Physical scientists
Physical scientists study relationships between matter, energy and other physical phenomena, the nature, composition and structure of the Earth and other planetary bodies and forecast weather conditions and electrical, magnetic, seismic and thermal activity.
- Employees (UK)
- 10k
- Median annual pay
- £53,142
- Exposure score ?
- 1.1/10 Minimal 8.6/10 Very high strict reading, with tools is 8.6/10 with-tools reading, strict is 1.1/10
- Wage exposure
- £58m £457m
Higher exposure than 57% of the 379 UK occupations we scored.
What this score means.
Most of this role's work is still hard for AI: physical presence, practised skill, judgement in context and direct care, the things that do not turn into text.
If you are in this role
Nothing here is under pressure today, but the frontier moves. Learn enough to direct AI at the paperwork around the job. People in hands-on roles who can do that become unusually useful inside their organisations.
Almost every routine task in this role is within reach of today's models. Roles like this are being rebuilt, usually not by disappearing but by one person using AI to produce what several did.
If you are in this role
Be the person doing the rebuilding. People who learn to run this kind of work with AI become very valuable, and the ones who wait tend to have the change made for them.
Where the work usually starts.
These are the most important tasks a language model can already handle directly. In a typical engagement the first wins come from building workflows around them, so they stop eating the team's time.
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Communicate geological findings by writing research papers, participating in conferences, or teaching geological science at universities.
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Review environmental, historical, or technical reports and publications for accuracy.
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Develop applied software for the analysis and interpretation of geological data.
These are the most important tasks AI can already handle when paired with the right tools and context. The first wins usually come from building workflows around them. That is the difference between a model that could do the job and one that actually does it inside your business.
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Analyze and interpret geological data, using computer software.
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Analyze and interpret geological, geochemical, or geophysical information from sources, such as survey data, well logs, bore holes, or aerial photos.
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Identify risks for natural disasters, such as mudslides, earthquakes, or volcanic eruptions.
Every role has three or four places like these. Finding them takes an hour. Turning them into a workflow your team actually uses takes a few days.
Every task in the role.
Every O*NET task for this occupation, split by what AI can do unaided and what still needs a person. Importance is O*NET's 1 to 5 rating of how central each task is.
Tasks via O*NET "Geoscientists, Except Hydrologists and Geographers" (19-2042.00).
What AI can already do
3 of 32 tasks, unaided
Communicate geological findings by writing research papers, participating in conferences, or teaching geological science at universities.
Review environmental, historical, or technical reports and publications for accuracy.
Develop applied software for the analysis and interpretation of geological data.
What still needs a person
29 of 32 tasks
Plan or conduct geological, geochemical, or geophysical field studies or surveys, sample collection, or drilling and testing programs used to collect data for research or application.
Analyze and interpret geological data, using computer software.
Investigate the composition, structure, or history of the Earth's crust through the collection, examination, measurement, or classification of soils, minerals, rocks, or fossil remains.
Analyze and interpret geological, geochemical, or geophysical information from sources, such as survey data, well logs, bore holes, or aerial photos.
Identify risks for natural disasters, such as mudslides, earthquakes, or volcanic eruptions.
Assess ground or surface water movement to provide advice on issues, such as waste management, route and site selection, or the restoration of contaminated sites.
Prepare geological maps, cross-sectional diagrams, charts, or reports concerning mineral extraction, land use, or resource management, using results of fieldwork or laboratory research.
Inspect construction projects to analyze engineering problems, using test equipment or drilling machinery.
Provide advice on the safe siting of new nuclear reactor projects or methods of nuclear waste management.
Locate and estimate probable natural gas, oil, or mineral ore deposits or underground water resources, using aerial photographs, charts, or research or survey results.
Advise construction firms or government agencies on dam or road construction, foundation design, land use, or resource management.
Measure characteristics of the Earth, such as gravity or magnetic fields, using equipment such as seismographs, gravimeters, torsion balances, or magnetometers.
Locate and review research articles or environmental, historical, or technical reports.
Conduct geological or geophysical studies to provide information for use in regional development, site selection, or development of public works projects.
Design geological mine maps, monitor mine structural integrity, or advise and monitor mining crews.
Review work plans to determine the effectiveness of activities for mitigating soil or groundwater contamination.
Test industrial diamonds or abrasives, soil, or rocks to determine their geological characteristics, using optical, x-ray, heat, acid, or precision instruments.
Study historical climate change indicators found in locations, such as ice sheets or rock formations to develop climate change models.
Develop strategies for more environmentally friendly resource extraction and reclamation.
Identify deposits of construction materials suitable for use as concrete aggregates, road fill, or other applications.
