Unified Interior Regions
California
The Southwest Region includes California, Nevada, and Arizona. The Regional Office, headquartered in Sacramento, provides Center oversight and support, facilitates internal and external collaborations, and works to further USGS strategic science directions.
States L2 Landing Page Tabs
Homes along the edge of the coast in Isla Vista, California
Homes along the edge of the coast in Isla Vista, California, Santa Barbara County, face a short lifespan because of eroding bluffs that support them.
PubTalk — Commotions in the Oceans
USGS Shipboard Research Sparked Scientific Advances
By William R. Normark, and
David W. Scholl, Marine Geologists
- Alaskan work from the Survey's M/V Eider in the 1950's led to visualizing how great earthquakes and tsunamis originate along trenches
- In the 1970's, researchers discovered deep-sea "black
PubTalk — When Rocks Fall and the Land Slides
Hear why California makes an ideal environment for landslides North face
By Gerald F. Wieczorek, Geological Engineer, and
Raymond C. Wilson, Landslide Geologist
- Hear why California makes an ideal environment for landslides North face
- Learn about rock falls, debris flows, and other landslides Rocks fall
PubTalk 1/2005 — Deciphering an Estuarine Ecosystem
35 Years of San Francisco Bay Studies
By John Conomos, Scientist Emeritus
- USGS research in the Bay system began in the 1960s with a search for underwater earthquake faults
- In the 1970s, the research team expanded to cover studies of water properties and quality, water mixing and flow, and estuarine ecology
Big Sur Coastal Landslides
Large-scale poster describing USGS work.
The USGS studied air photos of the Big Sur coast taken in 1942 and 1994, in cooperation with the California Department of Transportation (Caltrans) and the University of California at Santa Cruz (UCSC).
We used the photographs to create 3D computer models. By comparing the two models, we can see the differences caused
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GAMA Public-supply Well (Deep Aquifer) Assessment Study Units
The GAMA program is a comprehensive assessment of statewide groundwater quality. The program is designed to help better understand and identify risks to groundwater resources. Groundwater is sampled at many locations across California in order to characterize its constituents and identify trends in groundwater quality. The results of these tests provide information for
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Mt. Diablo from Suisun Marsh
Picturesque view of Mt.Diablo early in the morning from Suisun Marsh.
Diagram of deep-seated landslide, from USGS Fact Sheet 3004–3072
Diagram of deep-seated landslide, from USGS Fact Sheet 3004–3072, “Landslide Types and Processes.”
Oceanography Beyond the Golden Gate
Large-scale poster describing USGS work.
The USGS measured ocean currents and temperatures off Central California as part of an international group of Federal, State, Academic, and private institutions. The project was part of a larger study that took nearly 14 years to finish. This group also studied geology, biology, and environmental issues in the Gulf of the
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Tsunami Hazards in the Santa Barbara Channel
Large-scale poster describing USGS work.
The USGS, in cooperation with Moss Landing Marine Laboratory, mapped the slopes of the Santa Barbara Channel using sonar. We combined this with deep sea drilling records and seismic records to make these maps.
Large earthquakes can cause the very large underwater landslides that we found in the channel. These
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PubTalk 11/2004 — From Plane Tables to Pixels
The Revolution in Mapping at the U.S. Geological Survey
by Susan P. Benjamin, Research Geographer
- Mapping the United States in the 19th century was arduous, dangerous work; flash floods, bears, and bandits were just a few hazards
- By the mid-20th century, aerial photography, photogrammetry, and stereophoto pairs, allowed
PubTalk 10/2004 — Hot Oil, Frozen Ground, and Earthquakes
The Trans-Alaska Pipeline story-- so far, so good!
by George Gryc, Arthur Lachenbruch, and Robert Page, Scientists Emeriti
- The 1968 discovery of North America.s largest oil fi eld on the Arctic coast posed the challenge of an 800-mile pipeline to carry hot oil across mountains, rivers, and the giant Denali Fault
- The oil
The environmental effects of the California gold rush and the effects of earthquakes on the urban environment are two of the topics that will be covered by scientists from the U.S. Geological Survey at this week’s annual meeting of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) at the Anaheim Convention Center, Anaheim, Calif., Jan. 21-26, 1999.
On January 23, 1999, U.S. Geological Survey scientists Gladys Cotter, Charles van Riper III, and Henry J. Moore II will be inducted as Fellows by the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) during its annual meeting in Anaheim, California.
