Looking downstream (south) at USGS streamgage 08223400 Rio Grande at Alamosa NWR near Alamosa, CO; non-contact radar suspended on the bank during gage installation next to the streamgage located on the bank on the left.
Streamflows at Baca and Alamosa National Wildlife Refuges using Non-Contact Technology Active
The goal of this study is to design, install, and operationalize non-contact radar monitoring to measure streamflow at two sites at National Wildlife Refuges (NWRs) in the San Luis Valley, Colorado.
Where traditional monitoring equipment in a stream channel is difficult to operate and maintain, non-contact radar technology is a solution that provides more cost-effective and accurate continuous streamflow monitoring.
The results of this study will be used to guide the design and application of non-contact radar technology at other critical aquatic field sites with difficult environmental conditions in need of quick, effective water resource monitoring. In addition, this technology can be used for quantification of water rights and streamflows needed for restoration of endangered species habitat at NWRs.
One of the two sites in the San Luis Valley is on North Crestone Creek draining the west slope of the Sangre de Cristo Mountains and supplying water to Baca NWR in Colorado. North Crestone Creek is a high elevation mountain stream where traditional monitoring equipment in the stream channel is difficult to operate and maintain and has failed due to effects from flooding, sediment and debris, and washing out. The second site is on the Rio Grande flowing through Alamosa NWR in Colorado at New Ditch, an important water diversion structure for the refuge. This very wide and shallow stream reach experiences changing channel conditions during floods, making it difficult to monitor.
Near-field remote sensing technology has advanced in recent years with the advent of non-contact radars that measure and transmit stream stage and velocity in real-time. Data collected with non-contact radars can be used to compute streamflow at a cross section using an efficient algorithm based on the probability concept. Comparisons with traditional streamgage technology has shown that stage- and velocity-radar streamgages can produce continuous time series of mean velocity, stage, and streamflow that compare favorably to stage-discharge streamgages and can be computed in the absence of historical data while reducing the operational cost of maintaining a streamgage. Non-contact radars are also installed above the wetted-channel, which means they won’t be damaged by high-flow events and will remain operational even when the channel cross section changes. The advantages of stage and velocity radars combined with the probability concept include (1) improved safety, (2) reduced operational costs, (3) improved data delivery, and (4) increased operational efficiency. This technology has broad application throughout U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Regions 5 and 7 as a low-cost, efficient streamflow monitoring system that could be moved from one site to the next with relative ease.
Current Conditions for the two sites at the following links:
- USGS 08227510 NORTH CRESTONE CREEK AT BACA NWR NEAR CRESTONE, CO
- USGS 08223400 RIO GRANDE AT ALAMOSA NWR NEAR ALAMOSA, CO
Below are other Colorado Water Science Center projects associated with this non-contact radar technology.
Remotely Sensed Discharge
Radar on Drones
Below are images taken at the two sites associated with this project.
Looking downstream (south) at USGS streamgage 08223400 Rio Grande at Alamosa NWR near Alamosa, CO; non-contact radar suspended on the bank during gage installation next to the streamgage located on the bank on the left.
Looking across the stream (southwest) at USGS streamgage 08223400 Rio Grande at Alamosa NWR near Alamosa, CO; non-contact radar suspended above the stream with the streamgage located on the bank on the left just out of view.
Looking across the stream (southwest) at USGS streamgage 08223400 Rio Grande at Alamosa NWR near Alamosa, CO; non-contact radar suspended above the stream with the streamgage located on the bank on the left just out of view.
Looking downstream (west) at USGS streamgage 08227510 North Crestone Creek at Baca NWR near Crestone, CO; non-contact radar suspended above the creek with data logger and antennas on the bank on the right.
Looking downstream (west) at USGS streamgage 08227510 North Crestone Creek at Baca NWR near Crestone, CO; non-contact radar suspended above the creek with data logger and antennas on the bank on the right.
Looking upstream (east) at USGS streamgage 08227510 North Crestone Creek at Baca NWR near Crestone, CO; USGS hydrologist is servicing the streamgage.
Looking upstream (east) at USGS streamgage 08227510 North Crestone Creek at Baca NWR near Crestone, CO; USGS hydrologist is servicing the streamgage.
