U.S. Geological Survey (USGS)

Teachers, Administrators, Parents: Help Your School Community Prepare for Earthquakes 🏫 The ShakeAlert Ready Schools initiative offers free earthquake preparedness resources for K–12 school communities. Developed by the USGS and state partners in California, Oregon, and Washington, the initiative includes standards-based lessons, teaching tools, and other resources. ShakeAlert®, the nation's public earthquake early warning system, can provide seconds of warning before strong shaking arrives, giving people time to take protective action, such as Drop, Cover, and Hold On. Earthquake preparedness takes planning and practice. Explore ShakeAlert Ready Schools resources to help your school community build awareness, strengthen preparedness, and know what to do when an earthquake occurs. Schools can put those skills into action by participating in the 2026 Great ShakeOut on October 15 and practicing Drop, Cover, and Hold On. Learn more 👉 ShakeAlert.org/Schools 📸: USGS seismologist showing students an earthquake animation. California Department of Education Oregon Department of Education Washington Emergency Management Division

National water availability data at your fingertips! 💧🎉 The National Water Availability Assessment Data Companion provides regularly updated, model-based estimates of water availability and use on a national scale. Nearly 27 million Americans, or 8% of the U.S. population, live in areas where water demand consistently approaches or exceeds naturally available water supply. Until recently, accessing comprehensive water availability information with national coverage required stitching together disparate datasets across multiple agencies, regions, and complicated websites. The Data Companion eliminates these barriers by: 💧 Providing consistent information about water availability and use across approximately 80,000 watersheds nationwide from 2000 to 2020 💧 Enabling data access through various user-friendly means, including a subset and download tool, a data file directory, an API, and a new interactive map 💧 Continually adding new and updated data to reflect the latest USGS water models and science Check out the interactive map now 👉https://lnkd.in/gXdepEX8 📹: Video of the interactive map’s functionality, including data selection and adding additional layers, such as county boundaries. Video recorded July 6, 2026.

📢 Attention students interested in geologic mapping! 🗺️ The USGS is inviting students to submit abstracts for their geologic maps for the 2026 Best Student Geologic Map Competition, which will take place at the Geological Society of America (GSA) Connects meeting in Denver, CO this October 2026. 🏅 The top three student-authored geologic maps receive awards and recognition at a ceremony by competition sponsors—the Association of American State Geologists, American Institute of Professional Geologists, Geological Society of America, American Geosciences Institute, and the Journal of Maps. 📅 Deadline: Thursday, August 6, 2026 🔗 Learn more about eligibility, participation requirements, and how to enter here: https://ow.ly/XItj50ZjNr6 📷: 2025 Best Student Geologic Map Competition first-place winner Terri Zach, alongside Matt Morgan, former AASG President, and Lauren Heerschap of Brunton. Credit: GSA

Happy Independence Day! 🇺🇸🦅 Since 1879, we’ve mapped the mountains, rivers, and valleys across our nation, helping Americans explore, protect, and understand the land we call home. 📸1: USGS topographic mapping field camp in the early 1900s. 📸2: Topographer working with a tripod, planetable, and alidade at Kahekili Leap, on the island of Oʻahu, Hawaiʻi, circa 1928. 📸3: Topographer mapping the north half of the Lovelock 1-degree quadrangle in a desert area near Jungo, Nevada, circa 1931. 📸4: A level crew running a line from Mojave, California to Keeler, California via the state road, preparing the way for topographers to follow. Circa 1905. Credit: USGS

United States of America, from space. 🛰️ To celebrate America's 250th anniversary, the USGS has created a new portrait of the nation using imagery from Landsat 8 and Landsat 9. For more than 50 years, the USGS and NASA - National Aeronautics and Space Administration Landsat program has provided a continuous record of Earth's changing land surface. This new mosaic showcases the incredible diversity of the United States, from the rainforests of the Pacific Northwest to the Everglades of Florida, from the Rocky Mountains to the agricultural heartland of the Great Plains. It also continues a tradition that began in 1976, when Landsat imagery was used to create "Portrait U.S.A." for the nation's bicentennial. Learn more about this image (also available as a poster) and download a free high-resolution copy 👉https://ow.ly/iuNR50ZjKhT 📷: Landsat Portrait of America, created using imagery from Landsat 8 and Landsat 9 and elevation data from the USGS National Elevation Dataset.

