Near-field remotely sensed streamflow, channel bathymetry, and floodplain topography measurements in the Arkansas River at Parkdale, CO collected March 2018

A USGS Unoccupied Aircraft Systems (UAS) Aquatic Airshow field testing and demonstration event occurred March 20-21, 2018, on the Arkansas River at Parkdale, CO, USA. At the airshow, a group of USGS scientists and technicians gathered to test non-contact sensors for measuring stream discharge using UAS and a sensor mounted on a tag line. Scientists at the event performed a series of tests to measure river discharge with experimental non-contact techniques. USGS scientists and field personnel traditionally conduct a discharge measurement either by wading or working from a boat. Due to the potential danger and high risk to personnel safety, hydrologic measurement work is limited during very high flow events, ice break-up, or large floods, when large debris in the current presents hazards. Additionally, conducting measurements in remote areas is limited by the difficulty of transporting the necessary equipment. The prototype discharge measurements were made possible using several cutting-edge prototype UAS and a sensor mounted on a tag line. A radar for measuring surface flow velocity was integrated on a commercially-available quadcopter UAS. In addition, a light-weight, self-contained ground-penetrating radar (GPR) system was attached to a temporary tag line. The experimental remotely sensed data and related supporting in situ field observations are included in this data release. Data are organized by type into several child items.