The ('''USGS''') is a scientific agency of the
United States Government . The
Scientist s of the USGS study the
Landscape of the
United States , its
Natural Resource s, and the
Natural Hazard s that threaten it. The organization has four major science disciplines, concerning
Biology ,
Geography ,
Geology , and
Hydrology . The USGS is a fact-finding research organization with no regulatory responsibility.
A bureau of the
United States Department Of The Interior , it is that department's sole scientific agency. The USGS employs approximately 10,000 people and is headquartered in
Reston ,
Virginia , with major offices in
Denver ,
Colorado , and
Menlo Park ,
California .
Prompted by a report from the
National Academy Of Sciences the USGS was created by an act of congress on
March 3 ,
1879 . It was charged with the "classification of the public lands, and examination of the geological structure, mineral resources, and products of the national domain." This task was driven by the need to inventory the vast lands added to the United States by the
Louisiana Purchase in 1803.
Clarence King , the first director of USGS, assembled the new organization from disparate regional survey agencies. After a short tenure, King was succeeded in the director's chair by
John Wesley Powell .
The USGS is the primary civilian mapping agency in the United States, and is best known for its 1:24,000 scale, 7.5-minute quadrangle
Topographic Maps . Their recent program, the
National Map is an attempt to be the be-all end-all of online mapping services. The USGS also has an invigorating Business Partners program through which they encourage the reselling of their maps so that the public can have quicker, easier access to information. Many sites such as
TopoZone have capitalized on this program to provide the web with the best mapping services possible in conjunction with the USGS.
The USGS
Earthquake Hazards Program monitors earthquake activity worldwide.
The .
The USGS
National Geomagnetism Program monitors the
Magnetic Field at magnetic observatories and distributes
Magnetometer data in real time.
Since
1962 , it has been involved in global,
Lunar and
Planetary exploration and
Map ping.
"The mission of the
{Link without Title} Avian Flu outbreaks in the United States.
As of
2005 , the agency is working to create a
National Volcano Early Warning System by improving the instrumentation monitoring the 169
Volcano es in U.S. territory and by establishing methods for measuring the relative threats posed at each site.
The motto of the USGS is "''science for a changing world''."
The USGS also runs 17 research centers in the United States, including the
Patuxent Wildlife Research Center .
