Memphis Sand Aquifer · Interactive Lessons
See the water
beneath your feet.
Scroll through the aquifer in 3D. Check if your address sits on the recharge zone. Watch water levels in real time. All in 90 seconds — or an afternoon.
Lessons
The Regional Picture
Memphis is one point in a groundwater system that spans eight states. See the scale of the Mississippi Embayment.
Meet the Aquifer
A 3D scroll through the layers under Memphis — from loess at the surface to the Fort Pillow Sand 400 meters down.
See the Scale
The real CAESER geological model — 14 formations interpolated from 131 well logs. Toggle layers, orbit the camera.
Breaches & Vulnerability
The clay shield protects our drinking water — except where it breaks. See 42 known and suspected breach locations.
The Contamination Story
Eight decades of industrial pollution mapped against the clay shield. Scroll through the timeline, watch sites appear.
Watching the Water
Live USGS monitoring data from three wells — a production wellfield, the recharge zone, and a breach-adjacent site.
What You Can Do
From a 30-second petition to a 12-week training program. Pick what fits your time.
Why this exists
Protect Our Aquifer has spent years teaching Memphis about its water — through stories, advocacy, and an enormous amount of research. The one thing missing was a way to see the aquifer while you read about it.
This site is that missing piece. Same science, same data sources, in 3D.
Data & partners
Aquifer layer data and water-level surfaces come from the Center for Applied Earth Science and Engineering Research (CAESER) at the University of Memphis. Groundwater & USGS station data via USGS NWIS. Contamination sites & remediation data via Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation (TDEC) and U.S. EPA.