By jlawson@contractor.usgs.gov from All News. Published on May 21, 2025.

Using Landsat’s thermal imagery, researchers at Gallo Winery have been able to better understand vineyard water needs, optimize irrigation and support long-term sustainability across thousands of acres. This work also helped shape broader tools now supporting water management across the western United States. 

By ppearsall@usgs.gov from All News. Published on May 20, 2025.

As sea levels rise and storms intensify, the threat of coastal flooding in low-lying areas like San Francisco Bay is becoming increasingly urgent. Traditionally engineered levees that hold back water are a first line of defense, but a new study points to a promising hybrid approach: nature-based “horizontal levees”. 

By lhoaks@usgs.gov from All News. Published on May 19, 2025.

A study conducted by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) in collaboration with multiple water utilities and research partners revealed widespread cyanotoxin occurrence in Cascade Range rivers that provide municipal drinking water to over 1.5 million Oregonians. 

By diwanowicz@usgs.gov from All News. Published on May 19, 2025.

It is with deep appreciation and heartfelt congratulations that we announce the retirement of Patti Bright, Senior Science Advisor for the U.S. Geological Survey’s Environmental Health Program.

By diwanowicz@usgs.gov from All News. Published on May 19, 2025.

We are both excited and saddened to announce the retirement of Rip Shively, who has served as the Environmental Health Program Coordinator for the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) since 2022. 

By jbush@usgs.gov from All News. Published on May 19, 2025.

As CASC Senior Administrator Doug Beard prepares for his next chapter, we reflect on his long and accomplished career with the CASC network.

By cduzet@contractor.usgs.gov from All News. Published on May 19, 2025.

By linking historical employment data and future climate projections, researchers supported by the Southeast CASC assessed how rising temperatures and shifting rainfall patterns could reshape employment in the South’s profitable forestry industry.  

By cduzet@contractor.usgs.gov from All News. Published on May 19, 2025.

An international study of mammal activity, co-led by a former Northeast CASC fellow, used nearly 9 million wildlife camera observations to show that most mammals don’t follow fixed daily schedules, but shift their activity patterns in response to human activities. 

By jmbaker@usgs.gov from All News. Published on May 19, 2025.

Learn about 3D Elevation Program (3DEP) lidar data for New Mexico in the new fact sheet -
The 3D Elevation Program - Supporting New Mexico's Economy

By mpoland@usgs.gov from All News. Published on May 19, 2025.

Yellowstone National Park contains the world’s largest concentration of geothermal features.  In fact, this is the primary reason it was set aside as a National Park in 1872. 

By shouse@usgs.gov from All News. Published on May 16, 2025.

Fueling Discovery with USGS Wildland Fire Science is a public webinar series hosted by USGS Wildland Fire Science and the Ecosystems Mission Area. These webinars are meant to provide information on the breadth of USGS fire science used by stakeholders to make decisions before, during, and after wildfires in ecosystems across the U.S.

By ssoileau@usgs.gov from All News. Published on May 16, 2025.

Fueling Discovery with USGS Wildland Fire Science is a public webinar series hosted by USGS Wildland Fire Science and the Ecosystems Mission Area. These webinars are meant to provide information on the breadth of USGS fire science used by stakeholders to make decisions before, during, and after wildfires in ecosystems across the U.S.

By kmulliken@usgs.gov from All News. Published on May 15, 2025.

With permission from Hawaiʻi Volcanoes National Park, the USGS Hawaiian Volcano Observatory has installed another livestream camera on the rim of Kaluapele: the V3cam. 

By jrichie@usgs.gov from All News. Published on May 15, 2025.

Today, the mid-latitudes of Mars are too warm and dry for surface ice to persist; any exposed frost or ice would quickly sublimate into the atmosphere. But a new scientific study, published in JGR: Planets, provides insights into the presence of near-surface ice at several sites in Mars’ northern mid-latitudes—information that could prove critical for future human explorarion.

By ppearsall@usgs.gov from All News. Published on May 15, 2025.

Scientists at the USGS are tracking mercury pollution in the Bay using remote sensing technology, creating detailed maps to monitor mercury pollution and support wetland restoration in a rapidly changing estuary. 

By lshriver@usgs.gov from All News. Published on May 15, 2025.

In this edition: Conferences, National Seed Strategy Progress Report for 2022 and 2023, and Publications.

By kmulliken@usgs.gov from All News. Published on May 14, 2025.

