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U.S. Geological Survey Gas Hydrates Project Active

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

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

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Special Issue of Indian Ocean Gas Hydrate Expedition

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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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U.S. Geological Survey's Gas Hydrates Project

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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. 

Gas Hydrate in Nature

Image shows gas hydrate samples in blue-gloved hands

This geonarrative combines the text and imagery of USGS Fact Sheet 3080 with additional supporting imagery. 

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Gas Hydrates Project

Image shows cylindrical snail egg casings rising from a piece of rock held by a mechanical arm

This geonarrative combines the text and imagery of USGS Fact Sheet 3079 with additional supporting imagery. 

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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 

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. 

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.

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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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...
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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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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.
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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...
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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.
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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
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Data Releases associated with the Gas Hydrates Project

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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

Physical Properties of Sediment Collected during India's National Gas Hydrate Program NGHP-02 Expedition in the Krishna-Godavari Basin Offshore Eastern India, 2015

During the spring and summer of 2015, the U.S. Geological Survey participated in India's National Gas Hydrate Program NGHP-02 expedition in the Krishna-Godavari Basin offshore eastern India. The expedition included conventional and pressure coring of sediment, samples of which were transferred to the U.S. Geological Survey in Woods Hole, MA for post-cruise testing. This data release contains measu
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Coastal and Marine Hazards and Resources Program, Woods Hole Coastal and Marine Science Center

Dependence of Sedimentation Behavior on Pore-Fluid Chemistry for Sediment Collected From Area B, Krishna-Godavari Basin During India's National Gas Hydrate Program, NGHP-02

One goal of the Indian National Gas Hydrate Program's NGHP-02 expedition was to examine the geomechanical response of marine sediment to the extraction of methane from gas hydrate found offshore eastern India in the Bay of Bengal. Methane gas hydrate is a naturally occurring crystalline solid that sequesters methane in individual molecular cages in a lattice of water molecules. Methane gas hydrate
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Coastal and Marine Hazards and Resources Program, Woods Hole Coastal and Marine Science Center

Effect of pore fluid chemistry on the sedimentation and compression behavior of pure, endmember fines

The safety, effectiveness and longevity of many construction and geotechnical engineering projects rely on correctly accounting for the evolution of soil properties over time. Critical sediment properties, such as compressibility, can change in response to pore-fluid chemistry changes, particularly if the sediment contains appreciable concentrations of fine-grained materials. Pore-fluid changes
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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

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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

The U.S. Geological Survey’s Gas Hydrates Project

The Gas Hydrates Project at the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) focuses on the study of methane hydrates in natural environments. The project is a collaboration between the USGS Energy Resources and the USGS Coastal and Marine Geology Programs and works closely with other U.S. Federal agencies, some State governments, outside research organizations, and international partners. The USGS studies the f
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Woods Hole Coastal and Marine Science Center
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Gas hydrate in nature

Gas hydrate is a naturally occurring, ice-like substance that forms when water and gas combine under high pressure and at moderate temperatures. Methane is the most common gas present in gas hydrate, although other gases may also be included in hydrate structures, particularly in areas close to conventional oil and gas reservoirs. Gas hydrate is widespread in ocean-bottom sediments at water depths
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Woods Hole Coastal and Marine Science Center

Potential freshening impacts on fines migration and pore-throat clogging during gas hydrate production: 2-D micromodel study with Diatomaceous UBGH2 sediments

The methane gas hydrate stored in natural sediments is considered a potential gas resource. Countries such as China, India, Japan, and Korea are interested in commercializing this resource, and offshore field pilot tests for gas production have been conducted using depressurization methods to destabilize gas hydrate and facilitate the migration of methane to the production well. However, fine-gr
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Woods Hole Coastal and Marine Science Center

Gas hydrate petroleum systems: What constitutes the “seal”?

The gas hydrate petroleum system (GHPS) approach, which has been used to characterize gas hydrates in nature, utilizes three distinct components: a methane source, a methane migration pathway, and a reservoir that not only contains gas hydrate, but also acts as a seal to prevent methane loss. Unlike GHPS, a traditional petroleum system (PS) approach further distinguishes between the reservoir, a u
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Woods Hole Coastal and Marine Science Center

Preface: Marine gas hydrate reservoir systems along the eastern continental margin of India: Results of the National Gas Hydrate Program Expedition 02

The 2015 India National Gas Hydrate Program (NGHP) Expedition 02 was conducted to obtain new information on the occurrence of gas hydrate systems and to advance the understanding of geologic controls on the formation of gas hydrate accumulations in the offshore of India. The ultimate goal of the NGHP effort is to assess the energy resource potential of marine gas hydrates in India. The Guest Edito
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Energy Resources Program, Central Energy Resources Science Center

