Project Status

Tellus data

The Tellus Project in Northern Ireland was successfully completed in 2007 – view our free data.

The Tellus Border project in the border counties of Ireland was successfully completed in 2012 – for free data please go to the Tellus Border Downloads and the Tellus Border Viewer

In 2015 the Geological Survey of Ireland continues the Tellus survey across Ireland: - for latest news of their work please visit www.tellus.ie

Tender for Scientific Research Services Using the Tellus Border and Tellus Datasets

18th December 2012

The Geological Survey of Northern Ireland invites tenders for scientific research applications of existing Tellus and NEW! Tellus Border data sets. This tender is part of the Tellus Border project financed by the INTERREG IVA programme of the European Regional Development Fund and is open to EU residents.

The objective of the project is to provide high quality data for geological mapping, environmental management and assessment of natural resources.

Full details and tender documents can be obtained electronically from http://e-sourcingni.bravosolution.co.uk (Ref: project_10761)

The closing date and time for return of tenders is 15:00 on Monday 28th January 2013.

GSNI leads award-winning project

9th October 2012

Pictured at the event are Seona McGrath and Kelly McKee, Morrow Communications; Marie Cowan, Project Manager Tellus Border Project, Geological Survey of Northern Ireland; Richard Gaston, Category Sponsor The Lyric Theatre; Mairead Glennon, Assistant Project Manager, Tellus Border Project, Geological Survey of Ireland; Claire Bonner, Morrow Communications and host Marc Mallet of UTV. The team behind the EU INTERREG IVA-funded Tellus Border Project, led by Marie Cowan and including Mike Young, Mohammednur Desissa and Claire McGinn from GSNI, has picked up a top industry award for excellence in communications at the CIPR Northern Ireland PRide Awards. Collecting Gold in the Community Relations category, as well as a Silver award in the Public Sector category, the team was recognised for its wide-ranging and innovative communications outreach prior to and during its geological survey of the border region of Ireland, which took place earlier this year.

See this link for more details http://www.cipr.co.uk/content/events-awards/pride-awards/results-2012/northern-ireland

"A safe city: the contribution of geoscience in the urban environment" - 1 day conference part of Geoscience 2012

18th - 20th April 2012
Geoscience 2012 Conference "From Research to Jobs"

The Geological Survey of Northern Ireland, Geological Survey of Ireland and the Royal Irish Academy are pleased to announce a one day conference “A Safe City; The Contribution of Geoscience in the Urban Environment” to be held in Dublin Castle on the 18th April, 2012. It will be part of a three day event, with the 2nd and 3rd days titled Geoscience 2012 Conference - "From Research to Jobs" 19th, 20th April, 2012. The general themes of the conference are water (both surface and groundwater) and hazards in the urban environment from the perspective of the public sector and industry.

For more information, see: http://www.gsi.ie/Geoscience+Initiatives/Geoscience+2012+Conference.htm

Link: Safe City Poster (pdf)

Tellus Border Family Fun Day

31st March 2012, 2-4pm, admission free
St. Angelo Airport, Enniskillen

Join us for a fun-packed day as the Tellus Border Open Day comes into land at St Angelo Airport, Enniskillen! Get up close to the aircraft used for this extraordinary scientific mapping project; meet its world-class pilots and see it in action in the skies! Activities on the day include:

Volatile volcanos
Earthquake experiments
Fabulous fossils
Go for gold
Amazing artifacts
Gorgeous gemstones

as geoscientists reveal the extraordinary formation of our precious rocks, minerals and landscape. Don’t miss this fantastic family event with something for all ages!

Link: Family Fun Day Poster (pdf)

2011 News

New airborne survey

31 May 2011
As part of the Tellus Border project an airborne geophysical survey will be flown over the six northern counties of the Republic of Ireland: Counties Cavan, Donegal, Leitrim, Louth, Monaghan and Sligo. A contract has been awarded to Sander Geophysics of Ottawa, Canada, who will use the same geophysical aircraft and equipment that were used in the Tellus surveys of 2005/6. The operation will start in the summer.
Tellus Border is funded by the INTERREG IVA programme of the European Regional Development Fund.

Link: Sander Geophysics

PDAC 2011

6-9 March 2011
Visit the Ireland stand at PDAC Toronto, the world's biggest mining convention! As usual, the stand is mounted jointly by GSNI and the Energy and Mining Division of the Republic's Department of Energy, Communications and Natural Resources.

Link: PDAC website

Irish Geological Research Meeting

20 February 2011 Tellus featured prominently at the annual Irish Geological Research Meeting held in Galway, 18-20 February. Mohammednur Desissa and Mark Patton presented the results of a new interpretation of basement geology, based on Tellus aeromagnetics. Mike Young described the new 'Tellus Border' project and, with Alex Donald, showed a poster of the newly developed 3D geological model of Belfast. Joint GSNI/GSI/BGS posters featured the recently launched website of Historical Maps of Ireland and the progress of a crustal scale 3D model of Britain and Ireland.

Link: IGRM Programme (PDF)

Tellus Border

15 February 2011
The latest phase of the Tellus campaign, 'Tellus Border' was launched this week in Belfast and Dublin. Tellus Border will extend the Tellus surveys into the six northern counties of the Reublic of Ireland, continue analysis of existing data over Northern Ireland, and incorporate three post-doc research projects into wetlands eco-hydrology, soil carbon and peat, and behaviour of pollution plumes in the near-surface. The project will be managed jointly by a partnership of GSNI, GSI, Queen's University, Belfast and Dundalk Institute of Technology. The cross-border project has been funded by the INTERREG IVA development programme of the European Regional Development Fund, which is managed by the Special European Programmes Body (SEUPB). This is the largest of the latest awards under the Environment theme of INTERREG IVA and is part funded by the Department of the Environment of Northern Ireland and by the Republic of Ireland's Department of Environment, Heritage and Local Government. In Belfast, Ministers Arlene Foster MLA and Edwin Poots MLA gathered at Stormont to launch the project with the Vice Chancellor of Queen's University, Peter Gregson, and GSNI Acting Director Terry Johnson. Project staff and senior management of SEUPB were present. At the same time, at Kildare House in Dublin, the project was launched by Minister Conor Lenihan TD with GSI Acting Director Dr Pat O'Connor, Dr Valerie McCarthy of Dundalk Institute of Technology and project staff.

Welcoming the launch of the EU-funded project Pat Colgan, Chief Executive of the SEUPB, said: “Upon completion, this innovative project will inform and improve sustainable land management practices across Northern Ireland and the Border Region of Ireland. It has been supported under the cross-border infrastructure element of the EU’s INTERREG IVA Programme which is encouraging sustainable development in a number of sectors including environmental protection.”

Link: U.TV news story
Link: Northern Ireland Government Press Release

Birth of Britain

31 January 2011
Tellus maps featured in the highly acclaimed Channel 4 programme, 'Birth of Britain' series, in the edition titled 'Gold'. The inimitable Tony Robinson traced the history of gold exploration since the Bronze Age in Britain and Ireland. The film showed Garth Earls, until recently GSNI's Director, taking Robinson prospecting up a stream section near the Curraghinalt gold deposit in County Tyrone.

Link: Birth of Britain on the Channel 4 website.

For older news stories follow these links 2010 - 2009 - 2008