KY Geological Survey

News and updates about the Kentucky Geological Survey (KGS). Posts also appear on the KGS Facebook page. Visit our website at

[KY Geological Survey @KGSNews]

It's #CaveWeek2026! It's time to celebrate these incredibly fragile and fascinating subterranean worlds.

Want to get underground this weekend? Here's some places to enjoy, celebrate, and learn about caves in Kentucky:
- Carter Caves State Park, https://t.co/r1D9b1KEsJ
- Mammoth Cave National Park, https://t.co/CkQkcceUwq
- Onyx Cave, https://t.co/WQDwY78q3e
- Mammoth Onyx Cave (at Kentucky Down Under), https://t.co/1L0OiLHSF8
- Crystal Onyx Cave, https://t.co/42Q3gPeW8U
- Diamond Caverns, https://t.co/d0T1jM8fhH
- Outlaw Cave, https://t.co/aRPamk5Q7v
- Hidden River Cave, https://t.co/FyseBqvx8n
- Dale Hollow Lake State Resort Park, https://t.co/DxfMpPRoJs

#KGS #Kentucky #geology #geoscience #CaveWeek #karst #caves

[KY Geological Survey @KGSNews]

And that's a wrap on the 65th Annual Kentucky Geological Survey Seminar! This year's seminar brought together geoscientists, researchers, students, and industry professionals for a full day of learning, networking, and collaboration.

From emerging energy resources to cutting-edge geologic tools, attendees had the opportunity to explore how geology continues to support innovation, hazard mitigation, and resource development across the Commonwealth.

#KGS #Kentucky #geology #geoscience #research #outreach #KGSAS2026

[KY Geological Survey @KGSNews]

If this slope so much as sneezes, we'll know about it.

The #KGS Potter interns recently completed a second drone survey of a landslide at Floracliff Nature Sanctuary. The data will be used to tell us if any change on the slide has occurred since February.

Shown here, Jillian Bales and Breana Pollard are leveling the drone station and Grant Keyton is helping mentor Sarah Johnson get a height measurement.

#Kentucky #geology #geoscience #research #FieldWork #SummerInternship

[KY Geological Survey @KGSNews]

Landslide monitoring station: Lilley Cornett Woods Upper

Station integrity: Good.

Data collection: Active.

Ability to withstand bear snuggles: Unexpectedly excellent.

https://t.co/wpUXDgPGlr #KGS #Kentucky #geology #geoscience #research #FieldWork #GladItWasNotACharminBear

[KY Geological Survey @KGSNews]

♫⋆｡♪ ₊˚♬ ﾟ
Alright stop, collaborate and hike in
Cave Fork’s back with a forest rebirth mission
Trees once cut down nearly completely
Now the Gorge grows back slowly and deeply
Will it ever stop? Yo, let’s go see
Dan and Judy spot the wildlife and trees

Andy talks rocks and the ancient terrain
Coal, timber, and the marks they left remain
Red River Gorge with its stories untold
One hundred years later, the forest’s grown bold
♫⋆｡♪ ₊˚♬ ﾟ

Register ASAP for the free RRGCC hike, Saturday, June 6, 10 a.m. - 2:00 p.m. (limited spots): https://t.co/5ZJZoS15RQ

#KGS #Kentucky #geology #geoscience #RedRiverGorge #RRGCC #hiking

[KY Geological Survey @KGSNews]

Warning: An emotion support rock may be necessary when you listen to this month's episode of The Big Blue Rock Pod.

Warning: This episode contains dangerous levels of enthusiasm for geoscience, student mentorship, and community building.

Warning: You may experience an onset of overwhelming appreciation for geoscience teachers, geoscience practitioners, and the entire geoscience community.

Warning: You will encounter tectonic levels of wholesomeness.

If you do not have your own personal support rock, we have included a graphic of one that you can stare at while you listen to this episode.

https://t.co/rVxgdd6ITj

#KGS #Kentucky #geology #geoscience #research #BBRP #outreach

[KY Geological Survey @KGSNews]

Procrastinators unite! We know you, because we are you. But with the #KGS Annual Seminar in one week (June 2), the registration deadline approaches without mercy.

Register today (don't let the little voice in your head say 'I'll do it later' because we're down to the last later): https://t.co/r1Ehec2TKd.

#Kentucky #geology #geoscience #conference #seminar #KGSAS2026

[KY Geological Survey @KGSNews]

Road trip!

Souvenirs? Of course.
- Refrigerator magnet? Nope.
- "I went to EKY and all I got was this t-shirt"? Nah.
- Photo op with Big Foot? Yes.
- 300-million-year-old swamp deposits? Also yes.

#KGS coal expert Cortland Eble, along with Steve Greb and Tim Demko, recently travelled to the Hazard area to collect coal samples for an upcoming project.

#Kentucky #geology #geoscience #research #FieldWork

[KY Geological Survey @KGSNews]

Nothing like kicking off your first day of field work as a #KGS summer intern with 88 degree temperatures and 87% humidity.

We swear they had fun, haha.

#Kentucky #geology #geoscience #research #FieldWork

[KY Geological Survey @KGSNews]

#KGS's bio-geoscientist Rachel Washburn, and UK College of Pharmacy's PhD student Isaac Huffman, recently spent time in Somerset Cave collecting cave microbes.

Rumor has it that Somerset Cave is haunted by a demon, but unfortunately, the scariest thing Rachel encountered was some questionable footing.

