Current Events

Humboldt River Basin Capture Query Tool

The Humboldt River Basin Capture Query Tool (HCQT) is an interactive tool allows users to explore how groundwater pumping affects streamflow and other water sources across the Humboldt River Basin.

Published: Fri, 30 Jan 2026 14:36:02 EST

Volcano Watch — When it rained rocks: tephra fall during Kīlauea’s episode 41

Large lava fountains streamed from both the north and south vents reaching heights of at least 1475 feet (450 meters) during episode 41 of Kīlauea’s summit eruption on January 24, 2026.  Strong updrafts coupled with light winds blowing to the east and north sent lava fragments from the fountains, called tephra, over much of the District of Puna and into South Hilo and the eastern edge of Kaʻū.

Published: Thu, 29 Jan 2026 21:04:38 EST

Photo & Video Chronology — January 27, 2026 — Tephra fall from Kīlauea episode 41

During episode 41 on January 24, lava fountains from the north and south vents in Halemaʻumaʻu at the summit of Kīlauea reached up at least 450 m (1475 feet). Weak surface winds in combination with stronger upper-level winds blowing to the east and north resulted in widespread tephra fall in communities to the northeast and east within the Districts of Kaʻū, Puna, and South Hilo. 

Published: Thu, 29 Jan 2026 19:16:20 EST

USGS READI-Net Tests Next Generation Environmental DNA Sampling Robot for Early Detection of Biological Threats

USGS READI-Net project team members and collaborators were trained by Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute staff on a next-generation environmental DNA autonomous robot—the Filtering Instrument for DNA Observation (FIDO). FIDO will enhance READI-Net’s ability to provide managers and scientists tools and strategies for early detection of biological threats.

Published: Thu, 29 Jan 2026 14:00:22 EST

Water data delivery changes and new features: real-time data, APIs, interactive maps, charts, and tables

Important changes to how USGS water data will be delivered as we modernize our water data storage and delivery systems. 

Published: Wed, 28 Jan 2026 16:40:14 EST

Using Landsat Data: More Helpful Tutorials Now Available

The USGS EROS User Services team recently added several new tutorials to their code repository. These guides help users access and work with Landsat data stored in a commercial cloud environment more effectively.

Published: Wed, 28 Jan 2026 14:36:24 EST

Photo & Video Chronology — January 24, 2026 — Kīlauea episode 41

Episode 41 of lava fountaining at the summit of Kīlauea was active for 8 hours and 18 minutes on January 24, 2026. Weak surface winds in combination with stronger upper-level winds blowing to the east and north during episode 41 resulted in widespread tephra fall in communities to the north, east-northeast, and east of the eruptive vents (District of Puna on the Island of Hawaiʻi)

Published: Tue, 27 Jan 2026 21:25:46 EST

Finding and defending grassland cores using spatial covariance

Grassland ecosystems continue to lose ecological integrity as woody plants invade and fragment habitat. This talk demonstrates how spatial covariance can more accurately flag grassland cores and edge conditions relevant to bird occupancy than tree‑cover metrics alone. The talk highlights management implications for defending cores and restoring contiguous habitat.

Published: Tue, 27 Jan 2026 17:00:51 EST

Florida’s Fading Coral Reefs Could Sharply Increase Coastal Flood Risk

Coral reefs do more than support vibrant marine ecosystems—they also act as natural breakwaters, protecting coastlines from storm-driven waves. New USGS-led research shows that as Florida’s coral reefs continue to degrade, the loss of this natural protection could dramatically increase flooding risk for coastal communities in southeast Florida. 

Published: Mon, 26 Jan 2026 15:45:31 EST

The largest thermal area in Yellowstone National Park: Lower Geyser Basin

Yellowstone is a land of superlatives. Even in such an environment, the Lower Geyser Basin stands out as one of the most spectacular areas in the park.

Published: Mon, 26 Jan 2026 06:00:00 EST

Biophysical controls on sediment erodibility in San Francisco Bay

The erodibility of bed sediment in estuaries can shape everything from water clarity to habitat quality, and influences the magnitude of sediment transport. While scientists largely understand how bed sediments in sandy environments erode, less attention has focused on muddy sediments in estuaries. New research from USGS shows that waves matter—but so do the animals living in the mud.

Published: Fri, 23 Jan 2026 11:34:40 EST

Volcano Watch — What do small earthquakes beneath Kīlauea summit mean for the ongoing eruption?

“Volcano Watch” articles over the past two weeks have described past episodic lava fountaining eruptions at Kīlauea Iki (1959) and Maunaulu (1969). Next week, we will continue this series with a summary of the most recent past episodic eruption at Kīlauea. Why? Because past eruptions can give us clues as to how the ongoing episodic eruption in Halemaʻumaʻu might progress or change.  

Published: Thu, 22 Jan 2026 21:08:58 EST

2025 in Review: The Saline Lake Ecosystems Integrated Water Availability Assessment

Update for the Saline Lake Ecosystems Integrated Water Availability Assessment project to summarize progress in calendar year 2025 highlighting extensive data collection and preliminary analysis efforts across multiple scientific themes. 

Published: Thu, 22 Jan 2026 19:17:50 EST

Landsat in 2025: Milestones Continue the Mission's Legacy

In 2025, Landsat celebrated several milestones. We officially bid farewell to Landsat 7 and its 26-year mission and legacy, while continuing to show how Landsat imagery supports real world decision-making through new stories highlighting its role across industries. The year also brought the announcement of  a new Landsat Science Team set to begin in 2026. Catch up on our year here.

Published: Thu, 22 Jan 2026 13:10:55 EST

Satellite Data and Science Abound in 2025

The USGS Earth Resources Observation and Science (EROS) Center scientists’ work helps save lives and protect property while EROS offers remote sensing data to the world.

