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Virginia has a total area of 42,774.2 square miles, including 3,180.13 square miles of water, making it the 35th-largest state by area. The Chesapeake Bay separates the contiguous portion of the Commonwealth from the two-county peninsula of its Eastern Shore. The geography and climate of the Commonwealth are shaped by the Blue Ridge Mountains and the Chesapeake Bay.
Virginia - West Virginia Water Science Center
1730 East Parham Road
Richmond, VA 23228
Phone: (804) 261-2600
Fax: (804) 261-2657
News
USGS Estimates 214 trillion Cubic Feet of Natural Gas in Appalachian Basin Formations
The Marcellus Shale and Point Pleasant-Utica Shale formations of the Appalachian Basin contain an estimated mean of 214 trillion cubic feet of undiscovered, technically recoverable continuous resources of natural gas, according to new USGS assessments.
USGS Scientists Document Hurricane Dorian’s Impacts
Editor’s Note: This story was revised Sept. 10, 2019 to include the later phases of USGS’ response to Hurricane Dorian.
To learn more about USGS’ role providing science to decision makers before, during and after Hurricane Dorian, visit the USGS Hurricane Dorian page at www.usgs.gov/dorian.
Piping Plovers Benefited from Hurricane Sandy
Storms and undeveloped coastlines can create and maintain habitat for this species, which is threatened along the Atlantic coast.
Publications
Geologic cross section A–A′ through the Appalachian basin from the southern margin of the Ontario Lowlands province, Genesee County, western New York, to the Valley and Ridge province, Lycoming County, north-central Pennsylvania
IntroductionGeologic cross section A–A′ is the fifth in a series of cross sections constructed by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) to document and improve understanding of the geologic framework and petroleum systems of the Appalachian basin. Cross section A–A′ provides a regional view of the structural and stratigraphic frame...
Trippi, Michael H.; Ryder, Robert T. ; Enomoto, Catherine B.
Lithologies, ages, and provenance of clasts in the Ordovician Fincastle Conglomerate, Botetourt County, Virginia, USA
The Fincastle Conglomerate is an Ordovician polymictic, poorly sorted, matrix- and clast-supported cobble to boulder-rich conglomerate located just north of Fincastle, Botetourt County, VA. At least nine other cobble and boulder conglomerates are located in a similar stratigraphic position from Virginia to Georgia west of the Blue Ridge structural...
Belkin, Harvey E.; Repetski, John E.; Dulong, Frank T.; Hickling, Nelson L.
Federal lands greenhouse emissions and sequestration in the United States—Estimates for 2005–14
In January 2016, the Secretary of the U.S. Department of the Interior tasked the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) with producing a publicly available and annually updated database of estimated greenhouse gas emissions associated with the extraction and use (predominantly some form of combustion) of fossil fuels from Federal lands. In response, the...
Merrill, M.D.; Sleeter, Benjamin M.; Freeman, Philip A.; Liu, Jinxun; Warwick, Peter D.; Reed, Bradley C.
Refined Model Provides a Screening Tool to Understand Exposure to Contaminants from Incidental Wastewater Reuse
Refinement of the existing national-scale “de facto reuse incidence in our nation’s consumable supply” (DRINCS) model, complemented by field measurements, provides a screening tool to understand human and wildlife exposure to toxicants and pathogens associated with the incidental reuse of treated wastewater in the Shenandoah River watershed. The model results can be accessed in a companion...
Real-Time Storm Response
Coastal change forecasts and pre- and post-storm photos documenting coastal change for landfalling storms. Currently responding to Hurricane Dorian.
M5.8 August 23, 2011 Mineral, Virginia
On August 23, 2011 tens of millions of people along the East Coast suddenly felt the earth shaking from the largest earthquake in the eastern U.S. since the M5.8 earthquake in 1944 near Cornwall and Massena, New York.
