The British Geological Survey (BGS) is a partly publicly funded body which aims to advance
geoscientific knowledge of the United Kingdom landmass and its
continental shelf
A continental shelf is a portion of a continent that is submerged under an area of relatively shallow water, known as a shelf sea. Much of these shelves were exposed by drops in sea level during glacial periods. The shelf surrounding an island ...
by means of systematic surveying, monitoring and research.
The BGS
headquarters
Headquarters (commonly referred to as HQ) denotes the location where most, if not all, of the important functions of an organization are coordinated. In the United States, the corporate headquarters represents the entity at the center or the to ...
are in
Keyworth, Nottinghamshire, England. Its other centres are located in
Edinburgh
Edinburgh ( ; gd, Dùn Èideann ) is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 Council areas of Scotland, council areas. Historically part of the county of Midlothian (interchangeably Edinburghshire before 1921), it is located in Lothian ...
,
Wallingford,
Cardiff
Cardiff (; cy, Caerdydd ) is the capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of Wales. It forms a Principal areas of Wales, principal area, officially known as the City and County of Cardiff ( cy, Dinas a ...
and London. The current motto of the BGS is: ''Gateway to the Earth''.
History and previous names
The Geological Survey was founded in 1835 by the
Board of Ordnance
The Board of Ordnance was a British government body. Established in the Tudor period, it had its headquarters in the Tower of London. Its primary responsibilities were 'to act as custodian of the lands, depots and forts required for the defence o ...
as the Ordnance Geological Survey, under
Henry De la Beche. This was the world's first national
geological survey
A geological survey is the systematic investigation of the geology beneath a given piece of ground for the purpose of creating a geological map or model. Geological surveying employs techniques from the traditional walk-over survey, studying o ...
. It remained a branch of the
Ordnance Survey
Ordnance Survey (OS) is the national mapping agency for Great Britain. The agency's name indicates its original military purpose (see ordnance and surveying), which was to map Scotland in the wake of the Jacobite rising of 1745. There was a ...
for many years. In 1965, it was merged with the
Geological Museum and Overseas Geological Surveys, under the name of Institute of Geological Sciences. On 1 January 1984, the institute was renamed the British Geological Survey (and often referred to as the BGS), a name still carried today.
Competences
The BGS advises the
British government
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, caption = Royal Arms
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on all aspects of geoscience, as well as providing impartial advice on
geological matters to the public, academics and industry. BGS is a component body of
UK Research and Innovation which "works in partnership with universities, research organisations, businesses, charities, and government to create the best possible environment for research and innovation to flourish". The core outputs of the BGS include geological,
geophysical,
geochemical
Geochemistry is the science that uses the tools and principles of chemistry to explain the mechanisms behind major geological systems such as the Earth's crust and its oceans. The realm of geochemistry extends beyond the Earth, encompassing the e ...
and
hydrogeological maps, descriptions and related digital databases. Scientists at the BGS produced the first comprehensive map of African groundwater reserves.
One of the key strategic aims for the next
decade is to complete the transition from
2-D mapping to a
3-D modelling culture. The BGS has an annual budget of
£57 million, about half of which comes from the government's science budget, with the remainder coming from commissioned research from the public and private sectors.
See also
*
Geospatial Commission
The United Kingdom's Geospatial Commission is an expert group, established in 2018 as part of the Cabinet Office, responsible for promoting the use of geospatial data in the country.
The commission also defines UK's "geospatial strategy".
It works ...
*
Systems geology
Systems geology emphasizes the nature of geology as a system – that is, as a set of interacting parts that function as a whole. The systems approach involves study of the linkages or interfaces between the component objects and processes at all ...
References
External links
*
BGS Annual ReportLandslides at BGS.ac.uk
{{authority control
1835 establishments in the United Kingdom
Geological surveys
Geology of the United Kingdom
Natural Environment Research Council
National geological agencies
Organizations established in 1835
Rushcliffe
Science and technology in Nottinghamshire