The 2026 Atlantic hurricane season runs from June 1 through November 30, but the USGS works year-round to provide the science that emergency managers, local officials, and the public rely on to protect lives and property. Before a storm: USGS coastal change forecasts predict where beaches may erode, where sand could push inland, and where storm surge may flood roads and homes. During Hurricane Ian in 2022, these forecasts accurately predicted widespread dune loss along Florida's Gulf Coast, helping officials prepare for road closures and damage assessments. During a storm: A nationwide network of streamgages and rapid-deployment gauges tracks river levels and flood conditions in real time. During Hurricane Harvey in 2017, these sensors helped emergency managers in Texas track rising waters and direct rescue operations. After a storm: High-resolution aerial imagery and lidar scans map what has changed: washed-out roads, flooded neighborhoods, and damaged shorelines. After Hurricane Laura in 2020, USGS imagery identified severe coastal erosion across Louisiana's barrier islands, supporting both emergency response and long-term restoration. This work is a coordinated effort with NOAA: National Oceanic & Atmospheric Administration, National Weather Service, FEMA, and state and local agencies, so that the people who need critical information have it when it matters most. Learn more about USGS hurricane science: https://ow.ly/AVwJ50ZhMlU 📷1 and 2: Section of Fort Myers Beach, Florida, before and after Hurricane Ian, 2022. The area endured severe damage and coastal change from the storm including overwashed sand, coastal flooding, and in some places, erosion. (Credit: USGS) #HurricaneSeason #CoastalErosion #FloodMonitoring

When it comes to earthquake early warning, seconds matter. Technology can provide those seconds. Training determines what we do with them. To help communities turn precious seconds into action, the USGS worked with emergency managers, CERT instructors, earthquake scientists, education specialists, and communication experts to develop ShakeAlert Ready CERT—a set of free, downloadable training materials that CERT programs can incorporate into their own meetings, trainings, and community outreach activities. The resources include two ready-to-use options: 💠 15-minute module for monthly CERT meetings or to supplement earthquake hazard instruction in CERT Basic Training. 💠 1-hour module that provides a more in-depth overview of the ShakeAlert Earthquake Early Warning System and additional opportunities for discussion. ShakeAlert Ready CERT is designed to help communities respond to earthquake shaking and ShakeAlert EEW alerts with practiced action. Download the free resources 👉 ShakeAlert.org/CERT 📸1 & 2: CERT programs train volunteers to support their communities before and after disasters. FEMA Region 10 National CERT Association CALIFORNIA EMERGENCY SERVICES ASSOCIATION

Better data. Faster insights. Smarter decisions. At the roundtable on water, agriculture, technology, and public data hosted by Grand Farm in North Dakota, Dr. Andrea Travnicek, Assistant Secretary for Water and Science at the U.S. Department of the Interior, spoke about the future of water data. “The U.S. Geological Survey continues to transform how the nation collects and shares water information by modernizing its publicly accessible data system and working with partners to test cutting-edge tools and approaches that make water monitoring faster, more accurate and more efficient. These advances will deliver more timely and reliable data to enhance flood protection, better inform water supply planning, and support the next generation of agricultural innovation, like that happening here in North Dakota.” At USGS, reliable water information remains essential for supporting communities, agriculture, and economic growth. 📷: Dr. Andrea Travnicek and Jon Hortness, USGS Acting Regional Director Midcontinent and Northeast Region, join regional stakeholders at the Grand Farm Innovation Campus. Credit: Emerging Prairie

Emergency managers rely on fast, reliable information during earthquakes. The USGS is helping them train with the tools used during real events. At the 2026 CALIFORNIA EMERGENCY SERVICES ASSOCIATION (CESA) Conference in San Diego, the USGS ShakeAlert Team previewed the new Earthquake Information Tools for Public Safety training module for emergency managers and preparedness professionals. The training focuses on earthquake information tools that support decision-making before, during, and after earthquakes, including: 📲 ShakeAlert® Earthquake Early Warning — Detects earthquakes rapidly and sends alerts to people and automated systems, often before strong shaking begins. 🗺️ ShakeMap® — Provides maps showing ground motion and shaking intensity to help assess impacts after significant earthquakes. 📈 Aftershock Forecast — Estimates the likelihood and expected number of aftershocks following a significant earthquake. Planned for release in early 2027, the module will include training resources and an immersive scenario designed to strengthen understanding and operational use of these tools. Download a copy of the Earthquake Information Tools fact sheet here: https://ow.ly/i4O950Z2UXX 📸1: ShakeAlert team members engage CESA attendees about the Earthquake Information Tools Project and the ShakeAlert Ready Community Emergency Response Team Project. 📸 2: Project leader shares the timeline of when different earthquake information tools are available.

🌋 46 years ago today, Mount St. Helens forever changed the Pacific Northwest — and the science of volcano monitoring. After more than a century of quiet, earthquakes and rising magma signaled that pressure was building beneath the volcano in the spring of 1980. On the morning of May 18, the mountain’s north flank collapsed in a massive landslide, triggering a devastating lateral blast that flattened 230 square miles of forest. Ash rose high into the atmosphere and drifted across the U.S, while volcanic mudflows, known as lahars, surged through nearby valleys to the Columbia River. Fifty-seven people lost their lives, including USGS volcanologist David A. Johnston. When the eruption ended, Mount St. Helens stood nearly 1,300 feet shorter than before. The eruption transformed not only the landscape, but also how scientists monitor and prepare for volcanic hazards around the world. ➡️ Watch USGS scientists recount their experiences before, during, and after the eruption: https://ow.ly/PKos50Z0V4H 📸: Mount St. Helens erupting above a quiet rural landscape, with ash and steam billowing into the sky. Mount Adams can be seen in the background.