Appalachian Basin Geologic Mapping Project
The Appalachian Basin Geologic Mapping Project performs geologic mapping at local and regional scales, and geologic research in The Valley and Ridge and Appalachian Plateaus physiographic provinces. These provinces include parts of 11 states and mainly borders the Blue Ridge / Piedmont and North Interior Lowlands Provinces. Two states have Valley and Ridge geology only (GA, NJ), two have...
River Continuum Concept Ecological Limit Functions for Fish and Benthic Data in Virginia
The ecological limit functions (ELF) developed in cooperation with the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) are a graphical representation of the current and historical state of aquatic biota in Virginia streams. The goal of this study was to quantify the potential species richness and habitat response to flow alteration using available long-term ecological data. Fish and...
United States Assessments of Undiscovered Oil and Gas Resources
USGS Energy Resources Program provides periodic assessments of the oil and natural gas endowment of the United States and the World (click here for information about World Oil and Gas Assessments). This website provides access to new, prioritized, assessment results and supporting data for the United States, as part...
Sea Level and Storm Hazards: Past and Present
Sea level and Storm Hazards: Past and Present is a multidisciplinary study of past changes in sea level. Prehistoric shorelines can be used as a baseline for current and future sea level changes under warmer-than-present climate. Emphasis is placed on looking at sea levels during warm periods of the last 500,000 years as well as how base level changes increase the risk of coastal inundation...
Assessment of Unconventional Energy Potential of Methane Released from Active and Abandoned Mines
Large underground coal mines, especially longwall mines, disturb an extensive layer of strata overlying and underlying the mined coal seam due to induced stresses and due to collapse of the coal-bearing strata into the void left from mined coal. This volume of strata disturbed by mining is termed as the gas emission zone, which often contains other gassy coal seams of non-economic value, thin...
Macrofossil and Sediment Processing Laboratory
In the Macrofossil and sediment processing lab we analyze the physical, biological, and geochemical characteristics of peat and sediment samples collected from lake, wetland, and peat cores as proxies for past changes to these depositional environments on timescales of decades to millennia. We primarily study terrestrial wetland ecosystems from subtropical to arctic regions in order to...
2015 Appalachian Floods and Hurricane Joaquin
Learn more about USGS flood activities related to the 2015 Appalachian Floods and Hurrican Joaquin. An upper atmospheric low-pressure system over the Southeast combined with moisture from Hurricane Joaquin off the Atlantic coast to create historic rainfall in early October, 2015, across South Carolina.
Eastern Geology and Paleoclimate Science Center
On October 1, 2018 the Eastern Geology and Paleoclimate Science Center (EGPSC) was renamed the Florence Bascom Geoscience Center (FBGC). The old website has been archived and can be viewed HERE. The new website for the FBGC can be found HERE...
Major-element and trace-element concentrations in 76 core samples and seven surface samples of rocks from the Coles Hill uranium deposit and vicinity, Pittsylvania County, south-central Virginia are presented as tabular digital data. The Coles Hill deposit is the largest unmined uranium deposit in the United States. The data were collected to 1) characterize the chemistry of variably uranium-mine
Information about scientific data collected through field activities conducted by scientists in the USGS Coastal and Marine Hazards and Resources program
World Coal Quality Inventory (WOCQI) Spatial Viewer
The National Coal Resources Data System (NCRDS) began as a cooperative venture between the USGS and State geological agencies in 1975 and focused on the stratigraphy and chemistry of coal. The current component databases of NCRDS include: USTRAT, USCHEM, and USCOAL.
This viewer allows users to see the location and underlying data associated with NCRDS USTRAT data points. The NCRDS Spatial Viewer was expanded to display data from the USCHEM and USCOAL databases in FY2011.
Data containing geodetic location, field observations, sample analyses, bed thickness; lithology; depth of burial, moisture, ash, and sulfur content, heat value, and major-, minor-trace-element contents.
The NWIS mapper provides access to over 1.5 million sites contained in the USGS National Water Information System (NWIS), including sites where current and historical surface-water, groundwater, springs, and atmospheric data has been collected. Users can search by site type, data type, site number, or place.
