USGS Water Resources

08/25/2023

Happy !

It’s no oar-dinary day when we’re out on the water for work.
Get out on the water and .

Snap a pic & share it with us!
Enter our on Instagram ().
www.usgs.gov/recreatewithusgs

08/23/2023

Follow Alli’s lead & off the job... and on the job 😆

Don’t forget to enter our photo contest - Head over to IG & post a photo of your summer water experience, tag , use , & check www.usgs.gov/recreatewithusgs for other rules that apply.

08/21/2023

Which national park are you visiting to participate in ? Comment below!

Acadia National Park Rocky Mountain National Park Yosemite National Park Biscayne National Park Hot Springs National Park

See if you can spot the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) water monitoring equipment that tells us near real-time conditions. allow for safe recreational experiences.

To celebrate the awareness that these data bring us, take a photo of your park experience in, on, or near the water and share it here on Instagram for a chance to win USGS Water Resources’s photo contest,

Rules of entry:
Use
Tag @‌usgs_water

Other rules apply. Visit usgs.gov/recreatewithusgs or click the link in USGS Water Resources’s bio for more details.

This contest is in no way associated with Instagram. Those who participate are agreeing to the USGS copyright permissions agreement.

Entries accepted June 12 - September 30
Vote for category winners October 7 - October 16
Winners announced October 17

To discover water data near you, visit the National Water Dashboard at dashboard.waterdata.usgs.gov/

08/21/2023

Celebrating 1,000 Facebook followers! 🎉🎈

Our Facebook may be new, but we know many of you are not new to using U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) water data.

How do you use USGS water data? What do you do with our data? ⬇⬇⬇

08/20/2023

Take a break... and !

Seek out your favorite water spot, snap a pic, and share it on our Instagram () to enter our . www.instagram.com/usgs_water/

Rules of Entry:
Use
Tag @‌usgs_water

Visit usgs.gov/recreatewithusgs for more details.

08/18/2023

650,000 daily measurements in the Basin since 1901 is a lot of . But spatial variability and data gaps make it hard to predict temperatures in all streams. Why? See this

twitter.com/USGS_DataSci

: labs.waterdata.usgs.gov/visualizations/temperature-prediction/index.html?utm_source=twitter&utm_medium=usgs_water&utm_campaign=overview #/monitoring

08/14/2023

The phrase “Harmful Algal Bloom” gets tossed around often, but what exactly does it really mean? What’s in these aquatic scourges? What makes them so dangerous? USGS experts Rebecca Gorney, Jennifer Graham, and Jennifer Murphy answer all these questions and more in their deep dive into this topic, “The ‘H,’ ‘A,’ and ‘B’ of a HAB: A Definitional Framework,” featured in the Summer 2023 issue of the North American Lake Management Society’s LakeLine magazine.
https://www.nalms.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/43-2-3-revised-2.pdf

08/14/2023

Jerry, did you forget to bring the boat again?!


Share your photo on Instagram today

www.usgs.gov/recreatewithusgs

08/13/2023

Looking for a ?

We are excited to announce a new U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) Mendenhall Postdoctoral Fellowship opportunity to propose original and innovative research to study climate change impacts on water resources in cold environments.

Research initiatives may address coupled processes (e.g., climatic, earth system, and socioeconomic), feedback mechanisms, vulnerability assessments, tipping points, and early warning. Studies may incorporate field investigations, Indigenous Knowledge, machine learning, remote sensing, and/or physically based modeling. New and existing datasets may be utilized to advance understanding and improve prediction of one or more of the following components: streamflow magnitude and timing, lake area extent, surface water temperatures, groundwater recharge, and aquifer storage.

For more information about the research opportunity, please visit https://ow.ly/yozy50PxCrC

The deadline to submit a proposal and application is November 1, 2023. Position is based in Denver, CO.

08/12/2023

It’s !

We are grateful for the young people who inspire us and encourage them to keep exploring the wonders of our planet!
USGS Youth and Education in Science

08/11/2023

It's !

On this , a hydrographer collects a suspended-sediment water sample from the Little Colorado River, a kilometer upstream from the Colorado River, Grand Canyon, Arizona.

Since water quality can vary greatly across a river, suspended-sediment water samples must be collected in multiple cross-section intervals. Notice the string going horizontally across the picture, which allows the hydrographer to sample in a straight line across the river.

Suspended-sediment concentrations also vary vertically with depth, so the sampler must also sample vertically by moving the sample bottle up and down at a constant speed, being careful not to hit the stream bed, which could cause bottom sediment to rise into the water column.

The hydrographer carries numerous glass bottles, one bottle for each cross-sectional location. The bottle is secured in the metal sampler and there is a tube in the front of the sampler to allow water to enter the bottle at a controlled rate, while letting out air from inside the bottle.

The very brown water here indicates the presence of a lot of fine dirt particles and high turbidity.

Learn more about sediment and suspended sediment: 🔗 www.usgs.gov/special-topics/water-science-school/science/sediment-and-suspended-sediment

08/09/2023

pH is a measure of how acidic/basic water is. The range goes from 0 to 14, with 7 being neutral. pHs of less than 7 indicate acidity, whereas a pH of greater than 7 indicates a base. The pH of water is a very important measurement concerning water quality.

08/08/2023

The Great Vermont Flood hit New England on July 10, 2023, causing record-breaking flooding.

This chart shows this storm at 5 gages on the Connecticut River as compared to the 15-year record.

