The Plate Boundary Observatory (PBO) is the geodetic component of EarthScope. The PBO consists of several major observatory components: a network of 1,100 permanent, continuously operating Global Positioning System (GPS) stations many of which provide data at high rate and in real-time, 78 borehole seismometers, 74 borehole strainmeters, 26 shallow borehole tiltmeters, and six long baseline laser strainmeters.

These instruments are complemented by InSAR (interferometric synthetic aperture radar) and LiDAR (light detection and ranging) imagery and geochronology acquired as part of the GeoEarthScope initiative. PBO also includes comprehensive data products, data management, and education and outreach efforts.