professors at Wisconsin, Roland Irving and Charles Van Hise, 

were also employed by the USGS, as was her professor at Johns 

Hopkins, George Williams. After receiving her Ph.D. in 1893, she 

began teaching geology at Bryn Mawr College in 1895, but she 

combined her teaching career with active field and laboratory 

work for the USGS. Bascom retired from teaching in 1928 but 

continued to work for the USGS until 1936.

She was an authority on the rocks of the Piedmont and published 

maps and folios; she also studied water resources of the 

Philadelphia region. Her writing was vigorous and incisive; her 

conversation was forceful and clear, if sometimes caustic. She 

developed the geology curriculum at Bryn Mawr from a single 

course to a full major and then a graduate program, which 

trained most American women geologists during the first third 

of the 20th century. At least three of her students later joined 

the USGS: Eleanora Bliss Knopf, Anna Jonas Stose, and Julia 

Gardner.

Smithsonian Institution
A Proud History of Service 5

early work focused on studying the value of birds to control 

agricultural pests and defining 

the geographical distribution of 

animals and plants throughout 

the country. 

By 1906, this Division 

was transformed into the U.S. 

Bureau of Biological Survey. 

Much of the discovery of new 

species of terrestrial wildlife 

and mapping of basic vegetation 

types in the United States at the 

turn of the century was accomplished by this group, particularly in the West. The Commission of Fish and Fisheries was 

combined with the Bureau of 

Biological Survey in 1940 to 

form the Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) in the Department 

of the Interior, institutionalizing 

the relationship that Baird and 

Merriam had begun as fellow 

naturalists 60 years earlier. 

Research on the biogeography, taxonomy, and ecological 

relationships of fish, wildlife, 

and plants continued in FWS 

and is maintained today with 

the reassignment of these 

programs to the USGS in 1996. 

Much of the research on the 

occurrence, population dynamics, ecosystem functioning, and 

remote sensing of biological 

resources currently undertaken 

by USGS, especially on Department of the Interior lands, is a 

continuation of the early days 

of biological survey and reconnaissance of the U.S. frontier 

lands. The USGS still has 

responsibility for curating the 

North American mammal, bird, 

reptile, and amphibian collections at the Smithsonian, including nearly 5,000 specimens 

donated by Baird in 1850.

Geologic and 

Topographic Mapping 

Maps play a fundamental 

role in conveying the breadth of 

our national domain, in building our understanding of natural 

resources and earth history, and 

in providing place-based information required for Government 

administration, water issues, 

mining, transportation, agriculture, and forestry. As the Nation 

grew westward, many national 

leaders recognized that accurate 

maps of the landscape and the 

rocks beneath the surface were 

essential building blocks for 

economic development. When 

the USGS was established in 

1879, it was assigned the task of 

“...classification of the public 

lands and examination of the 

geological structure, mineral 

resources and products of the 

national domain...” (Organic 

Act of the U.S. Geological 

Survey, U.S. Statues at Large, 

v. 20, p. 394). The Organic Act 

of 1879 specifically mentions 

geologic and economic maps as 

among the expected products of 

these investigations. In 1882, at 

the instigation of Director J.W. 

Powell, the USGS established a 

national program for systematic 

1882

The USGS Library, authorized in 

1879, is formally established with 

a collection of 1,400 books and 

Charles C. Darwin as Librarian.

1884

The third USGS National Center 

is established at 1330 F St., NW.

Henry Gannett

If you have ever used a topographic map 

to find your way around some remote 

part of the United States, or even been 

confused by place names of populated 

areas, you’ll appreciate the pioneering 

work of Henry Gannett, an early 

American geographer often considered 

to be the father of American topographic 

mapping.

He began his career in topographic 

mapping with the Hayden Survey in 1871 

and recognized early on the importance 

of geography as the cornerstone for 

other sciences. He worked zealously to 

present geographic knowledge so that it could be widely utilized 

by diverse audiences. Many enduring methods and standards of 

USGS mapmaking were developed under his leadership. 

The USGS Geography Program was established under his 

direction, and he served as Chief Geographer from 1882 to 

1914. Under his command, the program’s first topographic map 

sheets were produced and the program became the Division of 

Geography. 

Through his work as geographer of the U.S. censuses of 1880, 

1890, and 1900 and the Philippine, Cuban, and Puerto Rican 

censuses, he became interested in place names. His efforts to 

resolve difficulties caused by the confusion of names contributed 

to the establishment of the U.S. Board on Geographic Names in 

1890. He served as the Board’s chairman from 1894 until 1910. 

Gannett was also one of the founders of the National Geographic 

Society (president, 1910–14), the Geological Society of America, 

and the Association of American Geographers.
6 Celebrating 125 Years of the U.S. Geological Survey

Grove Karl Gilbert

Grove Karl Gilbert, the first Chief Geologist of the USGS, was one of the founders of modern 

geomorphology, the study of landforms. He recognized that landforms reflect a state of balance 

between the processes that act upon them and their structure and composition. Before the USGS 

was established, Gilbert worked in Utah under George Wheeler, 

who led a survey to map the United States west of the 100th 

meridian, during 1871–73, and John Wesley Powell. In 1900, Gilbert 

won the Wollaston Medal, the Geological Society of London’s most 

prestigious award. He was only the third American to be honored 

with the award. 

His last great geological contribution came in 1905, when he was 

sent to California in connection with hydraulic gold mining. He 

studied the fluvial character of the Sacramento River and the 

impact of mining debris, conducted the first major quantitative 

modeling of streamflow in large flumes, and observed the effects 

of the great 1906 earthquake in San Francisco. His reports on 

hydraulic mining were masterpieces of engineering geology. 

Gilbert is considered one of the most distinguished American 

geologists and was described as a “great engine of research” by 

author Stephen J. Pyne. He made significant contributions to the 

fields of tectonics, hydrology, glaciology, earthquake studies, and 

geological methods.

topographic mapping that has 

provided a sound foundation 

of accurate, widely available 

geographic information for 

officials at all levels of government, as well as for scholars, 

students, and the public. Powell 

spoke passionately of his vision 

for comprehensive topographic 

maps for the Nation in testimony before Congress in 1884, 

“A Government cannot do any 

scientific work of more value 

to the people at large, than 

by causing the construction 

of proper topographic maps 

of the country” (Sundry Civil 

Expenses Act, August 7, 1882, 

22 Stat.L., p. 329). 

Also in 1882, Congress 

authorized the USGS to 

continue preparation of the 

geological map of the United 

States, which Powell interpreted 

as authorizing extension of the 

Survey’s geologic mapping 

throughout the Nation. The 

first step was the establishment 

of the Geologic Atlas of the 

United States, to consist of a 

series of folios in a standard 

format, each containing topographic, geologic, and other 

maps and illustrations and text 

describing the geology of a 

particular quadrangle. The first 

of these folios was published 

in 1894; in the next decade, 

106 were published. The series 

came to an end when it became 

clear that folios were too generalized, and attention shifted to 

more focused geologic mapping 

to address issues such as the 

petroleum potential of the North 

Slope of Alaska or uranium 

resources of the Colorado 

Plateau. 

The Geologic Mapping 

Act of 1992 recognized the 

importance of geologic mapping for the utilization of 

mineral resources, effective 

stewardship of the environment, 

1885

The Division of Economic 

Ornithology and Mammalogy 

is established in the 

Department of Agriculture 

(USDA) with C. Hart 

Merriman as the first Chief. 

1886

Charleston, S. C., 

earthquake—magnitude 7.3.

1889

The USDA Division of Economic 

Ornithology begins the North 

American Fauna series and 

publishes Merriam’s concept of 

life zones of North America.

1889

Powell assigns Frederick Haynes Newell to lead a team to 

develop and standardize 

technology for measuring 

streamflow in rivers. The 

work takes place at a 

camp on the Rio Grande 

River near Embudo, N. 

Mex., and is the location 

of the USGS’s first 

streamgage.
A Proud History of Service 7

safe disposal of domestic and 

industrial waste, and mitigation 

of natural hazards. It established a program under the 

leadership of the USGS, with 

advice and contributions from 

other Federal and State agencies, academia, and the private 

sector, to help meet these 

needs. Currently, much USGS 

geologic mapping focuses on 

studies of immediate practical 

concern such as the distribution of active faults that pose 

earthquake threats to population 

centers or critical installations, 

materials that are particularly 

subject to landslides or slope 

failure, or volcanic deposits that 

help delineate areas at risk from 

volcanic eruptions; studies of 

the movement of water, petroleum, natural gas, and waste 

(including radioactive waste) 

through the Earth; and studies 

of surficial deposits that record 

climatic changes over time. 

All of these can be addressed 

through use of geologic maps.

Powell’s vision for complete topographic coverage of 

the Nation persisted. The present 7.5-minute series of USGS 

topographic maps, mostly at 

1:24,000 scale, was begun 

in the 1930s and completed 

in 1991 for all of the United 

States except Alaska, which 

is largely mapped at 1:63,360 

scale. Thirty-three million 

person hours and $1.6 billion 

were invested in the complex 

endeavor to depict the physical 

and cultural nature of our land 

as a resource to all Americans. 

Portrayed on 55,000 separate 

map sheets, the 7.5-minute 

series of large-scale USGS 

topographic maps remains the 

most comprehensive coverage 

of the Nation’s landscape and 

its critical infrastructure. 

 Mapping is alive and well 

in the USGS. Today’s maps rely 

on satellite imagery, aerial photography, Global Positioning 

System (GPS) technology, and 

geographic information system 

Frederick Haynes Newell 

“He carried water from a mountain wilderness to turn the waste places of 

the desert into homes for freemen.” This is the inscription on the Cullum 

Geographical Medal that F.H. Newell received in 1918 for his contributions 

to the reclamation of the arid West. Newell was the second Commissioner 

of what would become the Bureau of Reclamation; his legacy is important 

not only to the irrigation of the West but also to the creation of the Nation’s 

streamflow monitoring network. 

Newell began his work as an assistant hydraulic engineer for Major John 

Wesley Powell, second Director of the USGS. Powell foresaw the value of 

irrigation to the future economy of the Western United States, but in 1888 the 

techniques and instruments needed to measure streamflow had not been 

developed. Newell created a training camp at Embudo, New Mex., to develop 

standard methods of measuring streamflow and to train the people to do it. 

USGS now has more than 7,000 streamgages nationwide, and the techniques Newell developed have 

been used to measure and monitor streamflow in the United States for more than a century. These 

gages record the highs and lows of an essential resource, mark disastrous floods, and provide the 

accurate and objective information needed to manage water and protect communities. 

President Theodore Roosevelt cited him as an advisor and counselor in the development of his 

strategy for irrigation and referred in his autobiography to Newell’s devotion to the establishment of 

the Bureau of Reclamation and his leadership, high character, and “constructive imagination.” Bureau of Reclamation

1894–1907

Charles Doolittle Walcott is the 3d Director of the USGS. Walcott 

abolishes all organizational units within the Geologic Branch and 

assumes direct control of the work. Mining geology studies are 

resumed and extended into the Eastern States, and a study of gold 

deposits, including exploration for new sources, is begun. The deposits 

at Cripple Creek, Colo., and at Mercur, Utah, are usable through 

development of the cyanidation process.

1894

A small appropriation is obtained for the purpose of “gauging the 

streams and determining the water supply of the United States.”

1895

Basic science is an integral part of the Geologic Branch program. 

Fundamental studies are made in the genesis of ore deposits, 

in paleontology and stratigraphy, in glacial geology, and in 

petrography. The geologic time scale is revised, and new definitions 

for rock classes are developed.
8 Celebrating 125 Years of the U.S. Geological Survey

1904

In 1904, the USGS celebrates its 25th anniversary, having come 

from an organization of 38 employees at the end of its first 

year to one of 491 employees (and another 187 in the adjunct 

Reclamation Service). Its appropriation 

is $1.4 million. It is the leading geologic 

institution in the United States in the view 

of the publication “American Men of 

Science,” and many of the 100 geologists 

whose work is considered most significant 

by their peers, including the first five ranked 

numerically, are associated with the USGS. 

(GIS)-based cartography. In the 

end, however, geologic mapping comes down to a geologist 

walking the ground with compass, pick, notebook, and hand 

lens, just as in Powell’s day.

Measuring the Nation’s 

Streamflow 

Information to define, use, 

and manage water resources 

was critical to the settling of the 

West, and water continues to be 

a major issue for the Nation and 

the world. In 1889, John Wesley 

Powell assigned Frederick 

Haynes Newell to lead a group 

of recent engineering graduates 

and other young men to develop 

and standardize a technology 

for measuring streamflow in 

rivers. The men established the 

first streamgaging station operated in the United States by the 

USGS on the Rio Grande near 

Embudo, N. Mex., as part of 

the effort to train individuals to 

measure the flow of rivers and 

streams and to define standard 

streamgaging procedures As 

soon as methods were developed at Embudo, USGS scientists and engineers were sent 

throughout the West to collect 

streamflow data. 

By 1891, the first streamflow measurement in the East 

was made on the Potomac 

River at Chain Bridge, near 

Washington, D.C. In 1895, the 

first Cooperative Program in 

the Nation began in Kansas, 

through an agreement with 

the newly established Kansas 

Board of Irrigation Survey and 

Experiment (now the Division of Water Resources of 

the Kansas Department of 

Agriculture). This agreement 

provided for measurement of 

streamflow at seven sites to 

ascertain water-supply potential. By 1900, only 163 stations 

were in operation. Most of the 

stations were in the West and 

were used to satisfy needs for 

irrigation. As concerns grew 

about floods, droughts, and 

increased use of water for 

irrigation and hydroelectric 

power, the USGS streamgaging program expanded to fill 

the Nation’s needs. Congress 

passed legislation in 1929 that 

officially recognized the Cooperative Program, in which costs 

are shared with State and local 

agencies, and in the ensuing 

years, cooperative streamgaging 

programs were established with 

many State and local agencies. 

Today, more than 90 percent of 

USGS streamgages are operated 

in partnership with other Federal, State, and local agencies. 

Luna Leopold

During his 10 years as USGS Chief Hydrologist, Luna B. Leopold 

transformed the USGS Water Resources Division into the 

Nation’s premier agency for water research. From the outset, his 

work was creative, pioneering, and multidisciplinary. 

Leopold’s greatest impact on the earth sciences began with the 

1953 publication of USGS Professional Paper 252, “The Hydraulic 

Geometry of Stream Channels,” a paper that provided a basis 

for observing rivers throughout the world. 

With this paper, Leopold initiated a new 

era in the study of rivers, one that involved 

quantitative approaches that spread to 

the broader field of geomorphology, the 

study of the evolution and configuration of 

landforms. His research consistently related 

meteorology and climatology to landscape 

process, a concept that has become a 

central feature of geomorphology. 

A son of Aldo Leopold, one of the early 

leaders of the movement to preserve the 

American wilderness, Luna Leopold was 

a pioneer in making ecological foresight 

a part of hydrological studies and of the 

information provided for those making water-resource policies. 

In USGS Circular 620, published in 1969, Leopold coined the 

term “environmental impact.” He helped create a framework for 

environmental impact statements, giving direction to the growing 

trend for decisionmakers to consider environmental impact 

before starting a project. 

Fortunately for future generations, Leopold’s enthusiasm for 

rivers has proved contagious. He has mentored many prominent 

scientists and shared his creative intellect and passionate 

commitment to science and society, inspiring generations of 

colleagues and students to use their talents both to the pursuit 

of science and to its application to society.

1896

Benchmarks 

and map sales 

are authorized.

1898

The U.S. Senate calls for a Division 

of Mines and Mining in the USGS 

to gather statistics on mineral 

resources and mineral production 

and to make investigations related 

to mines and mining.
A Proud History of Service 9

Severe drought in the 

early 1930s and the floods in 

1936–37 in the Ohio and the 

Potomac River basins increased 

the awareness among Federal, 

State, and local agencies that 

managing the Nation’s water 

resources requires comprehensive, reliable streamflow 

data. By 1950, more than 6,000 

streamgages were in use across 

the landscape. The data collected at these gages are used 

for forecasting floods, scheduling hydropower production, 

characterizing water quality, 

and even helping a family 

decide whether it’s a good 

time to go fishing or boating. 

Although the USGS currently uses many new technical advancements to measure 

streamflow and operate gaging 

stations, procedures developed 

by Newell and his colleagues at 

Embudo still form the basis for 

the nationwide streamgaging 

program carried out to this day 

by the USGS.

Natural Hazards

Floods, volcanic eruptions, earthquakes, landslides, 

drought—these natural hazards 

have reshaped the landscape for 

millions of years and have been 

the focus of USGS research 

since its beginnings. The USGS 

has Federal responsibility for 

issuing warnings on geologic 

hazards—to get people out 

of harm’s way—as well as 

providing information on how 

to live and build safely—to 

keep people and property out of 

harm’s way.

Early reports by USGS 

scientists described Hawaiian volcanoes and the great 

Charleston, S.C., earthquake of 

1886. The San Francisco earthquake of 1906 was one of the 

most significant earthquakes of 

all time—not just because of its 

devastating impact on the city 

but also because of the wealth 

of scientific knowledge derived 

from it. Rupturing more than 

250 miles of the San Andreas 

fault from northwest of San 

Juan Bautista to Cape Mendocino, Calif., the earthquake 

confounded contemporary 

geologists. 

The significance of the 

fault and recognition of its large 

cumulative offset would not be 

fully understood until the emergence of plate tectonic theory 

more than half a century later. 

Developments in plate tectonics 

during the 1960s gave scientists 

a revolutionary new way of 

understanding the Earth and its 

processes. Basic research by 

USGS scientists at Menlo Park, 

Calif., on the Earth’s magnetic 

field provided essential supporting information for the 

David A. Johnston

David Johnston was a 30-year-old volcanologist with the USGS 

when he was swept away by the catastrophic eruption of Mount 

St. Helens on the morning of May 18, 1980. 

Johnston came to the USGS in 1978 to work on volcanic gases. 

He expanded the program for monitoring volcanic emissions in 

Alaska and the Cascade Range, with the goal of determining 

whether or not changes in gas 

geochemistry might provide warning 

of impending eruptive activity. It 

was therefore natural that Johnston 

was one of the first geologists on 

the volcano when Mount St. Helens 

reawakened in March 1980.

As one of the first members of the 

USGS monitoring team to arrive at 

Mount St. Helens and the scientist 

in charge of volcanic-gas studies, Johnston spent long hours 

working on and close to the mountain. From his experience 

with active Alaskan volcanoes, Johnston understood better 

than most the hazards of explosive volcanism. At the same 

time, he repeatedly voiced the conviction that adequate hazard 

assessments require accepting the dangers of onsite monitoring 

of active volcanic processes. The volcano-monitoring effort that 

Johnston was a part of helped persuade the authorities first to 

limit access to the area around the volcano and then to resist 

heavy pressure to reopen it, thereby holding the May 18 death 

toll to a few tens instead of thousands. 

Johnston was an exemplary scientist, and his approach to his 

work was a model for all: dedicated and hard-working, with 

meticulous organization and observation followed by careful 

evaluation and interpretation. At the same time, Johnston was 

clearly genuine, with an infectious curiosity and enthusiasm. But 

perhaps his most essential quality was the ability to look for, see, 

and encourage the best in everyone.

USDA, U.S. Forest Service

1906

San Francisco, 

Calif., earthquake—

magnitude 7.8.

1907

The Reclamation Service becomes 

an independent agency. F.H. Newell 

leaves the USGS to become the 

Service’s Director.

1905

The USDA Division 

of Biological Survey 

becomes the Bureau of 

Biological Survey.

1907–1930

George Otis Smith is the 4th Director of 

the USGS. Smith believes that the work of 

the USGS should be primarily “practical.”
10 Celebrating 125 Years of the U.S. Geological Survey

new theory, which explains 

the causes and distribution of 

earthquake and volcanic zones 

around the world. For the past 

25 years, USGS scientists have 

been leading the research effort 

to understand the causes and 

effects of earthquakes and to 

apply that knowledge to reduce 

earthquake risk across the 

Nation. USGS national seismic 

hazard maps form the foundation for national building codes 

and are making billions of dollars of new construction safer 

from earthquakes each year.

The United States has 

more than 50 historically active 

volcanoes within its borders, 

more than any other country 

except for Indonesia and Japan. 

The Aleutian volcanic arc in 

Alaska produces an average of 1 

to 2 eruptions per year. Hawaii’s 

most active volcano, Kilauea, 

has been erupting almost continuously since January 1983, 

making the current eruption 

its longest in more than 600 

years. The Cascade Range in 

the Pacific Northwest produces 

fewer eruptions, an average of 

1 to 2 per century, but threatens 

more residents than the volcanoes of Alaska and Hawaii 

combined. The devastating 

landslide and eruption of Mount 

St. Helens, Wash., on May 18, 

1980, was the impetus for creation of the David A. Johnston 

Cascades Volcano Observatory, 

which bears the name of the 

USGS geologist who died in the 

eruption at a forward observation post on what is now called 

Johnston Ridge. The Mount St. 

Helens eruption was a turning 

point for modern volcanology 

that led to numerous discoveries 

and improved eruption prediction techniques.

Protecting 

Biodiversity—Research 

on Endangered Species 

By the late 1800s, the 

wide-scale clearing of land for 

agriculture and intensive hunting of wildlife for commercial 

markets had taken their toll on 

many native species. Of the millions of bison that had roamed 

the North American plains, 

fewer than 1,000 remained. Passenger pigeons, whose immense 

flocks had once darkened the 

skies, were nearing extinction. 

Populations of snowy egret and 

other colonial-nesting wading 

birds had been reduced to a 

small fraction of their historical size. Alarmed by the rapid 

loss of our natural heritage, 

President Theodore Roosevelt 

created the first Federal Bird 

Reservation on Pelican Island, 

Fla., in 1903. Congress passed 

several laws in the early part 

of the 20th century to protect 

Lucille Stickel

In 1946, when Lucille Stickel published her first contaminant 

paper, a study of the new pesticide DDT, virtually nothing was 

known about the harmful effects of pesticides on wildlife. The 

impact of her pioneering research would be significant and 

far reaching, as Rachel Carson used Stickel’s research as the 

basis for much of her book, Silent 

Spring. The book created a public 

understanding of the importance 

of preserving the Earth’s 

resources and ushered in a new 

age of environmental awareness.

Stickel began her career as a 

Junior Biologist in 1943 at the 

Patuxent Wildlife Center. She 

became one of the early pioneers 

in the fledgling field of wildlife 

toxicology and is responsible 

for many historic findings and 

techniques. From 1973 to 1981, 

she served as Director of the 

Center, making her the first 

woman to head a major Fish 

and Wildlife Service laboratory. 

In 1989, the Chemistry Building at the Patuxent Center was 

renamed Stickel Laboratory in appreciation of the decades of 

dedicated service by Stickel and her husband Bill, her lifelong 

research partner and collaborator.

Stickel’s commitment to the preservation of wildlife and 

natural resources was recognized in 1998 when the Society of 

Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry honored her with its 

prestigious Rachel Carson Award. She also received the DOI’s 

Distinguished Service Award and the Aldo Leopold Award of 

the Wildlife Society.

1910

The Bureau of Mines is founded. 

The USGS Technologic Branch 

is transferred to the Bureau of 

Mines, and structural materials 

testing is transferred first to the 

Bureau of Mines, then to the 

Bureau of Standards. Joseph 

A. Holmes, head of the USGS’s 

Technologic Branch, is the first 

Director of the Bureau.

1912

The Hawaiian Volcano Observatory is established. Under the 

directorship of Massachusetts Institute of Technology professor 

Thomas A. Jaggar (1912-1940), HVO scientists conduct pioneering 

studies of volcanic processes.
A Proud History of Service 11

wildlife populations, the most 

notable being the Migratory 

Bird Treaty Act (1918), which 

established Federal jurisdiction in the hunting of migratory 

birds.

The Patuxent Wildlife 

Research Center (then part of 

the U.S. Department of Agriculture), in Patuxent, Md., 

began research on migratory 

waterfowl in the mid-1930s. 

The whooping crane was one of 

the first species studied, and the 

effort to conserve this majestic 

bird later came to epitomize 

the endangered species movement. World War II interrupted 

the research, but after the war 

scientific efforts at Patuxent 

began anew, focusing on trumpeter swans and later on rapidly 

declining bald eagle populations. 

By the time the Endangered Species Act was passed 

in 1973, a considerable amount 

of research associated with protecting imperiled species was 

already underway, including 

work on black-footed ferrets, 

wolves, Puerto Rican parrots, 

California condors, and several 

Hawaiian birds. The approach 

was two-pronged: (1) to study 

species in their native habitat to 

identify factors affecting distribution and abundance and (2) 

to conduct research on species 

in captivity to develop captive 

breeding techniques for releasing individuals to the wild to 

bolster wild populations. Of the 

nine captive populations studied 

at Patuxent, two (the Aleutian 

Canada goose and the bald 

eagle) have been removed from 

the endangered species list, and 

five more (the whooping crane, 

timber wolf, masked bobwhite, 

California condor, and Mississippi sandhill crane) are on the 

road to recovery. Research on 

species such as the gray wolf 

and American alligator has 

enabled their populations to 

recover or stabilize.

Over the past 30 years, 

research on endangered species 

has expanded to include a wide 

range of investigations at nearly 

every USGS Science Center 

and Cooperative Research 

Unit across the United States. 

USGS scientists are examining 

endangered species’ life history 

characteristics, habitat requirements, population dynamics, 

migration patterns, and genetic 

relationships. They are evaluating the success of conservation actions, advising recovery 

teams, and working side by side 

with natural resource managers 

in the Fish and Wildlife Service, 

National Park Service, Bureau 

of Land Management, and other 

DOI bureaus. 

