Topobathymetric Elevation Models and Elevation-Area-Volume Relationships for Selected Lakes in Closed Basins of the Great Basin States

Terminal and saline lakes across the western United States serve as critical hydrologic, ecologic, and geomorphic resources. This data release provides assimilated topobathymetric elevation models and elevation‑area‑volume (EAV) relationships for selected lakes within these terminal basins. The datasets integrate the best available topographic lidar and bathymetric information, including recent high‑resolution lidar digital elevation models (DEMs) and historical or modern bathymetric surveys, to produce continuous elevation surfaces for each lake. Bathymetric sources include interpolated DEMs derived from historical contour maps as well as more recent echosounder‑based or lidar‑supported lakebed surveys. All elevation data were transformed to the North American Vertical Datum of 1988 (NAVD88) and merged at the highest available spatial resolution for each lake domain.

Topobathymetric rasters were generated in ArcGIS Pro (v. 3.5.5) using consistent horizontal projections within the Universal Transverse Mercator system and processed to ensure seamless topographic transitions between dry and submerged surfaces. In cases where bathymetric coverage did not overlap with lidar, elevation gaps were interpolated using hydrologically consistent void‑filling models to create continuous topobathymetry. Elevation‑area‑volume relationships were computed at 0.1‑meter intervals across each modeled lake using the ESRI Storage Capacity tool, with hydrologically conditioned processing for lakes in which natural or manmade barriers form multiple basins that connect only at specific elevations. The uppermost elevation in each EAV table is equal to or above the highest recorded water-surface elevation observed in historical records. These EAV curves provide a quantitative basis for hydrologic modeling, water‑budget analyses, and ecological assessment within each closed basin.

This data release delivers standardized, high‑quality elevation datasets and EAV metrics for lakes including Eagle Lake, Goose Lake, Honey Lake, and Mono Lake in California, Carson Lake, Carson Sink, Franklin Lake, Pyramid Lake, Ruby Lake, Winnemucca Lake, and Walker Lake in Nevada, Lake Abert, Harney Lake, Malheur Lake, Mud Lake, Silver Lake, and Summer Lake in Oregon, and Sevier Lake in Utah. Together, these products support improved understanding of lake dynamics, ecosystem management, and hydrogeomorphic change across terminal lake systems of the western United States.