Results of lipid biomarker concentration and compound specific isotopes analyzed from authigenic carbonates and surrounding sediment collected from Baltimore and Norfolk seep fields along the United States Atlantic Margin are presented in csv format. Samples were collected by the U.S. Geological Survey and Duke University between 2012 and 2015 using remotely operated vehicles (ROVs). Geochemical
Interactively explore assessment summary information for continuous (unconventional) assessments conducted at the USGS from 2000-2018. The assessment results data used to generate this visualization can be downloaded here in Excel Format. These data represent all assessment results for Continuous Assessments only from 2000-2018.
The USGS Coastal and Marine Geology Program (CMGP) Internet Map Server is an interactive mapping service which allows the user to explore and download GIS data sets published by CMGP.
Key Findings for Scenario-Based Assessment for Nor'easters
Percentage of sandy beaches very likely (probability > 0.9) to experience erosion associated with collision, overwash, and inundation during class 1-3 nor’easter impact.
Key Findings for Scenario-Based Assessment for Hurricanes
Percentage of sandy beaches very likely (probability > 0.9) to experience erosion associated with collision, overwash, and inundation during category 1-5 hurricane landfall.
This map shows the provinces assessed by the USGS for undiscovered oil and gas resources.
The Geologic CO2 Sequestration interactive web map includes investigated basins, assessed areas, stratigraphic columns, and well density information.
This website is a data visualization companion to the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) report titled Federal Lands Greenhouse Gas Emissions and Sequestration in the United States: Estimates 2005-14. The maps and charts on this site include the estimated emissions and sequestration from both fossil fuel activities and ecosystem processes on Federal lands only.
The Water-Monitoring-Sites Mapper is an interactive map of Virginia water monitoring-site locations from the USGS National Water Information System (NWIS). It provides access to surface water, groundwater, and water quality monitoring data for active sites. The functionality includes query, select, tabular display by county, hydrologic unit code (HUC), and exporting spatial and tabular data.
This interactive map shows current and cumulative rainfall total for precipitation sites in West Virginia. Map provides real-time precipitation radar image to overlay from National Weather Service.
This interactive map shows current and cumulative rainfall total for precipitation sites in Virginia. Map provides real-time precipitation radar image to overlay from National Weather Service.
The Clinch-Powell River Basins Spanning Virginia and Tennessee
Virginia Beach Groundwater Study Maps
The 3DEP products and services available through The National Map consist of standard digital elevation models (DEMs) at various horizontal resolutions, elevation source and associated datasets, an elevation point query service and bulk point query service. All 3DEP products are available, free of charge and without use restrictions.
The USGS Storm Tide Mapper is a tool for viewing, analyzing, and accessing storm tide data collected during and after hurricanes and Nor’easters. The USGS Storm Tide Mapper will continue to provide a unified and consistent source of real-time and archived storm-tide data.
Geologic cross section A–A′ through the Appalachian basin from the southern margin of the Ontario Lowlands province, Genesee County, western New York, to the Valley and Ridge province, Lycoming County, north-central Pennsylvania
IntroductionGeologic cross section A–A′ is the fifth in a series of cross sections constructed by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) to document and improve understanding of the geologic framework and petroleum systems of the Appalachian basin. Cross section A–A′ provides a regional view of the structural and stratigraphic frame...
Trippi, Michael H.; Ryder, Robert T. ; Enomoto, Catherine B. Lithologies, ages, and provenance of clasts in the Ordovician Fincastle Conglomerate, Botetourt County, Virginia, USA
The Fincastle Conglomerate is an Ordovician polymictic, poorly sorted, matrix- and clast-supported cobble to boulder-rich conglomerate located just north of Fincastle, Botetourt County, VA. At least nine other cobble and boulder conglomerates are located in a similar stratigraphic position from Virginia to Georgia west of the Blue Ridge structural...
