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U.S. Geological Survey Gas Hydrates Project Active

By Woods Hole Coastal and Marine Science Center October 15, 2018

Gas Hydrates Project Physical Properties Laboratory

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Biogeochemistry Laboratory

Explore Biogeochemistry Laboratory Site

HyPrCAL Laboratory Site

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USGS Scientists Contribute to Gas Hydrates Monograph

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Preliminary global database of known and inferred gas hydrate location

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Marine Geophysical Data Collected to Support Methane Seep Research

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The Interaction of Climate Change and Methane Hydrates

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The USGS Gas Hydrates Project has been making contributions to advance understanding of US and international gas hydrates science for at least three decades. The research group working on gas hydrates at the USGS is among the largest in the US and has expertise in all the major geoscience disciplines, as well as in the physics and chemistry of gas hydrates, the geotechnical properties of hydrate-bearing sediments, and the biogeochemistry of marine and permafrost gas hydrate systems. The group includes field-based scientists, numerical modelers, laboratory scientists, and supporting technical personnel for marine, permafrost, and laboratory operations. Much of the research is carried out in collaboration with other federal agencies (especially the U.S. Department of Energy) or academic partners, and there are frequently opportunities to collaborate on international programs that jointly serve the Project's mission and the goals of the international partners. 

Biogeochemistry Lab

A scientist working on a computer among laboratory equipment

The Gas Hydrates Biogeochemistry Laboratory includes all instrumentation used by the USGS Gas Hydrates Project on site at the Woods Hole Coastal and Marine Science Center. This instrumentation is physically distributed among several laboratory spaces.

Explore Biogeochemistry Laboratory Site

HyPrCAL Lab

long shot of scientific laboratory with equipment on the floor, walls, and shelving

The USGS Gas Hydrates Project manages the standalone Hydrate Pressure Core Analysis Laboratory (HyPrCAL) at the Woods Hole Coastal and Marine Science Center (WHCMSC) to study hydrate-bearing sediments in support of energy resources and geohazards research. 

Explore HyPrCAL Laboratory Site

Gas Hydrates Research

The USGS Gas Hydrates Project focuses on the study of natural gas hydrates in deepwater marine systems and permafrost areas.

The USGS Gas Hydrates Project focuses on the study of natural gas hydrates in deepwater marine systems and permafrost areas. The primary goals are: 

  • Evaluate methane hydrates as a potential energy source 
  • Investigate the interaction between methane hydrate destabilization and climate change at short and long time scales 
  • Study the spatial and temporal connections between submarine slope failures and gas hydrate dynamics 
map of the united states highlighting gas hydrate project locations
Sources/Usage: Public Domain.
The USGS Gas Hydrates Project integrates across USGS mission areas, programs, regions, and centers. The circles indicate the locations of scientists involved in the Gas Hydrates Project. Within the US, much of the research focuses on the Gulf of Mexico and Alaska, which represent deepwater marine and permafrost-associated settings for gas hydrates, respectively.

The Gas Hydrate Project conducts multidisciplinary field studies, participates in national and international deep drilling expeditions, and maintains several laboratories focused on hydrate-bearing sediments. 

Physical Properties Lab Biogeochemistry Lab Pressure Core Analysis Lab
Sources/Usage: Public Domain.
The USGS Gas Hydrates Project analyzes the sediments that make up gas hydrate reservoirs in the Physical Properties Laboratory and manages the standalone Hydrate Pressure Core Analysis Laboratory (HyPrCAL) at the Woods Hole Coastal and Marine Science Center (WHCMSC) to study hydrate-bearing sediments in support of energy resources and geohazards research. The Biogeochemistry Laboratory analyzes solid, liquid, and gaseous samples to determine their chemical composition, stable carbon isotopic signatures, and radiocarbon age.

Scientific research associated with the Gas Hydrates Project.