Patuxent Wildlife Research Center 

The establishment and evolution of the Patuxent Wildlife 

Research Center mark important events not only in the history 

of the USGS but in the changing attitudes and policies of the 

Nation. They signify a broadening of concern from wildlife’s 

impact on people to an equal emphasis on people’s impact on 

wildlife. 

In the early part of the century, most wildlife research focused 

on the negative effects of wildlife on agriculture. The Dust Bowl 

era in the 1930s created a public desire 

to help restore wildlife populations, and 

the Patuxent Research Refuge was 

established in 1936 as the Nation’s first 

wildlife experiment station. 

The successes of the Center have been 

numerous. The captive propagation 

program attained international prominence by helping to increase the 

wild populations of bald eagles, whooping cranes, and other 

species throughout North America; urban wildlife research 

established development-planning techniques used throughout 

the country; and advice on backyard bird feeding is used by 

millions of homeowners every year. Perhaps the Center’s best 

known success came in 1969, when researchers linked eggshell 

thinning with DDT. This discovery and testimony of Patuxent 

researchers before Congress resulted in the nationwide banning 

of DDT and other organochlorine pesticides in 1972.

Today, research at Patuxent continues to address national 

wildlife concerns and to maintain partnerships with State and 

municipal governments concerning local wildlife research 

issues. The continuation of this long relationship with our 

partners, including FWS and the National Park Service, will help 

ensure that USGS science informs decisionmakers charged with 

protecting and managing our Nation’s living resources.

1916

The USGS reorients its work to 

aid the search for both metals 

and fuels, extending the search 

to Central and South America 

and the West Indies.

1917

The United States enters World 

War I in April, and the USGS 

forms a Division of Military 

Surveys. The strategic minerals 

concept is born. During these 

years, the USGS is the main 

source of information on 

mineral production.

1917

The fourth USGS National Center 

is established in the Interior 

Building on 18th & E Sts., NW.

1922

The USGS becomes involved 

in energy policy. A Coal 

Commission is established, and 

USGS resource data provide 

a basis for the Commission’s 

report.

USFWS
12 Celebrating 125 Years of the U.S. Geological Survey

The Endangered Species 

Act now protects 1,265 species 

in the United States, including 

519 species of animals and 746 

species of plants. Hundreds 

more are listed as candidate 

species. The need for scientific 

tools to protect such a diverse 

group of organisms and their 

habitats is immense. However 

challenging the task, USGS scientists are hard at work developing practical solutions to the 

many problems that confront 

America’s endangered species.

North American 

Breeding Bird Survey 

In the mid-20th century, the success of DDT as a 

pesticide ushered in a new era 

of synthetic chemical pest 

control. As pesticide use 

grew, concerns about the 

effects on wildlife began 

to emerge. Local studies had attributed some bird 

kills to pesticides, but it was 

unclear how, or if, bird populations were being affected at 

regional or national levels. 

In 1963, responding to this 

concern, Chandler Robbins 

and colleagues at the Patuxent 

Wildlife Research Center began 

developing the North American 

Breeding Bird Survey (BBS) to 

monitor bird populations over 

large geographic areas. The 

BBS, jointly coordinated by the 

USGS and the Canadian Wildlife Service, is the foundation 

of modern non-game, land-bird 

conservation in North America. 

BBS data can be used to estimate trends in bird populations; 

declining numbers send an early 

warning signal that 

galvanizes 

research and management 

action to determine the cause of 

population declines and reverse 

them before it’s too late. Data 

are used by the U.S. Fish and 

Wildlife Service, Canadian 

Wildlife Service, Partners in 

Flight, and State agencies to 

monitor bird species, determine 

which species might be declining, and develop conservation 

goals. 

Skilled volunteer birders 

spend one or two mornings a 

year at the height of the avian 

breeding season to collect 

population data along roadside 

survey routes. The collection 

protocols are carefully established to ensure that data can 

be reliably compared year by 

year. There are more than 4,100 

BBS routes scattered across 

the United States and Canada, 

of which about 3,000 are 

sampled annually. More than 

2,200 birders participate each 

year; more than 8,400 people 

have participated during the 

Denver Federal Center 

For 58 years, the USGS 

has worked in a center 

that was once a Federal 

munitions plant. In 

December 1940, Denver, 

Colo., was selected as 

the site of one of several 

plants that would be part 

of future U.S. war efforts. 

The Denver Ordnance 

Plant, consisting of more 

than 200 buildings, was 

dedicated on October 25, 

1941. In support of the war, it produced .30-caliber ammunition, 

heavy artillery shells, and 8-inch and 144-millimeter shells. 

After Japan surrendered on August 15, 1945, the plant’s 

production days were numbered. By October, the Denver 

Ordnance Plant had been declared surplus property. It was 

turned over to the Reconstruction Finance Corporation, and the 

decision was made to use the site to implement a 1938 plan to 

develop a Federal presence in Denver. The Denver Ordnance 

Plant became the Denver Federal Center (DFC) and is now home 

to 21 agencies and about 8,500 people.

The USGS began its occupancy of the DFC in July 1946 in 

Building 25. It wasn’t long before Buildings 5, 21, 82, and 

parts of 51 and 20 were also occupied by USGS, as the DFC 

became home to the Topographic, Geologic, Water Resources, 

Conservation, Publications, and Administrative Divisions. 

In 1976, a fire destroyed about 22,000 square feet of laboratories, 

but that didn’t prevent the USGS from expanding its presence 

on the premises. Today, there are nearly 1,400 USGS personnel, 

contractors, and emeriti working on the DFC, where the USGS 

uses just over 1.4 million square feet of space in 18 buildings.

1925

DOI delegates the 

responsibility for 

supervising mineral 

lease operations on the 

public lands to the USGS. 

This mandate requires 

a large force of mining 

and petroleum engineers, 

increasing USGS staff to 

more than 1,000 employees, 

only 126 of whom are 

geologists.

1929

The USGS is 50 years old. Its appropriation is $2 million, with 

total funds of $3.4 million. There are 998 permanent employees 

who conduct mapping and research investigations in 45 States, 

Alaska, Hawaii, and the District of Columbia. 

Nearly 44 percent of the continental United States 

(excluding Alaska) has been topographically 

mapped. Streamflow is being measured at 2,238 

gaging stations, and the income from mineral 

leases, licenses, and prospecting permits on 

the public lands under USGS supervision is $4.1 

million.
A Proud History of Service 13

less is known about the quantity and quality of our ground 

water than about surface water. 

In 1900, there were only three 

ground-water scientists in the 

USGS. Throughout the 20th 

century, that number increased 

as awareness of the importance 

of this essential component 

of our Nation’s water endowment grew. Studies in the early 

1900s on regional ground-water 

systems throughout the Nation, 

such as those undertaken in 

the central Great Plains, the 

Los Angeles region, and Long 

Island, laid the foundation for 

O.E. Meinzer’s first assessment 

of the ground-water resources 

of the entire United States in 

1923. 

State-by-State summaries 

in midcentury provided more 

information, and a series of 

publications beginning in the 

late 1970s evaluated 25 of 

the Nation’s most important 

regional ground-water systems 

by using a quantitative evaluation that led to many innovations in modeling these systems. 

USGS contributions to developing quantitative models have 

been critical to understanding 

such technical topics as well 

hydraulics—how water flows to 

wells—and systems analysis—

studying the sources of water 

to an aquifer on a systemwide 

basis rather than at single wells. 

The use of computer models 

has greatly enhanced the ability 

of scientists to understand and 

predict movement of water 

underground, and the MODFLOW model developed by 

USGS scientists in the 1980s 

Oscar E. Meinzer

In 1906, when Oscar E. Meinzer was first employed by the USGS, 

the science of ground water was a little-recognized field. His 

persistence and diligence over the 41 years of his career would 

change that. Meinzer’s sincere dedication had so great an 

influence on the scientific community that he has become known 

as the father of ground-water hydrology, and the period of 1910 

to 1940 has been labeled the Meinzer Era.

Meinzer began his career as a Junior Geologist and advanced 

quickly to be the third USGS GroundWater Division Chief. Under his 

leadership, a systematic scientific 

approach was applied to the 

problems of hydrogeology, and the 

underlying principles were defined. 

His personal scientific efforts, insight, 

and leadership greatly influenced 

the direction and development of the 

science of hydrogeology, both inside 

and outside the USGS; by the time 

of his death in 1948, Meinzer had 

achieved international recognition 

as being preeminent in ground-water 

science. 

Advancing the field of hydrogeology was not always an easy 

path. Meinzer once said that much of his work had been done 

almost surreptitiously because of a lack of funds and government 

interest. He worked around many roadblocks with firm principles 

and a strong belief that hydrology was a vital public service. 

In his introduction to the 1942 volume “Hydrology,” which he 

edited, Meinzer sums up his viewpoint saying, “The science of 

hydrology is thus intimately connected with the development of 

human society. In each project, advance in hydrology has come 

in response to the needs of the people, and each advance in the 

science has made possible more effective service.”

nearly 40-year life of the program, which is now part of the 

Status and Trends of Biological Resources Program at the 

USGS. 

Information collected 

through the BBS led to research 

and management actions to help 

neotropical migratory songbirds 

in the late 1980s and grassland 

species in the 1990s. Since 

1991, grassland birds have had 

fewer species with increasing 

population trends than any other 

bird group examined in North 

America. Unfortunately, the 

decline of most grassland bird 

populations continues today, as 

shown by declines of 77 percent 

for grasshopper sparrows and 

66 percent for eastern meadowlarks between 1966 and 2003.

Ground Water—The 

Invisible Resource

Today, 130 million people 

drink ground water, but much 

1930–1943

Walter Curran Mendenhall is the 5th 

Director of the USGS. President Hoover 

appoints Mendenhall to succeed Smith 

as Director of the USGS, honoring his 

commitment to appoint the heads of 

scientific agencies from within the civil 

service. Mendenhall had made notable 

contributions to the geology of Alaska, 

and his study of ground-water hydrology 

established it as a field of scientific 

endeavor.

1939

The Bureau of Fisheries (from 

the Department of Commerce), 

and the Bureau of Biological 

Survey are moved to DOI.

1940

DOI combines the Bureau of 

Fisheries and the Bureau of 

Biological Survey to form the 

U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service 

(USFWS).

California Department of Water Resources
14 Celebrating 125 Years of the U.S. Geological Survey

is considered by many to be 

the most used tool worldwide 

for quantifying ground-water 

flow systems. MODFLOW 

has continued to evolve as new 

understanding is gained and as 

our Nation increasingly relies 

on ground water for drinking 

water and other uses. Today, 

roughly 500 USGS groundwater hydrologists across the 

Nation are studying this essential resource. A growing awareness of the interdependence of 

surface water and ground water 

is leading to new insights that 

will help ensure the Nation has 

the water it needs for a growing economy and a growing 

population. 

Understanding and 

Classifying Wetlands

Historically, wetlands have 

been regarded as swampy lands 

that bred disease, impeded 

agriculture and development, 

and restricted overland travel. 

The wetland policy of the U.S. 

Government beginning in 1849 

was elimination. It has been 

estimated that more than half of 

the naturally occurring wetlands 

in the lower 48 States have been 

lost since the 1700s. Not until 

the last quarter of a century did 

society begin to understand the 

value of wetlands for wildlife habitat, flood attenuation, 

water-quality improvements, 

The USGS Library

The U.S. Geological Survey Library is the largest library for 

earth sciences in the world. Since its establishment in 1879, it 

has acquired more than 

one million books and 

journals, one million maps, 

370,000 microforms, 270,000 

pamphlets, and 250,000 

photographs. It has been 

a catalyst for cooperation, 

understanding, and new 

discoveries, as scientists 

around the world share and 

study the results of past scientific investigations, current trends 

and techniques, and new research directions.

The USGS library system is managed by the Geospatial 

Information Office (GIO) and includes libraries in Reston, Va.; 

Denver, Colo.; Menlo Park, Calif.; and Flagstaff, Ariz. There are 

also libraries associated with science centers and field offices 

across the country holding specialized collections related to the 

research of their local scientists. Information describing library 

activities can be found at <library.usgs.gov>.

The Library collects, classifies, catalogs, and preserves natural 

science publications in many formats and languages as 

resources for present and future use by students, the general 

public, teachers, technical and scientific professionals, USGS 

staff, and policy- and decisionmakers at all levels of government. 

Libraries throughout the world, including the largest and most 

renowned, borrow from the USGS Library’s unique collection, 

and users of the USGS Library have the reciprocal benefit of 

being able to borrow materials from other libraries. 

Despite its age, the USGS Library is keeping up with the times by 

heading toward a “virtual library” where users will have desktop 

access to an increasing wealth of resources 24 hours a day, 7 

days a week.

and sediment removal. As this 

understanding has grown and 

wetlands policy has changed, 

resource managers are finding 

that classifications or definitions of different wetland types 

are useful for making decisions 

with respect to wetland regulation and protection, understanding restoration processes in 

wetland types, and identifying 

the types of wetlands that are 

more valuable or more threatened in a given region. 

Early wetland classification systems in the United 

States were motivated by 

interest in converting wetlands 

to croplands and by the need 

to differentiate wetlands from 

other land-cover types for 

regional and national planning 

purposes. Scientists from the 

Fish and Wildlife Service, led 

by Lewis Cowardin, worked 

with wetland scientists and 

mapping experts from the 

USGS, the National Oceanic 

and Atmospheric Administra1943–1956

William Embry Wrather is the 

6th Director of the USGS.

1946

The Bureau of Land 

Management is created out of 

the General Land Office and the 

USGS.

1950

Public Inquiries Offices (PIO) 

are established in Denver and 

Salt Lake City. Seven more 

PIOs open over the next few 

decades. By 2004, these offices 

are being transformed into an 

integrated Natural Science 

Network to make USGS data, 

information, and knowledge 

available to anyone, anywhere, 

at any time.

1949–1954

The Aleutian Volcano 

Observatory is established.
A Proud History of Service 15

tion (NOAA), and academia 

to develop a new classification 

system based on the ecosystem 

concept. A draft of the “Classification of Wetlands and Deepwater Habitats of the United 

States” by Cowardin and others 

was extensively field tested and 

reviewed before it was published in 1979. The objective of 

this classification system is to 

impose boundaries on natural 

aquatic ecosystems for inventory, evaluation, and management purposes. The major 

systems (marine, estuarine, and 

others) are distinguished by a 

variety of hydrologic, geomorphologic, chemical, and biological characteristics. Subsystems, 

classes, and other categories are 

defined by vegetation, water 

chemistry, soil, and other characteristics. 

The Cowardin classification system became the basis 

for the FWS National Wetland 

Inventory’s Wetland Status 

and Trends report and is now 

used by Federal and State 

Governments as the basis for 

wetland classification. Wetlands research has increased 

our understanding of how 

wetlands function, where they 

are found within the landscape, 

and how the interactions among 

hydrology, soils, and vegetation differ in different wetland 

types. USGS scientists are 

investigating wetland processes 

to better understand the steps 

involved in sustainable restoration and to make better decisions in managing wetlands for 

migratory waterfowl use, flood 

attenuation, hydrologic connections, and the role of wetlands 

in carbon sequestration and 

sea-level rise.

Mapping Beneath 

the Sea

The U.S. EEZ (Exclusive 

Economic Zone) was declared 

by Presidential Order in 1983. 

This area includes the sea floor 

extending 200 nautical miles 

away from all U.S. possessions and trust territories. This 

act added more than 3 million 

square nautical miles to the 

United States, an area larger 

than the 3.6 million square 

miles of U.S. onshore lands. At 

this time, the general bathymetry of the EEZ was known, but 

the detailed physiography was 

not. The USGS, charged with 

surveying this new domain, 

launched a program in 1984 

using a long-range sidescan 

sonar system (GLORIA) to 

study the entire EEZ. The 

acoustic images produced by 

the program are as remarkable as the first photographs 

from the far side of the Moon. 

The images show a wealth of 

geologic features, including 

volcanic structures, channels, 

and scars from submarine 

landslides. GLORIA imagery 

of the U.S. EEZ was the first 

systematic mapping of sea-floor 

Menlo Park Center

In January 1954, 120 employees moved into what would be the 

first of many USGS buildings in Menlo Park, Calif. These USGS 

employees were brought together in a centralized Western 

Region facility to increase scientific cooperation and efficient use 

of resources. From a modest beginning of 

geologic-mapping and mineral-resource 

activities in 1954, the Menlo Park Center 

expanded rapidly until it included 2,000 

people in almost two dozen buildings. 

The Center added major research efforts 

in earthquake and volcano hazards, 

geothermal energy, hydrology, isotope 

geology, marine geology, coastal 

processes, and ecosystem studies, as 

well as the largest earth science library west of Reston, Va., 

and a major marine facility at the Port of Redwood City. Recent 

decentralization has reduced the USGS presence in Menlo Park 

to approximately 600 people. Today, the USGS facility in Menlo 

Park is a world-renowned center of scientific excellence and the 

largest and most diverse earth science facility west of the Rocky 

Mountains. As the USGS celebrates 125 years as a Federal 

science agency, it is also celebrating 50 years of scientific 

achievements in Menlo Park. Highlights include 35 years of 

monitoring water quality in San Francisco Bay and developing 

expertise in estuarine ecosystems; establishing an earthquake 

research program in 1965; leading the production of digital 

orthophoto imagery for the Nation; critical understanding of heat 

flow and permafrost leading to fundamental design changes 

in the 1970s for the planned Trans-Alaska petroleum pipeline; 

and, in the 1960s, developing the paleomagnetic time scale, a 

fundamental piece of evidence in the theory of plate tectonics. 

In the 1980s, Menlo Park developed creative new programs in 

education and public outreach, establishing regular open houses 

and becoming a model for the rest of the bureau. For more of 

the history of USGS at Menlo Park, please see <menlocampus.

wr.usgs.gov/50years>.

1954

The USGS is 75 years old. The USGS has 7,000 employees and appropriated 

funds of $27 million, with total funds, including those from States and other 

agencies, of nearly $48 million. Streamflow data are obtained from 6,400 gaging 

stations, and the chemical quality of more than 85,000 samples of water is 

examined. New technology and aerial photographs and photogrammetric 

methods result in significant increases in the amount of mapping 

accomplished. Geologists adapt photogrammetric methods to their mapping 

and apply modern statistical methods to field geology. The USGS has the 

responsibility for supervising more than 100,000 lessee operations on mining or 

oil-and-gas properties on Federal lands and the Outer Continental Shelf.
16 Celebrating 125 Years of the U.S. Geological Survey

morphology and features in the 

deep ocean, and its value has 

been recognized by the entire 

marine community. Results 

from the GLORIA program 

opened the door to exploration for the mineral and energy 

resources found on and under 

the sea floor. 

More recent work has 

focused on habitat and sea-floor 

maps of National Marine Sanctuaries to serve as a basis for 

managing sanctuary resources 

and for conducting research. 

Mapping of seabed habitats 

is a developing field that has 

required the integration of geologic and biologic studies and 

the use of imaging techniques 

such as multibeam and sidescan 

sonar. To compile interpretive 

maps showing seabed environments and habitats, USGS 

scientists developed a sea-floor 

classification system that is the 

basis for comparing, managing, 

and researching characteristic 

areas of the seabed. Seabed 

maps of the sanctuaries are 

being used for management and 

research decisions that affect 

commercial and recreational 

fishing, habitat disturbance, 

engineering projects, tourism, 

and cultural resources.

The USGS has embraced 

airborne laser mapping 

(LIDAR) for probing the seafloor; this tool enables costeffective, precise, and rapid 

mapping of coastal topography 

and nearshore bathymetry. 

USGS coastal scientists are 

using this technique to assess 

post-storm coastal damage 

and change from hurricanes. 

The USGS responded to the 

impact of Hurricane Isabel in 

North Carolina in September 

2003 through a series of meetings with managers from the 

Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and 

North Carolina State emergency 

agencies. USGS data allowed 

the agencies to design appropriate responses to the emergency; 

for example, the Department 

of Transportation used the data 

to help design and rebuild the 

road infrastructure that was lost 

during Hurricane Isabel. As 

population concentrates along 

the coastlines, understanding 

and characterizing issues of 

coastal erosion and wetland 

loss will become increasingly 

important.

William Thomas Pecora 

William T. Pecora, Director of the USGS from 1965 to 1971, is 

largely responsible for two major contributions to public health, 

public safety, and public prosperity: the creation of a national 

earthquake research center at the USGS facility in Menlo Park, 

Calif., and the Landsat series of Earth-observing satellites.

Pecora joined the USGS in 1939. For several 

years, he investigated strategic-mineral 

deposits in the United States and Latin 

America and then engaged in a long-range 

study of rare mineral deposits in Montana. 

Named Chief Geologist in 1964, Pecora 

collaborated with NASA, enabling the 

USGS to accelerate its remote-sensing 

research in analyzing the potential 

values of surveying the Earth from space. 

Pecora carried a broad vision and deep 

appreciation of the use of satellite system 

programs for continuous inventory and 

management of our national resources. 

He was a motivating force behind the 

establishment of Earth remote sensing from 

space, and it was under his leadership that the Landsat series of 

Earth-observing satellites became a reality. 

In response to the great Alaska earthquake of 1964, he obtained 

approval to establish the National Earthquake Research Center 

in Menlo Park. The Center provided a focus for research on the 

causes and effects of earthquakes and on methods to predict the 

time and location of destructive earthquakes.

In 1965 Pecora was elected to the National Academy of Sciences 

and appointed Director of the USGS. In April 1971, he left the 

USGS to become Under Secretary of the Interior and served until 

his death in 1972, just a few days before the launch of the first 

Landsat satellite.

1956–1965

Thomas Brennan Nolan is the 7th 

Director of the USGS. Nolan leads 

the USGS to a broadened and 

intensified commitment to basic 

research, to the advancement of 

geology in the public service, and 

to the prompt publication of USGS 

results.

1958

David Varnes develops a 

vocabulary of terms to describe 

landslides, thus giving landslide 

experts a common language. 

This system of naming 

landslides first by their material 

then by the type of movement is 

adopted throughout the world.
A Proud History of Service 17

Geographic Tools 

for the Nation

As the Nation grew and 

changed, the earlier emphasis on mapping for resource 

development broadened to 

include resource protection 

and conservation. Through the 

mid-20th century, the USGS 

focused on providing detailed 

coverage of the Nation’s topography through a series of maps 

at 1:24,000 scale, but there 

were also increasing demands 

for other kinds of geographic 

and cartographic information. Changes in public policy, 

customer usage, and technology 

spurred the development of new 

products of broad geographic 

information and reference such 

as digital terrain maps, aerial 

photography, and satellite imagery. The acclaimed “National 

Atlas of the United States,” published in 1970, was the Nation’s 

first official atlas. It included 

more than 700 printed maps 

Eugene M. Shoemaker 

Born in Los Angeles, Calif., in 1928, Gene Shoemaker was a visionary geologist. In his early career, he believed geologic 

studies would be extended into space and dreamed of being the first geologist to map the Moon. Though he never 

actually got to the Moon, he created the Branch of Astrogeology within the USGS, established the USGS Field Center in 

Flagstaff, Ariz., and led research teams investigating the Moon.

Shoemaker, known as the “Father of Planetary Geology,” influenced the geosciences in numerous ways. He provided 

the definitive work on basic impact cratering and discovered a number of new craters on Earth. With the help of his 

wife Carolyn (a planetary astronomer) and David Levy, a decade-long survey for Earth-crossing asteroids and comets 

led to the discovery of Comet Shoemaker-Levy, giving science new insight into 

both the dynamics of comets and the planetary science of Jupiter. In much of 

his asteroid and comet work, Shoemaker collaborated closely with his wife. They considered 

their work a mom-and-pop operation and together initiated the Palomar Planet-Crossing Asteroid 

Survey in 1973 and the Palomar Asteroid and Comet Survey in 1983. 

He once said he considered himself a scientific historian whose mission in life was to relate 

geologic and planetary events in a perspective manner—a modest statement from a man who 

almost single-handedly created planetary science as a discipline distinct from astronomy. 

His work resulted in more than three decades of discoveries about the planets and asteroids 

of the solar system. He helped train the Apollo astronauts and sat beside Walter Cronkite 

providing commentary during the moon walks. His moon studies culminated in 1994 with Project 

Clementine, for which he was the science team leader. Among numerous awards, he received 

the National Medal of Science, the highest scientific honor bestowed by the President of the 

United States.

1961

Eugene Shoemaker 

founds the 

Astrogeology 

Research Program 

and becomes its 

first Chief Scientist. 

He establishes the 

Flagstaff Field Center 

in 1963.

1962

The USGS begins a program 

of marine studies to identify 

and evaluate potential mineral 

resources on or beneath 

the sea floor and to aid in 

solving the problems caused 

by rapid population growth, 

urbanization, and industrial 

expansion in coastal areas. 

1963

The USGS, in 

cooperation with 

NASA, begins to 

train astronauts 

in geology and to 

investigate and 

evaluate methods 

and equipment for 

exploration of 

the Moon.

1963

The USGS Mission in Saudi Arabia is 

formally established, 19 years after the 

first USGS geologist arrived to advise on 

the natural resources of the Kingdom.

1964

For the first time, the 

appropriations and 

total funds available 

for the fiscal year 

beginning July 1 

exceed $100 million. 

This is more than 

double the amount of 

just a decade earlier.
18 Celebrating 125 Years of the U.S. Geological Survey

James R. Balsley

James R. Balsley, Jr., was one of those rare individuals who is both a first-rate scientist and an 

exceptional manager. He is fondly remembered for his abiding concern for the welfare of the people 

doing the science, as well as for the science itself. During his career, he contributed much to the 

field of geology and the long-term scientific health of the USGS. 