Belkin, Harvey E.; Repetski, John E.; Dulong, Frank T.; Hickling, Nelson L. Federal lands greenhouse emissions and sequestration in the United States—Estimates for 2005–14
In January 2016, the Secretary of the U.S. Department of the Interior tasked the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) with producing a publicly available and annually updated database of estimated greenhouse gas emissions associated with the extraction and use (predominantly some form of combustion) of fossil fuels from Federal lands. In response, the...
Merrill, M.D.; Sleeter, Benjamin M.; Freeman, Philip A.; Liu, Jinxun; Warwick, Peter D.; Reed, Bradley C. Using mercury injection pressure analyses to estimate sealing capacity of the Tuscaloosa marine shale in Mississippi, USA: Implications for carbon dioxide sequestration
This work used mercury injection capillary pressure (MICP) analyses of the Tuscaloosa Group in Mississippi, including the Tuscaloosa marine shale (TMS), to assess their efficacy and sealing capacity for geologic carbon dioxide (CO2) sequestration. Tuscaloosa Group porosity and permeability from MICP were evaluated to calculate CO2 column...
Lohr, Celeste D.; Hackley, Paul C.
Virginia flow-ecology modeling results—An initial assessment of flow reduction effects on aquatic biota
BackgroundThe U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), in cooperation with the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ), reviewed a previously compiled set of linear regression models to assess their utility in defining the response of the aquatic biological community to streamflow depletion.As part of the 2012 Virginia Healthy Watersheds...
Rapp, Jennifer L.; Reilly, Pamela A. A database and probabilistic assessment methodology for carbon dioxide enhanced oil recovery and associated carbon dioxide retention in the United States
The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) has developed an assessment methodology for estimating the potential incremental technically recoverable oil resources resulting from carbon dioxide-enhanced oil recovery (CO2-EOR) in reservoirs with appropriate depth, pressure, and oil composition. The methodology also includes a procedure for estimating the CO2...
Warwick, Peter D.; Verma, Mahendra K.; Attanasi, Emil D.; Olea, Ricardo A.; Blondes, Madalyn S.; Freeman, Philip; Brennan, Sean T.; Merrill, Matthew D.; Jahediesfanjani, Hossein; Roueche, Jacqueline; Lohr, Celeste D. Geologic controls on submarine slope failure along the central U.S. Atlantic margin: Insights from the Currituck Slide Complex
Multiple styles of failure, ranging from densely spaced, mass transport driven canyons to the large, slab-type slope failure of the Currituck Slide, characterize adjacent sections of the central U.S. Atlantic margin that appear to be defined by variations in geologic framework. Here we use regionally extensive, deep penetration multichannel...
Hill, Jenna C.; Brothers, Daniel S.; Craig, Bradley K.; ten Brink, Uri S.; Chaytor, Jason D.; Flores, Claudia High-resolution geophysical data collected along the Delmarva Peninsula, 2014, USGS Field Activity 2014-002-FA
The Delmarva Peninsula is a 220-kilometer-long headland, spit, and barrier island complex that was significantly affected by Hurricane Sandy. A U.S. Geological Survey cruise was conducted in the summer of 2014 to map the inner continental shelf of the Delmarva Peninsula using geophysical and sampling techniques to define the geologic framework...
Pendleton, Elizabeth; Ackerman, Seth D.; Baldwin, Wayne E.; Danforth, William W.; Foster, David S.; Thieler, E. Robert; Brothers, Laura L.
Digital elevations and extents of regional hydrogeologic units in the Northern Atlantic Coastal Plain aquifer system from Long Island, New York, to North Carolina
Digital geospatial datasets of the extents and top elevations of the regional hydrogeologic units of the Northern Atlantic Coastal Plain aquifer system from Long Island, New York, to northeastern North Carolina were developed to provide an updated hydrogeologic framework to support analysis of groundwater resources. The 19 regional hydrogeologic...