Downhole physical property-based description of a gas hydrate petroleum system in NGHP-02 Area C: A channel, levee, fan complex in the Krishna-Godavari Basin offshore eastern India

India’s second National Gas Hydrate Program expedition, NGHP-02, collected logging while drilling and sediment core data in Area C offshore eastern India, to investigate controls on the distribution and peak saturations of methane gas hydrate occurrences in buried channel, levee and fan deposits. Physical property results are presented here for the four Area C coring sites: NGHP-02-07, targeting
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Natural Hazards, Energy Resources Program, Coastal and Marine Hazards and Resources Program, Woods Hole Coastal and Marine Science Center

National Gas Hydrate Program expedition 02: Identification of gas hydrate prospects in the Krishna-Godavari Basin, offshore India

After completing the first expedition of India's National Gas Hydrate Program (NGHP-01) in 2006, it was concluded that for the next expedition (National Gas Hydrate Program 02; NGHP-02), a new drill site review effort should focus on identifying potential deep-water offshore gas hydrate accumulations in sand dominated depositional environments. Therefore, geological and geophysical data analysis a
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Energy Resources Program, Central Energy Resources Science Center

India National Gas Hydrate Program Expedition 02 summary of scientific results: Numerical simulation of reservoir response to depressurization

The India National Gas Hydrate Program Expedition 02 (NGHP-02) discovered gas hydrate at high saturation in sand reservoirs at several sites in the deepwater Bay of Bengal. To assess the potential response of those deposits to scientific depressurization experiments, comprehensive geologic models were constructed to enable numerical simulation for two sites. Both sites (NGHP-02-09 and NGHP-02-16
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Energy Resources Program, Central Energy Resources Science Center

India National Gas Hydrate Program Expedition 02 summary of scientific results: Evaluation of natural gas hydrate-bearing pressure cores

India’s National Gas Hydrate Program (NGHP) Expedition-02 was conducted in 2015 with the goal of investigating numerous locations that had been determined to be prospective for gas hydrate at high saturation in sand-rich reservoirs. Initial logging while drilling data revealed extensive sand-rich gas hydrate occurrences at multiple drill sites in two broad areas. These sites were further investig
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Woods Hole Coastal and Marine Science Center

Physical property characteristics of gas hydrate-bearing reservoir and associated seal sediments collected during NGHP-02 in the Krishna-Godavari Basin, in the offshore of India

India’s National Gas Hydrate Program Expedition 02 (NGHP-02), was conducted to better understand geologic controls on gas hydrate occurrence and morphology, targeting potentially coarse-grained sediments near the base of the continental slope offshore eastern India. This study combines seismic, logging-while-drilling data, and a petroleum systems approach to provide a regional geologic context fo
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Natural Hazards, Earthquake Hazards, Energy Resources Program, Earthquake Science Center, Central Energy Resources Science Center, Woods Hole Coastal and Marine Science Center

The interaction of climate change and methane hydrates

Gas hydrate, a frozen, naturally-occurring, and highly-concentrated form of methane, sequesters significant carbon in the global system and is stable only over a range of low-temperature and moderate-pressure conditions. Gas hydrate is widespread in the sediments of marine continental margins and permafrost areas, locations where ocean and atmospheric warming may perturb the hydrate stability fiel
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Woods Hole Coastal and Marine Science Center

India National Gas Hydrate Program Expedition-02: Operational and technical summary

The India National Gas Hydrate Program is being steered by the government of India's Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas (MoPNG) with participation of Directorate General of Hydrocarbons (DGH), Oil and Natural Gas Corporation Limited (ONGC), and the National Oil Companies and Research Institutes of India. The India National Gas Hydrate Program Expedition 01 (NGHP-01) established the presence of
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Energy Resources Program, Central Energy Resources Science Center

India National Gas Hydrate Program Expedition 02 Summary of Scientific Results: Gas hydrate systems along the eastern continental margin of India

The primary objectives of the India National Gas Hydrate Program Expedition 02 (NGHP-02) were to obtain new data on the occurrence of gas hydrate systems and to advance the understanding of the controls on the formation of gas hydrate accumulations in the offshore of India. In accordance with the ultimate overall goal of the NGHP effort to assess the energy resource potential of marine gas hydrat
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Energy Resources Program, Central Energy Resources 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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Cartoon map showing land and ocean features, with an inset photo of a ship.

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 gas hydrate.

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Energy and Minerals, Natural Hazards, Coastal and Marine Hazards and Resources Program, Energy Resources Program, Central Energy Resources Science Center, Woods Hole Coastal and Marine Science Center, Communications and Publishing
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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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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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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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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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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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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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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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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.

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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

Learn More
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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)