As the Earth begins its next revolution around the sun, let’s look back at some of the exciting accomplishments at EROS in 2025!

Published: Thu, 22 Jan 2026 11:50:08 EST

Photo & Video Chronology — January 16, 2026 — Kīlauea summit overflight and thermal map

USGS Hawaiian Volcano Observatory scientists conducted a monitoring overflight of Kīlauea summit on January 16, following the eruption of episode 40 in Halemaʻumaʻu on January 12, 2026. 

Published: Wed, 21 Jan 2026 21:26:50 EST

High-resolution estimates of water levels in the Everglades, Florida: Software release

SPCMSC physical scientist Bryan McCloskey and CFWSC hydrologist Saira Haider developed an update to the Everglades Depth Estimation Network (EDEN) interpolation algorithm by introducing a high-resolution option.

Published: Wed, 21 Jan 2026 14:06:43 EST

Get to Know a Scientist Emeritus—John Nimmo

This is the latest in a series of Get to Know posts highlighting and celebrating the contributions of exemplary Scientists Emeriti.  Their work, experience, and contributions are essential to the mission of the USGS. 

Published: Wed, 21 Jan 2026 08:37:30 EST

SBSC Social Media

The Southwest Biological Science Center (SBSC) is based in Flagstaff, AZ, with field stations in Tucson, AZ, and Moab, UT.  SBSC's social media highlights terrestrial and river ecosystem science conducted on the Colorado Plateau, Colorado River, and drylands of Arizona, California, and Utah. SBSC's mission is to conduct quality, objective research on the lands and aquatic systems of the Southwest.

Published: Tue, 20 Jan 2026 16:25:09 EST

He Ahi, He ʻĀina: From Fire Comes Land

Since December 23, 2024, an eruption has been intermittently active within the Halemaʻumaʻu crater at the summit of Kīlauea on the island of Hawaiʻi. This recent eruptive event is one of many that have occurred at the volcano over the past few decades. In the timeline below, we outline how these recent eruptions have shaped the island and impacted the people who live there.

Published: Tue, 20 Jan 2026 12:00:00 EST

USGS Researchers Partner with Indigenous Communities in Alaska to Better Understand Ecosystem Changes

CASC researchers, in partnership with other federal and university partners, are studying the impacts of warming temperatures on Arctic rivers that are vital for cultural, spiritual, and subsistence activities, by integrating Indigenous knowledges with western science through the Arctic Rivers Project.

Published: Tue, 20 Jan 2026 09:43:35 EST

How many eruptions has Yellowstone had?

When trying to understand the behavior of a volcanic system like Yellowstone and the likelihood it will have another eruption, it is important to determine how many eruptions occurred in the past and when they occurred. Some of Yellowstone’s past eruptions may be hiding, which makes this question difficult to answer.

Published: Mon, 19 Jan 2026 06:00:00 EST

Tight Lines: Evaluating Rainbow Trout Fishing in Oklahoma

USGS researchers at the Oklahoma Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Unit, biologists at the Oklahoma Department of Wildlife Conservation (ODWC), and researchers at Oklahoma State University are leading a study on rainbow trout fishing at the lower Mountain Fork River (LMFR) below Broken Bow Dam in southeastern Oklahoma. 

Published: Fri, 16 Jan 2026 13:09:59 EST

Volcano Watch — The 1969 Maunaulu eruption: 12 lava fountaining episodes

Last week’s “Volcano Watch” article reviewed the lava fountaining eruption of Kīlauea Iki in 1959. This week, we’ll continue looking back in time at the next episodic lava fountaining eruption in Kīlauea’s history: the Maunaulu eruption that occurred a decade later, in 1969. 

Published: Thu, 15 Jan 2026 18:22:34 EST

Between a rock and a hard place: Experiences of the chronic wasting disease management community

Chronic Wasting Disease (CWD) has proven to be a complex issue for wildlife managers: effective disease management may not always align with stakeholder wants. In a new study, researchers found that some wildlife managers are feeling caught between a rock and a hard place, operating under constrained decision options where they may struggle to reduce CWD prevalence and meet the public’s needs.  

Published: Thu, 15 Jan 2026 16:15:29 EST

USGS Partners with AI/ML Experts to Improve Landsat Flight Operations

The U.S. Geological Survey Technology Transfer Office has entered into three Cooperative Research & Development Agreements (CRADAs) aimed at advancing Artificial Intelligence (AI) applications and Machine Learning (ML) methods to optimize Landsat Missions Flight Operations.

Published: Thu, 15 Jan 2026 13:56:30 EST

Chesapeake Bay Program partners protect more than 9.2 million acres of land across watershed

Chesapeake Bay Program — Press Release — January 15, 2026

Published: Thu, 15 Jan 2026 11:57:29 EST

The Loneliest Seismometers on Earth

The USGS Albuquerque Seismological Observatory is partnering with the IceCube Neutrino Observatory, University of Wisconsin-Madison, and the National Science Foundation to deploy new seismometers in the coolest way possible.

Published: Thu, 15 Jan 2026 09:00:00 EST

Drought Watch Expanded to 40 Pennsylvania Counties

USGS groundwater and surface water monitoring data contributed to the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection's (PaDEP) January 8, 2026, expansion of drought watches to three additional counties. A total of 40 counties are now under drought watch, and one county under a warning.

 

Published: Wed, 14 Jan 2026 14:00:00 EST

Photo & Video Chronology — January 12, 2026 — Kīlauea episode 40

Kīlauea summit eruption episode 40 lava fountaining lasted for just under 10 hours on January 12, with maximum lava fountain heights of about 800 feet (250 meters). 

Published: Wed, 14 Jan 2026 13:22:57 EST