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Matrix cruise study area

The Mid-Atlantic Resource Imaging Experiment (MATRIX)

In late August 2018, scientists and technical staff from the USGS Coastal and Marine Hazards and Resources Program completed the acquisition of over 2000 km of multichannel seismic (MCS) data as part of the Mid-Atlantic Resource Imaging Experiment (MATRIX) conducted aboard the R/V Hugh R. Sharp. The seismic program was led by the USGS Gas Hydrates Project and was sponsored by the USGS, the U.S...
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Natural Hazards, Coastal and Marine Hazards and Resources Program, Pacific Coastal and Marine Science Center, Woods Hole Coastal and Marine Science Center
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The Mid-Atlantic Resource Imaging Experiment (MATRIX)

In late August 2018, scientists and technical staff from the USGS Coastal and Marine Hazards and Resources Program completed the acquisition of over 2000 km of multichannel seismic (MCS) data as part of the Mid-Atlantic Resource Imaging Experiment (MATRIX) conducted aboard the R/V Hugh R. Sharp. The seismic program was led by the USGS Gas Hydrates Project and was sponsored by the USGS, the U.S...
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Photograph of the Research Vessel Hugh R. Sharp

IMMeRSS-- Interagency Mission for Methane Research on Seafloor Seeps

From May 3 to May 11, 2017, the U.S. Geological Survey, in collaboration with the British Geological Survey and with support from these two agencies, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Office of Ocean Exploration and Research, and the U.S. Department of Energy, will lead an expedition aboard the R/V Hugh R. Sharp to explore seafloor methane seeps on the northern U.S...
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Natural Hazards, Coastal and Marine Hazards and Resources Program, Woods Hole Coastal and Marine Science Center
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IMMeRSS-- Interagency Mission for Methane Research on Seafloor Seeps

From May 3 to May 11, 2017, the U.S. Geological Survey, in collaboration with the British Geological Survey and with support from these two agencies, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Office of Ocean Exploration and Research, and the U.S. Department of Energy, will lead an expedition aboard the R/V Hugh R. Sharp to explore seafloor methane seeps on the northern U.S...
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Swath bathymetric map of the Cape Fear submarine slide

Gas Hydrates- Submarine Slope Destabilization

Gas Hydrates and Marine Geohazards. Scientists have long postulated a connection between seafloor failures and dissociation of gas hydrate. In deepwater marine settings where warm fluids are pumped from great depths below the seafloor for extraction of conventional oil and gas, heating of sediments near a well could lead to breakdown of gas hydrate and release of gas and water. Intact gas hydrate...
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Natural Hazards, Coastal and Marine Hazards and Resources Program, Woods Hole Coastal and Marine Science Center
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Gas Hydrates- Submarine Slope Destabilization

Gas Hydrates and Marine Geohazards. Scientists have long postulated a connection between seafloor failures and dissociation of gas hydrate. In deepwater marine settings where warm fluids are pumped from great depths below the seafloor for extraction of conventional oil and gas, heating of sediments near a well could lead to breakdown of gas hydrate and release of gas and water. Intact gas hydrate...
Learn More
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Photograph of Methane-derived authigenic carbonate

Gas Hydrates- Atlantic Margin Methane Seeps

Analysis of 94,000 square kilometers of multibeam water column backscatter data collected by the NOAA Okeanos Explorer mostly seaward of the shelf-break on the northern US Atlantic margin reveals more than 570 gas plumes that correspond to seafloor methane seeps. This discovery is documented in an August 2014 Nature Geoscience paper entitled, "Widespread methane leakage from the seafloor on the...
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Natural Hazards, Coastal and Marine Hazards and Resources Program, Woods Hole Coastal and Marine Science Center
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Gas Hydrates- Atlantic Margin Methane Seeps

Analysis of 94,000 square kilometers of multibeam water column backscatter data collected by the NOAA Okeanos Explorer mostly seaward of the shelf-break on the northern US Atlantic margin reveals more than 570 gas plumes that correspond to seafloor methane seeps. This discovery is documented in an August 2014 Nature Geoscience paper entitled, "Widespread methane leakage from the seafloor on the...
Learn More
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Image: Bottlenose Dolphin (Turisiops truncatus)

Environmental Compliance

The National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (NEPA) is the cornerstone of our Nation's environmental laws and was enacted to ensure that information on the environmental impacts of any Federal, or federally funded, action is available to public officials and citizens before decisions are made and before actions are taken
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Natural Hazards, Coastal and Marine Hazards and Resources Program, Woods Hole Coastal and Marine Science Center
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Environmental Compliance

