WHAT IS ESIC?

The Government Information Department at the UNH Library is the U.S. Geological Survey Earth Science Information Center (ESIC) for the state of New Hampshire. The USGS is the government agency that provides basic information about our geologic, hydrologic and biologic resources and is in charge of non-military mapping. The ESIC program Ask USGS is designed to make USGS information more readily available to the general public and to UNH faculty, staff and students.

UNH ESIC SERVICES

Reference

• Documents staff provide assistance in locating information in our collection and borrowing material through interlibrary loan.
• Since some USGS sites can be difficult to navigate, we assist in locating USGS information on the Internet.
• When information is available in more than one format we can help you determine which best fits your needs.
• We also have access to information through ESIC that is not available on the USGS public web sites.

Purchasing USGS Publications

• We do not sell maps or other publications, but we can help you identify materials to purchase.
• While some topographic maps are available from local retailers, many items must be purchased through the USGS sales department. Call 1-888-ASK-USGS or visit the ESIC website or USGS website.

Free Materials

• We distribute free copies of some popular materials. Examples are:
  • Indexes for New Hampshire topographic maps
  • Fact sheets about specific types of publications, such as air photos
  • Information about topics of local interest, such as New Hampshire water resources.

UNH LIBRARY USGS COLLECTION

• As a U.S. Federal Depository Library, we maintain a large collection of U. S. Geological Survey materials onsite. These materials consist of paper, microfiche and electronic (CD-ROM) formats.
• All Depository materials are available for in-house use.
• Except for microforms, reference materials and maps housed in the Map Room, these materials circulate following regular loan policies.

Maps in our collection

• Over 50,000 topographic maps at several scales for all states of the U.S.
• Digital images of about 1200 older topographic maps for all states in New England on our web site USGS Topographic Maps of New England. Many of these older maps are also available in paper format.
• USGS topographic maps of other areas (such as Antarctica) and places of interest in the U.S., such as National Parks.
• Other types of base maps (such as those derived from satellite imagery). However, we have only a few local aerial photographs.
• Thematic maps on many topics (basic geology, water resources, habitat information.... to name a few).
• USGS maps are supplemented by other maps in our collection, such as nautical charts, foreign maps created by the CIA, census maps, maps from the U.S. Forest Service, and maps from the National Park Service and other agencies within the Department of the Interior.
• Some USGS CD-ROM's are available for in-house use in our Documents Data Center; others are part of our circulating collection. Many of these CD's include both basic software for viewing their maps and geospatial data that can be used with more sophisticated geographic information system software.

Other USGS Publications in our collection

• The USGS publishes a wide range of other printed materials, from brief pamphlets to extensive scientific studies.
• Many of our USGS publication series date to the founding of the USGS in the latter part of the 19th century. However, most works published prior to 1976 are not included in our online catalog. Documents staff can help you locate these older materials.
• Some materials are written to explain scientific information to non-scientists. Others are valuable resources for professionals in many fields.
• These publications cover many subjects, among them water resources and water quality, bedrock and surficial geology, ecosystems, mineral resources, and geologic hazards such as floods, earthquakes and volcanoes.

USGS INTERNET RESOURCES

• The U.S. Geological Survey maintains many web sites.
• USGS also maintains cooperative programs with other agencies and with some commercial web sites.
• Some sites duplicate publications available in our onsite collection, while other sites contain unique information. There are sites dedicated to mapping, water, geology, and biology, and sites for individual states. *
• The ESIC site, "Ask USGS" , allows you to search many of these other sites. It provides information for teachers and students as well as purchasing information for most USGS products.
• Some of the more useful USGS and related sites are highlighted in subject links on our Documents web page, under Aerial Photography, Cartographic Resources, Geology , Environment, and Water.