Mount Hood in the not-so-far distance beyond Downtown Portland, Oregon. Photograph taken at the top of the Portland Aerial Tram line on Marquam Hill.
Images
Explore our planet through photography and imagery, including climate change and water all the way back to the 1800s when the USGS was surveying the country by horse and buggy.
![Mount Hood in the not-so-far distance beyond Downtown Portland, Ore...](https://d9-wret.s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/assets/palladium/production/s3fs-public/styles/masonry/public/vhp_img1117.jpg?itok=aIVi_KxS)
Mount Hood in the not-so-far distance beyond Downtown Portland, Oregon. Photograph taken at the top of the Portland Aerial Tram line on Marquam Hill.
![Mount Scott Lookout seismic and GPS volcano monitoring station, vie...](https://d9-wret.s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/assets/palladium/production/s3fs-public/styles/masonry/public/vhp_img1266.jpg?itok=zbXYHNRd)
Mount Scott Lookout seismic and GPS volcano monitoring station, view from the southwest. Near Crater Lake, Oregon.
Mount Scott Lookout seismic and GPS volcano monitoring station, view from the southwest. Near Crater Lake, Oregon.
![Mount St. Helens prior to the catastrophic eruption of May 18, 1980...](https://d9-wret.s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/assets/palladium/production/s3fs-public/styles/masonry/public/vhp_img992.jpg?itok=1wq7zUfn)
Mount St. Helens prior to the catastrophic eruption of May 18, 1980. Streams and lava flows also visible. View is looking southerly from oblique aerial view. Mount Hood in distance.
Mount St. Helens prior to the catastrophic eruption of May 18, 1980. Streams and lava flows also visible. View is looking southerly from oblique aerial view. Mount Hood in distance.
![Old Faithful geyser in eruption at Yellowstone National Park's Uppe...](https://d9-wret.s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/assets/palladium/production/s3fs-public/styles/masonry/public/vhp_img3306.jpg?itok=IismgaZw)
Old Faithful geyser in eruption at Yellowstone National Park's Upper Geyser Basin.
Old Faithful geyser in eruption at Yellowstone National Park's Upper Geyser Basin.
Scientist collects a sample of gas in a vacuum sealed glass bottle near Nymph Lake, Yellowstone National Park.
Scientist collects a sample of gas in a vacuum sealed glass bottle near Nymph Lake, Yellowstone National Park.
![Shaded relief map of Kīlauea Volcano's summit with caldera bounding...](https://d9-wret.s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/assets/palladium/production/s3fs-public/styles/masonry/public/vhp_img4789.png?itok=oOe1XvHT)
Shaded relief map of Kīlauea Volcano's summit with caldera bounding faults delineated.
Shaded relief map of Kīlauea Volcano's summit with caldera bounding faults delineated.
![Sherman Crater, Mount Baker, Washington. Postcard photograph taken ...](https://d9-wret.s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/assets/palladium/production/s3fs-public/styles/masonry/public/vhp_img1053.jpg?itok=a2wS9JW2)
No date exists for this photograph, but the image is likely circa 1900. Note the postcard copyright date of 1903.
No date exists for this photograph, but the image is likely circa 1900. Note the postcard copyright date of 1903.
![Silica sinter (an amorphous form of silicon dioxide) forms from the...](https://d9-wret.s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/assets/palladium/production/s3fs-public/styles/masonry/public/vhp_img3297.jpg?itok=ZcodhSYf)
Silica sinter (an amorphous form of silicon dioxide) forms from the waters that flow from hot springs near Shoshone Lake, Yellowstone National Park. USGS photograph by Jake Lowenstern.
Silica sinter (an amorphous form of silicon dioxide) forms from the waters that flow from hot springs near Shoshone Lake, Yellowstone National Park. USGS photograph by Jake Lowenstern.
![Stratified 275-m (900-ft) thick mid-Holocene pyroclastic flow and l...](https://d9-wret.s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/assets/palladium/production/s3fs-public/styles/masonry/public/vhp_img1200.jpg?itok=qlnHCYPU)
Visible relief in the hillside exposure is about 800-900 ft. Dusty assemblage deposit occurred approximately between 5100 and 5500 yr B.P. Magma volume of >5 km3, which is a lot for what was probably one eruptive stage. The source lava dome is gone, apparently having disintegrated entirely during extrusion and subsequent glacial interaction.
Visible relief in the hillside exposure is about 800-900 ft. Dusty assemblage deposit occurred approximately between 5100 and 5500 yr B.P. Magma volume of >5 km3, which is a lot for what was probably one eruptive stage. The source lava dome is gone, apparently having disintegrated entirely during extrusion and subsequent glacial interaction.