The National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (NEPA) is the cornerstone of our Nation's environmental laws and was enacted to ensure that information on the environmental impacts of any Federal, or federally funded, action is available to public officials and citizens before decisions are made and before actions are taken
Learn More
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Area in northern Alaska where subsurface temperature and pressure conditions are conducive to the occurrence of gas hydrates

Gas Hydrates- Climate and Hydrate Interactions

The USGS Gas Hydrates Project focuses on the study of natural gas hydrates in deepwater marine systems and permafrost areas.  Breakdown of gas hydrates due to short- or long-term climate change may release methane to the ocean-atmosphere system. As a potent greenhouse gas, methane that reaches the atmosphere from degrading gas hydrate deposits could in turn exacerbate climate warming.
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Natural Hazards, Coastal and Marine Hazards and Resources Program, Woods Hole Coastal and Marine Science Center
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Gas Hydrates- Climate and Hydrate Interactions

The USGS Gas Hydrates Project focuses on the study of natural gas hydrates in deepwater marine systems and permafrost areas.  Breakdown of gas hydrates due to short- or long-term climate change may release methane to the ocean-atmosphere system. As a potent greenhouse gas, methane that reaches the atmosphere from degrading gas hydrate deposits could in turn exacerbate climate warming.
Learn More
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Burning Gas Hydrate

Gas Hydrates- Energy

Natural gas production from methane hydrates may someday prove viable. The USGS Gas Hydrate Project takes part in US and international programs to investigate the potential of deepwater marine and permafrost gas hydrates as an energy resource. Long-term production tests are the next step in this research.
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Natural Hazards, Coastal and Marine Hazards and Resources Program, Woods Hole Coastal and Marine Science Center
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Gas Hydrates- Energy

Natural gas production from methane hydrates may someday prove viable. The USGS Gas Hydrate Project takes part in US and international programs to investigate the potential of deepwater marine and permafrost gas hydrates as an energy resource. Long-term production tests are the next step in this research.
Learn More
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Hydrate Molecule

Gas Hydrates - Primer

What is Gas Hydrate? Gas hydrate is an ice-like crystalline form of water and low molecular weight gas (e.g., methane, ethane, carbon dioxide). On Earth, gas hydrates occur naturally in some marine sediments and within and beneath permafrost. Gas hydrates have also been inferred on other planets or their moons.
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Natural Hazards, Coastal and Marine Hazards and Resources Program, Woods Hole Coastal and Marine Science Center
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Gas Hydrates - Primer

What is Gas Hydrate? Gas hydrate is an ice-like crystalline form of water and low molecular weight gas (e.g., methane, ethane, carbon dioxide). On Earth, gas hydrates occur naturally in some marine sediments and within and beneath permafrost. Gas hydrates have also been inferred on other planets or their moons.
Learn More

Data Releases associated with the Gas Hydrates Project

Filter Total Items: 16

Dataset of diatom controls on the compressibility and permeability of fine-grained sediment collected offshore of South Korea during the Second Ulleung Basin Gas Hydrate Expedition, UBGH2

One of the primary goals of South Korea's second Ulleung Basin Gas Hydrate Expedition (UBGH2) was to examine the geotechnical properties of the marine sediment associated with methane gas hydrate occurrences found off the shore of eastern Korea in the Ulleung Basin, East Sea. Methane gas hydrate is a naturally occurring crystalline solid that sequesters methane in individual molecular cages formed
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Coastal and Marine Hazards and Resources Program, Woods Hole Coastal and Marine Science Center

Dataset of diatom controls on the sedimentation behavior of fine-grained sediment collected offshore of South Korea during the Second Ulleung Basin Gas Hydrate Expedition, UBGH2

One of the primary goals of South Korea's second Ulleung Basin Gas Hydrate Expedition (UBGH2) was to examine the geotechnical properties of the marine sediment associated with methane gas hydrate occurrences found offshore of eastern Korea in the Ulleung Basin, East Sea. Methane gas hydrate is a naturally occurring crystalline solid that sequesters methane in individual molecular cages formed by a
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Coastal and Marine Hazards and Resources Program, Woods Hole Coastal and Marine Science Center

