Multimedia Gallery

On October 17, 1989, at 5:04 pm a magnitude M6.9 earthquake struck near Loma Prieta, California. It was a tragic reminder of the destructive power of earthquakes. However, it was also a watershed moment in seismic research. 30 years later, we revisit the earthquake through the eyes of the scientists who experienced it. And studied it. These are their stories. In Part 3 (of

On October 17, 1989, at 5:04 pm a magnitude M6.9 earthquake struck near Loma Prieta, California. It was a tragic reminder of the destructive power of earthquakes. However, it was also a watershed moment in seismic research. 30 years later, we revisit the earthquake through the eyes of the scientists who experienced it. And studied it. These are their stories. In Part 2 (of

On October 17, 1989, at 5:04 pm a magnitude M6.9 earthquake struck near Loma Prieta, California. It was a tragic reminder of the destructive power of earthquakes. However, it was also a watershed moment in seismic research. 30 years later, we revisit the earthquake through the eyes of the scientists who experienced it. And studied it. These are their stories. In Part 1 (of

Mike Poland, Scientist-in-Charge of the Yellowstone Volcano Observatory, describes activity at Yellowstone during the month of September 2019.
 

Retired seismologist David Oppenheimer reflects on the first prototype earthquake early warning system used during the 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake. Scientists deployed an analog system to notify first responders of impending earthquake activity as they worked on rescue efforts at the Cypress Viaduct collapse in Oakland, CA.
 

USGS Hawaiian Volcano Observatory scientists Matt Patrick and Jim Kauahikaua talk about the water that appeared at the bottom of Halemaʻumaʻu, a crater at the summit of Kīlauea Volcano, in July 2019 and continues to rise today. They address why it appeared, how it’s monitored, and its potential hazards.
 

Title: Bats in the West: Discoveries, Questions, and Future Research
By Gabriel A. Reyes, USGS Biologist

• Learn about bat ecology, diversity, and the role they play in our ecosystem.
• See how scientists are using a variety of methods including capture, acoustic monitoring, and tracking, to learn more about local bat species.
• Find out how

Tidal marshes exist as a transitional environment between the land and sea, and provides habitat to fish and wildlife, protects human developments from coastal flooding, and stores carbon at high density, among other important ecosystem services. Over the next century, accelerating sea-level rise poses a risk to tidal marshes, especially in areas with insufficient sediment

Abnormally high spring rainfall and subsequent flooding in the Midwest had a season-long impact on cropland production. In these Landsat images of South Dakota growing vegetation is shown as green and unplanted areas appear pink. The difference between 2018 and 2019 is striking.

A designation of "prevented planting" is given to unplanted acres as a signal to crop

This video was taken during the SW1321 training course, Streamflow Measurements Using ADCPs. On this field day, students from all over the USGS used their newfound knowledge to collect ADCP data in Windham, Maine.
 

In July, satellite imagery from Landsat 8 captured a major melting event in Greenland. 

Mike Poland, Scientist-in-Charge of the Yellowstone Volcano Observatory, describes activity at Yellowstone during the month of August 2019.
 

Research Physical Scientist Dean Gesch shares an overview of USGS/EROS surveying efforts in the mangrove forests of Pohnpei.
 

Setting sail from Woods Hole, MA to Cape Cod Bay aboard the R/V Warren Jr. USGS scientific staff will define the geologic framework of Cape Cod Bay to aid the state of Massachusetts in management and assessment of resources and hazards.
 

Title: Pliocene World: Earth's Climate 3 Million Years Ago and How it Relates to our Future
By Marci Robinson, USGS Research Geologist 

• Three million years ago, during the late Pliocene, CO2 levels were similar to today, but global temperatures and sea level were much higher
• Find out how we use microfossils to reconstruct

Daytime and nightime imagery from Earth-observing satellites reveal dramatic changes in North Dakota during the Bakken oil boom.
 

During Aug. 4-8, 2019, U.S. Geological Survey women scientists, university researchers and Mount St. Helens Institute staff led 25 middle-school girls from Washington and Oregon in the fifth annual “GeoGirls” outdoor volcano science program at Mount St. Helens, Washington.
 

This video presents an animation of computer-simulated ground motions that might occur for a magnitude 6.9 earthquake rupturing the Rose Canyon fault in southern California. The scenario earthquake ruptures a 65-km-long section of the Rose Canyon fault that lies just offshore of San Diego, California, and Tijuana, Mexico. In this scenario, the rupture starts near the

Interested in citing data and tools from NASA’s Land Processes Distributed Active Archive Center (LP DAAC)? This video will discuss why you should cite the data and data access tools you use in your research and where you can find information on the LP DAAC website to help you with your citation.

To learn more about the data featured in this video, and other data

Massachusetts student intern Michael Upton placing a new survey reference marker at a live recording groundwater well station.
 

Recorded June 1, 2019 - August 18, 2019: Video shows a series of photos taken every hour during daylight hours in the summer of 2019. The camera looks westward along the coastal bluffs of Barter Island, located on Alaska’s North Slope. A pole on the bluff, visible in the first half of the video, once supported another video camera that was aimed at the

This video goes into detail about surveying high-water marks, various aspects of bridges, and cross sections for the contracted-opening method. 
 

This video shows a close-up of the ponded water at the bottom of Halema'uma'u. Yesterday, the separate ponds joined into a single elongate pond. The water level has continued to slowly rise.