Halemaʻumaʻu has been progressively filled by six eruptions at the summit of Kīlauea since 2020, and it continues to accumulate new lava with each successive fountaining episode of the ongoing eruption. Let’s dive beneath the solidified crust on the floor of the crater to explore the complicated mix of molten material below. 

By sernst@usgs.gov from All News. Published on May 14, 2025.

The U.S. Department of Defense is supporting the geographic expansion of the USGS Coastal Change Likelihood and Coastal Landscape Response assessments. These assessments are critical to understanding future coastal landscape change that could impact military installations, sites, and infrastructure along the U.S. Atlantic and Gulf Coasts. 

By samgott@usgs.gov from All News. Published on May 12, 2025.

RESTON, VA. — Low-level airplane flights are planned over parts of the Connecticut River Valley to image geology using airborne geophysical technology, starting this month. The flights are part of a national effort to modernize mapping of the nation’s geology, increasing knowledge of resources such as critical minerals and water, and natural hazards such as earthquakes and radon.

By jburton@usgs.gov from All News. Published on May 12, 2025.

RESTON, VA – The U.S. Geological Survey has invited states to compete for $5 million in cooperative agreements to find critical minerals needed to drive the U.S. economy in the materials left over from mining at active and legacy sites.

By ajonesi@usgs.gov from All News. Published on May 12, 2025.

Learn about the Feasibility of Using Lidar-Derived Digital Elevation Models for Gravity Data Reduction

By jmbaker@usgs.gov from All News. Published on May 12, 2025.

Learn about 3D Elevation Program (3DEP) lidar data for Rhode Island in the new fact sheet -
The 3D Elevation Program - Supporting Rhode Island's Economy

By mpoland@usgs.gov from All News. Published on May 12, 2025.

The Yellowstone Plateau Volcanic Field has some of the largest rhyolite lava flows on Earth. Have you ever wondered what these flows look like in their interior, or how the unique textures that can be observed in rocks across Yellowstone National Park formed?

By mzoeller@usgs.gov from All News. Published on May 11, 2025.

Episode 21 of the ongoing eruption in Halemaʻumaʻu at the summit of Kīlauea began at 12:45 p.m. on Sunday, May 1, 2025. Lava fountains reached heights of approximately 500 feet (150 meters) in the early hours of this episode.

By mzoeller@usgs.gov from All News. Published on May 11, 2025.

Episode 22 of the ongoing eruption in Halemaʻumaʻu at the summit of Kīlauea was active from 4:40 a.m. until 3:29 p.m. on Friday, May 16, 2025. The Halema'uma'u eruption is currently paused and the rapid change in summit tilt from deflation to inflation following episode 22 suggests that another eruptive episode is possible.

By kmulliken@usgs.gov from All News. Published on May 08, 2025.

On December 23, 2024, eruptive activity at Kīlauea’s summit began again with the first in what has become 20 discrete lava fountaining episodes. Many episodes have had dual fountains—two erupting at the same time—a rare occurrence at Kīlauea and worldwide. The most recent episode 20 concluded at 9:28 p.m. H.S.T. on May 6, 2025.

By kmulliken@usgs.gov from All News. Published on May 08, 2025.

Episode 20 of the ongoing Halemaʻumaʻu eruption ended after four and a half hours of lava fountaining during the evening of May 6. USGS Hawaiiian Volcano Observatory geologists visited the eruption site on May 7, during the ongoing pause. The rapid rebound of recorded summit tilt from deflation to inflation at the end of episode 20 suggests another episode is likely

By ppearsall@usgs.gov from All News. Published on May 08, 2025.

In an era of high-resolution satellite imagery, drone mapping, and other remote-sensing techniques, collecting data on how coastlines change over time has never been easier. But what about utilizing coastal imagery from time periods that pre-date satellite and aerial surveys?

By sshukla@usgs.gov from All News. Published on May 08, 2025.

A new paper in Science of the Total Environment, co‑authored by researchers from several USGS Mission Areas and Centers, including the California Water Science Center, finds fungicides, herbicides, and insecticides at every sampling site across five Sacramento Valley wildlife refuges. Because levels stayed high even far from crops, scientists are probing what this means for pollinators.

By slevisay@contractor.usgs.gov from All News. Published on May 08, 2025.

“How much money did that save our community by making these investments?” said Keith Brooks, general manager of the Douglas Electric Cooperative. “It’s hard to quantify the fire that never happens.”