#Kentucky #geology #geoscience #microbiology #caves #research #FieldWork

[KY Geological Survey @KGSNews]

#KGS's Steve Martin travelled to Blanton State Forest Nature Preserve along Pine Mountain to investigate seep bog locations for future research projects.

While there, Steve also explored a massive exposure of sandstone called “Knobby Rock” (sometimes referred to as "Knotty Rock" by locals). The rugged, uneven surface is believed to have formed through differential erosion. Some have also suggested that it may have also been massively bioturbated (physically stirred up and mixed around by burrowing, foraging, rooting, etc.), although we could not find any KGS or USGS publications confirming.

#Kentucky #geology #geoscience #research #FieldWork

[KY Geological Survey @KGSNews]

We’re thrilled to introduce our Paul Edwin Potter Summer Interns! In photo collage (top L to R) are: Breanna Pollard, Kendall McGarvey, Noah Jennings, Mamie Clark, Grant Keyton, and Jillian Bales.

They're coming to #KGS from @uofcincy, @wku (2), @universityofky (2), and @ohiou. They bring a wide range of talents and interests, and we’re excited to see where the summer leads them.

#Kentucky #geology #geoscience #internship #research #SummerInternship

[KY Geological Survey @KGSNews]

This special #FossilFriday is coming to you straight from the Cambrian (~542 to 488 million years ago), which is not exposed at the surface in #Kentucky.

#KGS's Earth Analysis Research Library (EARL) rescued this trace fossil, called Climactichnites, from UK's King Library renovation. The maker of the tracks was probably some kind of mollusk, similar to modern gastropods/slugs, except much bigger in size, between 50-60 cm long. The traces are superimposed on some wave/oscillation ripples in the sand, indicating that the water, at times, was fairly shallow.

These giant slugs may have been some of the first critters in Earth history to make it out of the sea, at least briefly. The critters were most likely grazing on algal/microbial mats.

As for this specific slab, it's North American and was originally set up as a table in the Geology Library at UK's Bowman Hall. When the Geology Library moved to the King Library building in the 1990s, the slab was moved with it. An educated guess is that the fossil was picked up by Dr. Arthur Crane McFarlan on one of his field trips, since the initial Geology Library was made up of books from his own collection.

#geology #geoscience #fossil

[KY Geological Survey @KGSNews]

You asked for more time to register. We gave you more time.

Now spend it registering (not dancing): https://t.co/MPrfjTxbYj.

#KGS #Kentucky #geology #geoscience #conference #seminar #RegisterToday

[KY Geological Survey @KGSNews]

Big conversations about Kentucky’s energy future start here: KGS's Annual Seminar on June 2.

Join us for the keynote presentation "Kentucky’s Energy Landscape Today and Tomorrow" from Kenya Stump, Executive Director of the Office of Energy Policy with the Kentucky Energy and Environment Cabinet. With a career spanning environmental science, policy, compliance assistance, and energy leadership, Stump brings a unique perspective on where Kentucky’s energy future is headed.

The KGS Annual Seminar is free and open to the public. Join us! Reserve your ticket today: https://t.co/r1Ehec2TKd

#KGS #Kentucky #geology #geoscience #seminar #conference #research

[KY Geological Survey @KGSNews]

Find your Warren County joints map here!

This fracture map is a compilation of joint locations and faults mapped in Warren County, Kentucky, and provides orientations of fractures (joints and faults) for hydrological, geotechnical, slope stability, and rockfall mitigation analysis.

Find the full map and more info here: https://t.co/2XOBWhNYWw.

#KGS #Kentucky #geology #geoscience #maps #cartography

[KY Geological Survey @KGSNews]

Is that a Salem or a soil sample?

Is the KGS mail cabinet having a really bad Monday or is that just a new delivery?

#Kentucky #geology #geoscience #research #ManicMonday

[KY Geological Survey @KGSNews]

Happy 100th birthday to Sir David Attenborough! He taught us all to love this big rock we live on.

His connection with nature started out with an insatiable fasciation with fossils during his childhood and grew when he went on to study geology and zoology at Cambridge.

Check out Sir David Attenborough's Love for Fossils | BBC Earth: https://t.co/GjsjhnfM3c. #KGS #Kentucky #geology #geoscience #fossils #Attenborough #paleontology

[KY Geological Survey @KGSNews]

You gotta "just go with the flow," which means a totally different thing to a group of geologists.

#KGS hydrologist Glynn Beck led a professional development training on water well sampling techniques for interested KGS staff. Glynn covered how to take a water level measurement, use well inspection and field data sheets, operate a Grundfos variable flow submersible pump, determine the presence of formation water, and more.

#Kentucky #geology #geoscience #hydrology #ProfessionalDevelopment

[KY Geological Survey @KGSNews]

Making core memories together, one tufa at a time.

Floracliff Nature Sanctuary’s Elk Lick Falls, a 61-foot waterfall, has one of the largest known surface deposits of tufa in the eastern United States. Tufa is a variety of limestone formed when calcium carbonate precipitates out of ambient-temperature water, similar to the stalactites and stalagmites found in caves.

In advance of this summer's Potter internship, #KGS geomorphologist Jason Dortch and State Geologist Mike McGlue collected a core sample from Floracliff’s tufa. Also shown below is a float of the tufa, with biofilm organic matter intact (the snotty-looking mystery goop, aka extracellular polymeric substances (EPS)).

#Kentucky #geology #geoscience #FieldWork #research