Sitting in the darkened cab of a pick-up truck on a California Central Valley back road, research biologist Joe Fleskes of the USGS Western Ecological Research Center strained to hear the faint "beep beep beep" from his radio-tracking receiver. Somewhere out in the foggy night, the radio signal was emanating from a small transmitter worn by one of 320 ducks and geese fitted with these monitoring d
A thirty-foot-long exhibit, and several presentations will focus on changes along the west coast of the US during the 1997-98 El Nino at the Fall Meeting of the American Geophysical Union, scheduled for Dec. 6-10 at the Moscone Convention Center in San Francisco, California.
Observers of last winter’s El Nino storms along the Pacific Coast who might have compared the intense rainfall to a monsoon were not far off the mark.
Because of a lack of Steller sea lions and harbor seals, large numbers of sea otters are being eaten by hungry killer whales in western Alaska waters, according to findings in the October 16 issue of the journal Science.
The history and geology of California’s highest peaks in the Sierra Nevada Range are the subjects of the September 24 free public lecture sponsored by the U.S. Geological Survey. The lecture will begin at 7 p.m. in the USGS Auditorium in Building 3 on the USGS campus at 345 Middlefield Road in Menlo Park.
Scientist Showcase Technologies at San Diego Meeting
The Earth Science Information Center (ESIC), which is the map sales outlet for the U.S. Geological Survey in Menlo Park, will be closed from August 31 through September 18, to facilitate moving the operation into a newly remodeled building on the USGS campus at 345 Middlefield Road in Menlo Park.
The race against extinction for turtles, tortoises and terrapins is the subject for the August 27 free public lecture sponsored by the U.S. Geological Survey. The lecture will begin at 7 p.m. in the Menlo Park City Council Chambers, at 701 Laurel St., Menlo Park.
The exotic species of plant and animal life that have invaded San Francisco Bay are the topic of this Thursday’s free public lecture, sponsored by the U.S. Geological Survey in Menlo Park.
Life at the Bottom of San Francisco Bay is a world of emigrants versus the natives, as exotic species replace and react to native species and alter the biotic balance of the Bay ‘s food chain. The history and effects of the exotic invaders is the subject of the U.S. Geological Survey ‘s free public lecture, Thursday, July 30, 7 p.m., at the Menlo Park City Council Chambers, 701 Laurel St., Menlo P
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Locations
Southwest Regional Director's Office
Phone: (916) 278-9551
Fax: (916) 278-9566
Pacific Coastal and Marine Science Center
Phone: 831-460-7401
Fax: 831-427-4748
Sacramento Projects Office (USGS California Water Science Center)
Phone: 916-278-3000
Fax: 916-278-3070
Western Ecological Research Center - Headquarters
Phone: (916) 278-9485
Fax: (916) 278-9475
Geology, Minerals, Energy and Geophysics Science Center
Phone: (650) 329-4881
Earthquake Science Center
Western Geographic Science Center - Main Office
San Diego Projects Office (USGS California Water Science Center)
Phone: 619-225-6100
Fax: 619-225-6101
USGS California Volcano Observatory (CalVO package delivery)
askcalvo@usgs.gov
Phone: 650-329-5083
Truckee Field Office (USGS California Water Science Center)
Phone: 530-587-0910
Fax: 530-587-0914
Redding Field Office (USGS California Water Science Center)
Phone: 530-246-5282
Fax: 530-246-0717
Ukiah Field Office (USGS California Water Science Center)
Phone: 707-468-4040
Fax: 707-468-4022
Redlands Field Office (USGS California Water Science Center)
Phone: 909-798-3272
West Sacramento Projects Office (USGS California Water Science Center)
Phone: 916-617-2799
Eureka Satellite Office (USGS California Water Science Center)
Phone: 707-442-3169
Fax: 707-445-7860
Sacramento Field Office (USGS California Water Science Center)
Phone: 916-381-0207
Fax: 916-381-0556
Santa Cruz Field Office (USGS California Water Science Center)
Phone: 831-460-7494
Santa Maria Field Office (USGS California Water Science Center)
Phone: 805-928-9539
Fax: 805-928-9220
Poway Field Office (USGS California Water Science Center)
Phone: 858-679-4015
Fax: 858-679-4019
USGS Menlo Park Library
men_lib@usgs.gov
Phone: 650-329-5027
Fax: 650-329-5132