Balsley started at the USGS in 1939, mapping geology in Washington State’s 

Olympic Peninsula. During World War II, he began to specialize in geomagnetism 

as he worked on geophysical investigations for Federal civilian and military 

organizations. This work led to aeromagnetic surveys of Antarctica and Alaska in 

the late 1940s. He developed new geophysical techniques to improve mapping of 

deep geologic structures and to detect hidden ore bodies. In the 1950s, as Chief 

of the Branch of Geophysics, Balsley established the Rock Magnetism Project, a 

project that led to key discoveries supporting the theory of plate tectonics. 

Balsley was a strong proponent for applying USGS science to societal problems. He established the 

Land Information and Analysis Office, where staff worked directly with land-planning organizations, 

Federal and State hazard coordinators, and other groups to translate and apply USGS science to 

their needs. This activity led to a new role in environmental studies for the USGS that continues 

today. As Assistant Director, Balsley successfully coordinated USGS research programs with those 

of most other agencies in the Federal Government. 

Balsley left a legacy of outstanding scientific imagination and exceptional managerial creativity. His 

strong emphasis on applying the results of USGS science to societal issues remains a fundamental 

operating principle of the USGS today.

showing the physical, historical, economic, and sociocultural 

landscape of the Nation. 

A national program for 

consistent, multiuse aerial 

photography was established 

in 1987. The National Aerial 

Photography Program is an 

interagency Federal effort coordinated by the USGS, covering 

the lower 48 States and Hawaii. 

Photographs are acquired from 

airplanes flying at an altitude of 

20,000 feet. The program was 

originally developed to assist 

in updating USGS topographic 

maps, but other Federal and 

State agencies have found these 

photos useful for their needs as 

well. USGS has provided leadership for over 30 years in the 

Landsat program of land remote 

sensing. The USGS archive 

of remote-sensing data at the 

EROS Data Center in Sioux 

Falls, S. Dak., houses millions 

of images of the Earth and represents a priceless resource for 

science and research for years 

to come. 

The Geographic Names 

Information System (GNIS), 

developed by the USGS in 

cooperation with the U.S. Board 

on Geographic Names, contains information for almost 2 

million physical and cultural 

geographic features in the 

United States. The Federally 

recognized name of each feature described in the database 

is identified, and references are 

made to a feature’s location by 

State, county, and geographic 

coordinates. The GNIS is our 

Nation’s official repository of 

domestic geographic names 

information.

1964

The Prince William Sound, 

Alaska, earthquake of magnitude 

9.2 results in massive destruction 

in Anchorage. USGS geologists 

are assigned to the Task Force 

of the Federal Reconstruction 

and Development Planning 

Commission to select sites for 

rebuilding. The establishment of the USGS’s Center for Earthquake 

Research in Menlo Park, Calif., follows.

1965

Scientists at the Patuxent 

Wildlife Research Center 

play a role in crafting 

the Endangered Species 

Preservation Act, and 

research on endangered 

species begins as an 

effort to recover the 

whooping crane from near 

extinction.

1965–1971

William Thomas Pecora is 

the 8th Director of the USGS. 

Pecora leaves the USGS in 1971 

to become the Under Secretary 

of the Interior.

U.S. Army

1964

Congress passes the Wilderness 

Act, setting more than 9 million 

acres of national forest lands aside 

from permanent roads, buildings, 

and commercial activities. The 

USGS and the U.S. Bureau of 

Mines are asked to assess the 

mineral resources in each area 

of the proposed or established 

wilderness by the end of 1983.
Challenges and Opportunities Today 19

Challenges and 

Opportunities Today

National Assessments—

Looking at the Land

Natural processes—the 

flow of rivers, the migration 

of birds, the ground 

shaking triggered by an earthquake—are not constrained 

by political boundaries. The 

USGS has the unique ability 

and duty to conduct large-scale 

regional and national assessments that provide an accurate 

portrait of different aspects of 

our land. For example, in the 

early 1970s, visionary USGS 

scientists like William Pecora 

and James Anderson established 

the capabilities to routinely use 

instruments on orbiting satellites to map the Nation’s land 

use and land cover, the biophysical pattern of natural vegetation 

and agriculture, and wilderness 

and urban areas. The USGS 

leads a nationwide effort to map 

land cover, working through a 

consortium of Federal partners. 

New technologies applied to 

remote-sensing data, including 

computer modeling and GPS, 

give land-cover analysts powerful tools to deliver consistent, 

current nationwide data 

that address a wide 

variety of issues, from 

planning and development to natural hazards and 

the environment. 

The USGS conducts 

nationwide water-quality 

assessments designed to answer, 

in a scientifically defensible 

way, the question, “What is the 

quality of the Nation’s water?” 

The National Water-Quality 

Assessment Program assesses 

the quality of streams and 

ground water in more than 50 

major river basins and aquifer 

systems across the Nation—the 

source for more than 60 percent 

of the Nation’s drinking water 

and water for irrigation and 

industry. Each assessment 

follows a nationally consistent 

study design and methodology, 

thereby providing information about local water-quality 

conditions that can be compared 

regionally and nationally to 

provide insight on where and 

when water quality varies and 

on the influence of human and 

natural factors on water quality. 

Water-quality professionals at 

local, State, Tribal, and national 

levels use this information to 

develop strategies for managing, protecting, and monitoring 

water resources in many different hydrologic and land-use 

settings across the Nation. This 

information can help identify 

key causes of nonpoint-source 

pollution in agricultural and 

urban areas, contribute to State 

assessments and planning, 

sustain the health of aquatic 

ecosystems through improved 

stream protection and restoration management, and other 

tasks. 

Determining the status (abundance, distribution, 

productivity, and health) and 

trends (how they are changing over time) of our Nation’s 

living natural resources is 

critical to facilitate research, 

enable resource management 

and stewardship, and promote 

public understanding and appreciation of our living resources. 

The USGS Status and Trends 

of Biological Resources 

Program responds to these 

needs through inventory and 

monitoring efforts at multiple 

biological, spatial, and temporal 

scales. For example, to support 

recovery efforts of threatened 

and endangered species such as 

the grizzly bear, hair samples 

are collected and analyzed for 

their genetic makeup and then 

used to estimate the size of the 

Jupiter Images

1966

The North 

American 

Breeding Bird 

Survey, a program 

coordinated 

jointly between the 

USGS and the Canadian Wildlife Service, begins as a long-term, 

large-scale, international avian monitoring program to track the 

status and trends of North American bird populations.

1966

DOI establishes the Earth Resources Observation Systems 

(EROS) Program in Sioux Falls, S. Dak.

1970

The National Atlas of the United States of America, the 

Nation’s first official atlas, is published. It describes the Nation 

extensively, with more than 700 physical, historical, economic, 

sociocultural, and administrative maps.

1970s

The National Wetlands 

Research Center is the first 

to document the unique and 

tremendous wetland loss in 

Jupiter Images Louisiana.
20 Celebrating 125 Years of the U.S. Geological Survey

grizzly bear population. To 

satisfy international agreements 

and treaties, guide the establishment of fishing limits, inform 

management, and facilitate our 

understanding of fish communities and their interaction within 

the Great Lakes, annual fish 

trawl surveys in all five Great 

Lakes are conducted. The Status 

and Trends program periodically assembles the information 

from these and other efforts to 

then publish comprehensive 

reports that synthesize our 

understanding of the Nation’s 

biological and ecological 

resources.

Ecosystem Assessment 

and Restoration 

Working with other Federal partners, States, and local 

governments, the USGS is helping to provide data and scientific understanding to assess the 

water and habitat quality of critical ecosystems and to analyze 

the effectiveness of restoration 

activities. The Chesapeake Bay, 

the San Francisco Bay, and the 

Platte River Valley are among 

the ecosystems under study. 

The Chesapeake Bay, the 

Nation’s largest estuary, has 

historically supported one of the 

most productive fisheries in the 

world, and the bay’s watershed 

provides vital habitat for migratory birds using the Atlantic 

Flyway. Unfortunately, the 

commercial, economic, and recreational value of the bay and 

its watershed has been degraded 

by poor water quality, loss of 

habitat, and overharvesting of 

living resources. The restoration 

of the bay and its watershed is 

overseen by the Chesapeake 

Bay Program, which is a 

partnership among States, the 

District of Columbia, Federal 

agencies, and the Chesapeake 

Jayne Belnap

Jayne Belnap leads the sort of interesting, accomplished, 

and well-traveled life many of us dream about. She studies 

how different land uses—including some of our favorite 

recreational activities, such as hiking and biking, and activities 

that support our society, such as livestock grazing and energy 

exploration—affect the fertility and stability of desert soils. 

Applying that knowledge, she then 

studies the factors that make some 

desert communities susceptible 

to invasion by exotic plants, while 

others remain uninvaded, despite 

similar use patterns. Using repeat 

photography, she has also examined 

how plant communities in the West 

have changed over the past 100 

years.

Her studies have taken her to a 

number of exotic places, including 

South Africa, Kenya, Zimbabwe, 

Mongolia, China, Siberia, Australia, 

and Iceland, where she advises 

scientists and managers on how to 

maintain soil fertility and stability 

while still using the land. She also 

travels extensively within the United States, interacting with 

and training Federal, State, and private land managers on 

how to best manage dryland ecosystems. 

Belnap has been a scientist with the Department of the 

Interior since 1987 and is currently with the USGS in Moab, 

Utah. She is the past Chair for the Soil Ecology section of 

the Ecological Society of America, is President-Elect of the 

international Soil Ecology Society, is a subject editor for the 

journal Ecological Applications, and participates in a number 

of other professional functions.

1970s

The Cooperative Park 

Study Units, a universitybased program of 

scientific studies on the 

ecological, environmental, 

and sociological aspects 

of park and wildland 

management, begin, 

benefiting both the parks 

and the universities.

1970s

USGS scientist Russell Campbell develops 

the concept for documenting rainfall 

duration and intensity as it is associated 

with shallow landslides. The concept 

will later be refined by Susan Cannon, 

Stephenson Ellen, Gerald Wieczorek, and 

others and will be essential for the nearreal-time landslide warning systems that the 

USGS will operate in cooperation with State 

and local governments.
Challenges and Opportunities Today 21

Bay Commission. Since the late 

1970s, the USGS has provided 

unbiased scientific information 

that is used to help formulate, 

implement, and assess the effectiveness of restoration goals to 

reduce nutrient and sediment to 

the bay and improve habitats for 

fish and migratory birds in the 

bay and its watershed. 

Since 1849, the San 

Francisco Bay area has been 

altered to meet demands for 

agricultural and urban land, 

freshwater, and the riches supplied by gold deposits in the 

watershed. Tidal marshes have 

been filled, freshwater has been 

diverted, and many nonnative 

species have been imported and 

released, whether intentionally 

or by accident. Today, there are 

few commercial fisheries in the 

system, several of the remaining native fish are endangered 

or threatened, the contamination of recreationally important 

sport fishes is sufficient to limit 

consumption by people, and 

the need for more freshwater 

is a critical component of the 

political landscape of California 

and other Western States. The 

USGS is a founding member 

of the Interagency Ecological 

Program for the San Francisco 

Bay and freshwater delta, a 

group of 10 members including 

State, Federal, and nongovernment organizations. USGS 

studies have focused on water 

quality and on how tidal waters 

and freshwater flow through the 

system. New projects in San 

Francisco Bay will evaluate 

the success of marsh restoration and study how climate is 

linked to watershed processes 

and freshwater flow, providing 

numerical models of the system 

to State and Federal water 

managers. 

The unique land and water 

resources of the central Platte 

River Valley created a natural 

“highway” for people and wildlife in Nebraska, along which 

half a million sandhill cranes 

and several million other waterfowl migrate each year. The 

valley also provides living space 

for nine endangered species, 

including the whooping crane, 

piping plover, and interior least 

tern. Changes in water management, sediment levels in the 

river, and land use have changed 

the river channel and nearby 

wet meadows, reducing their 

ability to support migratory and 

resident birds and other plants 

and animals. USGS scientists 

are continuously monitoring 

Platte River streamflow and 

National Wildlife Health Center

Occasional reports of large-scale wildlife disease events 

surfaced in the early 1900s. By the early 1970s, there were still 

only a few laboratories where wildlife disease was the subject 

of serious scientific inquiry. In January 

1973, however, a die-off of 40,000 mallards 

at the Lake Andes National Wildlife Refuge 

in South Dakota brought wildlife disease 

into the national spotlight. Two years 

later, the National Wildlife Health Center 

(NWHC) was established in Madison, Wis., 

launching a nationwide wildlife health 

program. The laboratory’s first director, 

Milton Friend, is internationally recognized for 

his accomplishments in the fields of wildlife health and wildlife 

disease ecology; his leadership of the wildlife health program set 

a standard for excellence that has been consistently maintained. 

Wildlife health touches a broad range of issues including 

public health and domestic animal health; the focus on wildlife 

as a function of ecosystem health is a specialty of the NWHC. 

Understanding the role of disease agents in ecosystems is 

critical to managing natural resources and preserving ecosystem 

function under ever-increasing demands on our planet’s natural 

resources. NWHC research on zoonotic diseases (those that 

can be transferred between animals and humans) concentrates 

on improving our understanding of the ecological relationships 

among free-ranging wildlife, domestic animals, and humans. 

The Center works closely with other Federal and State agencies 

and Native communities to provide dedicated field support and 

exceptional diagnostic and research capabilities that can be 

applied to manage and prevent disease outbreaks.

Through its commitment to scientific excellence, the NWHC has 

become the most comprehensive facility in the world dealing 

specifically with wildlife health and disease. It has achieved 

a national and international reputation, emerging as a leader 

in wildlife health through preeminent science, innovative 

technology, and responsive service.

1971–1978

Vincent Ellis McKelvey is the 9th Director. McKelvey, a former Chief 

Geologist and career USGS scientist, heads an organization that has an 

operating budget of $173 million and 9,200 employees. General-purpose 

topographic maps are available for 84 percent of the total area of the 

50 States and territories, streamflow data are collected at more than 

11,000 gaging stations, and mineral production from lands supervised 

by the USGS is valued at more than $3 billion. McKelvey’s term is 

marked by an increase in multidisciplinary studies and in the complexity 

of USGS operations.
22 Celebrating 125 Years of the U.S. Geological Survey

water temperature and transmitting the data to publicly accessible World Wide Web pages; 

using satellite tracking to follow 

individual cranes throughout 

their intercontinental migration routes; and partnering with 

the National Aeronautics and 

Space Administration (NASA) 

to develop remote-sensing 

techniques that provide quick 

and accurate data to researchers 

assessing changes in channel shape and determining the 

effects of riverbank changes on 

ecological communities.

America’s Amphibians: 

Vanishing from the 

Landscape?

Amphibian populations 

throughout the world, including frogs and salamanders 

in the United States, have 

declined markedly over the 

past 20 years, but the reasons 

for these declines, as well 

as for a growing number of 

malformed individuals, are 

poorly understood. In 2000, 

the USGS began the Amphibian Research and Monitoring 

Initiative (ARMI) to monitor 

trends in amphibian populations 

and learn more about the causes 

of their declines. Amphibians 

have many unique or unusual 

development characteristics. 

For example, most amphibians spend part of their lives 

in aquatic habitats; others can 

breathe through their skin. 

These characteristics make 

them more susceptible to environmental changes, 

such as the loss 

of aquatic 

habitat and 

Timothy L. King

To most of us, a salmon is a salmon, but to Tim King, a 

Research Fishery Biologist with the USGS, there are 

considerable and important differences between the 

salmon of different areas. King conducts molecular 

genetics research on threatened and endangered 

species, and his job is to understand diversity 

in the smallest of groupings. He focuses on the 

development of DNA markers that allow assessment 

of population genetic structure, phylogeography, 

and phylogenetics. His goal is to provide natural 

resource managers with the guidance they need to 

identify appropriate units of conservation. King headed a group 

of researchers who established the existence of distinct genetic 

differences between North American and European Atlantic 

salmon and between Maine and Canadian salmon. Considerable 

differentiation was also identified among salmon inhabiting 

streams of coastal Maine. King’s Atlantic salmon research was 

reviewed and unequivocally supported by a Congressionally 

mandated National Academy of Sciences panel of geneticists. In 

case you think there’s something fishy about his research area, 

King has also made significant contributions to the understanding 

of the biology and population structure of Atlantic sturgeon, brook 

trout, spotted salamanders, wood frogs, bog turtles, horseshoe 

crabs, and black bears.

the presence of environmental 

toxins that are easily absorbed 

through the skin. 

Understanding how these 

unique characteristics relate to 

population declines requires 

a multidisciplinary approach. 

Biologists study life cycles, 

habitat interactions, and population trends. Hydrologists and 

geographers investigate surface 

water and the landforms that 

influence the size, flow, and 

distribution of water bodies. 

Cartographers bring an understanding of spatial relationships. 

Chemists and toxicologists 

study the effects of contaminants on individual animals and 

populations. Many possible causes of amphibian 

decline have been proposed recently. Declines 

in some amphibian 

populations may be the 

1972

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency bans DDT after 

Patuxent Wildlife Research Center scientists discover that DDT, 

in addition to causing bird deaths, can cause other reproductive 

failures.

1972

A cooperative program involving the USGS, NASA, and 

universities to systematically map the geology of Mars results in 

a shaded-relief map of Mars.

1973–1974

In 1973, the USGS moves its National Headquarters to a new 

building in Reston, Va. The building, the John Wesley Powell 

Building, is formally dedicated on March 3, 1974, as the fifth 

National Center. The USGS takes on the responsibility for 

operational research in seismology and geomagnetism by 

agreement with NOAA, and part of NOAA is transferred to the 

USGS.
Challenges and Opportunities Today 23

result of natural fluctuations, 

but some of the declines are 

likely the result of the introduction of a contaminant or alteration of a habitat. Regional phenomena like changes in climate, 

introduction of nonnative competitive species, or exposure to 

pathogens may also play a part. 

Many herpetologists believe 

that a combination of stresses 

is being placed on amphibian 

populations and that the combination of stresses puts some 

species at risk more than others. 

Rigorous long-term studies of 

amphibians are needed to assess 

the magnitude and direction of 

changes in amphibian populations. Interagency partnership 

is a critical component of the 

ARMI program. The USGS 

is partnering with Federal and 

State agencies, herpetological 

societies, conservation advocacy organizations, and educational institutions to find the 

causes and the solutions for our 

disappearing amphibians.

Tracking Down 

Biological Information 

Information on local, 

regional, State, and global biology is available from thousands of databases across the 

landscape. Making this wealth 

of existing information accessible is the challenge that led to 

the creation of the NBII—the 

National Biological Information Infrastructure. NBII is a 

broad, collaborative program to 

provide increased access to data 

and information on the Nation’s 

biological resources. Resource 

managers, scientists, educators, and the general public 

use the NBII to answer a wide 

range of questions related to the 

management, use, or conservation of this Nation’s biological 

resources. It is an information 

pipeline coordinated by the 

USGS, whose contents are 

supplied by partners in Federal, 

State, and local government 

agencies, nongovernmental 

organizations, academia, private 

industry, and international institutions. The NBII links diverse, 

high-quality biological databases, information products, 

and analytical tools maintained 

by NBII partners and other 

contributors. NBII partners and 

collaborators also work on new 

standards, tools, and technologies that make it easier to find, 

integrate, and apply biological 

resources information. 

L. David Mech 

Dave Mech wasn’t raised by wolves, 

but after reviewing his career, you might 

think so. He has studied wolves and their 

prey in northeastern Minnesota since 

1968; in Yellowstone since 1995; and in 

Denali National Park, Alaska, from 1986 to 

1995—not to mention that each summer 

from 1986 to 1996 he lived with a pack of 

wolves in Canada’s High Arctic, studying 

their behavioral interactions and their 

predation on musk oxen and arctic hares. 

He continues to study wolves and their prey there each summer. 

Mech is a Senior Research Scientist with the Northern Prairie 

Wildlife Research Center and an Adjunct Professor at the 

University of Minnesota in St. Paul. He began working for the 

Department of the Interior as a Wildlife Research Biologist for 

the Fish and Wildlife Service in 1968. 

He has chaired the Wolf Specialist Group of the World 

Conservation Union (IUCN) since 1978 and is the founder and 

vice chair of the International Wolf Center in Ely, Minn. Mech 

has been involved with many international projects, including 

work on wolves in Italy, Spain, Portugal, and Croatia; leopards 

and lions in Kenya and Tanzania; and tigers, elephants, lions, 

and other species in India. His many awards include The Wildlife 

Society’s Aldo Leopold Award for Distinguished Service to 

Wildlife Conservation.

For those of us who would like to know more about wolves and 

other wildlife but aren’t quite ready to spend our summers living 

with them, Mech has published 10 books and more than 300 

scientific and popular articles. His latest book, a comprehensive 

reference work, titled “Wolves: Behavior, Ecology, and 

Conservation,” was published in September 2003 and is now in 

its second printing. 

USFWS

1976

The USGS Library closes the 

traditional card catalog and 

establishes a digital catalog.

1977

Congress directs the USGS 

to establish a national wateruse information program. It 

becomes part of the FederalState cooperative program.

1978

The National Seismic Network 

is established.

1978

USGS joins the Advanced 

Research Projects Agency 

Network (ARPANet), a 

forerunner of the internet.

1978

The Conterminous U.S. Minerals 

Assessment Program is created.

Jerry Sanders

1977

Congress passes the 

Earthquake Hazards Reduction 

Act of 1977, to reduce the loss 

of life and property from future 

earthquakes.
24 Celebrating 125 Years of the U.S. Geological Survey

The NBII is organized in 

nodes. The California Information Node, for example, provides data discovery, exchange, 

and interoperability for 

resources critical to the study 

of California’s diverse ecosystems, with an initial emphasis 

on invasive species issues. The 

Southern Appalachian Information Node focuses on providing 

access to data and information 

that will facilitate tracking, 

understanding, and predicting changes in biodiversity in 

Tennessee, Kentucky, Alabama, 

and Mississippi, with a particular interest in measuring 

and mitigating human impacts 

through technology and education. The Fisheries and Aquatic 

Resources Node provides an 

extensive array of data on 

managed fish strains, populations, and broodstocks located 

throughout the United States, 

as well as watershed-based data 

and extensive State-by-State 

fishing resources. 

The Gap Analysis Program 

(GAP) was created to provide 

clear, geographically explicit 

information on the distribution of native vertebrates, their 

habitat preferences, and their 

management status, information needed to complement 

species-by-species management 

in the context of large-scale 

loss of habitat. The program 

goal is to develop predictive 

information that can be used to 

manage the Nation’s biodiversity so that ordinary plant and 

animal species will not become 

threatened with extinction. GAP 

promotes the conservation of 

biodiversity by developing and 

sharing information on where 

species and natural communities occur and how they are 

being managed for long-term 

survival. It is an important 

part of the NBII. GAP began 

by mapping distributions of 

amphibian, bird, mammal, and 

reptile species. The program 

is currently developing methods to extend coverage to fish, 

mussels, crayfish, snails, and 

other species and will expand to 

more species as knowledge and 

resources allow. GAP projects 

rely on the participation of 

nearly 500 cooperating State 

and Federal agencies, academic 

and nonprofit institutions, and 

private industry. 

Monitoring at Many 

Levels

Remotely sensed data are 

fundamental tools for studying the Earth’s land surface, 

including coastal and nearshore 

environments. The USGS has 

been a leader for decades in 

providing remotely sensed data 

to the national and international 

communities. Stemming from 

its historical topographic mapping mission, the USGS has 

archived and distributed aerial 

photography of the United 

States for more than half a cenCooperative Research Units

Every year, USGS scientists advise and mentor more than 

670 graduate students as part of USGS participation in the 

Cooperative Research Units program. The program was 

established in 1935 to train personnel in the rapidly growing field 

of wildlife management, and later fisheries, and to provide better 

technical information for professional wildlife and fisheries 

managers. It has become one of the USGS’s 

strongest links to Federal and State land and 

natural-resource management agencies.

The program is a unique model of 

cooperative partnerships among Federal 

and State Governments, academia, and the 

Wildlife Management Institute. Today, there 

are 40 Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Units located 

on university campuses in 38 States. By pooling resources, 

everyone benefits: the USGS provides Federal research 

scientists; the universities provide office space, administrative 

support, and access to university facilities; the State game and 

fish agencies provide base funding and logistical support for 

research activities; and the Wildlife Management Institute helps 

to coordinate the program at a national level. 

Unit scientists and their students conduct applied research on 

current fish and wildlife issues to address the needs of State 

and Federal cooperators and partners. Their projects range in 

scale from microscopic to landscape and cover a wide range 

of topics on game and nongame animals and their habitats. Unit 

studies address State and Federal agency information needs on 

biodiversity and conservation biology, migratory birds, inland 

fisheries, anadromous fish, habitat assessment, population 

estimation and modeling, and numerous other topics. Scientists 

and students provide technical assistance to State and Federal 

agencies, helping them to apply the research findings to their 

specific needs in areas as diverse as Everglades National Park 

in Florida and the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge in Alaska.

USDA, Forest Service

Bureau of Land Management

1978–1981

H. William Menard is the 10th 

Director of the USGS.

1979

Menard’s first year in office includes 

the centennial of the USGS. The 

appropriation is about $640 million, and 

total funds available are $765 million. 

The USGS staff numbers more than 

12,000 (including contractors). The 

USGS is one of only a few Federal 

agencies to survive for 100 years 

with its original name and mission 

unchanged.