Pope, Jason P.; Andreasen, David C.; Mcfarland, E. Randolph; Watt, Martha K.
Historical files from Federal Government mineral exploration-assistance programs, 1950 to 1974
The Defense Minerals Administration (DMA), Defense Minerals Exploration Administration (DMEA), and Office of Minerals Exploration (OME) mineral exploration programs were active over the period 1950–1974. Under these programs, the Federal Government contributed financial assistance in the exploration for certain strategic and critical minerals. The...
Frank, David G. Decadal-scale export of nitrogen, phosphorus, and sediment from the Susquehanna River basin, USA: Analysis and synthesis of temporal and spatial patterns
The export of nitrogen (N), phosphorus (P), and suspended sediment (SS) is a long-standing management concern for the Chesapeake Bay watershed, USA. Here we present a comprehensive evaluation of nutrient and sediment loads over the last three decades at multiple locations in the Susquehanna River basin (SRB), Chesapeake's largest tributary...
Zhang, Qian; Ball, William P.; Moyer, Douglas
Contaminants in urban waters—Science capabilities of the U.S. Geological Survey
Streams and estuaries with urban watersheds commonly exhibit increased streamflow and decreased base flow; diminished stream-channel stability; excessive amounts of contaminants such as pesticides, metals, industrial and municipal waste, and combustion products; and alterations to biotic community structure. Collectively, these detrimental effects...
Jastram, John D.; Hyer, Kenneth E.
The Floodplain and Evaluation Tool (FACET) is an open-source python tool that maps the floodplain extent and derives reach-scale summaries of stream and floodplain geomorphic measurements from high-resolution digital elevation models (DEMs).
National Oil and Gas Assessment Provinces
This is a graphic from the USGS National Oil and Gas Assessment Explorer application, which allows user to drill into 70 oil and gas assessment provinces throughout the United States.
Drone being prepared for survey
In this photo, a small unoccupied aicraft (sUAS) or drone is being prepared to collect thermal infrared data to assess groundwater discharge into Las Vegas Wash, in Clark County, Nevada. The umbrella provides shade to keep the equipment from getting too hot.
This study is using thermal infrared imaging to aid in location and evaluation of areas of gains and
...
Habitat Connectivity: Assessing Threats and IDing Conservation Actions
An important conservation strategy for climate change is to enhance and maintain regional habitat connectivity for the long-term viability of wildlife populations. Modeling habitat connectivity for wildlife species often results in a mapped network of linkages between habitat patches. A critical next step is to determine which of those linkages are priorities for
...
Course Corrections to Address Gender Harassment in Science
Dr. Kate Clancy presentation on the National Academies of Science, Engineering, and Medicine Committee's consensus study report on Sexual Harassment of Women. This recording does not capture the first 10 minutes of the presentation.
Drone image of stream
Aerial image of stream and wetlands collected using a small unoccupied aicraft (sUAS) or drone at Ashville Bridge Creek, Back Bay National Wildlife Refuge (NWR), Virginia Beach, Virginia.
SEM Laboratory
Scientists look at a pollen palynomorph using a scanning electron microscope (SEM).
Great Dismal Swamp, Lake Drummond
Photograph of Lake Drummond, which is located within the Great Dismal Swamp in Virginia. USGS scientists recently collected peat and lake core samples from the swamp to help reconstruct natural environmental conditions over the past 12,000 years.
This project will help managers understand how this system has changed in order to better manage and restore it.
...
Great Dismal Swamp
Scientists are collecting core samples from the Great Dismal Swamp in Virginia to understand natural conditions before centuries of ditching, draining and harvesting. This is a collaborative project between the USGS and the Great Dismal Swamp National Wildlife Refuge. This project will help managers understand how this system has changed in order to better manage and
...
Great Dismal Swamp
Scientists are collecting core samples from the Great Dismal Swamp in Virginia to understand natural conditions before centuries of ditching, draining and harvesting. This is a collaborative project between the USGS and the Great Dismal Swamp National Wildlife Refuge. This project will help managers understand how this system has changed in order to better manage and
...
