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Society of Exploration Geophysicists

Logo: Society of Exploration Geophysicists, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons3

Nonprofit geoscience organization

The Society of Exploration Geophysicists (SEG) is a learned society dedicated to promoting the science and education of exploration geophysics in particular and geophysics in general. The Society fosters the expert and ethical practice of geophysics in the exploration and development of natural resources, in characterizing the near-surface, and in mitigating earth hazards. As of November 2019, SEG has more than 14,000 members working in more than 114 countries.2 Wikipedia text CC BY-SA 4.0

Last updated Oct 21, 2026.

Overview

1930Founded1

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The Society of Exploration Geophysicists (SEG) is a learned society dedicated to promoting the science and education of exploration geophysics in particular and geophysics in general. The Society fosters the expert and ethical practice of geophysics in the exploration and development of natural resources, in characterizing the near-surface, and in mitigating earth hazards. As of November 2019, SEG has more than 14,000 members working in more than 114 countries. SEG was founded in 1930 in Houston, Texas but its business office has been headquartered in Tulsa, Oklahoma since the mid-1940s. While most SEG members are involved in exploration for petroleum, SEG members also are involved in application of geophysics methods to mineral exploration as well as environmental and engineering problems, archaeology, and other scientific endeavors. SEG publishes The Leading Edge (TLE), a monthly professional magazine, Geophysics, a peer-reviewed archival publication, and Interpretation, a peer-reviewed journal co-published by SEG and the American Association of Petroleum Geologists.2

The story

History

SEG was founded in 1930 by 30 men and women who felt that the use of geophysical technology for petroleum exploration had matured to the point that a professional society was needed in order to facilitate the transfer of technical knowledge.

The Society started its own journal, Geophysics, in 1936. Membership grew significantly in the late 1930s and early 1940s and this required hiring a permanent staff to conduct the Society's day-to-day operations. As a result, a business office was opened in Tulsa. Further growth necessitated commissioning permanent office space for the staff. One was opened in the 1960s and another, the Cecil and Ida Green Tower, in the 1980s.

SEG has always held an annual meeting but it was in conjunction with the AAPG convention until 1955. SEG began sponsoring an independent annual meeting in that year and it quickly became the world's premier showcase for state-of-the-art geophysical instrumentation.

SEG Foundation

In 1958, the Society of Exploration Geophysicists (SEG) formed a trust to provide scholarships for students of geophysics. Thirty years later, in response to the needs of a growing industry, that trust was transformed into the SEG Foundation.

Beginning in 1961, the Society has annually awarded its Reginald Fessenden Award to "a person who has made a specific technical contribution to exploration geophysics".

In 2008, the SEG Foundation launched a program called Geoscientists Without Borders. The program helps geoscience students and experienced geoscientists apply their knowledge and technical skills towards the mitigation of natural disasters in some of the world's neediest communities.

Other programs include the Distinguished Instructor Short Course (DISC), the Honorary Lecturer program, SEG Forums, and the newly launched SEG Online.

Since 1956, four thousand scholarships representing almost $5 million have been awarded to 1,900 individuals in the past 50 years. In addition to its ground breaking scholarship program, the SEG Foundation and its donors also fund student travel grants, leadership training, and field camps.

From Wikipedia’s article on Society of Exploration Geophysicists, shared under CC BY-SA 4.0.4

Timeline

  1. 1930Founded Founded1

Sources

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