Bill Pine
Challenges and Opportunities Today 25

tury. Since 1972, the USGS has 

acquired, processed, archived, 

and distributed Landsat and 

other satellite and airborne 

remotely sensed data products 

to users worldwide. Today, the 

USGS operates and manages 

the Landsat 5 and 7 satellite 

missions and cooperates with 

NASA to define and implement 

future satellite missions that 

will continue and expand the 

collection of moderate resolution remotely sensed data. 

Remotely sensed data are 

critical sources of information 

for studying sources for energy 

and minerals, coastal environmental surveys, assessments of 

natural hazards (earthquakes, 

volcanoes, and landslides), 

biological surveys and investigations, water resources status 

and trends analyses and studies, 

and geographic and cartographic applications such as 

wildfire detection and tracking. 

The archive of remotely sensed 

data is used by the global science community to evaluate 

manmade and natural changes 

to the surface features of the 

planet. USGS scientists and 

engineers are investigating new 

types of satellite systems and 

sensors, studying promising 

new data sources, developing 

new data acquisition programs 

and sources, and assessing the 

potential for new data applications. In addition, the USGS 

is seeking new ways to make 

remotely sensed data products 

more accessible to users, as 

well as ways to expand and 

enhance overall use of remotely 

sensed data and remote-sensing 

technology. 

Remotely sensed data are 

complemented by a wide range 

of on-the-ground measuring 

and monitoring systems that 

provide a higher level of detail 

and accuracy. Many of these 

systems are described elsewhere in this book, including 

the streamgaging network, the 

Advanced National Seismic 

System, and the North American Breeding Bird Survey. 

The Earth and its processes 

are always more complex than 

we can imagine. As a result, 

long-term, geographically 

diverse data sets reveal much 

more than expected and are 

essential tools for protecting 

lives and property; managing water, energy, mineral, 

and biological resources; and 

enhancing the quality of life. 

New monitoring—whether 

space-based, airborne, or on the 

ground—leads to advances in 

our understanding of the Earth 

and its processes.

Real-Time Data—

Critical for Many Users

In the past 25 years, 

technological advances have 

dramatically improved our ability to communicate information quickly and accurately to 

an extremely diverse group of 

Jean Parcher

Jean Parcher can trace her interest in geography to her 

grandfather, a worldwide shipping merchant. He inspired 

a wanderlust that has taken her on many journeys through 

Central and South America, including a 3-year tour of duty with 

the Peace Corps, where she volunteered in rural community 

development for the Costa Rica Bureau of Indian Affairs. Her 

experiences there provided her with an excellent foundation to 

succeed in her role of coordinating the acquisition of geospatial 

mapping data in Texas. The cost of generating quality sources 

of mapping data is expensive unless the burden is shared by 

many partners and the data made publicly available. Parcher 

coordinates partnerships by bringing together various State, 

Federal, and Mexican agencies 

with similar geospatial data 

mapping needs, such as economic 

development planning, homeland 

security planning, natural hazards 

analysis, agricultural production, and 

monitoring urban growth changes to 

the environment.

To better understand the needs of 

her partners, Parcher wanted to 

broaden her knowledge in science 

issues. Through the USGS graduate 

program, she found the opportunity to return to her studies. 

Her research on comparing land use and flood hazards for two 

cities along the U.S./Mexico border was selected as one of the 

best theses at the University of Texas in 2003. Currently, she is 

working with the three other USGS disciplines to develop a binational geographic information database along the U.S./Mexico 

border to analyze environmental affects on human health issues. 

Her ability to conduct meetings in Spanish and to cross cultural 

barriers, honed during her Peace Corps days, greatly enhances 

her work and contributes to the success of the project.

1980s

Instream Flow Incremental 

Methodology (IFIM) is 

developed to provide a 

mechanism for managers 

to determine the effects of 

their decisions on riverine 

systems. This integrates several 

scientific disciplines into a 

single comprehensive habitatanalysis tool.

1980

Mount St. Helens erupts on May 

18. In 1978, USGS geologists had 

forecast that a violent eruption 

was probable. On March 27, it is 

determined that the possibility of 

eruption is great enough to issue 

a hazard warning. The eruption 

on May 18 results in 57 deaths 

and flooding on the Toutle and 

lower Cowlitz Rivers.
26 Celebrating 125 Years of the U.S. Geological Survey

users. From real-time streamflow monitoring to mapping 

wildfire perimeters, providing 

earthquake information minutes 

after an event, and enabling 

access to more than 100 years 

of published books and maps, 

the World Wide Web is a 

powerful tool for tapping into 

the wealth of USGS information. The USGS is committed to 

ensuring that all electronic and 

information technology developed, procured, maintained, or 

used by the USGS is accessible 

to people with disabilities, 

including both employees and 

the customers we serve.

The USGS operates a 

nationwide network of nearly 

7,000 real-time streamgages 

and more than 1,000 realtime water-quality monitoring 

stations that provide critical 

hydrologic information in time 

for effective decisionmaking 

about flooding, drought, and 

water supply. The network is 

funded by the USGS and more 

than 800 other Federal, State, 

and local partners who use the 

information for planning and 

management of water resources; 

design of bridges, dams, and 

treatment facilities; research 

on changes in land and water 

use; and safe recreation and 

enjoyment on rivers, lakes, 

and streams. The data from the 

streamgages are transmitted by 

satellite and radio to a distributed system of mirrored servers. 

In Louisiana, which leads the 

Nation in property damage 

caused by floods, an innovative interactive flood-tracking 

chart for the Amite River basin 

is helping to protect lives and 

property. People in the Amite 

River basin can click on a map 

of the basin and place the cursor 

over any of the nine highlighted 

gages to see a chart showing 

current river level, the National 

Weather Service flood stage, 

and the highest recorded river 

levels at that location. Using 

this information, they can make 

informed decisions about evacuation and protection of personal 

property.

In much of the West, fire 

is a primary concern. During the 2000 fire season, over 

79,000 wildfires burned nearly 

7 million acres of land along 

with hundreds of structures and 

valuable natural resources. In 

response, the USGS partnered 

with other Federal land manWeb Accessibility

Anything from a game show question to a flood or earthquake 

can cause hits on the USGS Web site to jump significantly. 

Whether it’s idle curiosity about minerals, an unquenchable thirst 

for knowledge about water, or an urgent need for information 

about a hazard—the USGS is working to make the information 

available to anyone who may want or need it. The USGS ensures 

that all breaking news published on the Web is accessible to 

adaptive technology. Its top 20 Web sites all comply with the 

requirements of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, Amendments 

of 1998, Section 508. Procedures are in place on all USGS Web 

pages to provide alternative access for applications that are 

inherently not accessible to adaptive technology. The USGS has 

collaborated with other Federal agencies and industry on how 

to provide alternate access to its maps. In the early 1970s, the 

USGS was one of the first Federal agencies to produce Braille 

and textile maps. Many USGS maps are so complex that no 

technology is currently available to make them accessible to 

people who are visually impaired. To address their needs, USGS 

has adopted several strategies, including links to descriptive 

text for the less complicated maps and contact information 

on all USGS Web pages so that people can call or e-mail their 

questions and ask for assistance in finding information. The 

USGS is firmly committed to ensuring that its scientific research 

results, in all formats, are fully accessible to everyone.

1980s

Research at the USGS Patuxent Wildlife Research Center, 

Md., and the National Wildlife Health Center, Wis., leads to the 

eventual banning in 1991 of lead shot for waterfowl hunting and 

the acceptance of non-toxic alternatives. USGS scientists also 

document toxic effects of selenium on birds and other biota at 

the Kesterson Wildlife Refuge and study many other sites in the 

Western United States that received irrigation drainwater.

1981–1993

Dallas Lynn Peck is the 11th 

Director of the USGS.

1982

Part of the USGS staff and 

operating budget is split 

off to become the Minerals 

Management Service. The 

Conservation Division and 

part of the marine geology 

program, about 23 percent of 

the personnel and 29 percent 

of the operating budget of the 

USGS, are reassigned to the 

new agency.

1983

President Reagan proclaims an 

Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ), 

which extends jurisdiction of 

the United States for a distance 

of 200 nautical miles seaward 

of the Nation’s shorelines. 

Geological Long-Range Inclined 

Asdic (GLORIA) imagery is the 

first systematic mapping of seafloor morphology and features 

in the deep ocean.
Challenges and Opportunities Today 27

agement agencies to create an 

online resource for fire managers. This Web-based mapping 

tool allows fire personnel and 

the public to access online 

maps of multiacre blazes. Fire 

locations, weather data, and 

near-real-time satellite data are 

integrated with shaded relief, 

roads, cities, and other information. Fire perimeter data are 

updated daily with input from 

incident intelligence sources, 

GPS data, and infrared imagery 

from airplanes and satellites. 

The GeoMAC (Geospatial 

Multi-Agency Coordination) 

Web site allows users anywhere 

in the world to manipulate map 

information displays, zoom in 

and out to display fire information at various scales and detail, 

and download and print material for use in fire information 

and media briefings, dispatch 

offices, and coordination centers. 

The USGS has Federal 

responsibility for monitoring 

and reporting on earthquake 

activity across the United States 

and internationally, and this 

activity increasingly takes place 

through theWeb. The media, 

emergency responders, public 

officials, and other individuals 

around the world now depend 

on USGS Web-based earthquake reports as the primary 

source for real-time information 

about destructive earthquakes. 

Accordingly, Web servers that 

provide earthquake information see tremendous surges in 

traffic after an earthquake. The 

typical pattern shows an abrupt 

increase in the rate of hits to 

as much as 1,000 times normal 

usage, peaking between 3 and 

30 minutes after the event. 

To accommodate this surge 

in traffic, USGS contracted 

with Akamai Technologies to 

provide Web content delivery 

that is geographically distributed around the world and spans 

a large number of networks, 

thus avoiding the possibility 

of a single or regional point 

of failure, as well as offering 

enhanced performance to a distributed base of USGS customers. With this service, USGS 

can guarantee rapid delivery of 

the information that emergency 

managers and the public need 

after a significant earthquake.

Thomas Loveland

As a South Dakota native, Tom Loveland has never had to 

venture far to know what’s going on around the world. He views 

the Earth from a vantage point in the farmland of eastern South 

Dakota, the USGS EROS Data Center, where images of the world 

stream in from Earth-orbiting satellites. For nearly 25 years, 15 

of which have been with the USGS, Loveland has used remote 

sensing to study the Earth’s changes.

Loveland, a USGS research geographer, uses images of the 

Earth to study the changing patterns of land use and land cover. 

He’s learned that changes in the land can lead to 

unexpected changes in the weather, water quality, 

and wildlife habitat and can play an important 

role in stimulating local economies. He led a 

team that created the first detailed and validated 

global map of land use and land cover. Working 

with geographers from USGS facilities across the 

country (both in the field and with satellite images 

in laboratories), Loveland is striving to provide the 

most detailed documentation ever assembled on 

the rates and causes of land-use and land-cover 

change in the United States.

Over the years, the scale of Loveland’s investigations has shifted 

from global to national to regional. He has been involved in 

design studies for monitoring landscape conditions in more than 

25 countries, including such remote corners of the world as 

Somalia, Uganda, and Chad. He has also studied land-use and 

land-cover characteristics in settings from Alaska to Florida and 

most places in between.

Loveland is active in the development of national and 

international land-cover science initiatives and has held many 

leadership roles. He has been honored with career achievement 

awards from the American Society of Photogrammetry and 

Remote Sensing and the Association of American Geographers.

1984

The first National Water 

Summary is published, 

describing hydrologic events 

and water conditions for the 

water year. Also, the first 

six studies of major regional 

aquifer systems studies are 

published.

1986

The National 

Geographic Names 

Database is created.

1986

The National Water-Quality Assessment (NAWQA) pilot program 

begins.
28 Celebrating 125 Years of the U.S. Geological Survey

Earthquake Monitoring 

for a Safer America

To collect the essential 

earthquake information that 

people need and to address the 

sharply increasing cost of earthquakes in the past two decades, 

the USGS is developing the 

Advanced National Seismic 

System (ANSS), a nationwide 

network of at least 6,000 stateof-the-art earthquake sensors, or seismometers, on the 

ground and in buildings in 26 

urban areas across the United 

States that face significant 

risk from earthquakes. These 

digital instruments record how 

different types of ground and 

structures shake during a strong 

earthquake, enabling engineers 

to greatly improve the current 

design standards for buildings, 

lifelines, and other structures 

and to identify critical weaknesses of current structures. 

ANSS is based on the 

success of TriNet, a 5-year collaborative project between the 

USGS, the California Institute 

of Technology, and the California Geological Survey, with 

funding from FEMA. That partnership began in 1997 with the 

goal of creating a better realtime earthquake information 

system for Southern California. 

Although still under construction, ANSS is already providing 

detailed information about the 

severity of earthquakes to emergency responders in government 

and the private sector, helping 

to guide the response and speed 

the economic recovery. One key 

ANSS product is ShakeMap, 

an online map of the extent 

of ground shaking that can be 

posted on the Web within 5 to 

10 minutes of an earthquake. 

First developed in Southern 

California as part of TriNet, 

ShakeMap is a valuable tool for 

emergency response, loss estimation, and public information.

Earthquake monitoring 

instruments are also being 

installed in a dense network 

around and underneath the town 

of Parkfield in central California. Moderate earthquakes 

have occurred on the Parkfield 

section of the San Andreas fault 

at fairly regular intervals for 

the past 150 years. The USGS 

and the California Geological 

Survey began closely monitoring the area in 1985. The 

latest step is a project, the San 

Andreas Fault Observatory at 

Depth, funded primarily by the 

David J. Wald

Before 1999, the only information available in the minutes 

following a damaging earthquake was the location and 

magnitude of the event, which simply was not enough to help 

emergency responders determine where their help was needed 

most. Dave Wald, a research seismologist at 

the USGS, revolutionized earthquake response 

with much-needed, real-time seismology tools 

that use the speed and accessibility of the Web 

to deliver post-earthquake information when 

it’s needed most—right after an earthquake. 

One such tool is ShakeMap. ShakeMap uses 

shaking levels recorded by a dense network 

of seismic stations in the Advanced National 

Seismic System to map the distribution of 

shaking, pointing to areas most likely to have experienced 

damage. These maps, available online within 5 to 10 minutes 

after an earthquake, provide the basis for emergency response 

coordination, estimation of damage and losses, and information 

for the public and the media. ShakeMap minimizes business 

disruption, reduces the economic impact of an earthquake, and 

enables a more timely and prioritized response that helps save 

lives. ShakeMap is now running in five metropolitan areas across 

the United States, and implementation efforts are underway in a 

number of other urban centers. 

Another Walk contribution, the Community Internet Intensity or 

“Did You Feel It” maps, uses citizens’ observations to collect 

information about ground shaking. Immediately after shaking 

subsides, Web users can log onto a Web site and record what 

they felt and observed during an earthquake. “Did You Feel It” 

has become a popular tool for the public, with more than 350,000 

individual entries collected for earthquakes nationwide. Wald’s 

maps take advantage of the vast numbers of Web users to 

provide a more complete and rapid description of what people 

experienced, the effects of the earthquake, and the extent of 

damage than was possible with traditional ways of gathering 

information.

1988

The Alaska Volcano 

Observatory begins 

as a joint program 

of the USGS, the 

Geophysical Institute 

of the University of 

Alaska Fairbanks, and 

the Alaska Division 

of Geological and 

Geophysical Surveys.

1988

In cooperation with the Bureau of Census, 

the USGS completes a 1:100,000-scale 

digital database of the transportation and 

hydrology features of the conterminous 

United States.

1988

The USGS joins the commercial Internet at 

metropolitan area exchanges (MAEs) on 

the East and West Coasts.
Challenges and Opportunities Today 29

Robert I. Tilling

Bob Tilling is no stranger to the hazards of our restless 

planet. He worked as a USGS volcanologist for more 

than 30 years and has served as Scientist-in-Charge at 

the USGS Hawaiian Volcano Observatory, as Chief of 

the Office of Geochemistry and Geophysics during the 

catastrophic eruption of Mount St. Helens, and as Chief 

Scientist of the USGS Volcano Hazards Team.

One of Tilling’s greatest contributions has been his 

dedication to communicating his knowledge to others. 

Over the years, Tilling’s publications 

have been some of the most popular 

in USGS history. He took the lead in 

communicating scientific goals and 

applications to the public before 

concepts like “outreach” and 

“public service” became widely 

recognized as critical to USGS 

missions. 

Tilling has written many technical 

and general-interest articles, 

including co-authoring the popular 

USGS book on plate tectonics, 

“This Dynamic Earth,” with Jackie 

Kious. This publication set USGS 

records for hits on its Web-based version; in 2003, 

there were close to 2.7 million inquiries to the site. 

“This Dynamic Planet,” an educational map that Tilling 

coauthored, has sold more than 80,000 copies and is 

the most requested map in the history of the USGS. 

His scientific publications, his work in training of 

foreign volcanologists, and his talents both as scientist 

and administrator have significantly increased the 

knowledge and awareness of volcanic hazards both in 

the scientific community and among the public. 

1989

Loma Prieta, Calif., earthquake—

magnitude 6.9.

1990

The Federal Geographic 

Data Committee (FGDC) is 

established.

1990s

USGS research about the ages 

and depositional history of 

mineralized deposits identifies 

volcanogenic massive sulfide 

deposits, the source of base 

and precious metals. Mineral 

exploration and land use 

planning decisions about land 

near Wrangell, Alaska, benefit 

from this research.

National Ice Core Laboratory

Locked away in tiny bubbles, trapped beneath layer upon layer of 

ice, are the secrets of the climate and atmosphere of the ancient 

Earth. By extracting samples of ice from glaciers, scientists at the USGS National Ice Core Laboratory 

(NICL) in Denver, Colo., are learning what the Earth was like hundreds of thousands of years ago. They 

are gathering information on temperature, precipitation rates, chemistry and gas compositions of the 

lower atmosphere, volcanic eruptions, solar variability, sea-surface productivity, and other climate and 

atmospheric indicators. An area of increasing interest is the biological history that may be discovered in 

ice cores, including microbes, DNA, pollen, and the exciting possibility of life in subglacial Antarctic lakes.

Ice comes to the laboratory in the form of “cores”—cylinders drilled from the polar ice sheets with drills 

that are like large hollow screws. The cores are transported from Antarctica and Greenland to the lab 

in Denver, where the staff assists scientists from around the world in uncovering the information locked 

inside. Safely transporting the cores to Denver requires the cooperation of many organizations, including 

the National Science Foundation, polar logistics contractors, and the New York Air National Guard. Once 

the cores have arrived at the lab, the precious collection (valued at perhaps $100 million) is preserved at a 

constant –36° C in the main storage area.

The outreach efforts of the lab are extensive. More than 1,500 members of the scientifically interested 

public visit each year, media representatives tour the lab and have made documentary films about the 

work conducted there, and a rapidly growing database about the ice core holdings is available on the 

NICL Web site <nicl.usgs.gov>. This database is an expanding and evolving record of the inventory and its 

history; its aim is to create a digital photographic record of the core holdings available over the Web. At 

the NICL, studying ice is not just cool—it’s the key to understanding how our planet and its climate have 

changed over hundreds of thousands of years.
30 Celebrating 125 Years of the U.S. Geological Survey

1992

The National Cooperative Geologic Mapping Program is established.

National Science Foundation 

(NSF) and jointly led by USGS 

and Stanford University scientists, to drill a deep hole through 

the San Andreas fault. A pilot 

hole more than a mile deep was 

drilled next to the deep drillhole site in 2002. Monitoring 

instruments will be installed 

in the pilot hole and the deep 

drill hole to directly reveal, for 

the first time, the physical and 

chemical processes controlling 

earthquake generation on an 

active fault. This drilling project 

is just one component of NSF’s 

EarthScope program. The other 

elements are an array of seismic 

monitoring instruments that is 

coordinated with ANSS and a 

network of deformation sensors 

for the Western United States. 

The cooperative efforts of the 

USGS, NSF, and many other 

scientific agencies and institutions will help achieve a better 

understanding of what happens 

on and near faults during the 

earthquake cycle.

Partnerships for 

Collecting Geographic 

Data

Geographic data are vital 

for homeland security, response 

to natural disasters, efficient 

delivery of government services 

(such as the decennial census of 

population), scientific investigations, and effective land and 

resource management. In early 

2001, the USGS announced 

a new vision for providing 

geospatial information for the 

Nation. This new vision, called 

The National Map <www.

nationalmap.gov>, builds on 

John Wesley Powell’s use of the 

phrase in his early testimony to 

Congress regarding topographic 

mapping and is the transformation of the USGS’s historic 

topographic mapping mission 

for the 21st century. 

Partnerships are the 

foundation of The National 

Map. The role of the USGS in 

national mapping has changed 

dramatically from that of a 

first-line producer of data and 

maps to that of a community 

organizer, partnership facilitator, standards coordinator, and 

data integrator. State and local 

governments have extensive 

mapping capabilities and 

workforces in the field who are 

in direct touch with changes on 

the ground. The private sector 

provides national information 

for important data themes and 

sources from which updated 

information can be extracted. 

Two partnerships demonstrate 

many of the concepts and future 

capabilities of The National 

Map. The State of Delaware’s 

DataMIL brings together local, 

State, and Federal data and 

Thomas S. Ahlbrandt

These days, oil and gas resources are a very hot topic. Thomas 

S. Ahlbrandt’s in-depth knowledge and diverse experience have 

made him highly sought after for scientific committees and 

technical review panels. He is frequently invited to share his 

expertise with the news media, 

domestic and foreign government 

agencies, academic institutions, 

and industry. 

Ahlbrandt has conducted and 

directed research investigations 

on the origin, distribution, 

quantity, and quality of oil and gas 

resources of the United States 

and the world. After joining 

the USGS, Ahlbrandt helped 

to establish the importance 

of the USGS energy research 

program to meeting national energy needs and undertook a 

major investigation of the oil and gas resources of the United 

States. The study provided the most thorough, best documented, 

and most scientific assessment of oil and gas resources ever 

published and has been enthusiastically received by industry, 

State Governments, and Federal agencies. 

As Chief of the World Energy project, Ahlbrandt led efforts to 

conduct collaborative, impartial, and integrated geologic studies 

that provided an understanding of the occurrence, quantity, and 

quality of world energy resources.

Ahlbrandt’s research in the field of eolian (wind-deposited) 

sediments has also brought him worldwide recognition. He 

developed the eolian sand-movement chronology for the Great 

Plains for the past 10,000 years. This landmark study is of great 

importance for assessing the role of the greenhouse effect on 

the present climate of the Great Plains. 

1991

The National Oil Shale 

Database is created.

1991

The Southern California 

Earthquake Center is 

established in Pasadena, 

Calif., with funding from 

the National Science 

Foundation and USGS.

1991

1:24,000 topographic quadrangles are 

completed for the conterminous United 

States: More than 33 million person hours 

and $1.6 billion were invested for this 7.5-

minute series of USGS topographic maps 

that began in the 1930s.
Challenges and Opportunities Today 31

demonstrates how maps made 

to user specifications can be 

derived from these data. This 

site, at <http://datamil.udel.

edu/>, also provides users with 

a means to contribute updated 

information to data stewards for 

incorporation in the component 

datasets. At <http://www.tnris.

state.tx.us/stratmap/index.

htm>, the Texas Natural 

Resources Inventory System 

makes integrated digital data 

and derivative maps available. 

The USGS recognized 

early on that the technological revolution in computing 

(GIS, microcomputers) and 

telecommunications (GPS, the 

Web) would forever change 

the way in which the agency 

accomplished its mission. 

Senior leaders understood the 

importance of moving quickly 

to bring together other Federal 

agencies to develop standards, 

protocols and new approaches. 

For example, the USGS developed the revolutionary conceptual framework that came to 

be called the National Spatial 

Data Infrastructure, convened 

the first interagency meetings 

on geographic information 

systems and data sharing in the 

mid-1980s, and has provided 

an institutional home for the 

Federal Geographic Data Committee secretariat since 1990. 

The USGS led the development, 

adoption, and implementation 

of the content standard for digital geospatial metadata. 

The USGS has also led in 

developing telecommunication 

protocols essential for search 

and retrieval of distributed 

geospatial data and content 

standards for geographic data 

themes. Coordinated geographic 

data collections enhance the 

quality of our lives every day. 

We depend upon seamless 

delivery of an array of municipal services (school bus routing, 

traffic analysis, sanitation 

systems, and so on) and rapid 

response to natural disasters, 

industrial accidents, and homeland security alerts. Because 

geographic data are essential 

to these services, our society 

depends upon accurate, current, and regionally consistent 

geospatial data.

GIS Technology

Almost all major issues 

confronting society in the 21st 

century have a spatial component—they occur somewhere. 

Urban growth, water pollution, 

invasive species, coastal erosion, nuclear waste disposal, 

and hazard mitigation are just 

a few of the complex issues 

facing the global community. Geographic information 

systems provide a technology 

and method to analyze these 

spatial issues on, above, and 

below the surface of the Earth. 

National Wetlands Research Center

Take some coastal storms and occasional hurricanes, mix in a 

dash of sinking wetlands and rising sea level, add decades of 

human alteration of the coastal environment and several million 

people; stir well to combine. The result: a perfect recipe for a 

disappearing coastal landscape. But 

by adding focused science and strong 

partnerships to the recipe, USGS is 

cooking up a solution to the problem of 

Louisiana’s vanishing coast.

Louisiana’s coastal ecosystem has 

been eroding into the Gulf of Mexico 

at an average rate of 34 square miles 

a year for the last 50 years. Since 1932, 

1,900 square miles of coastal land have been lost, and as much 

as another 700 square miles may disappear in the next 50 years 

if nothing is done. This projected loss is more land than the State 

of Delaware plus the Washington, D.C., and Baltimore, Md., 

metropolitan areas.