Water column physical and chemical properties of Cenote Bang, a component of the Ox Bel Ha cave network within the subterranean estuary coastal aquifer of the Yucatan Peninsula, from December 2013 to January 2016

Subterranean estuaries extend inland into density-stratified coastal carbonate aquifers that contain a surprising diversity of endemic animals (mostly crustaceans) within a highly oligotrophic environment. How complex ecosystems thrive in this globally-distributed, cryptic habitat (termed anchialine) is poorly understood. The northeastern margin of the Yucatan Peninsula contains over 250 km of map
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Woods Hole Coastal and Marine Science Center

Comparison of methane concentration and stable carbon isotope data for natural samples analyzed by discrete sample introduction module - cavity ring down spectroscopy (DSIM-CRDS) and traditional methods

A discrete sample introduction module (DSIM) was developed and interfaced to a cavity ring-down spectrometer to enable measurements of methane and CO2 concentrations and 13C values with a commercially available cavity ring-down spectrometer (CRDS). The DSIM-CRDS system permits the analysis of limited volume (5 - 100-ml) samples ranging six orders-of-magnitude from 100% analyte to the lower limit o
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Natural Hazards, Coastal and Marine Hazards and Resources Program, Woods Hole Coastal and Marine Science Center

Split-beam Echo Sounder and Navigation Data Collected Using a Simrad EK80 Wide Band Tranceiver and ES38-10 Transducer During the Mid-Atlantic Resource Imaging Experiment (MATRIX), USGS Field Activity 2018-002-FA.

In summer 2018, the U.S. Geological Survey partnered with the U.S Department of Energy and the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management to conduct the Mid-Atlantic Resources Imaging Experiment (MATRIX) as part of the U.S. Geological Survey Gas Hydrates Project. The field program objectives were to acquire high-resolution 2-dimensional multichannel seismic-reflection and split-beam echosounder data along
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Natural Hazards, Coastal and Marine Hazards and Resources Program, Woods Hole Coastal and Marine Science Center

Multichannel Seismic-Reflection and Navigation Data Collected Using Sercel GI Guns and Geometrics GeoEel Digital Streamers During the Mid-Atlantic Resource Imaging Experiment (MATRIX), USGS Field Activity 2018-002-FA

In summer 2018, the U.S. Geological Survey partnered with the U.S Department of Energy and the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management to conduct the Mid-Atlantic Resources Imaging Experiment (MATRIX) as part of the U.S. Geological Survey Gas Hydrates Project. The field program objectives were to acquire high-resolution 2-dimensional multichannel seismic-reflection and split-beam echosounder data along
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Natural Hazards, Coastal and Marine Hazards and Resources Program, Pacific Coastal and Marine Science Center, Woods Hole Coastal and Marine Science Center

Dependence of sedimentation behavior on pore-fluid chemistry for sediment collected offshore South Korea during the Second Ulleung Basin Gas Hydrate Expedition, UBGH2

One goal of Korea?s second Ulleung Basin Gas Hydrate Expedition, UBGH2, is to examine geotechnical properties of the marine sediment associated with methane gas hydrate occurrences found offshore eastern Korea in the Ulleung Basin, East Sea. Methane gas hydrate is a naturally occurring crystalline solid that sequesters methane in individual molecular cages formed by a lattice of water molecules. O
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Coastal and Marine Hazards and Resources Program, Woods Hole Coastal and Marine Science Center

Marine Geophysical Data Collected to Support Methane Seep Research Along the U.S. Atlantic Continental Shelf Break and Upper Continental Slope Between the Baltimore and Keller Canyons During U.S. Geological Survey Field Activities 2017-001-FA and 2017-002

In spring and summer 2017, the U.S. Geological Survey's Gas Hydrates Project conducted two cruises aboard the research vessel Hugh R. Sharp to explore the geology, chemistry, ecology, physics, and oceanography of sea-floor methane seeps and water column gas plumes on the northern U.S. Atlantic margin between the Baltimore and Keller Canyons. Split-beam and multibeam echo sounders and a chirp subbo
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Coastal and Marine Hazards and Resources Program, Woods Hole Coastal and Marine Science Center

Thermal Data and Navigation for T-3 (Fletcher's) Ice Island Arctic Ocean Heat Flow Studies, 1963-73

