An independent US government body concerned with the natural hazards that threaten lives and livelihoods; the water, energy, minerals, and other natural resources on which we rely; the health of our ecosystems and environment; and the impacts of climate and land-use change. Established in 1879, it has worked with NASA on using satellites for remote-sensing data, such as the USGS images taken from Landsat 7 showing the eruption of Mount Etna, Sicily, in July 2001. The organization maintains the National Satellite Land Remote-Sensing Data Archive with its collection of images spanning nearly 40 years. USGS also works with NASA on AmericaView, a programme to expand remote-sensing education and promote the availability of natural-science data. Apollo astronauts were given training in geology by USGS prior to their explorations of the Moon in the 1960s and early 1970s.

The USGS has some 10 000 scientists, technicians, and support staff in some 400 offices. There are branches in every US state, and in several other nations. Its budget is more than US$1 billion a year.