reply to post by Aqualung2012
Just FYI, the USGS is mostly known for earthquakes, but their work is so much more extensive - volcanos, oil, minerals, hydrology, urban planning,
land/mud slides, paleontology (fossils), etc. etc.
"Geology is the study of the Earth, the materials of which it is made, the structure of those materials, and the processes acting upon them"
Source
If you read the last 2 paragraphs, the article seems more like a press release, or just good PR for the USGS:
The USGS, a partner in the multi-agency National Space Weather Program, collects data that can help us understand how magnetic storms may impact
the United States. Constant monitoring of Earth’s magnetic field allows us to better assess the impact of these phenomena on Earth’s surface. To
do this, the USGS Geomagnetism Program maintains 14 observatories around the United States and its territories, which provide ground-based
measurements of changes in the magnetic field. These measurements are being used by the NOAA Space Weather Prediction Center and the US Air Force
Weather Agencyto track the intensity of the magnetic storm generated by this solar activity.