Remote Sensing

Evapotranspiration (ET) is the process that transfers water from land surface to the atmosphere as evaporation (or sublimation when below freezing) from open water, soil, and plant canopies and as transpiration by plants. ET is measured by scientists for many different reasons. Hydrologists from the Nevada Water Scientist Center (NVWSC) typically measure ET to help quantify water budgets...

The Colorado River is one of the longest rivers in the Western United States. It begins in the Rocky Mountains of Colorado and flows southwestward until it reaches Mexico where it becomes a small stream or dry riverbed. The Colorado River forms the border between southeastern Nevada and northwestern Arizona. In Nevada, Hoover Dam and Davis Dam control the flow of the river and create two...

On October 18, 2015 an intense, nearly stationary, thunderstorm triggered flooding in Grapevine Canyon. Grapevine Canyon Road, power and water infrastructure, and several buildings at Scotty’s Castle were damaged by the flood water, necessitating closure of the area to the public. In response to the flood event, the National Park Service requested the USGS Nevada Water Science Center perform a...

Stump Spring has been designated as an Area of Critical Environmental Concern by the Bureau of Land Management (BLM), and Hiko Springs currently is in the designation process. Both springs flow intermittently in drainages where the depth to groundwater is shallow. The shallow groundwater flowing to and from the springs sustain scarce desert riparian habitats. BLM has recognized a need for accurate...

The USGS Nevada Water Science Center is refining estimates of annual groundwater discharge along the Wild and Scenic portion of the Amargosa River (AWSR) and adjacent spring discharge areas. Discharge estimates will be based on evapotranspiration (ET) measurements made along the Amargosa River during a 2-year period, previous estimates of evapotranspiration rates, and remote sensing techniques...

The USGS Nevada Water Science Center began an investigation in 2010 to quantify hydrologic effects of groundwater withdrawals on Truckee River streamflow in the Tracy Segment hydrographic area, Storey, Washoe and Lyon Counties, Nevada. Groundwater gradients have been monitored at sites near pumping wells and the river. Water-level fluctuations resulting from local pumping are interpreted with flow...

In 2006, USGS, in cooperation with the Bureau of Land Management (BLM), began a 4-year study of the Red Rock Canyon National Conservation Area (NCA) to produce a land-cover data set from DigitalGlobe’s QuickBird high-resolution (2.4-meter) satellite imagery and field vegetation data. In 2010, the study was extended to include the Clark County portion of Mormon Mesa, and Coyote Springs and Piute...