![Technologies track surface changes at Yellowstone....](https://d9-wret.s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/assets/palladium/production/s3fs-public/styles/masonry/public/vhp_img1325.jpg?itok=-0N1uDhh)
Summer geology intern Mindy Juergenson climbs over downed lodgepole pine trees killed in the fire of 1988 as she packs a GPS station out of the field (inset). Nine temporary stations are deployed each April/May and retrieved in October/November. The temporary stations supplement a network of permanent stations that record ground deformation data year-round.
Summer geology intern Mindy Juergenson climbs over downed lodgepole pine trees killed in the fire of 1988 as she packs a GPS station out of the field (inset). Nine temporary stations are deployed each April/May and retrieved in October/November. The temporary stations supplement a network of permanent stations that record ground deformation data year-round.
![Testing bathymetric equipment at Coldwater Lake, Mount St. Helens...](https://d9-wret.s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/assets/palladium/production/s3fs-public/styles/masonry/public/vhp_img1171.jpg?itok=womxFIY2)
Adam Mosbrucker tests equipment (Acoustic Doppler Current Profiler, survey-grade RTK-GPS and a map-grade GPS) in preparation for a lake bottom survey.
Adam Mosbrucker tests equipment (Acoustic Doppler Current Profiler, survey-grade RTK-GPS and a map-grade GPS) in preparation for a lake bottom survey.
![Topographic map, Mount St. Helens, C.E. 1919 annotated with locatio...](https://d9-wret.s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/assets/palladium/production/s3fs-public/styles/masonry/public/vhp_img1013.jpg?itok=cB07J3Wk)
Due to the cataclysmic eruption of May 18, 1980, many of the locations annotated on this map are now either covered or no longer visible.
Due to the cataclysmic eruption of May 18, 1980, many of the locations annotated on this map are now either covered or no longer visible.
![Tracking the advance of Crater Glacier at Mount St. Helens, Washing...](https://d9-wret.s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/assets/palladium/production/s3fs-public/styles/masonry/public/vhp_img1321.jpg?itok=PEKrxdDt)
Information regarding volume and rates of advance for the crevassed Crater Glacier at Mount St. Helens, Washington, are extracted from Digital Elevation Models created from aerial photography. The red line shows the extent of Crater Glacier in 2012. Since 2012, the glacier has advanced about 50 m (160 ft) down the Loowit channel.
Information regarding volume and rates of advance for the crevassed Crater Glacier at Mount St. Helens, Washington, are extracted from Digital Elevation Models created from aerial photography. The red line shows the extent of Crater Glacier in 2012. Since 2012, the glacier has advanced about 50 m (160 ft) down the Loowit channel.
A level crew running a line from Mojave, California to Keeler, California via the state road, preparing the way for topographers to follow. R.A. Farmer, just to the left of the long-barreled Engineers WYE level instrument, was the levelman and Chief of Party.
A level crew running a line from Mojave, California to Keeler, California via the state road, preparing the way for topographers to follow. R.A. Farmer, just to the left of the long-barreled Engineers WYE level instrument, was the levelman and Chief of Party.
Image scan of a historical bird migration card (1904).
Image scan of a historical bird migration card (1904).
Topographic mapping crew poses in camp in the Cascade Mountains of Washington.
Topographic mapping crew poses in camp in the Cascade Mountains of Washington.
Grant Glacier - 1902
![USGS laboratory in Washington DC where water samples 1883-87 from Yellowstone National Park were analyzed.](https://d9-wret.s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/assets/palladium/production/s3fs-public/styles/masonry/public/thumbnails/image/Fig%209_2.jpg?itok=UQW3PTFn)
USGS laboratory in Washington DC where water samples 1883-87 from Yellowstone National Park were analyzed. Photograph, USGS Historical Photography Library.
USGS laboratory in Washington DC where water samples 1883-87 from Yellowstone National Park were analyzed. Photograph, USGS Historical Photography Library.
Portage (the carrying of a boat or its cargo between two navigable waterways) from Niukluk to Kruzgamepa River, Seward Peninsula. Alfred Hulse Brooks party. Alaska. 1900.
Portage (the carrying of a boat or its cargo between two navigable waterways) from Niukluk to Kruzgamepa River, Seward Peninsula. Alfred Hulse Brooks party. Alaska. 1900.
Grinnell Glacier from trail 1900
Grinnell Glacier from trail 1900
Cliff Palace, Mesa Verde National Park, Colorado - 1891
Cliff Palace, Mesa Verde National Park, Colorado - 1891