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| Abbreviation | BGS |
|---|---|
| Formation | 1835 |
| Legal status | Government organisation |
| Purpose | Geoscience |
| Location |
|
Region served | United Kingdom |
| Karen Hanghøj | |
Parent organisation | UK Research and Innovation (viaNERC)[1] |
| Budget | £57m around 50% from the Science Budget |
| Website | www |
TheBritish Geological Survey (BGS) is a partly publicly funded body which aims to advancegeoscientific knowledge of the United Kingdom landmass and itscontinental shelf by means of systematic surveying, monitoring and research.
The BGSheadquarters are inKeyworth, Nottinghamshire, England. Its other centres are located inEdinburgh,Wallingford,Cardiff and London. The current tagline of the BGS is:Understanding our Earth.[2]
The Geological Survey was founded in 1835 by theBoard of Ordnance as the Geological Survey of Great Britain, underdirectorship ofHenry De la Beche. This was the world's first nationalgeological survey. It remained a branch of theOrdnance Survey for many years. In 1965, it was merged with theGeological Museum and Overseas Geological Surveys, under the name ofInstitute of Geological Sciences.[3] In 1969,Beris Cox was the first female palaeontologist employed by the IGS.[4]
On 1 January 1984, the institute was renamed the British Geological Survey (and often referred to as the BGS), a name still carried today.[5] Since 1835, there have been 20 directors of the survey. In 2019,Karen Hanghøj was the first woman appointed to lead the survey.[6]
From the 1860s, the survey in Scotland operated under the identity of the Geological Survey of Scotland.[7]
Starting in 1975, female officers of the survey no longer had to resign upon getting married.[8]
The BGS advises theBritish government on all aspects of geoscience, as well as providing impartial advice ongeological matters to the public, academics and industry. BGS is a component body ofUK 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 andhydrogeologicalmaps, descriptions and related digital databases. Scientists at the BGS produced the first comprehensive map of African groundwater reserves.[9] One of the key strategic aims for the nextdecade is to complete the transition from2-Dmapping to a3-D modelling, to understand the 'architecture' of the subsurface. The current five-year strategy identifies four key priorities for the BGS: 'maps and models for the 21st century; a more secure energy transition; improved water security; and living with geological hazards'.[10] 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.
The Geological Survey of Northern Ireland (GSNI) is part ofNorthern Ireland'sDepartment for the Economy (DfE). The British Geological Survey provides staff, under contract to DfE, for the GSNI.[11]
{{cite journal}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)| International | |
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