Remotely Sensed Discharge
Science Center Objects
River discharge is an important component of the water cycle, and an accurate accounting of streamflow can be accomplished by monitoring the spatial and temporal variations in river discharge. The U.S. Geological Survey is actively pursuing remote-sensing platforms to compute river discharge using a combination of satellite-, high altitude-, drone-, and fixed-based platforms to directly measure river width, hydraulic grade, and velocity. QCam is a Doppler (velocity) radar, which is mounted on a 3DR™ Solo drone and measures the along-track river surface-water velocity by spot dwelling at prescribed heights over the river channel.
Field trials were conducted on the South Platte and Arkansas Rivers in Colorado and the Salcha and Tanana Rivers in Alaska.
These platforms coupled with efficient algorithms have the potential to revolutionize streamflow measurements.
Velocity radar mounted on drone as remote sensing platform to determine discharge on the Tanana River, AK. Discharge measurements from drone were compared to ADCP measurement.
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Date published: January 1, 2018Status: CompletedUnder-Ice: Computing Real-time Discharge
Under-ice discharge is estimated using open-water reference hydrographs; however, the ratings for ice-affected sites are generally qualified as poor.
The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), in collaboration with the Colorado Water Conservation Board, conducted a proof-of-concept to develop an alternative method for computing under-ice discharge using hydroacoustics and the Probability...
Contacts: John W Fulton -
Date published: July 1, 2016Status: ActiveRadar on Drones
Small, Unmanned Aircraft Systems (sUAS) or drones can be used to monitor extreme flows in basins that (1) respond quickly to precipitation events, (2) are not gaged, (3) are located in terrain that restricts access and equipment deployments, and (4) are altered by events such as wildfires.
The research will explore the use of sUAS platforms to measure water depth, water levels,...
Contacts: John W Fulton