Geothermal ground-source heat pumps have great importance in today's age of global warming. Having emerged in the late 1940s', these ground-source heat pumps are smart devices which manipulate earth's temperature and absorb heat from the earth by means of the ground heat exchanger. When the air temperature is low, the earth's temperature is high and vice versa. The earth's layers are like a cave. The ground -source heat pumps make use of this phenomenon and perform functions like cooling and heating in summer and winter respectively. While the ordinary air-source heat pumps fail to perform well on the very cold winter days, the ground heat water pumps deliver the goods well. In summers, the heat emitted by buildings, towers, houses etc is absorbed by the heat pumps and pushed back into the earth. They are effective heating and cooling components.

Ground source heat pumps have several features which add its utility. They use 25-50% less electricity and have a high capacity to retain humidity. They retain about 50% of indoor humidity and are highly useful in humid areas. These equipments are low on cost and maintenance. Once installed they have a long life of 25-50 years and hence do not incur recurring costs. Ground source heat pumps have a flexible design which facilitates easy installation of its parts. The parts are mobile and can be replaced easily if damaged. These pumps are size-friendly and do not occupy much space. They come in various sizes and patterns to facilitate its installation in the varied topographies of various areas. They also provide you with high standard 'zone' space conditioning which permits cooling of various parts of your house. As they have no condensing units they don't make noise like the air-conditioners and remain highly inconspicuous.

Ground source heat pumps have been used in various parts of the world. They have been widely used in North America and Europe for years. Many associations have been formed for promotion of and research on the ground source heat pumps. The International Ground Source Heat Pump Association (IGSHPA) found in the United States in 1987 is a non-profit organization dedicated to the cause of promoting the usage of ground source heat pumps on local, state, national and international levels. The "Ground Source Heat Pump Association" was launched in 2006 in UK for promotion of the ground source heat pumps and for raising awareness of their benefits. The association aims at assisting the development of sound industry-related standards.