Geoscientists working in the oil and gas industry sometimes process and interpret the maps produced by remote sensing satellites to help identify potential new oil or gas deposits. Seismic technology is also an important exploration tool. Seismic waves are used to develop 3-dimensional computer models of underground or underwater rock formations. Geologists and geophysicists also apply geological knowledge to engineering problems in constructing large buildings, dams, tunnels, and highways. Geology and geophysics are closely related fields, but there are major differences.
Geologists study the composition, structure, and history of the earth's crust.
They try to find out how rocks were formed and what has happened to them since their formation. Geophysicists use the principles of physics and mathematics to study not only the earth's surface but its internal composition, ground and surface waters, atmosphere, and oceans as well as its magnetic, electrical, and gravitational forces. Both, however, commonly apply their skills to the search for natural resources and to solve environmental problems. There are numerous subdisciplines or specialties that fall under the two major disciplines of geology and geophysics which further differentiate the kind of work geoscientists do. For example, petroleum geologists .