Coastal land loss was first identified as a concern for the Gulf of 

Mexico Coast in 1970 by scientists now working for the USGS; 

today it is clear that the problem is national, not local, in scope. 

Coastal erosion affects all 30 coastal States and all the U.S. 

island territories. If erosion continues at this rate, the losses 

to wildlife, the economy, the Nation’s oil and gas infrastructure 

including its strategic reserves, and human property and safety 

will be staggering. 

Restoring the coast may take billions of dollars, and the 

decisions regarding restoration must be supported by objective 

science. USGS scientists at the National Wetlands Research 

Center in Lafayette, La. are focusing their biological, geological, 

hydrological, and geographical expertise to address this critical 

issue in an integrated and solution-oriented approach, in 

partnership with State and other Federal agencies, universities, 

and nongovernmental organizations. 

1994–1997

Gordon P. Eaton is the 12th 

Director of the USGS.

1993

Excessive rainfall in the 

Midwest during much of the 

spring and summer leads to 

significant flooding along 

the Mississippi River basin; 

damages are estimated at 

$20 billion, making this the 

costliest flood in U.S. history.

1993

The National Biological Survey 

is created to consolidate the 

biological research functions of 

many DOI bureaus, including the 

National Park Service, the Fish and 

Wildlife Service, and the Bureau of 

Land Management. The creation of 

an independent scientific agency 

insulates scientific research from 

those who manage lands and draft 

government regulations. 
32 Celebrating 125 Years of the U.S. Geological Survey

Roger L. Payne 

The United States is one of the largest countries in the world—

keeping track of all of its geographic names is a very large task. 

For more than 30 years, Roger L. Payne has been involved with 

all aspects of the research and standardization of geographic 

names. Along the way, he has made quite a name for himself, as 

well. 

Payne is the Executive Secretary of the U.S. Board on Geographic 

Names, an interdepartmental body 

that standardizes geographic 

name usage throughout the 

Federal Government. He directs 

both the Federal and USGS 

geographic names programs. He is 

the architect of the Nation’s official 

automated geographic names 

repository, the Geographic Names 

Information System (GNIS). He 

designed the extensive collection 

phase to populate the database 

and created an automated program to enlist Federal, State, and 

local participation to help maintain it. He gave the GNIS its Web 

presence <geonames.usgs.gov>, allowing people to interactively 

submit their information and requests to the GNIS and the names 

board. 

Among his many distinguished positions, Payne has represented 

the Nation, the names board, and the USGS in all matters of 

toponymy (the study of geographic names) at the United Nations 

since 1987, and he has been head of the U.S. delegation since 

1993. He’s participated in exchange programs with Antarctica, 

China, and the Historically Black Colleges and Universities 

program. He was instrumental in the design of the Pan American 

Institute of Geography and History’s (PAIGH) toponymic 

program and has served as adjunct faculty at three universities. 

Throughout his career, Payne has been dedicated to helping 

people better understand what’s in a name. 

The Earth’s climate, natural 

hazards, population, geology, 

vegetation, soils, land use, and 

other themes can be analyzed 

in a GIS by using computerized maps, aerial photographs, 

satellite images, databases, and 

graphs. By analyzing themes 

about the Earth’s hydrosphere, 

lithosphere, atmosphere, and 

biosphere, a GIS helps people 

understand patterns, linkages, 

and trends about our planet. 

Over the past 30 years, 

GIS has quietly transformed 

decisionmaking in universities, government, and industry 

by bringing digital spatial data 

sets and geographic analysis to 

desktop computers. It has developed into geographic information sciences, which includes 

geographic information systems 

as well as the disciplines of 

geography (examining the patterns of the Earth’s people and 

physical environment), cartography (mapmaking), geodesy 

(the science of measuring 

and surveying the Earth), and 

remote sensing (studying the 

Earth from space). A GIS not 

only manages location-based 

information, it also provides 

tools to visualize, query, and 

overlay spatial information in 

ways not possible with traditional methods – whether the 

subject is characteristics of 

a watershed, bird population 

distribution, or areal extent of 

mineral deposits. 

A GIS is more than just 

“computer mapping.” Through 

GIS, databases can be linked 

to maps to create dynamic 

displays. More importantly, GIS 

provides tools to analyze and 

understand these databases in 

ways not possible with traditional tabular presentations, 

such as spreadsheets. GIS and 

associated technologies are 

essential to the USGS both 

in performing our scientific 

investigations and in delivering 

the results of our science to our 

customers and partners. 

Since the early 1980s, the 

USGS has been using some 

form of GIS technology to collect and analyze geospatially 

referenced data. In 1983, USGS 

scientist Charles Robinove and 

his colleagues published the 

first scientific analysis using 

GIS, for the Fox-Wolf River 

basin in Wisconsin. The USGS 

will increasingly be asked to 

provide information needed to 

address overarching environmental problems. Solutions to 

1994

A Presidential Executive Order calls for the establishment of 

the National Spatial Data Infrastructure (NSDI). The Federal 

Geographic Data Committee launches the NSDI Cooperative 

Agreements Program, a major grant program to stimulate NSDI 

activities nationally.

1994

The USGS joins the World Wide 

Web.

http://
Challenges and Opportunities Today 33

these problems will require a 

broad and integrated research 

program that is capable of 

developing highly complex system models, using geospatially 

referenced data. 

To meet these challenges, 

the USGS will continue to 

develop a more integrated 

bureauwide “Enterprise GIS” 

capability that can support more 

effective collection, application, sharing, and reuse of GIS 

analysis tools and GIS data 

across the entire organization. 

New GIS tools for data sharing, 

data merging, data revision, 

data analysis, and data visualization will also be developed. 

One key example is mobile 

computing—using hand-held, 

wireless devices for GIS work 

(including GIS data collection 

and analysis in real time right in 

the field). This technology can 

substantially reduce the time 

it takes for scientists to collect 

and interpret data to inform 

decisionmaking. 

Understanding 

Landscape Change

The Earth’s surface 

is changing rapidly and at 

an increasing rate, at local, 

regional, national, and even 

global scales. Some of these 

changes have natural causes, 

such as landslides or drought; 

others, such as resource extraction, urban growth, and waterresource development, are 

examples of human-induced 

change that have significant 

impact on people, the economy, 

and resource availability. 

Improved understanding and 

information about the consequences of landscape change 

are needed to help decisionmakers in land-use planning, 

land management, and natural 

resource conservation. One 

example where USGS landscape-change science is making 

a difference is the study of 

urban growth and land-use 

Sacramento 1973

Sacramento 1992

Minneapolis-St. Paul 1973

Minneapolis-St. Paul 1992

Orlando 1973

Orlando 1992

1994

Northridge, Calif., earthquake—

magnitude 6.7.

1995

The National Biological Survey changes its name to the National 

Biological Service.

1996

In Congressional appropriations process, the National Biological 

Service is merged with the USGS to create a single DOI science 

agency, and the USGS Biological Resources Division is established.

1996

The Bureau of Mines is abolished, and the minerals information 

team and other programs are transferred to the USGS.

Arlen W. Harbaugh 

Arlen W. Harbaugh is one of the most sought-after men 

in science. His advice and counsel are sought by a wide 

range of people, from the newest USGS employees to the 

most experienced quantitative 

hydrologists. He is not only one 

of the world’s most renowned 

ground-water hydrologists; his 

outstanding ability to understand 

complex hydrologic problems 

is combined with an unselfish 

attitude toward helping others. 

Harbaugh began his career in 

Long Island, where he pioneered 

an innovative hybrid approach 

to ground-water modeling. It was a computerized data 

acquisition system for one of the largest three-dimensional 

electric-analog ground-water models in existence and led 

to one of the first digital three-dimensional ground-waterflow models. 

While in New Jersey in the late 1970s and early 1980s, 

Harbaugh worked with Michael McDonald to develop 

MODFLOW, a numerical ground-water flow model. 

MODFLOW has proved to be an outstanding contribution 

to the field of hydrology and has influenced ground-water 

studies worldwide. It is now the standard tool used by 

governmental agencies and the private sector to help 

protect and manage ground water and has become the 

most widely used ground-water flow model in the world.

Harbaugh’s achievements have earned him a special 

recognition award from the National Ground Water 

Association, the USGS Meritorious Service Award, and the 

James R. Balsley Award for Technology Excellence.
34 Celebrating 125 Years of the U.S. Geological Survey

change. By comparing remotely 

sensed images of the same 

region taken in the 1970s, 

1980s, and 1990s, decisionmakers gain insight into both the 

causes and the consequences 

of urbanization and anticipate 

likely future patterns of urban 

growth. 

Suburbanization has been 

an increasing trend since World 

War II. By the end of the 1960s, 

suburbs were no longer simply 

bedroom communities for commuting city workers but were 

emerging as focal points for 

the retail and service sectors of 

the urban economy. The paired 

images show that suburbs often 

developed along main highways 

in a linear fashion, linking preexisting outlying communities 

with the main city. Some cities 

continue to grow significantly, 

while others have reached certain physical limits of geography that restrict their growth. 

For example, the Los Angeles 

basin and San Francisco Bay 

regions have little remaining 

land available for development. 

As a consequence, development 

there is spilling out into the 

Mojave Desert beyond the San 

Gabriel Mountains or down into 

valleys in Contra Costa, Alameda, and Santa Clara Counties. 

The dynamics of American 

cities have not stopped; only 

their future evolution is yet to 

be determined. USGS scientists 

will continue to provide information on the status and trends 

in our changing landscape to 

inform regional and national 

decisions. 

Flagstaff Science Center

The Flagstaff Field Center was established in 1963 to map the Moon and help train astronauts 

destined for its surface. A wide variety of people, including scientists, cartographers, computer 

scientists, administrative staff, students, contractors, and volunteers, work there in support of efforts 

to explore our solar system. Throughout the years, the program has helped process and analyze 

data from missions to different planetary bodies, determine potential landing sites for exploration 

vehicles, map our neighboring planets and their moons, and conduct research to better understand 

the origins, evolutions, and geologic processes operating on these bodies. 

The first group of USGS scientists to find a home in Flagstaff was not the astrogeologists, but rather 

hydrologists. For 55 years, USGS has been installing, monitoring, and maintaining streamgages in 

northern Arizona, and scientists at Flagstaff continue to work with the cities, counties, and Tribal 

communities of the region to study the availability and sustainability of surface- and ground-water 

resources. More recently, the mission of the Flagstaff Science Center has expanded to include 

research on biological issues facing the Southwest. Biologists at the Southwest Biological Science 

Center at Flagstaff study issues such as how ancient vegetation on the Colorado Plateau has 

responded to climate change and how water released from Glen Canyon Dam affects ecosystems 

and habitats along the Colorado River from Glen Canyon Dam through the Grand Canyon to Lake 

Mead.

Arizona is a long way from Hawaii, but geographers at Flagstaff are using remotely sensed images 

to map coral reefs off the island of Molokai and to determine how land-use patterns affect erosion, 

which can dump damaging amounts of sediment onto coral reefs. Closer to home, researchers are 

developing methods to forecast dust emissions in the Southwestern United States and to evaluate 

the possibility of disease outbreaks caused by wind-blown dust. 

1997

USGS adopts a new identifier and the motto “science for a 

changing world.”

1997

The second National 

Atlas (electronic 

version) begins.

1997

The Johnston 

Ridge 

Observatory is 

dedicated in 

memory of the 

USGS scientist 

who died on 

Mount St. Helens.

USDA, Forest Service
Challenges and Opportunities Today 35

America’s Least Wanted: 

Invasive Species 

The introduction of nonnative species into the United 

States is increasing rapidly. 

Some, such as pets and ornamental plants, are introduced 

intentionally. Others arrive as 

hitchhikers associated with 

global travel and trade. Based 

on past experience, 10 to 15 

percent of these nonnative species can be expected to establish 

free-living populations, and 

about 1 percent can be expected 

to become invasive and cause 

significant negative impacts to 

ecosystems, native species, economic productivity, or human 

health. Notorious examples 

include West Nile virus; exotic 

plants like tamarisk, cheatgrass, 

and kudzu; and animals such as 

zebra mussels, fire ants, and the 

brown tree snake—all of which 

have inflicted costly damage 

across the continental United 

States and the Pacific Islands. 

The spread of invasive 

species is considered one of 

the most serious ecological 

problems facing our Nation 

in the 21st century, second 

only to habitat destruction. 

The invaders include plants, 

animals, and microbes that 

have been introduced into an 

environment where they did 

not evolve and often have no 

natural enemies to limit their 

reproduction and spread. Many 

invaders cause huge losses in 

agriculture, livestock, fisheries, 

and other resource production 

systems. Some significantly 

alter ecosystems, resulting in 

costly damages due to increases 

in fire, flooding, and erosion. A 

few are vectors, or carriers, of 

human diseases. Unfortunately, 

invaders often go unnoticed 

until they have spread to many 

locations, making eradication 

difficult. Early detection and 

rapid response to invasions are 

essential if we are to prevent 

major damage to the health of 

our ecosystems and economy—

an ounce of prevention is truly 

worth a pound of cure. 

June M. Thormodsgard

There is a subtle yet important difference between being a 

good leader and being a good manager. June M. Thormodsgard 

is good at both. As a leader in the scientific field of remote 

sensing, she has been involved in the strategic planning and 

implementation of a number of critical programs in the USGS. 

As a manager, she has promoted a productive, collegial work 

environment for scientists, engineers, and operational staff. She 

has motivated and inspired teams of scientists who are, in their 

own right, national leaders in scientific research. 

Thormodsgard has led teams of multidisciplinary researchers 

whose mission is to help earth scientists and resource 

managers use satellite images. These teams serve as a bridge 

between academia, government, private research institutions, 

and practical programs involved in the mapping, monitoring, 

modeling, and management of earth resources. Together, she 

and her staff help modern society use 

satellite data to deal with environmental and 

resource inventory challenges.

She has served as the DOI Coordinator 

for LANDFIRE, a joint project with the 

U.S. Forest Service to map fire fuels with 

satellite imagery and biophysical data. 

For this project, 32 separate organizations 

and projects related to fire science and 

management were contacted to promote 

collaboration and reduce overlap.

Thormodsgard has worked to personally mentor the next 

generation of leaders, by forming and leading a Women Helping 

Women group. The group meets regularly to assist women in 

their efforts to improve their education, advance in their jobs, 

and handle the unique pressures associated with balancing 

work and home responsibilities.

1998–Present

Charles G. Groat is the 13th 

Director of the USGS.

1999

Landsat 7 is launched. 

1999

West Nile virus is detected in 

the United States in New York 

State.

1999

The National Park Service 

begins its Natural Resource 

Challenge Program. Over time, 

it will greatly increase attention 

to biology in terms of inventory, 

monitoring, vegetation mapping, 

removal of exotic plants, and 

support for partners to conduct 

research in parks.
36 Celebrating 125 Years of the U.S. Geological Survey

2000

The USGS determines how the 

genetic makeup of Atlantic 

salmon differs across their 

North Atlantic range. The 

discovery is instrumental 

in providing protection and 

management strategies for 

the recovery of this fish in its 

spawning rivers in Maine.

Invasive species are a 

growing threat to the Department of the Interior’s stewardship of the Nation’s natural 

resources. Invasive plants are 

currently estimated to infest 

more than 2.6 million acres in 

the National Park System. By 

various estimates, these invasive species contribute to the 

decline of 35 to 46 percent of 

U.S. endangered and threatened species. In some regions, 

entire ecosystems are being 

transformed. In the Intermountain West, invasive plants such 

as cheatgrass are increasing 

the frequency and intensity 

of fire, replacing native species, and damaging rangeland 

values on our public lands. 

Aquatic invaders, such as the 

zebra mussel, Asian carp, giant 

salvinia, and purple loosestrife, 

are transforming our wetlands 

and inland waters and reducing 

their value for recreation and 

wildlife. 

To help address the challenge, the USGS has established 

the Institute of Invasive Species 

Science, a consortium of partners including USGS research 

centers, NASA, other government agencies, nongovernmental organizations, and universities. The vision of the institute 

is to provide national leadership 

in invasive species science and 

to work with others to disseminate and synthesize current and 

accurate data and research from 

many sources to predict and 

reduce the effects of harmful 

nonnative plants, animals, and 

diseases in natural areas and 

throughout the Nation.

Science: the Foundation 

for Sound Decisions

The scientific mission of 

the USGS, its national perspective, and its nonregulatory role 

enable the USGS to provide 

information and understanding that are policy relevant but 

policy neutral. That independence from policy and regulation has been essential to enable 

the USGS to provide the unbiased science needed to make 

informed resource management 

decisions. In the last few years, 

the USGS has set in place a 

number of mechanisms to better 

coordinate with the other DOI 

bureaus and has dedicated 

funds to address specific departmental science needs. The goal 

is to enhance science support to 

meet priority needs for bureaus 

whose responsibilities include 

the management of the Nation’s 

land and natural resources. 

Particular emphasis has been 

placed on restoring degraded 

habitats, wildlife issues, 

hydrologic and biologic issues 

related to energy development, 

and ground-water availability 

studies. Long-range planning 

Mary Lou Zoback

As a geologist and geophysicist for the USGS, Mary Lou Zoback 

works to figure out what on Earth—or rather, what in the 

Earth—causes earthquakes. Specifically, she is interested in 

the origin of stresses in the Earth’s crust and their relationship to 

earthquakes, both along plate boundaries like the San Andreas 

fault and within plate interiors. Working with her husband and 

colleague Mark Zoback, of the Geophysics Department at 

Stanford University, she developed methods for determining 

the present-day distribution of 

forces acting on the Earth’s thin 

outermost layer, or crust, from a 

variety of data and observations. 

From 1986 to 1992, Zoback led 

the World Stress Map project, 

an international collaboration 

of 40 scientists from 30 different 

countries, which compiled and 

interpreted a global database 

on present-day stresses in 

the Earth’s crust. This work 

demonstrated that broad regions 

in the interior of most tectonic 

plates are subjected to relatively 

uniform stresses that result from 

the same forces that cause plate 

motion.

Zoback has received numerous awards and served on national 

and international scientific review and advisory panels. She was 

one of 17 scientific experts selected by the National Research 

Council to evaluate the potential for ground water to rise to the 

level of the proposed high-level radioactive waste repository 

proposed for Yucca Mountain, Nev., and currently serves on the 

Board on Radioactive Waste Management. She is a member of 

the National Academy of Sciences.

1999

Hurricane Floyd causes major 

floods along the East Coast. 

1999

The Geographic Information 

Office (GIO) is established.

1999

The USGS implements an 

enterprise dial-in remote 

access, connecting employees 

from multiple locations, 

including their homes.

NOAA
Challenges and Opportunities Today 37

and priority setting occur at 

DOI headquarters, but the 

more significant interactions of 

USGS scientists and DOI land 

and resource managers occur at 

the local level, managed in the 

regional structure of both the 

USGS and the other bureaus. 

In the USGS Eastern 

Region, science activities 

focus on environmental and 

human impacts on ecosystems. 

Impacts of sea-level rise on 

low-elevation coastal habitats, 

effects of urban dynamics on 

the sustainability of inner city 

public lands, and ecosystem 

sustainability studies on impacts 

of altered freshwater flow on 

bay and coral reef health are 

critical issues for both the Fish 

and Wildlife Service and the 

National Park Service. 

The USGS Central Region 

has placed a high priority on 

invasive species in riparian and 

aquatic habitats; restoration 

ecology to assist other bureaus 

in developing interdisciplinary 

strategies to restore habitats 

affected by fire, abandoned 

mines, or energy extraction; 

coal-bed methane production 

on public lands; and assessment 

and modeling of ground-water 

resources at regional scales. 

In the USGS Western 

Region, science activities 

focus on integrated issues in 

key areas of Alaska, the Great 

Basin, the arid West, and the 

Pacific Islands. Projects on the 

North Slope of Alaska focus 

on energy development-related 

physical and biological issues to 

provide science information for 

sound management decisions. 

In the Great Basin, ecosystem 

sustainability depends on results 

of interactions of wildfire and 

invasive species, as well as on 

impacts of geothermal development. Water continues to 

be a critical issue in the arid 

West, where there is a need to 

develop a clearer understanding 

of instream needs for aquatic 

Robert H. Meade

Bob Meade’s career with the USGS spans more 

than 50 years; his work has given society a better 

understanding of how sediment moves through 

rivers and estuaries, thereby reshaping the 

landscape. His contributions have withstood the test 

of time and become accepted concepts in textbooks 

throughout the world. Meade has extended our 

knowledge of land subsidence; proposed and 

substantiated the concept that estuaries are ephemeral features 

that are constantly being filled with sediment from both land and 

marine sources; and developed special sampling methods to 

measure big rivers and understand the movement and storage of 

sediment through these river systems throughout the world. 

Perhaps the secret to Meade’s success is his interaction with 

others. His interests range from art and theatre to the earth 

sciences, and his passion for observing the natural world flows 

over into the way he shares it with others. He has a talent for 

painting pictures with words and communicating scientific 

images, ideas, and concepts to the public. 

Meade’s career resembles a great river, linking, benefiting 

from, and influencing the lives and ideas of many distant and 

different scientists. He has mentored many young scientists 

and worked with scientists from the United States, Europe, 

Russia, China, Brazil, 

Canada, Venezuela, 

and elsewhere. He 

once remarked, “I was 

lucky, over the years, to 

work with exceptional 

colleagues. Looking 

back, perhaps the 

greatest joy was being 

able to interact with so 

many quick and fertile 

minds.”

NPS

NPS

2000

The USGS publishes the Global Seismic 

Hazard Map, a cooperative research effort 

among hundreds of scientists from all over 

the world.

2000

The USGS publishes the World Petroleum Assessment 

2000, providing estimates of undiscovered oil and gas 

resources of all lands exclusive of the United States.

2000

The Great Lakes Science Center 

assembles more than 30 years of survey 

data on prey fish and fish populations 

to sustain the top predators in the Great 

Lakes.

NPS

2000

The USGS begins a large-scale transformation of its 

traditional topographic mapping efforts. The National 

Map is a partnership-based effort led by the USGS to 

build America’s infrastructure of geographic knowledge 

and ensure access to current, nationally consistent, 

complete, and accurate information.
38 Celebrating 125 Years of the U.S. Geological Survey

life and improved ability to 

forecast possible scenarios. The 

Hawaiian Islands face invasions 

of exotic species and decline 

of coral reefs. Other DOI 

bureaus are working together 

with the USGS to develop and 

coordinate long-term science 

strategies. The result will be the 

incorporation of DOI science 

priorities into USGS 5-year 

strategic plans and annual 

operational plans for major 

scientific programs and for all 

USGS disciplines—biology, 

geography, geology, and hydrology.

USGS and Native 

Americans—We Are All 

Related

The USGS cooperates 

with American Indian and 

Alaska Native governments to 

conduct impartial research or 

provide technical expertise on 

water and mineral resources; 

animals and plants of environmental, economic, or subsistence importance to Native 

Americans; natural hazards; and 

geologic resources. The USGS 

recognizes the need to learn 

from and share knowledge with 

Native peoples. USGS works 

with Tribes, Tribal organizations, Native professional 

societies, and the Bureau of 

Indian Affairs (BIA) to ascertain specific needs and develop 

responses that fall within the 

mission of the USGS. An 

American Indian/Alaska Native 

Coordinating Team has been 

established to develop policy 

and to coordinate USGS activities with Native peoples. 

Within the context of the 

Department of the Interior’s 

scientific priorities, the USGS 

provides information to the 

BIA to benefit American Indian 

and Alaska Native peoples and 

their lands. Other projects grow 

out of initiatives designed and 

conducted by USGS employees 

in response to observed needs. 

USGS employees also assist 

American Indians and Alaska 

Natives by participating in organizations to promote interest in 

science among Native peoples 

and to help build and support 

communication networks. 

The USGS encourages 

American Indians and Alaska 

Natives to pursue careers in 

science and seeks ways to 

facilitate the hiring of qualified students. For example, 

the Rosebud Sioux Tribe, 

Sinte Gleska University, and 

the USGS have been working 

together for several years to 

enhance science education for 

Native American students. DurSamuel N. Luoma

Many people shy away from complexities. USGS hydrologist 

Sam Luoma is not one of them. His work has had a profound 

impact because he challenges accepted paradigms and tackles 

the complexities of environmental processes. While Luoma has 

made substantial scientific contributions to a variety of areas, 

he has had particular influence with his studies on the effects 

of pollutants, especially metals, in aquatic environments. He 

has helped improve the design and function of 

national programs related to water quality in the 

United States and Canada. This work includes 

service as the first Lead Scientist for the 

CALFED Bay-Delta program, helping to provide 

the science to manage the San Francisco Bay 

and the Clark Fork River. His belief in the value 

of long-term datasets for ecological studies 

led him to play a major role in the conception, 

design, and implementation of the successful 

USGS National Water Quality Assessment Program.

Luoma gives his time and expertise generously, participating 

in many national and international committees, panels, and 

scientific societies. He is passionate about mentoring earlycareer scientists and has put special emphasis on enhancing 

diversity. 

An exemplar of communicating science, Luoma has authored 

more than 180 peer-reviewed publications; written a textbook 

on environmental issues; and served as editor of professional 

journals and publication series. Under a Fulbright Fellowship, he 

is currently collaborating with colleagues at the Natural History 

Museum in London to write a book on environmental toxicology; 

this book is directed at helping managers, policymakers, 

and students to effectively link science and policy. Luoma’s 

boundless energy, enthusiasm, creativity, insight, and eloquence 

in articulating the significance of science have made him an 

extraordinarily effective scientist and an outstanding public 

servant.

