Sciencebase vs Usgs Earthquakes
A side-by-side look at the Sciencebase and Usgs Earthquakes MCP servers: transport, auth, tools, quality signals, and the config to install either one in Claude, Cursor, Windsurf or VS Code.
Verdict: choose Sciencebase for environment & nature work as a local process; choose Usgs Earthquakes for environment & nature as a local process. You can also run both side by side in one mcpServers block.
Which MCP server should you choose?
Choose Sciencebase when
- You need dedicated capabilities in the Environment & Nature domain.
- You prefer a local stdio subprocess transport.
- You want tools like
search_items, get_item, item_children.
Choose Usgs Earthquakes when
- You need dedicated capabilities in the Environment & Nature domain.
- You prefer a local stdio subprocess transport.
- You want tools like
search_earthquakes, get_earthquake, count_earthquakes.
Feature & specification comparison
Rows where the two servers differ are marked.
| Spec | ||
|---|---|---|
| Category | Environment & Nature | Environment & Nature |
| Quality signal | 47/100 · Fair | 52/100 · Good |
| Install command | Confirmed | Confirmed |
| Transport | Local subprocess (stdio) | Local subprocess (stdio) |
| Auth | Not declared | Not declared |
| Pricing | Not declared | Not declared |
| Required env vars | None listed | None listed |
| Verified owner | Community listing | Community listing |
| GitHub stars | 0 | 0 |
| Directory activity | 0 views 0 installs 0 upvotes | 0 views 0 installs 0 upvotes |
| Tools | 3 | 3 |
| Full listing | View Sciencebase | View Usgs Earthquakes |
Tools & capabilities
Sciencebase tools 3
search_itemsSearch the USGS ScienceBase catalog (sciencebase.gov) — the U.S. Geological Survey's scientific data catalog of datasets, publications, and projects, with summaries, categories, dates, and direct download links. Keyless.get_itemGet a single ScienceBase catalog item by id — full summary, categories, types, dates, contacts, web links, and attached files (download URLs). e.g. id "58f8be37e4b0b7ea5452260e". Keyless.item_childrenList the child items of a ScienceBase catalog item. The catalog is hierarchical — collections and folders contain sub-items (use get_item to check has_children). Keyless.
Usgs Earthquakes tools 3
search_earthquakesSearch the USGS earthquake catalog (FDSNWS event API) for real-time and historical seismic events. Filter by time window, magnitude, depth, and a circular geographic area. Returns a compact list of quakes with magnitude, location, time, coordinates, depth, and significance. Keyless.get_earthquakeGet full detail for a single earthquake by its USGS event id (e.g. "us7000n7n8"). Returns magnitude, location, time, depth, felt reports, tsunami flag, PAGER alert level, status, contributing networks, and detail URLs. Keyless.count_earthquakesCount earthquakes matching a filter without returning the events — fast for questions like "how many M5+ quakes in the last month near X". Same filters as search_earthquakes (time, magnitude, circular area). Keyless.
Ready-to-paste client configs
Paste either block (or both) into your client config, e.g. claude_desktop_config.json or ~/.cursor/mcp.json. We only show a config when the install command is confirmed.
Sciencebase
{
"mcpServers": {
"sciencebase": {
"command": "npx",
"args": [
"-y",
"@pipeworx/mcp-sciencebase"
]
}
}
}
Usgs Earthquakes
{
"mcpServers": {
"usgs-earthquakes": {
"command": "npx",
"args": [
"-y",
"@pipeworx/mcp-usgs-earthquakes"
]
}
}
}
Frequently asked questions
Sciencebase is categorized under Environment & Nature and uses a local stdio subprocess. Usgs Earthquakes belongs to Environment & Nature and uses a local stdio subprocess. Pick Sciencebase for environment & nature work and Usgs Earthquakes for environment & nature.
Copy the mcpServers block from the config section on this page into your client's config (for example claude_desktop_config.json or ~/.cursor/mcp.json), then fully restart the client.
Sciencebase has no declared pricing — check the project's own site. Usgs Earthquakes has no declared pricing — check the project's own site. If a server needs environment variables such as API keys, define them under the env key in your client's MCP config.
Yes. MCP clients support multiple servers: add sciencebase and usgs-earthquakes as separate keys in the same mcpServers object, and your assistant will call tools from either one.
On AllMCPs, Sciencebase has a quality signal of 47/100 (Fair) with 0 views, 0 installs and 0 GitHub stars. Usgs Earthquakes has 52/100 (Good) with 0 views, 0 installs and 0 GitHub stars.