Kentucky Geological Survey

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Kentucky Geological Survey KGS is a state-supported research center and public resource within the University of Kentucky.

We conduct research in the geological sciences, providing unbiased data and information to the public, and engaging with stakeholders. Comments or opinions expressed on Facebook comments and non-KGS published shared content are those of the contributors, and do not necessarily represent the views of KGS.

Earthquakes do occur in and this week is Kentucky Earthquake Awareness Week 2026. With the help of Kentucky Emergency ...
10/13/2026

Earthquakes do occur in and this week is Kentucky Earthquake Awareness Week 2026. With the help of Kentucky Emergency Management, we've compiled some of the actions you can take to be better prepared.

Share this resource with friends, family, and anyone you want to help be better prepared for an earthquake!

Artistry + science = an interactive, conversational piece about floodingUK PhD anthropology student Nicole Marks reached...
10/12/2026

Artistry + science = an interactive, conversational piece about flooding

UK PhD anthropology student Nicole Marks reached out to 's Jason Dortch for numerical values representing water and flood data in eastern Kentucky. Jason suggested the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) Kentucky River Whitesburg monitoring gage. With this information, Nicole made 'The Tapestry of Catastrophe: Water and Flooding,' which earned a Grand Champion ribbon at the Leslie County Fair.

Here’s Nicole explanation of the tapestry: “Each circle represents one year from 2000 to 2025. Each ring in the circle, starting at the center, represents that day's water-level reading and extends to the end of that year. Each event is color-coded by depth. The last two squares/circles after 2025 are the legends, with the very last circle representing the highest levels. I used the cloud color to frame each circle so they can be woven together into a continuous story that represents our environment.” #

geologist Donna Robinson led a geoheritage hike as part of this weekend's Rocktoberfest 2026, the annual rock climbing...
10/09/2026

geologist Donna Robinson led a geoheritage hike as part of this weekend's Rocktoberfest 2026, the annual rock climbing festival, outreach event, and fundraiser hosted by the Red River Gorge Climbers' Coalition (RRGCC).

There's no better place than the Red River Gorge in the fall!

The cat thought to itself: “The bark is soft, the branches are wobbly, and the tree keeps making weird sounds.”While get...
10/08/2026

The cat thought to itself: “The bark is soft, the branches are wobbly, and the tree keeps making weird sounds.”

While getting readings from an orphaned well in Menifee County, 's Deron Zierer and Finley Gardner acquired a temporary feline assistant.

KAMM! = Kentucky Association of Mitigation Managers! 's Matt Crawford, Meredith Swallom, Seth Carpenter, and Junfeng Zhu...
10/07/2026

KAMM! = Kentucky Association of Mitigation Managers!

's Matt Crawford, Meredith Swallom, Seth Carpenter, and Junfeng Zhu attended and presented at the KAMM Annual Conference in Hopkinsville, . This year's conference focused on the tangible and intangible technologies used in mitigation-relevant , building disaster resilience, and protecting communities.

Just one more example of KGS's commitment to making an impact.

Field work inevitably comes with surprises and "What could possibly go wrong?" is not a field safety plan, so we want ou...
10/06/2026

Field work inevitably comes with surprises and "What could possibly go wrong?" is not a field safety plan, so we want our geologists to be trained and ready.

KGSers participated in a 2-day field safety leadership course led by Dr. Kevin Bohacs, author of an award-winning book on field safety for geologists. Participants learned lots of useful information on how/why accidents happen, as well as best practices for mitigating risk and responding to incidents.

had a whole contingent at SuperCollider 2026, the all-hands collaboration meeting for KY NSF EPSCoR CLIMBS participant...
10/05/2026

had a whole contingent at SuperCollider 2026, the all-hands collaboration meeting for KY NSF EPSCoR CLIMBS participants. Not shown here (they ran for the door as soon as they heard "group pic," jkjk), but in attendance, were Sarah Arpin, Zhenming Wang, and Mohimanul Islam.

At the meeting, Matt Crawford presented on CLIMBS project 5 (landslide monitoring and modeling), Mike McGlue on project 2 (paleo-records and flood modeling), Junfeng Zhu and Seth Carpenter on project 3 (novel tracers and hydrological models), and Ryan Ramsey displayed a landslides poster.

In his honor, we are re-releasing the August 2022 The Big Blue Rock Pod episode, which featured former KGS Director and ...
10/03/2026

In his honor, we are re-releasing the August 2022 The Big Blue Rock Pod episode, which featured former KGS Director and Kentucky State Geologist Bill Haneberg as the guest.

In this episode, Matt Crawford, Sarah Arpin, Doug Curl, and Bill discuss the future of the KGS and geological surveys.

We are forever grateful for the time Bill spent at KGS serving the Commonwealth of Kentucky and advancing our mission-driven science.

Take a listen: https://kygs.uky.edu/podcast/58

"Geology doesn't stop at the border" is a fundamental maxim in the geosciences, so we're always excited to collaborate a...
10/02/2026

"Geology doesn't stop at the border" is a fundamental maxim in the geosciences, so we're always excited to collaborate and help other organizations striving to address and solve complicated geoscience issues. And one of those issues is inactive, unplugged (or leaking) orphaned oil and gas well with no identifiable owner responsible for plugging them.

The University of Oklahoma Institute for Resilient Environmental and Energy Systems invited 's Deron Zierer to Oklahoma to give a guest lecture about KGS's Kentucky Orphan Well Project. Attendees included Institute staff, other OU personnel, and representatives of well plugging programs/EPAs of the Caddo Nation, Muscogee (Creek) Nation, and Comanche Nation.

The seminar was paired with a next day field demonstration showcasing KGS's methane measurement strategies.

Looking forward, this collaboration may result in a publication that analyzes the use case scenario for OU's plume modeling versus KGS's methane measurement strategies in some wellhead infrastructure situations.

Address

310 Columbia Avenue, 228 Mining And Mineral Resources Building
Lexington, KY
40506

Opening Hours

Monday 8am - 5pm
Tuesday 8am - 5pm
Wednesday 8am - 5pm
Thursday 8am - 5pm
Friday 8am - 5pm

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(859) 257-5500

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