2001

September 11 terrorist attacks. 

USGS conducts studies of dust 

particles in the aftermath of 

the collapse of the World Trade 

Center.

Sean Richards
Challenges and Opportunities Today 39

ing 2002, a group of Tribal and 

university professionals from 

water resources, land records, 

cultural resources, biology, and 

other fields gathered for 3 days 

of GIS training at Sinte Gleska 

University (SGU) on the Rosebud Sioux lands in Mission, 

S. Dak. James Rattling Leaf, 

from the SGU Sicangu Policy 

Institute, and USGS geographer 

Joseph Kerski conducted the 

workshop, which emphasized 

the use of digital spatial data, 

including computer maps, satellite imagery, and aerial photographs. Participants collected 

field data with Global Positioning Systems, brought field data 

into a GIS, analyzed base spatial data from theWeb, analyzed 

natural hazards and demography in the region and on the 

Tribal lands, and engaged in 

other activities. The goals were 

to bring different departments 

and organizations in the Tribal 

Government together to work 

on joint projects, and to help 

Tribal professionals make wise 

decisions about the Earth and 

its people. 

Native self-sufficiency, 

economic development, and 

conservation are nurtured 

through Native decisions, and 

these decisions can benefit from 

USGS data and analyses. The 

USGS recognizes the need to 

make its information available 

to Tribal Governments and to 

work with those governments 

and other institutions to advance 

data management capabilities. 

This information is available 

through printed reports, digital 

technologies, maps, workshops, 

and personal interactions with 

USGS employees. The USGS 

also recognizes that Tribal 

institutions have varying needs, 

interests, and capacities and 

strives to be sensitive to the 

unique circumstances of each of 

these institutions. Native peoples have unique understandings of nature, the landscape, 

and change in what is now 

the United States. The USGS 

wants to share its knowledge 

as well as to learn from Native 

perspectives that can further our 

scientific understanding. 

Thomas C. Winter

Thirty years ago, little was known about how lakes and wetlands 

interact with ground water. Today, largely due to the research 

of Tom Winter, we have a better understanding of the different 

processes controlling lake and wetland water levels and how 

these change over time in response to natural variation between 

wetter and drier conditions. 

Winter started with numerical simulation of the interaction of 

lakes and wetlands with ground water, designing mathematical 

models of physical processes to represent a variety of real-world 

settings, but fieldwork was essential to discover how closely 

the models matched reality. Collaborative research at several 

sites over the past decades has enabled Winter to demonstrate 

several important findings. These include the importance of 

evaporation in the dynamics of 

these waters, as well as the role 

of ground-water interaction with 

lakes and wetlands in determining 

water-level changes and the 

length of time needed for water 

and solutes to move into and out 

of these aquatic systems. 

Winter’s studies of evaporation 

and ground-water flow at 

the various study sites over 

many years have provided the 

foundation for a new conceptual 

framework for relating the 

hydrological characteristics of 

lakes and wetlands to the living things that inhabit them. Today, 

Winter’s work not only serves as a guide to how hydrological 

process research about lakes and wetlands should be conducted 

but also provides lake and wetland managers with the scientific 

foundation for decisions they need to make about these aquatic 

systems. 

2001

The Yellowstone Volcano 

Observatory opens.

2001

The NASA/USGS Extreme 

Storm Hazards Map is 

published.

2001

USGS research finds that contaminants play an important role in the 

decline of amphibians in California ponds and streams. Pesticides from 

the Central Valley are transported to the Sierra Nevada on prevailing 

summer winds and may be absorbed by frogs, suppressing an enzyme 

that is essential to their nervous system. David E. Click.

2001

The new, online National Water Information System (NWISWeb) 

allows users to access more than 100 years of real-time and historical 

USGS water information with the click of a mouse.
40 Celebrating 125 Years of the U.S. Geological Survey

Science Around the 

World

International work has 

been an integral part of the 

USGS for 122 years. The first 

international study by a USGS 

scientist was in 1882, when 

Clarence Dutton studied volcanoes in the Kingdom of Hawaii. 

Cooperative work on U.S./

Canada border areas with the 

Geological Survey of Canada 

began 2 years later. USGS 

international activities assumed 

greater prominence in 1897, 

when a USGS geologist and a 

hydrographer were detailed to 

the Nicaraguan Canal Commission to study the proposed canal 

route between the Atlantic and 

Pacific Oceans, and in 1898, 

when USGS geologists were 

sent to investigate the mineral 

resources of Cuba and the 

Philippines. 

In 1944, the first USGS 

employee arrived in the 

Kingdom of Saudi Arabia in 

response to 

a request 

from the King 

for a foreign 

technical expert, 

not affiliated 

with an oil company, to advise him on the 

Kingdom’s natural resources 

(particularly water). Early work 

included some of the first geologic traverses of western and 

central Arabia, by truck, camel, 

donkey, and on foot. The USGS 

had a presence in the Kingdom 

until 2003, and scientific activities included studying the geology, water resources, mineral 

resources, and seismicity 

of the Arabian 

Peninsula. The 

USGS involvement evolved 

from planning, managing, and 

conducting 

the scientific 

work to acting 

as technical 

advisors to 

the newly 

created Saudi 

Geological 

Survey. Over 

the years, USGS 

employees helped to train 

and mentor many Saudis in a 

wide range of jobs, contributed 

significantly to the geologic 

knowledge base, identified 

numerous mineral discoveries, 

and helped in the creation of the 

Saudi Geological Survey. 

Today, the USGS is 

involved in a wide range of 

international work that engages 

all of its scientific 

disciplines. These 

include efforts 

to control the 

spread of 

invasive species, provide 

global datasets via the 

Landsat satellite system, creAlaska Volcano Observatory

Since 1760, more than 260 eruptions have been reported from 

the 41 historically active volcanoes in Alaska. In 1988, the USGS, 

the University of Alaska Fairbanks Geophysical Institute, and 

the Alaska Division of Geological and Geophysical Surveys 

came together to form the Alaska Volcano Observatory (AVO), a 

cooperative effort to minimize the impact of volcanic eruptions.

Two powerful tools help the AVO keep tabs on volcanoes: 

seismic monitoring networks and satellite data monitoring. By 

carefully watching for changes, these systems can provide 

warnings of potential eruptions, deliver important information 

during volcanic activity, and help build the growing scientific 

understanding of volcanoes and volcanic processes.

Recent explosive eruptions and periods of unrest at some of the 

active volcanoes have significantly affected air traffic over the 

North Pacific; Alaska’s local communities; and oil, power, and 

fishing industries. These 

impacts have prompted 

significant expansion of 

the observatory’s volcanomonitoring capabilities. 

The number of volcanoes 

monitored by seismic 

networks has increased 

from 4 in 1995 to 27 in early 

2004. The AVO has also 

increased its capabilities to 

acquire, store, and analyze 

data for tracking volcanic 

activity. With each new seismic network, volcano-hazard 

assessment, eruption, and period of volcano unrest, scientists 

increase their ability to provide the aviation industry and the 

general public with timely warnings and crucial information to 

deal with Alaska’s active volcanoes.

NASA

2002

The Advanced National Seismic System (ANSS), 

and associated products like ShakeMap and 

the National Seismic Hazard Map, brings the 

capability to rapidly deliver useful information 

to emergency managers in real time. ANSS is 

installed in several cities—Seattle, Los Angeles, 

San Francisco, Salt Lake City, Memphis, and 

Anchorage—that are identified as high risk. 
Challenges and Opportunities Today 41

ate tools to manage ground and 

surface water resources, and 

develop assessments of global 

energy and mineral resources. 

Some recent international 

efforts are described below.

The USGS developed the 

Volcano Disaster Assistance 

Program (VDAP) after the 

deadly eruption of Colombia’s 

Nevado del Ruiz in 1984, which 

killed 23,000 people. This 

program, a partnership between 

the USGS and the Office of 

Foreign Disaster Assistance of 

the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), 

has formed the world’s only 

standing volcano-crisis response 

team, a group that is able to 

quickly mobilize to assess and 

monitor hazards at volcanoes 

threatening to erupt. The VDAP 

team works with local scientists 

and technicians to help them 

provide timely information and 

analysis to emergency managers 

and public officials. In addition 

to deploying crisis-response 

teams, VDAP conducts training 

exercises and workshops in volcano-hazards response for foreign scientists and emergency 

management officials. VDAP 

has proven to be a highly effective international effort and, as 

an example, is credited with 

saving many lives and hundreds 

of millions of dollars worth of 

U.S. equipment by providing 

evacuation warnings during the 

1991 eruption of Mount Pinatubo in the Philippines. 

In 1998, flooding and landslides associated with Hurricane 

Mitch devastated large parts of 

Central America (Nicaragua, 

Honduras, El Salvador, and 

Guatemala). With the support of 

USAID, the USGS responded 

with a coordinated effort that 

integrated its diverse capabilities. These included installation 

of telemetered streamgages to 

provide early flood warnings, 

hazard mapping to delineate 

areas at risk for landslides, 

geospatial coverages (topographic, aerial, and satellite) 

and installation of local GIS 

Woods Hole Science Center

The underwater areas off our Nation’s 

shores may seem like a different world, 

but our relationship with coastal and 

marine environments affects both the 

health of the land we live on and that 

of the oceans. Getting to know the 

scientific links among the land, coastal 

zone, and the oceans is the first step to 

a good relationship. Since 1962, USGS 

scientists at the Woods Hole Science 

Center have explored the coastalmarine environment, from the coasts 

(including beaches, estuaries, rivers, wetlands, and large lakes), 

to the shallower slopes that surround the continent and the deep 

ocean floor. Results of USGS studies are providing information 

so that Federal, State, and local agencies and the public can 

make informed decisions about resource management, hazards 

mitigation, human health, and environmental quality. This 

research addresses both natural geologic processes and human 

influences to improve our understanding of the Nation’s coastal 

and marine regions, to provide a comprehensive scientific 

knowledge bank of that understanding, and to develop the ability 

to predict coastal and marine geologic processes. 

Of the many accomplishments of USGS scientists at Woods Hole, 

one of the best known is the partnership with the Massachusetts 

Water Resources Authority (MWRA) and other agencies during 

the court-mandated cleanup of Boston Harbor, once declared the 

most polluted harbor in the Nation. In 1989, the USGS joined with 

MWRA to address more than 300 years of metropolitan waste 

disposal. Together, they have worked to understand and predict 

the fate of contaminants introduced to Massachusetts’ coastal 

waters. USGS work helped MWRA locate its offshore sewage 

outfall discharge, documents the continuing improvement of the 

harbor environment, and monitors the harbor cleanup.

2002

The National Petroleum 

Reserve–Alaska (NPRA) oil and 

gas assessment is released, as 

is the oil and gas assessment 

of the basins in the Rocky 

Mountain region.

2003

Work pioneered by USGS in 

developing improved online 

data search techniques for 

scientific data is applied in 

Science.gov.

NOAA

2002

Scientists at the USGS 

report that pharmaceuticals, 

hormones, and other organic 

waste-water-related chemicals 

have been detected at very 

low concentrations in streams 

across the Nation.
42 Celebrating 125 Years of the U.S. Geological Survey

systems, and biological studies 

of the hurricane’s impact on 

coral reefs, mangroves, and 

aquaculture. 

In 1998, areas just to the 

east of Istanbul, Turkey, were 

devastated by powerful earthquakes that took the lives of 

more than 20,000 persons. The 

USGS responded with a variety 

of cooperative efforts with 

Turkish colleagues that included 

• Geological evaluation of the 

structures that controlled the 

earthquakes and an assessment of the probability of 

future devastating earthquakes, 

• Evaluation of specific buildings to determine how they 

responded to the earthquakes 

and their future viability, and

• Mapping of critical urban 

areas that showed anticipated 

damage resulting from subsequent earthquakes. 

Because the geologic 

faults in Turkey are very similar 

to those in California, many 

aspects of this work could be 

directly applied to the evaluation of earthquake risks in the 

United States, a transfer that 

illustrates how USGS international efforts complement its 

domestic work. 

A number of USGS international activities have involved 

a mixture of the scientific and 

the diplomatic. The best examples are provided by USGS 

efforts with regards to water 

and earthquakes in the Middle 

East. In a region long troubled 

by political differences, the 

USGS has led regional projects 

focused on developing common ground-water data sets that 

are essential for the management of shared ground-water 

resources. Similarly, the USGS 

has led efforts in the Middle 

East to foster the sharing of 

seismological data with the goal 

of developing better strategies 

to mitigate shared earthquake 

hazards. Over many years, both 

efforts have proven effective in 

fostering regional cooperation, 

elevating the region’s technical capacity, and promoting 

interactions among the region’s 

technical agencies. 

In the future, international activities will increase in 

importance for the USGS. For 

example, scientific and technical information will be needed 

to support the U.S. commitment 

to increasing the availability of 

clean water to the developing 

world. As the world population 

continues to increase, there will 

be increased need for monitoring man’s interaction with the 

land, an activity the USGS is 

Serkan Bozkurt

currently doing in its support 

of the Famine Early Warning 

System. In addressing these 

and other international issues, 

the USGS will be able to build 

on its domestically developed 

core capabilities of integrated 

science involving the biological, geographic, hydrologic, 

and geologic disciplines.Jerry 

Sanders

2003

The Geospatial One-Stop portal 

is launched.

2004

The USGS provides access 

to publications through the 

Publications Warehouse.

2004

The USGS celebrates 

its 125th anniversary. 

To mark the 

anniversary, this 

Circular highlights 

125 years of science 

for America.

2003

The USGS leads the Expanded Electronic 

Government initiative, a departmentwide 

GIS enterprise system to provide benefits 

and cost efficiencies in delivering 

geospatial data and analysis tools to 

internal and external customers.
An Exciting Future 43

An Exciting Future

Linking Science and 

Society: The USGS 

Science Impact Program

USGS science is used 

every day by people throughout 

the United States and around 

the world to address a broad 

spectrum of environmental, 

natural-resource, and hazardsrelated issues. In recent years, 

technology, decisionmaking 

processes, and data accessibility have changed dramatically. 

Decisions are increasingly 

decentralized, analytical 

capabilities are expanding, and 

data accessibility is growing. 

Decisionmakers and citizens 

demand accessible, timely, and 

integrated science products that 

objectively address policyrelevant issues. As the world 

changes, USGS must increase 

and strengthen efforts to make 

its research and information as 

useful as possible. The Science 

Impact program is a focused 

effort to improve and expand 

the use of USGS science information to support decisionmaking at DOI; at other Federal, 

State, and local government 

organizations; and by the public. Science Impact will build 

on the good work that USGS is 

currently doing to link science 

with societal decisions and will 

focus its research efforts on 

designing and improving innovative methods and processes 

to increase the effective use of 

science information. Science 

Impact focuses on three principal activities:

• Science Synthesis encompasses identifying, developing, and evaluating needs 

and opportunities for science 

to support decision-making. 

Societal issues, disputes, and 

problems are linked with 

current and future science 

capabilities to determine the 

context in which science can 

support decisions, resulting 

in the identification of science questions and information needs.

• Tool and Product Development includes collaborating 

with public, academic, and 

private partners to develop 

integrated multidisciplinary 

tools, products, models, and 

processes that describe the 

physical, economic, and 

social implications of alternative decisions.

• Science Impact Education 

and Training relates to training activities designed to 

improve the interface among 

scientists, decisionmakers, 

and citizens and to facilitate 

informed and effective use of 

USGS science information, 

tools, models, and products.

Science Impact draws 

upon skills that extend beyond 

the traditional USGS disciplines. To gain expertise and 

capacity, the USGS is establishing Science Impact Partnerships 

with external organizations that 

have demonstrated capabilities 

in these areas. Five Science 

Impact Partnerships have been 

established initially:

• Science Impact Laboratory 

for Policy and Economics, 

University of New Mexico 

• Science Impact Laboratory 

for Urban Systems, University of Pennsylvania

• Science Impact Center for 

Visualization and Delivery, 

Prescott College 

• Indigenous Knowledge 

Center for Education and 

Science Impact, Sinte Gleska 

University 

• MIT–USGS Science Impact 

Collaborative, Massachusetts 

Institute of Technology 

Through innovative 

integrated natural and social 

science research, the development of university partnerships, 

and collaboration with scientists, decisionmakers, and other 

stakeholders, USGS scientists 

are maintaining and enhancing the commitment to its core 

values of science excellence, 

science leadership, and science 

impact to provide the information needed for informed 

decisions now and for the next 

125 years.

New, Emerging, and 

Resurging Diseases

USGS is recognized as 

a leader in topics related to 

human health, such as toxic 

substances in water and in 

geologic materials, vectorborne diseases, and zoonotic 

diseases—animal diseases that 

can be transmitted to people. 

This research, conducted in 

collaboration with many of 

the Nation’s leading health 

research organizations, including the National Institutes of 

Health and the Centers for 

Disease Control and Prevention, attempts to understand 

how exposure to chemical 

contaminants and pathogens in 

soils, water, and air affects the 

health of people throughout the 

world. For example, research 

by USGS scientists on a devDept. of Pathology, UTMB

Corbis Images
44 Celebrating 125 Years of the U.S. Geological Survey

astating degenerative kidney 

disease and associated cancers 

affecting thousands of people 

in the Balkans has shown that 

the problem may be caused by 

drinking well water that has 

been in contact with lignite, 

a form of coal. Applying this 

observation to the United States 

has revealed a possible link 

between well water in contact 

with lignite and a high incidence of certain cancers. 

There is also increasing 

concern about the emergence of 

new infectious diseases afflicting humans and the resurgence 

of previously conquered diseases. Within the United States, 

the assault on humans includes 

invasion by exotic diseases such 

as AIDS, West Nile virus, and 

monkeypox; the appearance 

of novel diseases from indigenous sources such as Legionnaires disease and hantavirus 

infections; the resurgence of 

diseases once thought be “conquered,” such as tuberculosis 

and malaria; and geographic 

changes in the distribution of 

historic diseases such as sylvatic plague and tularemia. 

It is increasingly clear that 

studying the human aspects of 

disease is only one part of the 

solution—we must also understand how wildlife populations 

can serve as reservoirs for 

disease and how insect vectors affect disease transmission 

(such as the deer tick responsible for transmitting Lyme disease to humans). Many of these 

diseases also afflict wildlife and 

domestic animals. The USGS is 

charged with addressing health 

issues and diseases of free-ranging wildlife across the Nation. 

The 1999 emergence of West 

Nile virus in the Western Hemisphere marked the first time that 

public, agriculture, and wildlife 

health scientists joined forces 

to tackle and control a common 

enemy. USGS scientists quickly 

collaborated with public health 

agencies to track this mosquitoborne virus of birds as it began 

spreading across North America 

killing many wild birds, horses, 

and humans. 

USGS investigations 

have detected a number of 

novel wildlife diseases that 

have resulted in management 

actions to prevent human 

exposures when zoonoses such 

as tularemia, chlamydiosis, and 

erysipelas have been found. 

As new disease threats such as 

West Nile virus, chronic wasting disease, and monkeypox 

Employees of the Future

From today’s perspective, the USGS employees of the future will need to be proficient in many 

different areas. With the knowledge, tools, and technologies of today’s employees to build upon, 

the bar is set high for future employees. With so much to know, the ability to work as a team on 

multifaceted projects is a must. 

Future USGS scientists will improve understanding about human health issues, work on the 

increasingly urgent issues of water quality and quantity, provide foundational research on invasive 

species, determine disease vectors and potential impact, continue to focus on hazards mitigation, 

provide a greater understanding of complex Earth systems and Earth system dynamics, research 

nontraditional sources of energy, and address the impact, cost, and environmental impact of 

alternative fuel sources. They will use long-term data to develop predictive models. Because 

they will understand the political, societal, and even global impacts of their science, they will 

translate their work for a wide variety of audiences, including other scientists, students, teachers, 

government agencies, decisionmakers, and everyday people around the world. 

The way they conduct their work will be revolutionized, crossing borders and boundaries among 

agencies, organizations, countries, and continents in a virtual environment that promotes 

collaboration, partnership, and knowledge sharing as never before. Wherever they are, they will 

have access to their work and all the information they could ask for on their area of research. 

Business and communications skills will be second nature to ensure the success of current 

and future science. The employees of the future will come from a wide variety of cultures and 

perspectives, fostering creative solutions for both old and new problems. Because they will utilize 

integrated approaches and develop relationships in other offices, agencies, and political and social 

realms, they will find solutions more quickly and deliver information to millions of people in real 

time.

The USGS has been providing science for a changing world for 125 years, matching the abilities 

and knowledge of its employees to the progress 

of science and technology. The dedication and 

skill that make the USGS today a valued source 

of information for sound decisions will continue 

as we enter our next 125 years. The future of 

the global community provides unprecedented 

opportunities for the people of the USGS to 

contribute credible, impartial, excellent science 

for the betterment of the Nation and the world.

Wyoming Game and Fish Department
An Exciting Future 45

emerge, and old ones such as 

avian influenza, foot-and-mouth 

disease, and plague resurface, 

the collaborative work of many 

agencies is needed to grapple 

with these complex diseases. 

Timely and accurate diagnosis 

of wildlife illness and mortality 

is critical to achieving effective 

disease control and prevention. USGS will continue to 

expand our understanding of 

wildlife disease dynamics and 

risk analysis through research, 

surveillance, and effective 

sampling. By increasing our 

understanding of the complex 

interactions among wildlife, 

humans, geologic materials, 

and ecosystems, the USGS will 

continue to provide information 

and analysis to keep people and 

ecosystems healthy and thriving 

into the next century.

Tracking Emerging 

Contaminants

Chemicals used every day 

in homes, industry, and agriculture can enter the environment through our wastewater 

and other mechanisms. These 

chemicals include human and 

veterinary pharmaceuticals 

(for example, antibiotics and 

synthetic hormones), detergents, disinfectants, fragrances, 

lotions, plasticizers, fire retardants, insecticides, and antioxidants. The presence of these 

chemicals raises several issues 

for which science can provide 

answers: These chemicals are 

not routinely monitored in our 

water resources; many have 

known or suspected ecological or human health effects; 

and drinking water standards 

have not been developed for 

them. The USGS is developing new laboratory methods to 

measure minute quantities of 

these chemicals; defining the 

environmental occurrence of 

these compounds; developing 

knowledge of the biological and 

chemical processes that affect 

contaminant movement, transformation, and persistence in 

the environment; and assessing 

the effects these contaminants 

have on organisms and biological communities within aquatic 

ecosystems. For example, a 

group of commonly used flame 

retardants appears to be rapidly 

increasing in concentration 

in the environment. Recent 

evidence from European and 

U.S. investigators has shown 

that concentrations of these 

chemicals are doubling in 

human breast milk at the rate 

of every 2–5 years. Information 

about the environmental fate 

and effects of these compounds 

is critically needed so that 

scientists can determine at what 

Diversity

The USGS owes 125 years of success to the creative discoveries of its people. As we head 

into the next 125 years, a diverse workforce will play an ever-increasing role in maintaining an 

atmosphere of creativity and bringing new discoveries to the world.

Increased numbers of women, minorities, people with disabilities, and people from a wide range 

of backgrounds and beliefs will result in greater learning, enhanced creativity, improved products, 

and increased responsibility to the customers that the USGS serves. As technology continues to 

erase borders, a variety of cultures and perspectives will be increasingly important to daily life 

at the USGS. Research will often be a global effort, providing people with greater resources and 

a broader understanding of each other and our planet. USGS employees will not only have the 

ability to inform and cooperate with many different types of people, they will also represent and 

reflect the demographic variety of the Nation.

The Nation’s changing demographics require that the USGS continually evolve to meet the 

country’s needs. The USGS must develop science products that are responsive to the needs of 

constituents and that are relevant to users. 

Science requires a global perspective and 

an appreciation and understanding of many 

cultures.The snakehead fish, for example, 

is part of the diet in some cultures but is an 

invasive species in the United States.

Over the last 10 years, progress toward 

a more diverse USGS has been made. 

The number of women advancing at the 

USGS is on the rise, but there is still work 

to be done. Minorities and people with 

disabilities still lag behind in terms of 

representation and advancement in the 

workforce. The USGS will continue to 

show commitment and investment in the 

future through participating in educational 

partnerships, fostering mentoring 

programs, and providing role models to 

students.

hemera.com
46 Celebrating 125 Years of the U.S. Geological Survey

point the compounds will reach 

concentrations that are toxic to 

humans and biotic resources. 

For all of these potentially 

toxic substances, USGS scientists are working to develop the 

scientific basis for assessment, 

restoration, and monitoring of 

habitats that are contaminated 

by mining, agriculture, forestry, wastewater, industry, and 

chemical control agents. Scientists are using laboratory test to 

investigate substances that are 

lethal to plants and animals or 

that suppress immune function, 

disrupt the endocrine system, 

deform embryos, or impair 

reproduction or neurological 

functioning. USGS research is 

providing methods and guidance for future monitoring and 

assessment of these types of 

environmental contaminants 

and establishing the needed 

foundation for setting priorities 

for further study of sources, 

pathways and effects. The data 

and information provided by 

USGS are valued by both scientists and policymakers working 

to keep our environment healthy 

for all.

Water Availability

Water availability is a topic 

of increasing concern in virtually all parts of the Nation for 

a variety of reasons, including 

recent and ongoing droughts 

and the competition for water 

among jurisdictions and among 

ecological, urban, agricultural, 

and industrial uses. A number 

of recent changes exacerbate 

the problem. Population growth 

nationally, and particularly in 

the more arid Southwest and 

coastal parts of the Nation, presents major challenges for State, 

regional, and local authorities who must find reliable, 

high-quality water supplies to 

deliver to their communities. 

