Geology, Geophysics, and Geochemistry Science Center
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Welcome to the Geology, Geophysics, and Geochemistry Science Center (GGGSC) located in Lakewood, Colorado on the Denver Federal Center. At GGGSC, we apply expertise in geology, geophysics, and geochemistry to interdisciplinary efforts in support of the USGS mission to address the Nation’s important earth science issues, with an emphasis on mineral resources.
Laboratories
Our center has several laboratories, ranging from geophysics to geochemistry to spectroscopy to scanning electron microscopes.
Center LaboratoriesScience Branches
Our strong science portfolio integrates regional and economic geology with a broad range of geophysical, geochemical, analytical expertise. Our center has four scientific branches:
Economic and Framework Geology
Spatial Analysis and Data Management
All Laboratory Projects (regardless of branch)
Explore Our ScienceNews
USGS Updates Mineral Database with Tungsten Deposits in the United States
The USGS has updated its USMIN Mineral Deposit Database for the mineral commodity tungsten, one of 35 minerals declared critical by the Department of the Interior in 2018.
Energy Quarterly - Summer 2020
As summer begins, here are a few highlights in our Energy Quarterly Newsletter. This edition is a quick overview of the Energy Resources Program's assessments, research, data, and publications. We also share highlights from our fellow program in the USGS Energy and Minerals Mission Area, the Mineral Resources Program.
USGS Mineral Resources Program Highlights
USGS Mineral Resources Program Highlights for the Summer 2020 Edition of the USGS Energy Quarterly Newsletter
Publications
Focus areas for data acquisition for potential domestic resources of 11 critical minerals in the conterminous United States, Hawaii, and Puerto Rico—Aluminum, cobalt, graphite, lithium, niobium, platinum-group elements, rare earth elements, tantalum, tin, titanium, and tungsten
In response to a need for information on potential domestic sources of critical minerals, the Earth Mapping Resources Initiative (Earth MRI) was established to identify and prioritize areas for acquisition of new geologic mapping, geophysical data, and elevation data to improve our knowledge of the geologic framework of the United States. Phase 1...
Hammarstrom, Jane M.; Dicken, Connie L.; Day, Warren C.; Hofstra, Albert H.; Drenth, Benjamin J.; Shah, Anjana K.; McCafferty, Anne E.; Woodruff, Laurel G.; Foley, Nora K.; Ponce, David A.; Frost, Thomas P.; Stillings, Lisa L.
Quantifying model structural uncertainty using airborne electromagnetic data
The ability to quantify structural uncertainty in geological models that incorporate geophysical data is affected by two primary sources of uncertainty: geophysical parameter uncertainty and uncertainty in the relationship between geophysical parameters and geological properties of interest. Here, we introduce an open-source, trans-dimensional...
Minsley, Burke J.; Foks, N. Leon; Bedrosian, Paul A. Constraining central Himalayan (Nepal) fault geometry through integrated thermochronology and thermokinematic modeling
Constraining the subsurface structural geometry of the central Himalaya continues to prove difficult, even after the 2015 Gorkha earthquake and the resulting insights into the trajectory of the Main Himalayan thrust (MHT). To this end, we apply a thermokinematic model to evaluate four possible balanced cross section geometries based on three...
Ghoshal, Surydoy; McQuarrie, Nadine; Robinson, Delores; Adhikari, D.P.; Morgan, Leah E.; Ehlers, Todd A.