The T-3 (Fletcher's) Ice Island in the Arctic Ocean was the site of a scientific research station re-established by the Naval Arctic Research Laboratory starting in 1962. Starting in 1963, the USGS acquired marine heat flow data and coincident sediment cores at sites in Canada Basin, Nautilus Basin, Mendeleev Ridge, and Alpha Ridge as the ice island drifted in the Amerasian Basin. At least 584 hea
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Coastal and Marine Hazards and Resources Program, Woods Hole Coastal and Marine Science Center

Post-expedition report for USGS T-3 Ice Island heat flow measurements in the High Arctic Ocean, 1963-1973

In February 1963, the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) began a study of heat flow in the Arctic Ocean Basin and acquired data at 356 sites in Canada Basin and Nautilus Basin and on Alpha-Mendeleev Ridge by the end of the project in 1973. The USGS heat flow and associated piston coring operations were conducted from a scientific station on the freely drifting T-3 Ice island (also known as Fletcher's
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Coastal and Marine Hazards and Resources Program, Woods Hole Coastal and Marine Science Center

Pressure Core Characterization Tool Measurements of Compressibility, Permeability, and Shear Strength of Fine-Grained Sediment Collected from Area C, Krishna-Godavari Basin, during India's National Gas Hydrate Program Expedition NGHP-02

Understanding how effectively methane can be extracted from a gas hydrate reservoir requires knowing how compressible, permeable, and strong the overlying seal sediment is. This data release provides results for flow-through permeability, consolidation, and direct shear measurements made on fine-grained seal sediment from Site NGHP-02-08 offshore eastern India. The sediment was collected in a pres
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Coastal and Marine Hazards and Resources Program, Woods Hole Coastal and Marine Science Center

Two-dimensional micromodel study of pore-throat clogging by pure fine-grained sediments and natural sediments from the 2015 National Gas Hydrate Program Expedition 2 (NGHP-02), offshore India

Fine-grained sediments, or "fines," are nearly ubiquitous in natural sediments, even in the predominantly coarse-grained sediments that host gas hydrates. Fines within these sandy sediments can be mobilized and subsequently clog flow pathways while methane is being extracted from gas hydrate as an energy resource. Using two-dimensional (2D) micromodels to test the conditi
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Coastal and Marine Hazards and Resources Program, Woods Hole Coastal and Marine Science Center

Mulitmedia items associated with the Gas Hydrates Project

Filter Total Items: 42
USGS employee measures water chemistry underwater in Double Keyhole Cave, FL
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Matrix cruise study area
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Multichannel seismic image
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Photograph of Atlantic spotted dolphins
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Photograph of USGS personnel leak testing the Instrumented Pressure Testing Chamber
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Photograph of 4 diesel compressors
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Photograph of USGS personnel retrieving airguns
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Photograph of a sonobuoy launch
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USGS personnel configuring and deploying the streamer of hydrophone receivers on the R/V Hugh R. Sharp
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Image shows a graphic with various gas hydrate expeditions on a timeline
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Photograph of a core storage facility in South Korea
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Image of Seth Haines
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USGS scientists in front of a painted archway in South Korea
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Image of Tim Collett
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Image of Tim Collett talking about Gas Hydrates
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Gas hydrate from offshore Korea
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Photograph of Methane-derived authigenic carbonate (MDAC) rocks on the seafloor on the U.S. Atlantic margin
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Photograph of methane plumes at the Norfolk Canyon seeps
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Photograph of dense beds of large and small Bathymodiulus mussels
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Methane plume imaged by the Okeanos Explorer's 30 kHz multibeam system
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Map of the general expedition area
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Publications associated with the Gas Hydrates Project

U.S. Atlantic Margin Gas Hydrates

Schematic showing the general setting of seeps on the US Atlantic margin and related processes, such as gas hydrate degradation,

The minimum distribution of gas hydrates on the U.S. Atlantic margin is from offshore South Carolina northward to the longitude of Shallop Canyon on the southern New England margin.

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Gas Hydrates on Alaskan Marine Margins

Crumbling blocks of permafrost along the Beaufort Coast

Gas hydrate distributions on the marine margins of the U.S. state of Alaska are more poorly known than those on other U.S. margins, where bottom simulating reflections have been systematically mapped on marine seismic data to support modern, quantitative assessments of gas-in-place in gas hydrates. 