Public values regarding the 

environment, coupled with the 

Endangered Species Act, have 

led to the need for reallocation 

of water between traditional offstream uses (irrigation, thermoelectric power, public supply, 

and industry) and instream 

needs of the biological community. Ecosystem restoration 

is a growing national interest, 

and, in many cases, reallocation 

and changes in the storage of 

water and timing of releases are 

central to ecosystem restoration 

plans. 

In addition, although 

agricultural water use is fairly 

stable when averaged across the 

Nation, new demands for water 

EROS Data Center

The EROS Data Center (EDC) is a world leader in the exploration 

of our changing planet. In this 600-person office in Sioux Falls, 

S. Dak., remotely sensed images of the Earth are collected, 

stored, and analyzed. The work done at EDC enhances our 

understanding of the Earth, how it changes over time, and 

the implications of those changes for people and ecosystems 

worldwide. EDC maintains one of the largest collections of 

remotely sensed images of the Earth’s land surface, including 

images from Landsat, NOAA weather satellites, NASA satellites, 

and USGS aerial mapping photography. The aerial and satellite 

data archive now contains more than 38.5 million images and 

is growing by close to 10 million images each year. EDC staff 

members control satellites, distribute land information products, 

and develop techniques for providing scientists, policymakers, 

and educators around the world with access to the ever-growing 

collections of data. Representatives from almost every science 

discipline work with foresters, satellite engineers, and data 

processing specialists to handle the data, analyze features, and 

develop new systems for observing changes in the Earth. They 

study changes such as urban sprawl and respond to disasters 

such as wildfires, floods, 

tornadoes, and hurricanes. 

They sometimes work 

globally, for instance 

studying the loss of 

wetland in Southern Iraq or 

the deforestation of tropical 

rainforest in Bolivia. As 

EDC observes our everchanging planet, it looks to 

the future, encouraging and 

educating students through 

a variety of student mentoring and classroom demonstrations, 

higher education consortiums, collaborative research projects, 

and visiting scientists and internships.
An Exciting Future 47

for irrigation, animal feeding 

operations, and aquaculture are 

having a significant impact on 

the water budget in many humid 

areas such as the Mississippi 

Delta and Atlantic Coastal 

Plain, putting stress on regional 

water supplies. The pumping 

of ground water is an increasing factor in the Nation’s water 

supply, and its use is leading 

to impacts that may result in 

the need to slow the growth 

or even decrease the rate of 

use of ground water in some 

areas. The impacts of increased 

ground-water development 

can include increased costs 

due to the need to drill new 

wells, intrusion of saline water 

(from the ocean or from deeper 

units), depletion of base flow 

in streams, increased summer 

temperatures in small streams 

due to decreased ground-water 

inflows, and land subsidence. 

In areas including parts of 

the High Plains, Mississippi 

Delta, Chicago/Milwaukee 

area, Southwestern basins 

(such as Las Vegas, Middle 

Rio Grande, Tucson, Phoenix, 

Mojave Desert), and parts of the 

Atlantic Coastal Plain, the rates 

of pumping are not sustainable. 

New solutions must be sought 

in terms of either new supplies 

or decreases in use. 

Finally, there are beginning to be clear indications that 

climate warming is leading to 

changes in the type of precipitation in some parts of the Nation, 

generally less snow and more 

rain, and to earlier melt of 

winter snows. As a result, the 

amount of natural storage of 

water in snowpacks is decreasing. These changes, along with 

other potential shifts in hydroclimatic conditions, could result 

in fundamental changes in the 

overall amount of the resource 

that is readily available for various offstream and ecological 

uses. 

USGS science will be 

key to resolving these issues, 

providing the science needed 

to ensure that water is available 

to support human and ecological communities in the years 

ahead. Good planning in the 

public or private sector depends 

on good information that moves 

knowledge forward but always 

stays mindful of the remaining 

uncertainties. Disagreement 

and misinformation about water 

have created decision gridlocks 

over water and water-related 

ecosystem restoration projects 

that can harm both the environment and the economy. The 

USGS is ideally poised to help 

the Nation break these gridlocks 

through improved understanding and communication of the 

principles and facts that all the 

parties need.

Energy and Minerals 

for the Future

All nations continually 

face decisions involving the 

supply and utilization of raw 

materials, substitution of one 

resource for another, competing land and resource uses, 

and the environmental consequences of resource development. Global use of mineral and 

energy resources will continue 

to increase for the foreseeable 

future because of the continuing 

increase in global population 

and the efforts to improve living 

standards worldwide. In today’s 

global economy, a nation’s 

economic security depends 

on access to adequate energy 

and mineral resource supplies 

from a variety of domestic and 

international sources. Today, 

more than 70 chemical elements 

and dozens of minerals are 

mined and produced from more 

than 100 different deposit types 

and geologic environments. 

USGS researchers are currently 

focused on assessing global 

undiscovered resources of copper (important in the electronics industry), platinum-group 

metals (critical as catalysts in 

the automobile, chemical, and 

petroleum industries), and potash (one of three indispensable 

fertilizer minerals required for 

food production). 

Geologists in the USGS 

have been working for many 

years to understand how different ore deposits were formed, 

with the goal of aiding in the 

recognition of undiscovered 

resources, in the efficient 

extraction of the resource, and 

in the ability to assess undiscovered resources. The work 

of identifying mineral deposit 

models has been going on for 

many years, and now more than 

100 models have been defined. 

Research continues to develop 

new deposit models, to clarify 

existing models, and to refine 

our ability to conduct mineral 

resource assessments that are 

accurate and cost effective. 

Assessments of world 

and national energy resources 

are changing as the needs and 

the information available have 

changed and as new types of 

energy resources are recognized. Over the past few years, 

basic geologic understanding of 

coal-bed methane occurrence, 

characterization, and formation has provided the information needed to help make this 

once-unconventional resource 

a viable contributor to today’s 

energy mix; coal-bed methane 

is now 8 percent of all natural 

gas production in the United 

States. 

Although conventional 

accumulations of oil and gas 

Mobile Computing 

Operating systems that run on compact 

hand-held devices such as Personal Digital 

Assistants and “Palmtop” or “Pocket” 

personal computers (PCs) have the potential to 

replace paper forms in many USGS field data 

collection activities. Currently, many USGS 

offices use such devices to communicate with 

data loggers and data collection platforms 

(DCPs) and to log field data on digital (virtual) 

forms. Software programs used on these miniPCs enable communication with a variety of 

field instruments that collect surface-water, 

ground-water, water-quality, and biologic 

data. The benefits of this new technology 

include improved productivity and data 

quality.
48 Celebrating 125 Years of the U.S. Geological Survey

resources remain very large and 

work identifying these continues, increased attention is being 

focused on unconventional 

resources such as gas hydrates. 

USGS is partnering with a number of international consortia to 

study gas hydrates, a potentially 

huge energy resource. The estimated amount of natural gas in 

the gas hydrate accumulations 

of the world greatly exceeds the 

volume of all known conventional gas resources. 

While gas hydrates hold 

great potential as an environmentally friendly fuel for 

the 21st century, the geologic 

challenges of understanding 

their formation and distribution 

and the technical challenges of 

realizing them as a resource are 

substantial. Additional research 

is required to understand and 

develop new techniques to 

quantify their distribution in 

nature. The USGS has developed a state-of-the-art geotechnical laboratory capability 

to determine the pressure and 

temperature conditions necessary to induce gas hydrate 

formation and test hydrate 

samples recovered from Arctic 

and offshore coring operations. 

In December 2003, an international consortium including the 

USGS proved that gas hydrates 

are technically recoverable, 

though economic recoverability 

has yet to be determined. Other 

studies underway will help 

determine the amount of technically recoverable gas hydrate 

present in the United States and 

worldwide. Through innovative 

research and modeling efforts 

like these, USGS scientists will 

continue to provide essential 

information on mineral and 

energy resources for a healthy 

economy and enhanced quality 

of life.

Making Wise Use of 

New Technologies

USGS scientists are taking 

advantage of new technologies 

to revolutionize the methods 

used to collect field data and to 

provide greater accessibility to 

our data and information.

New Water-Quality 

Sensors

To provide real-time 

answers for water-quality 

management decisions, including early-warning monitoring 

for intentional or accidental 

releases of hazardous materials 

in water, the USGS is working 

with partners in the research 

community and local governments to add new, advancedtechnology water-quality 

sensors to our existing realtime data collection network. 

Submersible analyzers capable 

of measuring plant nutrients—nitrate and phosphate, for 

example—by standard methods 

became commercially available 

to marine scientists in the early 

1990s. Over the past 5 years, 

USGS scientists have begun to 

use such analyzers for nutrient 

analysis in remote locations. 

Sampling rates as often as 

every 15 minutes over periods 

ranging from a few days to 

several weeks provide information about changes in nutrient 

concentrations that would be 

difficult or prohibitively expensive to obtain by conventional 

means. In addition, real-time 

chemical analysis eliminates 

costs and potential errors associated with sample processing, 

shipping, and storage. 

The USGS has also leveraged new technology to collect 

field data and to make scientific 

data and reports easily accessible to the public. The USGS 

National Water Quality Assessment Program (NAWQA) 

<http://water.usgs.gov/nawqa/

data> has produced some of 

the most widely used waterquality data in the world and 

has consistently been Google’s 

top pick for water-quality data 

over the last several years. The 

public can retrieve subsets of 

these data and view or export 

them in popular formats such 

as Excel and commercial-offthe-shelf (COTS) software from 

the Oracle Corporation. Using 

COTS software simplifies and 

lowers the cost of long-term 

management of the system. 

Users can make interactive 

maps of water-quality concentrations for hundreds of chemicals in wells or streams, as 

well as graph the concentration 

range for hundreds of chemicals 

across dozens of basins in the 

country. With this Web-based 

interactive system, more than 

10,000 graphs can be specified and created. New data are 

aggregated frequently and automatically from about 50 servers 

across the country by using 

integration COTS software from 

Informatica Corporation.

The Future of 

Streamgaging

Streams and rivers provide 

water for important uses including drinking water, navigation, 

and recreation. Measurement 

of river flow is needed to 

determine the amount of water 

available for these different 

uses and to monitor high flows 

and predict the frequency of 

flooding. The basic method for 

measuring streamflow in the 

United States has been virtually 
An Exciting Future 49

unchanged for over a century, 

but this method is both expensive and, during large floods, 

potentially unreliable, unsafe, 

or impossible. Recognizing 

these problems, the USGS is 

investigating new and emerging 

technologies that may become 

the basis for a more cost-effective, accurate, safe, and robust 

method of streamgaging. 

The most promising 

technology that can measure 

streamflows without having to 

touch the water is radar. USGS 

has demonstrated that different 

kinds of radars can measure the 

channel cross-sectional area and 

the surface velocity of rivers. 

Low-frequency radar antennas, 

identical to ground-penetrating 

radar (GPR), can be suspended 

above the river from a bridge 

or cableway, transmit a signal 

through the air, water, and bed 

material, and receive the return 

signals with sufficient clarity to define the channel cross 

section. Numerous experiments 

have shown that in the absence 

of highly conductive water 

(high conductivity destroys 

the strength of a radar signal 

in water), GPR can measure 

depths to within a few centimeters and cross-sectional area 

within a few percent. 

An ideal system would be 

mounted on the river bank and 

scan the river bed continuously, 

but this presents significant 

challenges to radar signal interpretation and processing, especially the location from which 

return signals are received. The 

USGS has used a bank-operated light cableway extended 

across the river on which the 

GPR antenna is suspended and 

has mounted the antenna on the 

underside of a helicopter and 

flown across the river cross section. Surface velocity of rivers 

has been measured by using 

a pulsed Doppler radar system developed by the Applied 

Physics Lab at the University of 

Washington. These techniques 

measure the velocity of the 

river current at or very close 

to the surface of the water and 

can scan the width of the river 

from a single point on the bank. 

Surface velocity can then be 

converted to mean velocity, 

combined with the GPR-measured cross-sectional area, and 

used to calculate the stream 

discharge, all without having 

to touch the water. The results 

of experiments using these 

methods have been encouraging. The USGS will continue to 

explore new ways of measuring 

our Nation’s streams safely and 

reliably.

Genetics and Molecular 

Biology

Recovering species that 

have been reduced to low 

numbers and small, scattered 

populations is a daunting and 

complex task for Federal and 

State natural resource managers. USGS scientists use 

genetics and molecular biological tools and analyses as 

increasingly routine means to 

assist managers in reducing 

population declines and bringing animal and plant species 

back from the brink. Because 

virtually every organism has 

unique sequences of DNA 

(deoxyribonucleic acid), genetic 

markers can be used to identify 

individuals and assign them to 

families, populations, and even 

in some cases their place of 

birth. Genetic markers can be 

used as a nonharmful way to 

track individual animals in the 

environment through time, or 

to trace the source of harmful bacteria in ground water. 

Keeping USGS Information Secure and Accessible 

Increased accessibility to USGS 

data and information leads to 

increased vulnerability. Ensuring 

that our networks and systems 

are secure and protecting 

the integrity of the data they 

house are critical issues facing 

the USGS. In 2004, the USGS 

received approximately 3.5 

million e-mail messages a 

month that were delivered to 

USGS users from non-USGS 

senders. Of these messages, about 1.5 million are SPAM, and 

about 400 million are e-mails containing viruses, both of which 

are blocked by our network security devices. Our monthly 

average of legitimate messages received from external sources 

is approximately 1.4 million or 40 percent of the total messages 

received. To meet this challenge, a USGS team is developing 

strategies for sustained operational network security across the 

widely distributed USGS national network. Key aspects include

• Managing internal security systems to permit access only 

to authorized public and collaborative services. The firewall 

and router security systems are tailored to deny all except as 

specifically authorized.

• Monitoring the network for potentially malicious activity by 

using a centrally managed intrusion detection system.

• Routinely assessing desktop, workstation, and server systems 

to identify and correct high-risk vulnerability for all systems.

• Establishing a demilitarized-zone (DMZ) architecture for public 

services and consolidating Web-accessible public servers, 

by using reverse-proxy and other technologies to improve 

information technology security.
50 Celebrating 125 Years of the U.S. Geological Survey

Genetics research is on a fast 

track, and new uses of genetics 

and molecular biology promise 

additional important applications. Genomics—the study of 

the entire genetic makeup of a 

species—is now being proposed 

as a means for determining the 

functions (or expression) of 

individual genes or genes acting 

in concert to produce enzymes 

and other protein products. Scientists seek with new genomics technologies to understand 

the basis for disease or disease 

resistance, how pollutants 

damage DNA, or under what 

environmental conditions genes 

are turned “on” or “off” in their 

functioning. USGS scientists 

also propose genetic means 

for applying tools of microbial 

biotransformation and bioremediation to explore means to use 

microbes in habitat restoration 

and recovery. The techniques 

of genetics biotechnology work 

on anything containing DNA or 

RNA (ribonucleic acid). Unique 

genetic markers are discovered 

weekly and are added to international computer databases 

for sharing with researchers 

worldwide. 

USGS genetics research 

is undertaken at the request of 

primary clients in DOI—the 

Fish and Wildlife Service, the 

National Park Service, the 

Minerals Management Service, 

the Bureau of Reclamation, and 

the Bureau of Land Management—and other State and 

Federal agencies. The questions that managers pose often 

lead scientists down intriguing paths, such as whether the 

extinct blue pike was a separate 

species (our data indicate it 

was not), whether two invasive 

carp species in the Midwest can 

successfully mate and hybridize (they can), or whether black 

bear population numbers can 

be estimated from hair samples 

they leave on barbed wire (yes, 

and the bears can be tracked in 

the wild by this means as well). 

As exciting and satisfying as 

these genetics discoveries are, 

USGS scientists are just beginning to reveal the potential for 

the use of genetics and molecular biology in conservation. As 

technology develops, scientists 

can only guess at the ways they 

can apply their research to solving natural resource problems.

Earthquake 

Predictability

In the 25 years since the 

USGS Earthquake Hazard Program was authorized by Congress, important advances have 

been made in the ability to identify regions where earthquakes 

are likely to occur and to forecast the hazards associated with 

damaging earthquakes. Many 

of these advances have their 

roots in laboratory and theoretical developments at the USGS, 

which, along with targeted seismic and geodetic monitoring, 

have focused on understanding 

the basic physical processes 

associated with earthquakes. 

This research provides much 

of the scientific underpinnings 

of the USGS’s important and 

widely used products, including national and regional 

seismic hazard maps, regional 

earthquake probability reports, 

short-term foreshock and aftershock forecasts, and building 

code recommendations. The 

USGS is at a critical juncture in 

the field of earthquake studies. 

New dense arrays of seismic 

and geodetic instrumentation 

are being deployed across the 

United States and around the 

world, including the Advanced 

National Seismic System, the 

Global Seismographic Network, 

and several elements of the 

National Science Foundation’s 

EarthScope project. In addition, 

satellite-based remote-sensing 

systems are providing exciting new tools for conducting 

global-scale observations of 

surface deformation, electromagnetic fields, and other critical geophysical observations. 

Paleoseismological work on 

key faults, aided by new highprecision dating techniques, is 

producing detailed earthquake 

histories that extend back thousands of years. This quantum 

leap in the quality and variety 

of geological and geophysical 

data can be used to improve the 

precision of earthquake hazards 

assessments and to broaden the 

suite of earthquake information 

products available to emergency 

managers. 

Remarkably, this flood 

of new data also provides the 

opportunity to test the predictability of earthquake occurrence. Despite earlier optimism, 

it remains unclear whether 

useful intermediate- and 

short-term earthquake predictions are feasible. However, 

reputable research teams are 

taking advantage of improved 

data sets and are developing 

schemes for predicting earthquakes based on, for example, 

patterns of small earthquakes, 

patterns of surface strain, and 

electromagnetic field variations. The number, scope, and 

boldness of these efforts are 

accelerating. The USGS has 

mandated responsibility to 

provide scientific and public 

leadership in this rapidly shifting field, evaluating earthquake 

prediction methods, providing 

guidance to the government on 

appropriate public policy, and 

managing public expectations 

when earthquake predictions 

arise. 

While working toward 

the elusive goal of reliable, 

specific earthquake prediction, the USGS is developing 

a number of products that will 

further improve public safety. 

Examples include daily earthquake hazard maps showing the 

chance of earthquake shaking 

in the next 24 hours, which 

rely on the quantifiable ability 

of one earthquake to trigger 

another, and earthquake early 

warning systems that would use 

ANSS data to determine that 

an earthquake is underway and 
An Exciting Future 51

transmit that information before 

the shaking arrives at more 

distant sites. 

Remote Sensing 

The USGS has a proud 

history of acquiring, archiving, 

distributing, and using remotely 

sensed data. From aerial photography flown 50 years ago to 

more than 30 years of Landsat 

coverage, the USGS has established an important technology 

that is valued by users. In the 

future, land remote sensing 

will require new data sources, 

advanced approaches to analysis, and imaginative cooperation 

among Federal, international, 

and commercial data providers 

that will supply a massive range 

of information in real time 

about climate, hazards, ecosystems, national security—even 

traffic conditions. The USGS 

will be a major contributor in ensuring the scientific 

integrity of remotely sensed 

data for analysis. Further, 

applications of remote-sensing 

technologies are advancing at 

an ever-increasing rate as new 

sensor platforms come online, 

user awareness of the systems’ 

capabilities increases, and the 

costs associated with processing 

capacity continue to decrease. 

New data sources and 

systems are certain to evolve 

in the near future. The science 

community both in government 

and in the private sector has 

come to depend on continuous, 

reliable data from key satellite data platforms, including 

Landsat, GOES, Terra, and 

Aqua; virtually all of them 

will need replacement within 

the next few years. A Landsat 

follow-on mission, an interferometric synthetic aperture 

radar mission, LIDAR, and 

hyperspectral data sensors will 

provide high- to moderate-resolution data in broad spectral 

ranges, offering greater insight 

on conditions across the planet. 

The USGS looks forward to a 

leadership role in defining and 

making available data from 

those systems. 

Not all of the new data 

sources will be Federal civilian programs. Partnerships 

with the commercial sector and 

international organizations will 

be important to remote sensing 

in the future. For example, the 

USGS commercial remotesensing data contract program 

establishes a venue to consolidate access, processing, and 

distribution of remotely sensed 

data from a myriad of sensors 

and systems available from 

government, industry, and international sources. The increased 

cooperation, development of 

new techniques, and expanded 

Patents and Inventions

Scientists sometimes find that they need a product that isn’t 

on the market, or they suspect that a process nowhere used or 

taught will provide the results 

they need. In other cases, their 

interests and concerns, rather 

than their needs, lead them 

toward a new process or product. 

If the idea turns out to be novel, 

non-obvious, and useful enough, it 

may result in a patent. 

USGS has nearly 50 current 

or pending patents, including 

Infrasound Hazard-Warning 

Device for Night-Migrating Birds, 

Deep Aquifer Remediation System, 

and Mud Walking Shoe. Other 

examples are devices to control 

aquatic invasive species or remove toxic metals from water, and 

the hovercraft, for drilling core samples in wetlands and other 

environmentally sensitive regions. 

The technology transfer program at the USGS <www.usgs.

gov/tech-transfer/> combines the research capabilities of 

USGS scientists with the commercial development potential 

of the private sector. It encourages the adoption and use of 

USGS research products through partnerships. Technology 

transfer tools such as Cooperative Research and Development 

Agreements (CRADA) and patent licenses provide incentives 

for commercialization and use of technologies developed by 

USGS scientists. Patents, inventions, and CRADAs are a valuable 

outlet for the creative intelligence of USGS employees, benefit 

the public by creating jobs, produce financial benefits for the 

agency and its inventors, and offer one more means for USGS to 

enhance its public service.
52 Celebrating 125 Years of the U.S. Geological Survey

technical capabilities of satellite 

sensors will provide important 

tools for understanding a changing world.

Mapping the Nation in 

the 21st Century: The 

National Map

In the 1990s, sales of the 

USGS flagship product—the 

standard 1:24,000-scale, 7.5-

minute topographic quadrangle 

map—steadily decreased, due 

largely to increased demand for 

cartographic data in digital form 

and diminished currency of the 

printed maps. By the year 2000, 

resource limitations and rising 

costs of traditional production 

methods resulted in an average 

age of 23 years for these 55,000 

maps and an annual revision 

rate of less than 2%. In response 

to these conditions, the USGS, 

in 2000, initiated a large-scale 

transformation of its traditional 

topographic mapping efforts. 

This reinvigorated program, The 

National Map <www.nationalmap.gov>, calls for partners 

throughout the Nation to work 

together in collecting geospatial data and in ensuring broad, 

open access to these data. It is 

a multi-sector effort to build 

America’s infrastructure of 

geographic knowledge, bringing 

together State and local governments, the private sector, universities and libraries, and the 

public with Federal agencies led 

by the USGS to ensure access 

to current, nationally consistent, 

complete, and accurate data, 

tools, and applications. 

The National Map takes 

advantage of emerging and 

coalescing technologies, including the Web and the widespread 

availability of geographic 

information system tools, to 

bring together base geographic 

information from many sources 

to create integrated national 

data, while still providing 

access to partner data that 

provide higher resolution, more 

detailed coverage for limited 

areas and selected themes. The 

reliable, readily accessible, 

digital geographic framework 

of The National Map will foster 

place-based analyses of diverse 

types of information, assist 

in monitoring changes and 

detecting trends, and advance 

the discovery of relationships 

between otherwise seemingly 

independent phenomena and 

processes. When fully developed, The National Map will 

provide capabilities to view 

geographic information, access 

partner data, bring together data 

from diverse sources, develop 

customized maps that show 

current landscape conditions 

(the continuation of the USGS 

topographic map tradition), and 

in such critical areas as human 

population growth, public 

health, environmental systems, 

water quality and availability, 

natural hazards (landslides, 

floods, earthquakes, coastal 

erosion), and climate change. 

USGS geography will also 

expand public involvement in 

decisionmaking by developing decision�support systems 

(a type of computer model) 

to promote community-based 

environmental management. 

Decision�support systems 

can deliver focused data and 

information on complex issues 

of natural science, often in the 

context of specific political, 

social, and economic structures, 

to local community leaders, 

land managers, and citizens. 

For both USGS clients and 

USGS scientists, the geographic 

perspective of natural science, 

the “where” factor, will become 

even more vital in integrating 

disparate data from a variety of 

sources because this perspective 

provides the common, easily 

visualized language of place.

apply the tools of geographic 

analysis to understand the world 

in which we live and across 

which we interact.

Geographic Research 

for Tomorrow

Mapping, the foundation 

for place-based science and 

geographic analysis, continues 

as a vibrant and essential USGS 

activity, as demonstrated by the 

technical prowess and partnership strategy of The National 

Map. However, in the last 20 

years the science discipline of 

geography has moved beyond 

describing the Earth with traditional topographic maps and has 

developed methods and tools of 

utility and sophistication that 

are widely used by the other 

natural and social sciences. 

A powerful combination of 

modern technologies related to 

place—satellite imagery, digital 

aerial photography, GIS, and 

satellite navigation (GPS)—

enables computer�assisted 

geographic analysis to create 

innovative possibilities for 

understanding the science of 

our earth and addressing complex environmental issues.

In the future, USGS geographic research will contribute new knowledge about the 

relation of nature and society 
An Exciting Future 53

Serving USGS 

Information to the Nation

The mission of the USGS 

is to conduct science and to 

make available the resulting 

knowledge and information. 

