The purpose of this article is to explain and highlight different aspects of the Powder River Basin to include paleogeography, stratigraphy, maturation history of organic matter, vitrinite reflectance data, sulfur content, both historical and current production data, as well as environmental impact in the basin. The Powder River Basin is located in southeastern Montana and northeastern Wyoming. According to Luppens et al. (2008), the Powder River Basin is approximately 22,000 square miles in size. The basin itself extends in a north-northwest direction. The eastern side of the basin dips slightly to the west, while the western side dips much more steeply to the east. This forms an asymmetric syncline whose syncline axis is closer to the western margin of the basin (USGS, 2013). The Powder River Basin is structurally separated from other basins by Laramide-type tectonic landforms, where large portions of the Archean basement rock were thrust upward during the Late Cretaceous and Paleocene (Flores, 2004). In Wyoming, the Powder River Basin is surrounded by the Bighorn Mountains to the west, the Black Hills to the east, and the Laramie, Casper Arch, and Hartville Uplift Mountains to the south. To the north, in the Montana portion of the Powder River Basin, the Miles City Arch separates the basin from the Williston Basin in North Dakota. The coal beds that have been deposited in the basin are primarily subbituminous, but may also be of lignite rank and range in age from Cretaceous to Eocene. There are four formations that contain coal deposits in the Powder River Basin and include the Mesaverde Formation, Lance Formation, Fort Union Formation, and Wasatch Formation. Each of these formations contains several different coals...... middle of paper ...... the future with better methods and techniques.Summary The coal deposits of the Powder River Basin are among the thickest in the world, thus contributing to the constitution of the basin. one of the leading producers not only nationally but also globally. Although the coals are of low quality and therefore not ideal for generating electricity, the large amount of coal in the basin makes mining these coals very economical. The low ash and sulfur content of Powder River Basin coals also makes it an ideal coal for today's market. The low ash and sulfur content helps make these coals relatively environmentally friendly compared to coals mined from places like Illinois, which have higher sulfur contents. The vast amount of resources contained in the Powder River Basin makes this region of the United States a major player in energy supply for the next century..