The Great Dismal Swamp
Photograph of the Great Dismal Swamp in Virginia.
The Great Dismal Swamp
Photograph of the Great Dismal Swamp in Virginia.
The Marcellus Shale and Point Pleasant-Utica Shale formations of the Appalachian Basin contain an estimated mean of 214 trillion cubic feet of undiscovered, technically recoverable continuous resources of natural gas, according to new USGS assessments.
Editor’s Note: This story was revised Sept. 10, 2019 to include the later phases of USGS’ response to Hurricane Dorian.
To learn more about USGS’ role providing science to decision makers before, during and after Hurricane Dorian, visit the USGS Hurricane Dorian page at www.usgs.gov/dorian.
Storms and undeveloped coastlines can create and maintain habitat for this species, which is threatened along the Atlantic coast.
This year, the Florence Bascom Geoscience Center is proud to announce it's first annual Big Science Blowout. Team members will have the opportunity to share abstacts they have presented at various conferences over the past year.
When: 23 May 2019, 9:00AM - 3:00PM EST
Where: Doug Rankin Memorial Map Compilation Room and Presentation Center (Room 3C129)
Since the ban of DDT, bald eagle populations have rebounded to near-historic levels and aircraft strikes have increased since 1998. Wildlife-aircraft strikes are expensive and the large body size of the bald eagle increases the likelihood of aircraft damage and human injury when a collision occurs.
New study analyzed Landsat satellite imagery to document historical and recent (post-Hurricane Sandy) wetland changes that occurred along the Maryland and Virginia coastlines since 1984.
In August 2018, the USGS Coastal/Marine Hazards and Resources Program (CMHRP) completed the Mid-Atlantic Resource Imaging Experiment (MATRIX), a three-week cruise that acquired more than 2,000 kilometers of multichannel seismic data between Hudson Canyon and Cape Hatteras on the U.S. Atlantic margin.
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 in the sector stretching from the upper continental slope to deep water areas offshore New Jersey to North Carolina.
New paper published presents a method that combines field and geospatial datasets to estimate the amount of sediment eroded from stream banks and deposited on floodplains.
To learn more about USGS’ role providing science to decision makers before, during and after Hurricane Maria, visit the USGS Hurricane Maria page at https://www.usgs.gov/maria.
To learn more about USGS’ role providing science to decision makers before, during and after Hurricane Jose, visit the USGS Hurricane Jose page at https://www.usgs.gov/jose.
A carbonatite here, a glacial moraine there, a zig-zagging fault or two, even a behemoth of a batholith. The geology of the 50 States is an enormous patchwork of varied forms, beautiful in their variance but challenging to present as a single map.
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Locations
Office of Communications and Publishing
Chesapeake Bay Program
Phone: (800) YOUR-BAY (968-7229)
Fax: (410) 267-5777
Environmental Health Mission Area Headquarters
Energy and Minerals Mission Area Headquarters
Science and Decisions Center
Mineral Resources Program Office
Phone: 703-648-6100
Fax: 703-648-6057
Climate Research and Development Program Office
Land Change Science Program Office
Office of Budget, Planning, and Integration (BPI)
Phone: (703) 648-4431
Fax: (703) 648-4441
National Minerals Information Center
nmicrecordsmgt@usgs.gov
Fax: 703-648-4995
Eastern Energy Resources Science Center
Eastern Mineral & Environmental Resources Science Center
Virginia Water Science Center
Phone: (804) 261-2600
Fax: (804) 261-2657
Florence Bascom Geoscience Center
Phone: 703-648-5953
Reston Stable Isotope Laboratory (RSIL)
Phone: 703-648-5859
Patuxent Wildlife Research Center - Virginia Polytechnic Institute
USGS Reston Library - Clarence King Memorial Library (Main Library)
library@usgs.gov
Phone: 703-648-4301
Fax: 703-648-6373