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Filter Total Items: 43

Comprehensive pressure core analysis for hydrate-bearing sediments from Gulf of Mexico Green Canyon Block 955, including assessments of geomechanical viscous behavior and nuclear magnetic resonance permeability

Quantifying the petrophysical and geomechanical properties of gas hydrate reservoirs is essential for understanding the natural hydrate system and predicting gas production behavior for future resource development. Pressure-core analysis tools were used to characterize methane hydrate–bearing sediments recovered from the Gulf of Mexico Green Canyon Block 955, under an international collaboration w
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Coastal and Marine Hazards and Resources Program, Woods Hole Coastal and Marine Science Center

Compression behavior of hydrate-bearing sediments

This work experimentally explores porosity, compressibility, and the ratio of horizontal to vertical effective stress (K0) in hydrate-bearing sandy silts from Green Canyon Block 955 in the deep-water Gulf of Mexico. The samples have an in situ porosity of 0.38 to 0.40 and a hydrate saturation of more than 80%. The hydrate-bearing sediments are stiffer than the equivalent hydrate-free sediments; th
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Coastal and Marine Hazards and Resources Program, Woods Hole Coastal and Marine Science Center

Permeability of methane hydrate-bearing sandy silts in the deep-water Gulf of Mexico (Green Canyon Block 955)

Permeability is one of the most crucial properties governing fluid flow in methane hydrate reservoirs. This paper presents a comprehensive permeability analysis of hydrate-bearing sandy silt pressure-cored from Green Canyon Block 955 (GC 955) in the deep-water Gulf of Mexico. We developed an experimental protocol to systematically characterize the transport and petrophysical properties in pressure
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Coastal and Marine Hazards and Resources Program, Woods Hole Coastal and Marine Science Center

Integrated geochemical approach to determine the source of methane in gas hydrate from Green Canyon Block 955 in the Gulf of Mexico

Massive volumes of gas are sequestered within gas hydrate in subsurface marine sediments in the Gulf of Mexico. Methane associated with gas hydrate is a potentially important economic resource and a significant reservoir of carbon within the global carbon cycle. Nevertheless, uncertainties remain about the genetic source (e.g., microbial, thermogenic) and possible migration history of natural gas
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Coastal and Marine Hazards and Resources Program, Ohio-Kentucky-Indiana Water Science Center, Woods Hole Coastal and Marine Science Center

Barkley Canyon gas hydrates: A synthesis based on two decades of seafloor observation and remote sensing

Barkley Canyon is one of the few known sites worldwide with the occurrence of thermogenic gas seepage and formation of structure-II and structure-H gas hydrate mounds on the seafloor. This site is the location of continuous seafloor monitoring as part of the Ocean Networks Canada (ONC) cabled observatory off the west coast off Vancouver Island, British Columbia, Canada. We combine repeat remotely
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Coastal and Marine Hazards and Resources Program, Woods Hole Coastal and Marine Science Center

Comparison of sediment composition by smear slides to quantitative shipboard data: A case study on the utility of smear slide percent estimates, IODP Expedition 353, northern Indian Ocean

Smear slide petrography has been a standard technique during scientific ocean drilling expeditions to characterize sediment composition and classify sediment types, but presentation of these percent estimates to track downcore trends in sediment composition has become less frequent over the past 2 decades. We compare semi-quantitative smear slide composition estimates to physical property (natural
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Coastal and Marine Hazards and Resources Program, Woods Hole Coastal and Marine Science Center

Primary deposition and early diagenetic effects on the high saturation accumulation of gas hydrate in a silt dominated reservoir in the Gulf of Mexico

On continental margins, high saturation gas hydrate systems (>60% pore volume) are common in canyon and channel environments within the gas hydrate stability zone, where reservoirs are dominated by coarse-grained, high porosity sand deposits. Recent studies, including the results presented here, suggest that rapidly deposited, silt-dominated channel-levee environments can also host high saturation
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Coastal and Marine Hazards and Resources Program, Woods Hole Coastal and Marine Science Center

