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USGS Water Services aquifer-codes API

Local aquifers in USGS data are identified by an aquifer name and geohydrologic unit code (a three-digit number related to the age of the formation, followed by a 4 or 5 character abbreviation for the geologic unit or aquifer name). For the age of formation (aquifer age), generally the smaller the number represents the younger the geohydrologic unit. Aquifer names and the definition of an aquifer can be very subjective. One rock unit may be called different aquifer names by different people. Local aquifers and layered aquifers are often grouped into larger named regional aquifers or aquifer systems. For example, the National Northern Atlantic Coastal Plain aquifer system (National aquifer) consists of five layered regional aquifers. Each regional aquifer is divided into two or more aquifers which may have a different name in each of the states in which the aquifer is found.

USGS Water Services aquifer-codes API is one of 43 APIs that USGS Water Services publishes on the APIs.io network, described by a machine-readable OpenAPI specification.

Tagged areas include aquifer-codes. The published artifact set on APIs.io includes an OpenAPI specification and API documentation.

This API exposes 8 operations across 5 paths, and defines 3 schemas. It is described by OpenAPI 3.0.2, at version 0.56.0.

Requests are made against a single base URL, https://api.waterdata.usgs.gov/ogcapi/v0.

8 operations 5 paths 3 schemas 5 GET2 OPTIONS1 POST

Metadata

The identity and technical contract details declared by the specification.

Specification
OpenAPI 3.0.2
API Version
0.56.0
Base URL
https://waterservices.usgs.gov/nwis/iv/
Authentication
API Key, API Key
Terms of Service
Resource Areas
1

Authentication & Security 2

USGS Water Services aquifer-codes API declares 2 security schemes for authenticating requests. An API key is passed in the header as api_key (ApiKeyHeader). An API key is passed in the query as api_key (ApiKeyQuery).

  • ApiKeyHeader — Providing your API key gives you higher rate limits when querying our APIs. You can obtain an API key at https://api.waterdata.usgs.gov/signup
  • ApiKeyQuery — Providing your API key gives you higher rate limits when querying our APIs. You can obtain an API key at https://api.waterdata.usgs.gov/signup

Paths & Operations 8

Across 5 paths, the API surfaces 8 operations — 5 GET, 2 OPTIONS, 1 POST. Each is listed below with its method, path, parameters, and response codes.

aquifer-codes 8

Local aquifers in USGS data are identified by an aquifer name and geohydrologic unit code (a three-digit number related to the age of the formation, followed by a 4 or 5 character…

GET
/collections/aquifer-codes
Get Aquifer codes metadata
describeAquifer-codesCollection 2 params → 200400403404429500
GET
/collections/aquifer-codes/items
Get Aquifer codes items
getAquifer-codesFeatures 13 params → 200400403404429500
OPTIONS
/collections/aquifer-codes/items
Options for Aquifer codes items
optionsAquifer-codesFeatures → 200
POST
/collections/aquifer-codes/items
Get Aquifer codes items with CQL2
getCQL2Aquifer-codesFeatures body → 200400403429500
GET
/collections/aquifer-codes/items/{featureId}
Get Aquifer codes item by id
getAquifer-codesFeature 4 params → 200400403404429500
OPTIONS
/collections/aquifer-codes/items/{featureId}
Options for Aquifer codes item by id
optionsAquifer-codesFeature 1 param → 200
GET
/collections/aquifer-codes/queryables
Get Aquifer codes queryables
getAquifer-codesQueryables 4 params → 200400403404429500
GET
/collections/aquifer-codes/schema
Get Aquifer codes schema
getAquifer-codesSchema 2 params → 200400403404429500

Schemas 3

The contract defines 3 schemas that model the data the API accepts and returns. The most detailed are queryable (6 properties), queryables (1 property), Error (1 property). Each schema is shown below with its type and property counts.

Error
object
1 property
queryable
object
6 properties 2 required
queryables
object
1 property 1 required

Specification

The full machine-readable OpenAPI contract behind this narrative.

Source

usgs-water-aquifer-codes-api-openapi.yml Raw ↑

Other APIs USGS Water Services publishes across the network.

USGS Instantaneous Values Service
USGS Daily Values Service
USGS Site Service
USGS Statistics Service
USGS Groundwater Levels Service
Water Quality Portal (WQP) API
USGS Water Data Statistics API
USGS Water Services agency-codes API
USGS Water Services altitude-datums API
USGS Water Services aquifer-types API
USGS Water Services channel-measurements API
USGS Water Services citations API
Where this information came from

This is an independent, third-party profile of USGS Water Services aquifer-codes API, published by API Evangelist. We do not operate, host, resell, or support these APIs, and we are not affiliated with or endorsed by the company unless stated above. Everything here is built from publicly available information — the company's own site, developer portal, documentation, public repositories, and the specifications it publishes for public use. Nothing is obtained by breaching a system, defeating an access control, or using credentials.

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