Looking upstream (east) at USGS streamgage 08227510 North Crestone Creek at Baca NWR near Crestone, CO; non-contact radar suspended above the creek with USGS hydrologist servicing the streamgage on the bank on the left.
Looking upstream (east) at USGS streamgage 08227510 North Crestone Creek at Baca NWR near Crestone, CO; non-contact radar suspended above the creek with USGS hydrologist servicing the streamgage on the bank on the left.
Below are publications associated with non-contact radar technology.
QCam: sUAS-based doppler radar for measuring river discharge
Near-field remote sensing of surface velocity and river discharge using radars and the probability concept at 10 USGS streamgages
Remote sensing of river flow in Alaska—New technology to improve safety and expand coverage of USGS streamgaging
- Overview
The goal of this study is to design, install, and operationalize non-contact radar monitoring to measure streamflow at two sites at National Wildlife Refuges (NWRs) in the San Luis Valley, Colorado.
Where traditional monitoring equipment in a stream channel is difficult to operate and maintain, non-contact radar technology is a solution that provides more cost-effective and accurate continuous streamflow monitoring.
The results of this study will be used to guide the design and application of non-contact radar technology at other critical aquatic field sites with difficult environmental conditions in need of quick, effective water resource monitoring. In addition, this technology can be used for quantification of water rights and streamflows needed for restoration of endangered species habitat at NWRs.
One of the two sites in the San Luis Valley is on North Crestone Creek draining the west slope of the Sangre de Cristo Mountains and supplying water to Baca NWR in Colorado. North Crestone Creek is a high elevation mountain stream where traditional monitoring equipment in the stream channel is difficult to operate and maintain and has failed due to effects from flooding, sediment and debris, and washing out. The second site is on the Rio Grande flowing through Alamosa NWR in Colorado at New Ditch, an important water diversion structure for the refuge. This very wide and shallow stream reach experiences changing channel conditions during floods, making it difficult to monitor.
Near-field remote sensing technology has advanced in recent years with the advent of non-contact radars that measure and transmit stream stage and velocity in real-time. Data collected with non-contact radars can be used to compute streamflow at a cross section using an efficient algorithm based on the probability concept. Comparisons with traditional streamgage technology has shown that stage- and velocity-radar streamgages can produce continuous time series of mean velocity, stage, and streamflow that compare favorably to stage-discharge streamgages and can be computed in the absence of historical data while reducing the operational cost of maintaining a streamgage. Non-contact radars are also installed above the wetted-channel, which means they won’t be damaged by high-flow events and will remain operational even when the channel cross section changes. The advantages of stage and velocity radars combined with the probability concept include (1) improved safety, (2) reduced operational costs, (3) improved data delivery, and (4) increased operational efficiency. This technology has broad application throughout U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Regions 5 and 7 as a low-cost, efficient streamflow monitoring system that could be moved from one site to the next with relative ease.
Current Conditions for the two sites at the following links:
- USGS 08227510 NORTH CRESTONE CREEK AT BACA NWR NEAR CRESTONE, CO
- USGS 08223400 RIO GRANDE AT ALAMOSA NWR NEAR ALAMOSA, CO
- Science
Below are other Colorado Water Science Center projects associated with this non-contact radar technology.
Remotely Sensed Discharge
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...Radar 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. - Multimedia
Below are images taken at the two sites associated with this project.
08223400 Rio Grande at Alamosa NWR near Alamosa, CO - 108223400 Rio Grande at Alamosa NWR near Alamosa, CO - 1Looking downstream (south) at USGS streamgage 08223400 Rio Grande at Alamosa NWR near Alamosa, CO; non-contact radar suspended on the bank during gage installation next to the streamgage located on the bank on the left.
Looking downstream (south) at USGS streamgage 08223400 Rio Grande at Alamosa NWR near Alamosa, CO; non-contact radar suspended on the bank during gage installation next to the streamgage located on the bank on the left.
08223400 Rio Grande at Alamosa NWR near Alamosa, CO - 208223400 Rio Grande at Alamosa NWR near Alamosa, CO - 2Looking across the stream (southwest) at USGS streamgage 08223400 Rio Grande at Alamosa NWR near Alamosa, CO; non-contact radar suspended above the stream with the streamgage located on the bank on the left just out of view.