Identify new sources of platinum group elements for industrial applications, such as automotive fuel cells or pollution abatement systems.
Locate potential sources of geothermal energy.
Research ways to reduce the ecological footprint of increasingly prevalent megacities.
Collaborate with medical or health researchers to address health problems related to geological materials or processes.
Determine ways to mitigate the negative consequences of mineral dust dispersion.
Identify possible sites for carbon sequestration projects.
Develop ways to capture or use gases burned off as waste during oil production processes.
Research geomechanical or geochemical processes to be used in carbon sequestration projects.
Determine methods to incorporate geomethane or methane hydrates into global energy production or evaluate the potential environmental impacts of such incorporation.
Tasks via O*NET "Geoscientists, Except Hydrologists and Geographers" (19-2042.00).
What AI can already do
27 of 32 tasks, with tools
Analyze and interpret geological data, using computer software.
Analyze and interpret geological, geochemical, or geophysical information from sources, such as survey data, well logs, bore holes, or aerial photos.
Identify risks for natural disasters, such as mudslides, earthquakes, or volcanic eruptions.
Assess ground or surface water movement to provide advice on issues, such as waste management, route and site selection, or the restoration of contaminated sites.
Prepare geological maps, cross-sectional diagrams, charts, or reports concerning mineral extraction, land use, or resource management, using results of fieldwork or laboratory research.
Communicate geological findings by writing research papers, participating in conferences, or teaching geological science at universities.
Provide advice on the safe siting of new nuclear reactor projects or methods of nuclear waste management.
Locate and estimate probable natural gas, oil, or mineral ore deposits or underground water resources, using aerial photographs, charts, or research or survey results.
Advise construction firms or government agencies on dam or road construction, foundation design, land use, or resource management.
Locate and review research articles or environmental, historical, or technical reports.
Conduct geological or geophysical studies to provide information for use in regional development, site selection, or development of public works projects.
Design geological mine maps, monitor mine structural integrity, or advise and monitor mining crews.
Review environmental, historical, or technical reports and publications for accuracy.
Review work plans to determine the effectiveness of activities for mitigating soil or groundwater contamination.
Study historical climate change indicators found in locations, such as ice sheets or rock formations to develop climate change models.
Develop strategies for more environmentally friendly resource extraction and reclamation.
Identify deposits of construction materials suitable for use as concrete aggregates, road fill, or other applications.
Identify new sources of platinum group elements for industrial applications, such as automotive fuel cells or pollution abatement systems.
Locate potential sources of geothermal energy.
Research ways to reduce the ecological footprint of increasingly prevalent megacities.
Collaborate with medical or health researchers to address health problems related to geological materials or processes.
Determine ways to mitigate the negative consequences of mineral dust dispersion.
Identify possible sites for carbon sequestration projects.
Develop ways to capture or use gases burned off as waste during oil production processes.
Research geomechanical or geochemical processes to be used in carbon sequestration projects.
Develop applied software for the analysis and interpretation of geological data.
Determine methods to incorporate geomethane or methane hydrates into global energy production or evaluate the potential environmental impacts of such incorporation.
What still needs a person
5 of 32 tasks
Plan or conduct geological, geochemical, or geophysical field studies or surveys, sample collection, or drilling and testing programs used to collect data for research or application.
Investigate the composition, structure, or history of the Earth's crust through the collection, examination, measurement, or classification of soils, minerals, rocks, or fossil remains.
Inspect construction projects to analyze engineering problems, using test equipment or drilling machinery.
Measure characteristics of the Earth, such as gravity or magnetic fields, using equipment such as seismographs, gravimeters, torsion balances, or magnetometers.
Test industrial diamonds or abrasives, soil, or rocks to determine their geological characteristics, using optical, x-ray, heat, acid, or precision instruments.
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Related occupations.
Other roles in Professional occupations, and roles close by exposure.
What it means for your sector.
This role's score comes from Eloundou et al's 2023 task labels, weighted by O*NET importance within each O*NET-SOC code, then bridged to UK SOC 2020 through ISCO-08 (the ONS coding index) and US SOC 2010 (the BLS crosswalk). Employment and median pay come from ONS ASHE Table 14.7a, 2025 provisional, which covers employees only.
Back to the mapMethodologySources (PDF)Built 29 April 2026
Pictures
- "Census pantograph and 1930s keypunches" by U.S. Census Bureau employees, public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
- "Shepard Barclay, St. Louis lawyer, in his office" by Missouri Historical Society via DPLA, no known copyright restrictions, via Wikimedia Commons
- "Accountant's Office LCCN2016824374" by National Photo Company Collection, public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
- "Employment service in Oulu in the spring 1931" by Finnish Heritage Agency (Museovirasto), CC BY 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons