Andrew Hoxey, George Mason University: Active faulting in western Nepal that segments the Himalaya
John Counts, USGS: An Overview of Some USGS Regional Provenance Studies in the Gulf, Atlantic, and Alaskan Coastal Plains
Ned Mamula, USGS: Organizing Science in Washington — The Legacy of John Wesley Powell
Refreshments at 7:30 p.m., formal program at 8:00 p.m.
If anyone has announcements or informal communications they would like to share with the society, please e-mail Mike Ackerson (ackersonm@si.edu) ahead of time.
Comments Off on GSW Meeting Wednesday, Sept. 2nd at Cosmos Club
The draft minutes of our last meeting, on 13 May 2026, are attached for members to evaluate. If you have any additions or corrections please email them to our meeting secretary, Karin Lehnigk, at karin.e.lehnigk[at]nasa.gov.
Comments Off on Draft minutes from May 13th meeting (1621st GSW)
Dear Members of the Geological Society of Washington,
We are pleased to invite you to the Spring Geological Society of Washington Field Trip on Saturday June 6th to The Billy Goat Trail at Great Falls. The trip will be led by USGS geologists Alan Pitts, Peter Valley, Alex Gray… and any other fun folks we convince to come along.
The event will include an approximately 3- hour walking tour including the Great Falls overlook and the northern portion of the Billy Goat Trail (From the northern entrance near the Stop Gate until approximately TM-1 on the map below). The official trip will finish at TM-1 before the trail becomes more difficult, while any adventurous hikers are free to continue ahead on their own.
Please register by emailing Alan Pitts at pitts.alan@gmail.com
Trip Details:
Location: Great Falls Park, Maryland
Duration: approximately 3 hour-walking tour
Date: June 6th, 2026
Time: 9:00am to 12:00pm-ish
Meeting Point: Great Falls Tavern Visitor Center
Parking options: Parking inside the park is widely available
Safety and Trail information: Please note that the Billy Goat Trail portion of the trip will involve hiking over rugged and rocky terrain. We recommend sturdy footwear and trekking poles if balance is an issue.
Our guided trip will explore the first section of the Billy Goat Trail and turn around at the TM-1 point on the map. For any hikers who are planning to continue onward please see the information and link below from the National Park Service
The hike involves scrambling over angled rocks, boulders and climbing. Visitors in less-than-optimal health, visitors with small children, and visitors not experienced or properly outfitted should consider other trail options. The 1.7-mile hike takes most visitors 2-3 hours to complete. Along the trail are views of Mather Gorge and Potomac River. This trail can close due to fooding from the river. Link: Billy Goat Trail – Chesapeake & Ohio Canal National Historical Park (U.S. National Park Service)
Register by emailing Alan Pitts at pitts.alan@gmail.com
We look forward to seeing you!
Comments Off on GSW Spring Field Trip to Great Falls, June 6th
The draft minutes of our last meeting, on 29 April 2026, are attached for members to evaluate. If you have any additions or corrections please email them to our meeting secretary, Karin Lehnigk, at karin.e.lehnigk[at]nasa.gov.
Comments Off on Draft minutes from April 29th meeting (1620th GSW)
Posted onMay 6, 2026byDaniel Doctor|Comments Off on GSW Meeting Wednesday, May 13th at Cosmos Club
Join us to hear from leadership in the Earth Sciences at Federal Agencies
Sarah Ryker, U.S. Geological Survey, Associate Director for Associate Director for the Geology, Energy, and Minerals Mission Area
Megan Carr, Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, Associate Director of the Strategic Resources Program
The meeting will take place at the Cosmos Club John Wesley Powell Auditorium, 2170 Florida Avenue NW, Washington D.C
Refreshments at 7:30 p.m., formal program at 8:00 p.m.
If anyone has announcements or informal communications they would like to share with the society, please e-mail Mike Ackerson (ackersonm@si.edu) ahead of time.
Comments Off on GSW Meeting Wednesday, May 13th at Cosmos Club
Andrea Goltz, Carnegie Earth and Planets Laboratory – Predicting the Stability of Igneous Amphibole using Machine Learning
Supratik Roy, Johns Hopkins University – Constraining metamorphic rates in ancient orogens: insights from the Paleoproterozoic Lake Superior region (USA)
Kelsey Jenkins, Smithsonian Institution – Sensing in a Strange Land: The Fossil Record’s Story of Sensory Evolution
Refreshments at 7:30 p.m., formal program at 8:00 p.m.
If anyone has announcements or informal communications they would like to share with the society, please e-mail Mike Ackerson (AckersonM@si.edu) ahead of time.
Comments Off on GSW Meeting Wednesday, April 29th at Cosmos Club
Posted onApril 9, 2026bygsw|Comments Off on Draft minutes from March 25th meeting (1619th GSW)
The draft minutes of our last meeting, on 25 March 2026, are attached for members to evaluate. If you have any additions or corrections please email them to our meeting secretary, Karin Lehnigk, at karin.e.lehnigk[at]nasa.gov.
Comments Off on Draft minutes from March 25th meeting (1619th GSW)
Posted onMarch 18, 2026bygsw|Comments Off on Draft minutes from March 4th meeting (1618th GSW)
The draft minutes of our last meeting, on 4 March 2026, are attached for members to evaluate. If you have any additions or corrections please email them to our meeting secretary, Karin Lehnigk, at karin.e.lehnigk[at]nasa.gov.
Comments Off on Draft minutes from March 4th meeting (1618th GSW)
Posted onMarch 18, 2026bygsw|Comments Off on Draft minutes from Feb 11th meeting (1617th GSW)
The draft minutes of our last meeting, on 11 February 2026, are attached for members to evaluate. If you have any additions or corrections please email them to our meeting secretary, Karin Lehnigk, at karin.e.lehnigk[at]nasa.gov.
Comments Off on Draft minutes from Feb 11th meeting (1617th GSW)
Hey GSW Members! You’re eligible for GeoCare insurance. GeoCare provides health, life and other insurance products to members of 10 geoscience societies, including GSW. From their home webpage (), just click on the GSW block to see your options.
Preserved footprints in Kenya appear to record two different species of ancient humans walking over the same muddy lakeshore, probably within days of each other.