U.S. Atlantic margin gas hydrates

The minimum distribution of gas hydrates on the U.S. Atlantic margin is from offshore South Carolina northward to the longitude of Shallop Canyon on the southern New England margin. Few wells have logged or sampled the gas hydrate zone on this margin, meaning that the presence of gas hydrates is inferred primarily based on seismic data that reveal bottom simulating reflections, mostly at water dep
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Coastal and Marine Hazards and Resources Program, Woods Hole Coastal and Marine Science Center

Gas hydrates on Alaskan marine margins

Gas hydrate distributions on the marine margins of the U.S. state of Alaska are more poorly known than those on other U.S. margins, where bottom simulating reflections have been systematically mapped on marine seismic data to support modern, quantitative assessments of gas-in-place in gas hydrates. The extent of bottom simulating reflections in the U.S. Beaufort Sea has been known since the late 1
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Coastal and Marine Hazards and Resources Program, Pacific Coastal and Marine Science Center, Woods Hole Coastal and Marine Science Center

Contribution of deep-sourced carbon from hydrocarbon seeps to sedimentary organic carbon: Evidence from radiocarbon and stable isotope geochemistry

Sulfate-driven anaerobic oxidation of methane (AOM) limits the release of methane from marine sediments and promotes the formation of carbonates close to the seafloor in seepage areas along continental margins. It has been established that hydrocarbon seeps are a source of methane, dissolved inorganic carbon, and dissolved organic carbon to marine environments. However, questions remain about the
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Woods Hole Coastal and Marine Science Center

Elevated levels of radiocarbon in methane dissolved in seawater reveal likely local contamination from nuclear powered vessels

Measurements of the natural radiocarbon content of methane (14C-CH4) dissolved in seawater and freshwater have been used to investigate sources and dynamics of methane. However, during investigations along the Atlantic, Pacific, and Arctic Ocean Margins of the United States, as well as in the North American Great Lakes, some samples revealed highly elevated 14C-CH4 values, as much as 4–5 times abo
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Coastal and Marine Hazards and Resources Program, Woods Hole Coastal and Marine Science Center

Isolating detrital and diagenetic signals in magnetic susceptibility records from methane-bearing marine sediments

Volume-dependent magnetic susceptibility (κ) is commonly used for paleoenvironmental reconstructions in both terrestrial and marine sedimentary environments where it reflects a mixed signal between primary deposition and secondary diagenesis. In the marine environment, κ is strongly influenced by the abundance of ferrimagnetic minerals regulated by sediment transport processes. Post-depositional a
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Woods Hole Coastal and Marine Science Center

Geonarratives associated with the Gas Hydrates Project

Gas Hydrate in Nature

This geonarrative combines the text and imagery of USGS Fact Sheet 3080 with additional supporting imagery. Except for headings used to organize the text in the geonarrative and an updated name for the coastal and marine program at the USGS, the text is exactly the same as USGS Fact Sheet 3080, with an updated timeline diagram.

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Natural Hazards, Coastal and Marine Hazards and Resources Program, Woods Hole Coastal and Marine Science Center

USGS Gas Hydrates Project

This geonarrative combines the text and imagery of USGS Fact Sheet 3079 with additional supporting imagery. Except for (a) headings used to organize the text in the geonarrative, (b) an additional reference to support an image included in the geonarrative, and (c) the updated program name for the coastal and marine component of the USGS, the text is the same as that of USGS Fact Sheet 3079. 

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Natural Hazards, Coastal and Marine Hazards and Resources Program, Woods Hole Coastal and Marine Science Center

News stories associated with the Gas Hydrates project.

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Map of composite results from Alaska marine margin monograph chapter

USGS scientists contribute to new gas hydrates monograph

The recently-published monograph entitled World Atlas of Submarine Gas Hydrates on Continental Margins compiles findings about gas hydrates offshore all of Earth’s continents and also onshore in selected permafrost regions.  

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Natural Hazards, Coastal and Marine Hazards and Resources Program, Energy Resources Program, Woods Hole Coastal and Marine Science Center
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Special Issue Highlights One of the Most Extensive Gas Hydrate Datasets Ever Collected

The USGS and its research partners in India and Japan have reported on one of the most extensive data sets ever collected on the occurrence of natural...