The USGS has a long history of 

providing high-quality service 

through dissemination of scientific information to its customers. Traditionally, this dissemination has been scattered 

throughout the organization, 

often making it very difficult for 

customers to locate the data and 

information that they need. The 

USGS will continue to use current dissemination mechanisms 

such as face-to-face visits, 

phone, fax, e-mail, and the Web 

to help us put information in the 

hands of the customer. However, new tools and approaches 

are needed. The USGS is 

undertaking a new approach to 

providing more efficient access 

to our data, information, and 

knowledge. This approach will 

depend on automated tools, 

a knowledge base of USGS 

science, and a core group of 

information professionals to 

bring the full breadth of USGS 

data and information to users 

when, where, and how they 

need it. The goal is an integrated network of physical 

and virtual information offices 

that will enhance our ability to 

make our data, information, and 

knowledge available to anyone, 

anywhere at any time. By working toward this desired future 

state, the USGS will continue 

to serve as the Nation’s primary 

integrated natural science and 

information agency. 

For example, scientific 

publishing has been a key 

aspect of USGS science since 

its earliest days, but locating 

a specific USGS report can 

be difficult. To allow a single 

source for searching, viewing, 

and ordering USGS publications, in January 2004, the Publications Warehouse Web site 

was launched. Building on an 

internal database begun in mid2000, the USGS Publications 

Warehouse <pubs.usgs.gov> 

provides complete and accurate bibliographic citations for 

31 historic and current USGS 

series. The searchable database 

of reports and thematic maps 

currently contains more than 

63,000 bibliographic citations, 

including numbered series 

begun as early as 1882. Citations and online documents are 

added regularly. Content ranges 

from more than 23,000 full text 

links to citations only. A number of Biological Resources discipline report citations, primarily historical research reports, 

are included. These citations 

include reports released by the 

Fish and Wildlife Service and 

the National Biological Service prior to the creation of the 

Biological Resources Division 

of the USGS in 1995. Plans 

are underway to add geospatial 

search tools, provide links to 

all online USGS series, and 

include citations and links to 

all publications with USGS 

authors. Eventually full text 

for all USGS reports will be 

available through the Publications Warehouse site. A single, 

comprehensive site facilitates 

access, assures reliability 

through multiple servers, and 

provides certification of USGS 

report content by serving from a 

single official, secure site. 

Conclusion

Over the past 125 years, 

the USGS has evolved from 

gathering data with picks and 

pack mules to the use of remote 

sensors with real-time data 

access. Through a wealth of 

long-term data and research, the 

USGS has served the needs of 

society, the Earth, and its environment. It has responded to the 

changing needs of the Nation, 

expanding its traditional role of 

geography, geology, and hydrology to include the assessment 

and monitoring of our Nation’s 

biological resources. Today, the 

USGS brings these capabilities 

together to address complex 

issues in a comprehensive way 

that serves a myriad of customers and partners. 

Technological capabilities 

have improved significantly 

during the past 125 years. For 

example, the ability to measure, 

monitor, and model the processes that lead to natural disasters has increased dramatically, 

as has the ability to communicate information about hazards 

to those whose lives may be 

affected. These innovations in 

tracking and communicating the 

changes in our dynamic planet, 

supported by a deeper understanding of Earth processes, 

enable the USGS to expand its 

predictive capabilities and point 

the way to a safer future. 

There is a growing 

recognition of the connection 

between the environment and 

human health. The interface 

between wildlife and human 

health, the emergence of new 

contaminants in the environment, and the introduction and 

spread of invasive species all 

have significant and far-reaching implications for public 

health. In the years ahead, the 

USGS will play an increasingly 

important role in understanding 

and ultimately solving these 

health issues. 

When the USGS was 

established in the late 19th 

century, the Nation’s natural 

resources of water, minerals, energy, and living things 

appeared limitless. The extinction of the passenger pigeon, 

drastic reductions in some 

animal and plant populations, 

energy shortages, and new 

concerns about the availability 

of clean water have brought 

a broader realization that 

resources are finite. However, 

human ingenuity, unlike other 

natural resources, is limitless, 

and USGS scientists are focusing their creative intelligence on 

providing the science needed to 

live fully yet lightly on the land. 

After 125 years, the USGS 

continues to make a difference 

in the quality of life in America 

and abroad. The taxpayers’ 

investment in basic science and 

monitoring at the USGS has 

paid a handsome dividend in 

science that everyone can use. 

Proud to be part of an organization with a distinguished 

history of unbiased science, the 

people of the USGS dedicate 

themselves to continuing their 

studies of the landscape, natural 

resources, and natural hazards. 

They look forward with fresh 

commitment to providing science for a changing world.
54 Celebrating 125 Years of the U.S. Geological Survey

For More 

Information

Alley, W.M., Reilly, T.E., and 

Franke, O.L., 1999, Sustainability of ground-water 

resources: U.S. Geological 

Survey Circular 1186, 79 p.

Bohlen, S.R., Halley, R.B., 

Hickman, S.H., Johnson, 

S.Y., Lowenstern, J.B., 

Muhs, D.R., Plumlee, G.S., 

Thompson, G.A., Trauger, 

D.L., and Zoback, M.L., 

1998, Geology for a changing world; a science strategy 

for the Geologic Division of 

the U.S. Geological Survey, 

2000–2010: U.S. Geological 

Survey Circular 1172, 59 p.

Cowardin, L.M., Carter, V., 

Golet, F.C., and LaRoe, E.T., 

1979, Classification of wetlands and deepwater habitats 

of the United States: U.S. 

Department of the Interior, 

Fish and Wildlife Service, 

Washington, D.C., 131 p.

Frazier, A.H., and Heckler, 

Wilbur, 1972, Embudo, New 

Mexico, birthplace of systematic stream gaging: U.S. 

Geological Survey Professional Paper 778, 23 p.

LaRoe, E.T., Farris, G.S., 

Puckett, C.E., Doran, P.D., 

and Mac, M. J., eds., 1995, 

Our living resources; a report 

to the Nation on the distribution, abundance, and health 

of U.S. plants, animals, and 

ecosystems: Washington, 

D.C., National Biological 

Service, 530 p.

Mac, M.J., Opler, P.A., Puckett 

Hacker, C.E., and Doran, 

P.D., eds., 1998, Status 

and trends of the Nation’s 

biological resources: Reston, 

Va., U.S. Geological Survey, 

2 vols., 964 p.

Rabbitt, M.C., 1989, The 

United States Geological 

Survey—1879–1989: U.S. 

Geological Survey Circular 

1050, 52 p.

Robinson, G.D., and Spieker, 

A.M., 1978, Nature to be 

commanded...Earth-science 

maps applied to land and 

water management: U.S. 

Geological Survey Professional Paper 950, 95 p.

Thompson, M.M., 1981, Maps 

for America [2d ed.]: Reston, 

Va., U.S. Geological Survey, 

265 p.

U.S. Geological Survey, 1904, 

The United States Geological 

Survey—Its origin, development, organization, and 

operations: U.S. Geological 

Survey Bulletin 227, 121 p.

Vigil, J.F., Pike, R.J., and Howell, D.G., 2000, A tapestry 

of time and terrain: U.S. 

Geological Survey Geologic 

Investigations Series Map 

I–2720, scale 1:3,500,000, 

24-p. text.

Winter, T.C., Harvey, J.W., 

Franke, O.L., and Alley, 

W.M., 1998, Ground water 

and surface water; a single 

resource: U.S. Geological 

Survey Circular 1139, 79 p.

<www.usgs.gov>

<biology.usgs.gov>

<geography.usgs.gov>

<geology.usgs.gov>

<water.usgs.gov>

Figure Information

Front cover. Artist: Maura Harrison, 

USGS.

Back cover. Artist: Vitmary Rodriguez, 

USGS.

p. 1. The Organic Act establishing the 

U.S. Geological Survey. Photograph 

courtesy of Library of Congress.

p. 2. City, river, and drilling rigs. Artist: 

John M. Evans, USGS.

p. 3. Leadville, Colo., mining district, 

subject of an early mining geology 

study, 1879. USGS.

p. 4. Alabama shad. Artist: Duane Raver. 

Illustration courtesy of U.S. Fish and 

Wildlife Service. 

p. 4. Major John Wesley Powell at 

his desk in the Adams Building on F 

Street, NW., Washington, D.C., ca. 1896. 

Photograph courtesy of Smithsonian 

Institution.

p. 6. First streamgaging camp, Embudo, 

N. Mex., 1888. USGS.

p. 8. A scientist measures streamflow 

near Clayton, N.J. USGS.

p. 9. Oblique aerial view of Mount St. 

Helens, Wash., before the May 18, 1980, 

eruption, as seen from Bear Cove, Spirit 

Lake. Photograph courtesy of USDA, 

Forest Service. 

p. 9. Mount St. Helens in eruption, May 

18, 1980. D.A. Swanson, USGS.

p. 9. Mount St. Helens reflected in Spirit 

Lake, 2 years after the eruption of May 

18, 1980. USGS.

p. 9. San Francisco, Calif., earthquake of 

April 18, 1906. Hibernia Bank Building. 

1906. USGS.

p. 10. Whooping crane egg. Nelson 

Beyer, USGS.

p. 10. A USGS scientist uses a puppet 

to teach a 2-week-old whooper how 

to probe in the wet ground, to help 

him learn to hunt and forage. Barbara 

Niccolai, USGS.

p. 11. Whooping cranes at Aransas 

National Wildlife Refuge. Photograph 

courtesy of U.S. Fish and Wildlife 

Service.

p. 11. Gray wolf. David Mech, USGS.

p. 11. Patuxent Wildlife Research Center, 

Md. USGS.

p. 12. Denver Federal Center, Colo. 

USGS.

p. 12. Yellow warbler. Chandler Robbins, 

USGS. 

p. 12. Mallard ducks. Milton Friend, 

USGS.

p. 12. Wildlife at the Salton Sea. Milton 

Friend, USGS.

p. 13. Pumping ground water to support 

the San Joaquin Valley agricultural 

region. Photograph courtesy of 

California Department of Water 

Resources. 

p. 14. A USGS librarian holds an 

extremely rare 19th century book on 

gems and precious stones from India. 

USGS.

p. 14. Sawgrass marsh. USGS.

p. 14. Mangrove. USGS.

p. 14. Salt marsh. USGS.

p. 15. Scientists use an airboat to 

conduct research in a wetland. USGS. 

p. 15. Sea-floor map of Alderdice Bank, 

northwestern Gulf of Mexico. USGS.

p. 15. Menlo Park Center, Calif. Leslie 

Gordon, USGS.

p. 16. Sea-floor map of East Flower 

Garden Bank, northwestern Gulf of 

Mexico. USGS.

p. 16. Sea-floor map of Bouma, 

Rezak, Sidner, and McGrail Banks, 

northwestern Gulf of Mexico. USGS.

p. 17. Gene and Carolyn Shoemaker at 

Palomar telescope. USGS.

p. 17. An astronaut in the USGS geology 

training program. USGS.
References, Figure Information, and Acknowledgments 55

p. 17. The “11-Meter” crater (left) and 

the Philby “A” crater (right). Both are 

part of the Wabar meteorite impact 

craters complex in the core of the ArRub’ Al-Khali (Empty Quarter) region of 

Saudi Arabia. Jeff Wynn, USGS.

p. 18. Aerial photograph of Cambridge, 

Mass., May 7, 1996. USGS.

p. 18. Aerial photograph of area 4 km 

east of Grand Coulee, Wash., July 5, 

1991. USGS.

p. 18. Alaska earthquake of March 27, 

1964. Fourth Avenue near C Street in 

Anchorage collapsed because of a 

landslide caused by the earthquake. 

Before the shock, the sidewalk on the 

left, which is in the graben, was at street 

level on the right. The graben subsided 

11 ft in response to 14 ft of horizontal 

movement. Photograph courtesy of U.S. 

Army.

p. 19. Land-cover map of the 48 States. 

USGS.

p. 19. Water fountain. © Jupiter Images, 

Clipart.com.

p. 19. Alaskan coastal brown bear 

(female with yearlings). Steven 

Partridge, USGS.

p. 20. Satellite image of the Chesapeake 

Bay watershed. USGS.

p. 20. La Conchita, Calif.—a small 

seaside community along Highway 101 

south of Santa Barbara. This landslide 

and debris flow occurred in the spring 

of 1995. R.L. Schuster, USGS.

p. 21. Landsat image of San Francisco 

Bay. USGS.

p. 21. Aerial view of the Platte River. 

Michael Collier, USGS.

p. 21. National Wildlife Health Center, 

Madison, Wis. USGS.

p. 22. Spotted salamander. USGS.

p. 22. Wood frog. USGS.

p. 22. John Wesley Powell Building, 

USGS National Headquarters, Reston, 

Va. Dave Usher, USGS.

p. 23. Sea lamprey. Photograph courtesy 

of U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

 p. 24. A local catfish angler (Thomas 

Ellis, on left) and Ed Malindzak, a master 

of science student at the North Carolina 

Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research 

Unit, with a flathead catfish captured 

from Contentnea Creek, N.C. Flathead 

catfish are not native to the Atlantic 

slope, and the N.C. Coop Unit is studying 

their effects on native riverine fishes. 

Photograph by Bill Pine.

p. 24. Leafy spurge, native to Eurasia, 

is one of the most serious weeds in the 

northern United States, causing millions 

of dollars of crop losses and control 

costs. Photograph by George Markham, 

courtesy of USDA, Forest Service.

p. 24. Yellow starthistle, a native of the 

Mediterranean region, is crowding 

out cattle forage as well as rare 

species such as this mariposa lily in 

Hells Canyon, Idaho. Photograph by 

J. Asher, courtesy of Bureau of Land 

Management.

p. 25. Spanning the southern tip of the 

Florida Peninsula and most of Florida 

Bay, Everglades National Park is the 

only subtropical preserve in North 

America. USGS.

p. 25. Center-pivot irrigation systems 

created these circular patterns in 

crop land near Garden City, Kans. The 

red circles indicate irrigated crops of 

healthy vegetation. The light-colored 

circles represent harvested crops. 

USGS.

p. 25. The Lambert Glacier in Antarctica 

is the world’s largest glacier. An icefall 

feeds into the glacier from the vast ice 

sheet covering the polar plateau. USGS.

p. 25. Mount St. Helens in eruption 

on May 18, 1980; the violence of 

the eruption contrasts with the 

quiet countryside. Mount Adams in 

background. Skamania County, Wash. 

USGS.

p. 26. A scientist makes a discharge 

measurement, Redwell Basin, Colo. 

Philip Verplanck, USGS.

p. 26. A USGS scientist inspects a radioreporting flood-warning gage at the East 

branch of the Rahway River, at Millburn, 

N.J. Dave Usher, USGS.

p. 27. A satellite dish at the EROS Data 

Center, Sioux Falls, S. Dak. USGS.

p. 27. Two screen captures from 

searches of the Geographic Names 

Database. USGS.

p. 28. Freeway collapse resulting from 

the 1994 earthquake in Northridge, Calif. 

USGS.

p. 28. Redoubt volcano on April 10, 

1990. Drift glacier occupies the valley 

extending from the vent (at steam 

plume) to the valley bottom (visible in 

lower right). USGS.

p. 28. Seismogram. Dave Usher, USGS.

p. 29. A scientist returns an ice core 

to storage at the National Ice Core 

Laboratory. USGS.

p. 29. Loma Prieta, Calif., earthquake 

of October 17, 1989. Lack of adequate 

shear walls on the garage level 

exacerbated damage to this structure at 

the corner of Beach and Divisadero in 

San Francisco’s Marina District. USGS.

p. 30. A screen shot from The National 

Map viewer shows Bethany Beach, Del. 

USGS.

p. 30. A screen shot from TerraServer 

showing a portion of a USGS 

topographic map of Washington, D.C. 

USGS.

p. 31. Photograph of Tucson, Ariz., from 

The National Map. USGS.

p. 31. The National Wetlands Research 

Center, Lafayette, La. USGS.

p. 32. Two employees use a GIS 

application to view several datasets of a 

given area. Sharon Cline, USGS.

p. 33. Damage to a parking garage 

as a result of the 1994 Northridge 

earthquake. D. Carver, USGS.

p. 33. The urban growth of three U.S. 

cities can be seen in these sets of 

illustrations (from USGS Circular 1252). 

USGS.

p. 34. Flagstaff Science Center, Ariz. 

USGS.

p. 34. Satellite images of Las Vegas from 

1972, 1986, and 1992. USGS.

p. 34. A memorial to the 57 people who 

perished in the eruption of Mount St. 

Helens is 5 miles north of the volcano on 

Johnston Ridge. The ridge was named 

for USGS geologist David Johnston, who 

was killed at a nearby observation post. 

Photograph by Tom Iraci, courtesy of 

USDA, Forest Service.

p. 35. Flowering Tamarix ramosissima

photographed at Dos Palmas Oasis 

(near Palm Springs) in Riverside, County, 

Calif. Jeffrey E Lovich, USGS.

p. 35. Zebra mussels. USGS.

p. 36. Brown tree snake. USGS.

p. 36. Multispectral false color image 

of Hurricane Floyd, September 15, 1999. 

Image courtesy of NOAA.

p. 37. Cape Hatteras National Park, N.C. 

Photograph courtesy of National Park 

Service.

p. 37. Badlands National Park, S. Dak. 

Photograph courtesy of National Park 

Service.

p. 37. Denali National Park, Alaska. 

Photograph courtesy of National Park 

Service.

p. 37. Robert H. Meade inserts a smoked 

glass slide into a bathythermograph . 

This instrument, familiar to all ocean 

researchers, records water temperature 

at various depths on the smoked glass 

slide. USGS.

p. 38. USGS conducts studies of dust 

particles in the aftermath of the collapse 

of the World Trade Center. Gregg 

Swayze and Todd Hoefen, USGS.

p. 38. Albert White Hat, Sr., explains 

the relationship between Sinte Gleska 

University and the USGS during 

the signing of a Memorandum of 

Understanding. USGS.

p. 39. Tribal personnel are trained by 

USGS hydrologists as part of the Bureau 

of Indian Affairs Water Technician 

Training Program, held at Central 

Washington University, Ellensburg, 

Wash. Photograph by David E. Click.

p. 39. Sampling on the La Jolla Indian 

Reservation, Calif., on National Water 

Monitoring Day 2002. Julia A. Huff and 

Laurel L. Rogers, USGS.

p. 40. Seismometers like this one 

near Mount Spurr volcano (on skyline 

in background) provide the Alaska 

Volcano Observatory with a continuous, 

radio-telemetered record of volcanic 

earthquakes. These data are used to 

monitor activity at the volcano and are 

critical to the ability of the observatory 

to issue timely warnings of eruptions. C. 

Neal, USGS.

p. 40. View from space of the Earth’s 

Western Hemisphere. Photograph 

courtesy of NASA.

p. 40. View from space of the Earth’s 

Eastern Hemisphere. Photograph 

courtesy of NASA.
56 Celebrating 125 Years of the U.S. Geological Survey

p. 40. Seismic hazard maps are based 

on information about the rate at which 

earthquakes occur in different areas 

and on how far shaking extends from 

the earthquake source. This national 

map of earthquake shaking hazards 

shows areas vulnerable to earthquake 

shaking and provides information for 

creating and updating the seismic 

design provisions of building codes used 

in the United States. 

p. 41. An 18-km-high volcanic plume 

from one of a series of explosive 

eruptions of Mount Pinatubo beginning 

on June 12, 1991, viewed from Clark Air 

Base, Philippines (about 20 km east of 

the volcano). David H. Harlow, USGS.

p. 41. Hurricane Mitch. Photograph 

courtesy of NOAA.

p. 41. Recovery of a tripod with sediment 

transport instrumentation used in the 

Boston Harbor study. USGS.

p. 42. USGS scientist Ross Stein in 

the Aya Sofia in Istanbul, Turkey. This 

ancient church is an important structure 

in the study of historical earthquakes. 

Serkan Bozkurt, USGS.

p. 43. Decisionmakers and citizens 

across the United States value 

USGS science when addressing 

environmental, natural-resource, 

and hazards-related issues. © Corbis 

Images.

p. 43. The Culex pipiens 

quinquefasciatus mosquito is 

responsible for the transmission of 

West Nile virus. Photograph by Stephen 

Higgs, Department of Pathology, 

University of Texas Medical Branch, 

Galveston, Tex.

p. 44. A USGS scientist discusses 

hydrologic issues with a group of future 

scientists. USGS.

p. 44. An elk suffers from chronic 

wasting disease. Photograph by Terry 

Kreeger, courtesy of Wyoming Game 

and Fish Department.

p. 45. Chemicals used every day in 

homes, industry and agriculture can 

enter the environment through our 

wastewater and other mechanisms. 

©Hemera.com.

p. 45. A poster highlights the diversity of 

the USGS workforce. David Newman, 

USGS.

p. 46. EROS Data Center, S. Dak. USGS.

p. 46. Potomac River at low flow looking 

north from Chain Bridge, Washington, 

D.C. David Brower, USGS.

p. 46. Potomac River during flood 

conditions looking north from Chain 

Bridge, Washington, D.C. David Brower, 

USGS.

p. 47. In response to the growing 

need for information for sustainable 

development, the USGS conducts 

cooperative international projects to 

assess mineral, energy, water, and other 

natural resources throughout the world 

and is actively involved in research to 

identify new resources for the future. 

Jean Noe Weaver, USGS.

p. 47. Sampling freshly exposed mine 

waste at the Elizabeth Mine Superfund 

Site, Vt. USGS.

p. 47. Personal Digital Assistants 

are increasingly used for field data 

collection activities. Maura Harrison, 

USGS.

p. 48. Gas hydrates are a potentially 

huge energy resource. USGS.

p. 48. Ground-penetrating radar 

being tested as a future noncontact 

streamgaging tool on the Cowlitz River, 

Wash. USGS.

p. 49. New advances in genetics and 

molecular biology could help bring 

animal and plant species back from 

the brink of extinction. Maura Harrison, 

USGS.

p. 49. Keeping USGS information secure 

and accessible is a critical datamanagement issue. Maura Harrison, 

USGS.

p. 50. ShakeMaps did not exist in 1994 

when the magnitude 6.7 Northridge, 

Calif., earthquake occurred. Had a 

ShakeMap been available for that 

earthquake, it could have been used 

to rapidly guide emergency-response 

teams to areas that potentially had the 

greatest need. This ShakeMap is made 

with data recorded from the Northridge 

earthquake. It shows that the greatest 

shaking occurred to the north of the 

epicenter and in other isolated areas, 

a pattern that could not have been 

anticipated with only magnitude and 

location information for the earthquake. 

USGS.

p. 50. A ShakeMap for a possible 

magnitude 7.2 earthquake near Seattle, 

Wash., shows estimated intensities 

and ground motions for a planning 

scenario. Such scenarios are useful 

for emergency response exercises and 

planning, as well as for understanding 

the potential consequences of future 

large earthquakes. USGS.

p. 51. This Landsat 7 image of the 

Mackenzie Delta, Northwest Territories, 

was acquired on August 28, 2002. The 

image is representative of the satellite 

data provided by the EROS Data Center 

to scientists, resource managers, and 

educators around the world. USGS.

p. 51. Washington, D.C., is visible as light 

blue in this EO-1 Hyperion image. USGS.

p. 51. A lightning strike on June 16, 

2004, started the Pingo wildfire amidst 

Alaska’s worst heat wave in 50 years. 

As of July 7, 2004, the fire had burned 

180,000 acres and continued to threaten 

the village of Venetie, visible in the 

lower right corner of this Landsat image. 

USGS.

p. 51. When the creativity of USGS 

scientists is combined with the 

opportunities of the private sector, the 

American public is well served. Maura 

Harrison, USGS.

p. 52. Like dark fingers, cold ocean 

waters reach deeply into the 

mountainous coastline of northern 

Norway, defining the fjords for which 

the country is famous. Flanked by 

snow-capped peaks, some of these icesculpted fjords are hundreds of meters 

deep. USGS.

p. 52. The Richat Structure is a 

geological formation in the Maur 

Adrar Desert in Mauritania. Although it 

resembles an impact crater, the Richat 

Structure formed when a volcanic 

dome hardened and gradually eroded, 

exposing the onionlike layers of rock. 

USGS.

p. 52. The West Fjords are a series of 

peninsulas in northwestern Iceland. 

They represent less than one-eighth 

the country’s land area, but their jagged 

perimeter accounts for more than half of 

Iceland’s total coastline. USGS.

p. 52. Landsat data were ‘draped’ over 

data from the Shuttle Radar Topography 

Mission (SRTM) to create a perspective 

view of the Santa Barbara, Calif., region. 

USGS.

p. 53. The USGS map “A Tapestry 

of Time and Terrain” combines a 

shaded-relief map and a geologic 

map to provide a unique view of the 

conterminous States. USGS.

Acknowledgments

We thank the more than 

100 people who provided information and images and who 

reviewed this Circular; we are 

grateful for your support and 

help. Above all, we thank all the 

USGS employees throughout 

our history who have contributed their energy, intelligence, 

and creativity to provide 125 

years of relevant, impartial 

science for America and for the 

world.

Compilation: 

 Kathleen K. Gohn

Layout: 

 Maura H. Harrison

Editing:

 Dona Brizzi

125th Anniversary Team:

 Carolyn C. Bell

 Jon C. Campbell

 Athena P. Clark 

 Joye L. Durant

 Gaye S. Farris

 Marion M. Fisher

 Leslie C. Gordon

 Daniel L. James

 Martha D. Kiger

 Tania M. Larson

 Glenn G. Patterson

 Frances W. Pierce

 Elizabeth A. Stettner

 Stephen J. Vandas

 Karen R. Wood
Gohn—Celebrating 125 Years of the U.S. Geological Survey—Circular 1274

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