Animation of five satellite images of the Tanana River in Alaska. The imagery is colored in shades of blue to show the degree of confidence that water is present. Two scatter plots show positive pairwise relationships between satellite river elevation and satellite river width and satellite streamflow.
Merritt Harlan, PhD
Dr. Merritt Harlan (she/her) is a Mendenhall Fellow and research hydrologist for the USGS Water Resources Mission Area based in Lakewood Colorado.
Dr. Harlan’s research focuses on remote sensing of inland waters, with a particular interest in high latitude rivers. Dr. Harlan is interested in applying data from ongoing and upcoming satellite missions (such as the Surface Water Ocean Topography satellite mission; SWOT) to estimate river flows in ungaged basins, assess changes in surface water in high latitude lakes and rivers, and compare and evaluate the accuracy of satellite-derived stage and streamflow to field data and modeled data. Currently, she is involved in the Satellite-based Remote Sensing of River Discharge Project to expand streamflow monitoring in Alaska
Education and Certifications
Ph.D in Civil and Environmental Engineering, University of Massachusetts Amherst (2022)
B.A. in Mathematics, Williams College (2016)
Science and Products
Animation of five satellite images of the Tanana River in Alaska. The imagery is colored in shades of blue to show the degree of confidence that water is present. Two scatter plots show positive pairwise relationships between satellite river elevation and satellite river width and satellite streamflow.
Lake water storage
Siting considerations for satellite observation of river discharge
Satellite remote sensing of river discharge: A framework for assessing the accuracy of discharge estimates made from satellite remote sensing observations
Non-USGS Publications**
**Disclaimer: The views expressed in Non-USGS publications are those of the author and do not represent the views of the USGS, Department of the Interior, or the U.S. Government.
Science and Products
Animation of five satellite images of the Tanana River in Alaska. The imagery is colored in shades of blue to show the degree of confidence that water is present. Two scatter plots show positive pairwise relationships between satellite river elevation and satellite river width and satellite streamflow.
Animation of five satellite images of the Tanana River in Alaska. The imagery is colored in shades of blue to show the degree of confidence that water is present. Two scatter plots show positive pairwise relationships between satellite river elevation and satellite river width and satellite streamflow.
Lake water storage
Siting considerations for satellite observation of river discharge
Satellite remote sensing of river discharge: A framework for assessing the accuracy of discharge estimates made from satellite remote sensing observations
Non-USGS Publications**
**Disclaimer: The views expressed in Non-USGS publications are those of the author and do not represent the views of the USGS, Department of the Interior, or the U.S. Government.