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The interaction of climate change and methane hydrates is one of the Reviews of Geophysics' top rated articles!

According to Reviews of Geophysics this work received some of the highest count of citations amongst articles published between January 2017 and...

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Seismic Research Cruise Provides New Data on U.S. Atlantic Margin Gas Hydrates

Data acquired by the U.S. Geological Survey on the U.S. Atlantic Margin in August 2018 reveal new information about the distribution of gas hydrates...

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Modern Perspective on Gas Hydrates

After lying hidden in sediments for thousands of years, delicate frozen gas structures are in the spotlight for both scientific research and the...

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USGS Gas Hydrates Project Releases New Fact Sheets!

The USGS Gas Hydrates Project has published two new Fact Sheets. One describes the goals and scope of the Project and the other describes "Gas...

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Proven under Pressure: USGS Advances Capabilities for High-Pressure Seafloor Samples Containing Gas Hydrate

Meet USGS' newest laboratory!

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Exploring Gas Hydrates as a Future Energy Source

In the past decade, the development of the Barnett, Eagle Ford, Marcellus, and other shales has dominated the national consciousness regarding natural...

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Atlantic Methane Seeps Surprise Scientists

Recent scientific work has confirmed the source, composition and origin of methane seeps on the Atlantic Ocean seafloor, discovered in 2012, where...

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Frozen Heat Features USGS Science

The Gas Hydrates Project at the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) contributed to a four-year international effort by multiple partners, including the...

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Gas Hydrates FAQs

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Image: Gas Hydrates Burning

What are gas hydrates?

Gas hydrates are a crystalline solid formed of water and gas. It looks and acts much like ice, but it contains huge amounts of methane; it is known to occur on every continent; and it exists in huge quantities in marine sediments in a layer several hundred meters thick directly below the sea floor and in association with permafrost in the Arctic. It is not stable at normal sea-level pressures and...

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What are gas hydrates?

Gas hydrates are a crystalline solid formed of water and gas. It looks and acts much like ice, but it contains huge amounts of methane; it is known to occur on every continent; and it exists in huge quantities in marine sediments in a layer several hundred meters thick directly below the sea floor and in association with permafrost in the Arctic. It is not stable at normal sea-level pressures and...

Learn More
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Image shows an undersea gas hydrate formation with shellfish on it.

Where are gas hydrates found?

Gas hydrates are found in sub-oceanic sediments in the polar regions (shallow water) and in continental slope sediments (deep water), where pressure and temperature conditions combine to make them stable.

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Where are gas hydrates found?

Gas hydrates are found in sub-oceanic sediments in the polar regions (shallow water) and in continental slope sediments (deep water), where pressure and temperature conditions combine to make them stable.

Learn More
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Image shows two researchers analyzing gas hydrate cores

How are gas hydrates studied?

Gas hydrates can be studied in the laboratory, where a machine is used to create the proper pressure and temperature conditions for hydrate formation, or it can be studied in situ using seismic data collected aboard ships and geophysical models. Learn more: USGS Gas Hydrates Lab

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How are gas hydrates studied?

Gas hydrates can be studied in the laboratory, where a machine is used to create the proper pressure and temperature conditions for hydrate formation, or it can be studied in situ using seismic data collected aboard ships and geophysical models. Learn more: USGS Gas Hydrates Lab

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Image: Gas Hydrates Research Project in Japan

Who studies gas hydrates?

Currently, groups of scientists in the U.S., Canada, Norway, Great Britain, and Japan are working to try to understand gas hydrates and the role it plays in the global climate and the future of fuels. The USGS Gas Hydrates Project focuses on the study of natural gas hydrates in deepwater marine systems and permafrost areas. The primary goals are: Evaluate methane hydrates as a potential energy...

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Who studies gas hydrates?

Currently, groups of scientists in the U.S., Canada, Norway, Great Britain, and Japan are working to try to understand gas hydrates and the role it plays in the global climate and the future of fuels. The USGS Gas Hydrates Project focuses on the study of natural gas hydrates in deepwater marine systems and permafrost areas. The primary goals are: Evaluate methane hydrates as a potential energy...

Learn More

Gas Hydrates Project Partners

U.S. Department of Energy (DOE)

Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA)