Www Usgs Gov

USGS.gov Scientific Data Access Skill

Extract structured scientific data from the U.S. Geological Survey website, including national park geology information, volcano observatory data, eruption alerts, and research program details.

Overview

The USGS website (www.usgs.gov) contains authoritative scientific information about:

• National Park Geology: Detailed geological history, formations, and processes for parks across the United States
• Volcano Observatories: Real-time volcano status, alerts, monitoring data, and eruption updates
• Research Programs: Information about USGS science programs, data products, and research initiatives

Due to AWS WAF protection with CAPTCHA verification, this skill uses browser automation (Playwright) with anti-detection measures for reliable access.

Features

Page Type Detection

Automatically detects and extracts appropriate data from:

• National park geology pages (structured history, formations, media)
• Volcano observatory pages (status, alerts, monitoring links)
• Individual volcano pages (alert levels, recent activity)
• Program pages (highlighted resources, sections)

Data Extraction

• Park Geology: Title, description, geologic history, sections with content, media galleries, related links
• Volcano Observatories: Monitored volcanoes list, alert statuses, threat levels, recent updates
• Volcano Pages: Current status, alert level, monitoring data links, recent eruption information
• Programs: Organizational descriptions, highlighted resources, section breakdowns

Usage Examples

Scrape a Specific Page

{
  "function": "scrape",
  "url": "https://www.usgs.gov/geology-and-ecology-of-national-parks/geology-congaree-national-park"
}

Returns structured data with title, description, geologic history, sections, and media.

Get Park Geology by Name

{
  "function": "get_park_geology",
  "park_name": "Congaree"
}

Automatically constructs the URL and extracts geological information.

Get Volcano Information

{
  "function": "get_volcano_info",
  "volcano_name": "Kilauea"
}

Returns current status, alert level, monitoring links, and recent updates.

Search USGS Content

{
  "function": "search",
  "query": "landslides California",
  "limit": 10
}

Searches USGS for relevant pages and returns titles, URLs, and descriptions.

Output Structure

Park Geology Response

{
  "success": true,
  "url": "https://www.usgs.gov/...",
  "page_type": "park_geology",
  "data": {
    "type": "park_geology",
    "title": "Geology of Congaree National Park",
    "description": "Congaree National Park is located in central South Carolina...",
    "geologic_history": [
      "In the Triassic, about 175 million years ago...",
      "During the Cretaceous..."
    ],
    "sections": {
      "Geologic Features": "Description of features...",
      "Hydrology": "Description of hydrology..."
    },
    "media": [
      {
        "src": "https://www.usgs.gov/...",
        "alt": "Map of Congaree National Park",
        "caption": "Various streams flow across the floodplain..."
      }
    ],
    "related_links": [
      {"text": "Related Park", "url": "https://..."}
    ]
  }
}

Volcano Observatory Response

{
  "success": true,
  "url": "https://www.usgs.gov/observatories/hvo",
  "page_type": "volcano_observatory",
  "data": {
    "type": "volcano_observatory",
    "title": "Hawaiian Volcano Observatory",
    "description": "HVO monitors earthquakes and active volcanoes in Hawaii...",
    "volcanoes": [
      {"name": "Kīlauea", "url": "https://www.usgs.gov/volcanoes/kilauea"},
      {"name": "Mauna Loa", "url": "https://www.usgs.gov/volcanoes/mauna-loa"}
    ],
    "alerts": ["Very High Threat Potential - Kīlauea"],
    "recent_updates": ["Hawaiian Volcano Observatory Message..."],
    "quick_links": [
      {"text": "Monitoring", "url": "https://..."},
      {"text": "Webcams", "url": "https://..."}
    ]
  }
}

Volcano Page Response

{
  "success": true,
  "url": "https://www.usgs.gov/volcanoes/kilauea",
  "page_type": "volcano",
  "data": {
    "type": "volcano",
    "title": "Kīlauea",
    "description": "Kīlauea is the youngest and most active volcano...",
    "status": "yellow ADVISORY, 2024-01-15...",
    "alert_level": "ADVISORY",
    "monitoring_data": [
      {"type": "Webcams", "url": "https://..."},
      {"type": "Deformation Data", "url": "https://..."}
    ],
    "recent_updates": ["Latest eruption update..."]
  }
}

Notes

• Pages are fetched using browser automation to bypass AWS WAF/CAPTCHA protection
• Extraction may take 5-10 seconds per page
• Some pages may still be blocked if protection is triggered multiple times
• Retry logic is built in for transient failures
• Media URLs are converted to absolute URLs when necessary
• Related links are filtered to relevant internal USGS content

Common Park Names

• Yellowstone
• Grand Canyon
• Congaree
• Yosemite
• Zion
• Bryce Canyon
• Grand Teton
• Arches
• Canyonlands
• Great Smoky Mountains

Active Volcanoes (HVO)

• Kīlauea (Very High Threat)
• Mauna Loa (Very High Threat)
• Hualālai (High Threat)
• Haleakalā (Moderate Threat)
• Mauna Kea (Moderate Threat)
• Kama'ehuakanaloa/Lō'ihi (Not Ranked)

Error Handling

The skill returns structured error responses rather than raising exceptions:

{
  "success": false,
  "error": "Page blocked or unavailable",
  "url": "https://..."
}

Common errors:

• Page blocked by WAF/CAPTCHA
• Timeout loading page
• Invalid URL format
• Missing required parameters