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Survey Notes

Survey Notes is an informative, non-technical magazine on noteworthy and interesting geologic topics in Utah and serves as the official UGS newsletter. You can find past Survey Notes issues in the Survey Notes Archive.

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GeoSights Teacher’s Corner Core Center News Energy News Glad You Asked

Latest Issue: January 2026 – Volume 58, Number 1

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IN THIS ISSUE

Colorful geological map of Utah, displaying diverse regions with various shades, patterns, and elevations.

January 5, 2026

Return on Investment in the Utah Geological Survey

Rock formation with a striking vertical vein of minerals. A rock hammer with a blue handle leans against it.

January 5, 2026

Historic Mining Districts: A Gateway to Future Critical Mineral Potential

Map of central Utah earthquake study areas showing new (red) and previous (black) fault mappings, epicenters, and legend.

January 5, 2026

Hazard News: A Clearer View of Earthquake Risk: New Maps Reveal Central Utah’s Active Faults

Striped orange, red, and gray hills under a pale blue sky.

January 5, 2026

GeoSights: Bentonite Hills

A smiling woman in sunglasses holds tall reeds in each hand, standing against a white wooden wall.

January 5, 2026

Glad You Asked: How is the UGS Helping Manage Invasive Phragmites?

Regular columns include Glad You Asked, GeoSights, Teacher’s Corner, Program News, Survey News, and New Publications.

To receive a free digital or physical copy of Survey Notes, please fill out the subscription form here or contact the Natural Resources Map & Bookstore at geostore@utah.gov or 1-888-UTAHMAP to check print issue availability.

GeoSights Teacher’s Corner Core Center News Energy News Glad You Asked

Read Popular Articles

Slope-shade model that combines hillshade and slope models. Airborne data for mapping the Wasatch fault zone at the mouth of Little Cottonwood Canyon, Utah.

April 5, 2018

The Wasatch Fault from Above

Eroded from Navajo Sandstone, split iron concretions expose a loosely cemented sand interior surrounded by a hard, layered outer rind of hematite. Photographer: Michael Vanden Berg

September 13, 2017

Glad You Asked: What are Moqui marbles?

March 25, 2015

The Uinta Mountains: A Tale of Two Geographies & More

Colorful volcanic sandstone and mudstone of the Brian Head Formation record initiation of volcanic activity in southwest Utah about 36 million years ago. Here, Eocene-age Brian Head deposits form rugged badlands at the south end of the Sevier Plateau. Dixie National Forest, Garfield County, Utah Photographer: Robert F. Biek; © 2012

August 21, 2014

Glad You Asked: How Do Geologists Know How Old a Rock Is?

Eastward view of research trench across a small (about 3 feet high) fault scarp on the West Valley fault zone in Salt Lake Valley. Photo by Michael Hylland.

May 21, 2012

Evaluating the seismic relation between the West Valley fault zone and Salt Lake City segment of the Wasatch fault zone

September 24, 2009

Glad You Asked: What should you do if you find a fossil?

The dull, light khaki gray color of Fantasy Canyon sandstone transforms to a glowing pale orange at sunset. This sculpture is named “Prowling Coyote.”

January 1, 2009

GeoSights: Fantasy Canyon, Uintah County

$Fragment of the Gunlock Meteorite. The polished slice through meteorite reveals it’s distinctive chondritic texture and fractures possibly due to impact with the surface of the Earth.$

May 1, 2008

Glad You Asked: So you think you have found a meteorite!

January 1, 2005

Glad You Asked: What are fulgurites and where can they be found?

June 1, 2001

Glad You Asked: What Are Minerals Used For?

May 1, 2000

The Rockhounder: Dugway Geode Beds, Juab County

January 1, 2000

Glad You Asked: How was Utah’s topography formed?

April 21, 1996

Glad You Asked: Igneous, Sedimentary, & Metamorphic Rocks

Recent Issues of Survey Notes

Click here to preview publication or see Contents below for main articles.

September 2025
Volume 57, Number 3

Contents

The Hydrogeology and Ecology of the Matheson Wetlands Preserve: A Connected Story

A Race Against Time: St. George Dinosaur Discovery Site Unearths Over One Thousand Fossils in Historic Salvage Effort

Paleo News: Utahraptor State Park–Preserving Dinosaur and Human History

Glad You Asked: What’s With All This Dust?

GeoSights: Tony Grove, Cache County, Utah

Survey Notes PDF

Click here to preview publication or see Contents below for main articles.

May 2025
Volume 57, Number 2

Contents

Tracking Utah’s Ground Motion From Space Using InSAR: A New Tool at Hand

Mapping and Modeling Phragmites at the Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge

Glad You Asked: What is the Story Behind Lake Powell’s Rocks?

GeoSights: Desert Mountain, Juab County, Utah

Survey Notes PDF

Click here to preview publication or see Contents below for main articles.

January 2025
Volume 57, Number 1

Contents

Resurging Interest in Utah’s Geothermal Energy Resources

Utah–The Geoheritage State

Update on Utah’s Earthquake Early Warning Efforts

Glad You Asked: What is the Salt Lake Base and Meridian?

GeoSights: Slot Canyons of the San Rafael Swell, Emery County

Survey Notes PDF

View the Survey Notes Archive

View online or download additional past issues of Survey Notes.

LEARN MORE ABOUT THE UTAH GEOLOGICAL SURVEY

The Utah Geological Survey (UGS) is a division of the Utah Department of Natural Resources. Several specialized programs comprise the UGS: Data Management, Energy & Minerals, Geologic Hazards, Geologic Information & Outreach, Geologic Mapping, Groundwater & Wetlands, and Paleontology.

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Survey Notes

Latest Issue: January 2026 – Volume 58, Number 1

IN THIS ISSUE

Return on Investment in the Utah Geological Survey

Historic Mining Districts: A Gateway to Future Critical Mineral Potential

Hazard News: A Clearer View of Earthquake Risk: New Maps Reveal Central Utah’s Active Faults

GeoSights: Bentonite Hills

Glad You Asked: How is the UGS Helping Manage Invasive Phragmites?

Read Popular Articles

The Wasatch Fault from Above

Glad You Asked: What are Moqui marbles?

The Uinta Mountains: A Tale of Two Geographies & More

Glad You Asked: How Do Geologists Know How Old a Rock Is?

Evaluating the seismic relation between the West Valley fault zone and Salt Lake City segment of the Wasatch fault zone

Glad You Asked: What should you do if you find a fossil?

GeoSights: Fantasy Canyon, Uintah County

Glad You Asked: So you think you have found a meteorite!

Glad You Asked: What are fulgurites and where can they be found?

Glad You Asked: What Are Minerals Used For?

The Rockhounder: Dugway Geode Beds, Juab County

Glad You Asked: How was Utah’s topography formed?

Glad You Asked: Igneous, Sedimentary, & Metamorphic Rocks

Recent Issues of Survey Notes

POPULAR POSTS & PAGES

LEARN MORE ABOUT THE UTAH GEOLOGICAL SURVEY

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