Looking across the stream (southwest) at USGS streamgage 08223400 Rio Grande at Alamosa NWR near Alamosa, CO; non-contact radar suspended above the stream with the streamgage located on the bank on the left just out of view.
08227510 North Crestone Creek at Baca NWR near Crestone, CO - 108227510 North Crestone Creek at Baca NWR near Crestone, CO - 1Looking downstream (west) at USGS streamgage 08227510 North Crestone Creek at Baca NWR near Crestone, CO; non-contact radar suspended above the creek with data logger and antennas on the bank on the right.
Looking downstream (west) at USGS streamgage 08227510 North Crestone Creek at Baca NWR near Crestone, CO; non-contact radar suspended above the creek with data logger and antennas on the bank on the right.
08227510 North Crestone Creek at Baca NWR near Crestone, CO - 208227510 North Crestone Creek at Baca NWR near Crestone, CO - 2Looking upstream (east) at USGS streamgage 08227510 North Crestone Creek at Baca NWR near Crestone, CO; USGS hydrologist is servicing the streamgage.
Looking upstream (east) at USGS streamgage 08227510 North Crestone Creek at Baca NWR near Crestone, CO; USGS hydrologist is servicing the streamgage.
08227510 North Crestone Creek at Baca NWR near Crestone, CO - 308227510 North Crestone Creek at Baca NWR near Crestone, CO - 3Looking upstream (east) at USGS streamgage 08227510 North Crestone Creek at Baca NWR near Crestone, CO; non-contact radar suspended above the creek with USGS hydrologist servicing the streamgage on the bank on the left.
Looking upstream (east) at USGS streamgage 08227510 North Crestone Creek at Baca NWR near Crestone, CO; non-contact radar suspended above the creek with USGS hydrologist servicing the streamgage on the bank on the left.
- Publications
Below are publications associated with non-contact radar technology.
QCam: sUAS-based doppler radar for measuring river discharge
The U.S. Geological Survey is actively investigating remote sensing of surface velocity and river discharge (discharge) from satellite-, high altitude-, small, unmanned aircraft systems- (sUAS or drone), and permanent (fixed) deployments. This initiative is important in ungaged basins and river reaches that lack the infrastructure to deploy conventional streamgaging equipment. By coupling alternatAuthorsJohn W. Fulton, Isaac E. Anderson, C.-L. Chiu, Wolfram Sommer, Josip Adams, Tommaso Moramarco, David M. Bjerklie, Janice M. Fulford, Jeff L. Sloan, Heather Best, Jeffrey S. Conaway, Michelle J. Kang, Michael S. Kohn, Matthew J. Nicotra, Jeremy J. PulliNear-field remote sensing of surface velocity and river discharge using radars and the probability concept at 10 USGS streamgages
Near-field remote sensing of surface velocity and river discharge (discharge) were measured using coherent, continuous wave Doppler and pulsed radars. Traditional streamgaging requires sensors be deployed in the water column; however, near-field remote sensing has the potential to transform streamgaging operations through non-contact methods in the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) and other agenciesAuthorsJohn Fulton, Chris A. Mason, Jack R. Eggleston, Matthew J. Nicotra, C.-L. Chiu, Mark F. Henneberg, Heather Best, Jay Cederberg, Stephen R. Holnbeck, R. Russell Lotspeich, Christopher Laveau, Tommaso Moramarco, Mark E. Jones, Jonathan J Gourley, Danny WasielewskiRemote sensing of river flow in Alaska—New technology to improve safety and expand coverage of USGS streamgaging
The U.S. Geological Survey monitors water level (water surface elevation relative to an arbitrary datum) and measures streamflow in Alaska rivers to compute and compile river flow records for use by water resource planners, engineers, and land managers to design infrastructure, manage floodplains, and protect life, property, and aquatic resources. Alaska has over 800,000 miles of rivers includingAuthorsJeff Conaway, John R. Eggleston, Carl J. Legleiter, John Jones, Paul J. Kinzel, John W. Fulton - Partners