Gage height refers to the height of the water above a reference point.
Flood stage refers to a specific gage height, above which water begins to create a hazard to lives, property, or commerce.

Learn more about gage height and flood stage: 🔗waterdata.usgs.gov/blog/gage_height/

08/07/2023

Have you heard how great it is to live in Boise? There's no better city for tonsss, and we mean ALL KINDS of recreation. Ask any of the locals. We have. That's all they talk about. Hiking, mountain biking, skiing, whitewater rafting...

Wait, hold on, that's not how we were supposed to start this post. Reboot.

Did you know?! WE'RE HIRING IN BOISE! 😆😉😏

Become a USGS Water Resources and live in the -- apparently -- amazing city of Boise, Idaho. (Who knew!) https://www.usgs.gov/centers/idaho-water-science-center/news/data-science-opportunities-usgs-idaho-water-science-center

Share with a friend who also has no clue how cool Boise (or U.S. Geological Survey (USGS)) is.

The U.S. Geological Survey's Idaho Water Science Center is hiring one or more Physical Scientists with an emphasis on data science. Job announcements will soon open on USAJobs for permanent Federal positions at two levels of experience (GS-9 and GS-11/12). The duty station for these positions is...

08/07/2023

July conditions across the U.S.

💧 Wetter-than-normal conditions persisted for much of New England, while parts of the Pacific Northwest saw dry conditions. 💧

💻 made with
💻 See the code here: https://github.com/usgs-vizlab/flow-tiles

Each tile shows the percent of USGS Water Resources streamgages by flow levels, using percentiles relative to the historic record at each site.
This chart tells us if current streamflow conditions are wetter or drier than has been experienced at each water monitoring location in the past.

For more water data visualizations, check out our website: https://labs.waterdata.usgs.gov/visualizations/vizlab-home

And check out this satellite view of a storm system bringing wet conditions across the Northeastern U.S. 🛰
https://twitter.com/UWCIMSS/status/1678708564779577346?s=20

♥ Like and follow for more data visualizations on water! ✔

08/05/2023

More than 1500 years ago, in what is now the western U.S., severe megadroughts lasted nearly a century. In the modern era, no has lasted longer than 40 years or been as severe as those historic megadroughts.

This unique made by Ellie White uses tree-ring to reconstruct 2,000 years of droughts. The size of the flower indicates the severity of the drought, and the height of the stalk shows the duration. Each type of flower represents a resource region of the western U.S.

What’s the future of drought in the U.S.? Learn how U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) scientists use streamgage data to predict drought, understand water availability, and inform sustainable water management: https://www.usgs.gov/mission-areas/water-resources/science/drought-prediction-science

08/04/2023

08/04/2023

It's
We love when our work takes us outdoors!

Water you doing today? 😉 If you’re going to be on, in, or near the water, snap a photo & enter our Instagram

Get outside & !
usgs.gov/recreatewithusgs

📸 Alan Cressler, USGS

08/02/2023

On July 14, a wind and solar-powered uncrewed surface vehicle called a Saildrone Explorer was launched on Lake Erie out of Erie, Pennsylvania.

The vehicle is equipped with several environmental sensors both under and above the water, including a fisheries echosounder that uses sound to detect fish, much like a fish-finder on a fishing boat.

The saildrone will operate in Lake Erie’s western, central, and eastern basins through the end of September.

U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) partners will use the autonomous vehicles to study a variety of other questions on Lake Erie, including

- the effect of harmful algal blooms on yellow perch in the western basin
- the detection of large species such as lake whitefish, burbot and lake trout in the eastern basin
- the effect of low-oxygen zones on bottom-dwelling fish in the central basin

Read more: https://www.usgs.gov/news/state-news-reease/usgs-and-partners-deploy-autonomous-vehicles-lake-erie-improve-fishery

07/31/2023

Today is !

Are you in a today? Thank a ranger! 😁 Let’s celebrate those who help keep our lands beautiful and allow us to camp, swim, and hike each day.


📸: National Park Service

07/29/2023

July is ?💧

Check out this that displays least to most circular lakes from 100 lakes across the U.S. Data from LAGOS-US.

What’s your favorite lake?

07/28/2023

This might not be the typical shark you’re expecting to see during , but these scientists are hard at work on the Shark River in Everglades National Park 🦈🏞

You’re more likely to see an alligator than a shark, though! 🐊

07/26/2023

🎉 🥳

Hi! My name is Allison Trcka, but I go by Alli. I was born and raised in the small town of Granville, Ohio. I knew what I wanted to do in 5th grade when I wrote my future career report on being a geologist and working for .

I fell in love with the West during family vacations, and I eventually moved to Pocatello, Idaho where I did my undergrad at . I doubled majored in Geology and Outdoor Education with an emphasis on Physical Education both with honors distinction.

While in undergrad, I worked with the Outdoor Program teaching classes and leading outdoor trips. I was also part of the hydrology and volcanology lab groups helping with grad students’ theses, doing my own projects, and even doing a senior thesis.

My senior thesis was on the hydrology of a rock glacier near Dicky Peak, ID. I stuck with rock glaciers when I moved to Portland, Oregon to do my master’s thesis which included an inventory of the rock glaciers in the American west and looking at their topography and climate.


After grad school, I went to Nevada to work at Rangefront Mining Services, where I was a part of the field crew doing claim staking and soil and rock chip sampling. Since May 2021, I have worked for the USGS Project Office as a hydrologist.

Fun fact, our office is the only USGS office co-located at a National Laboratory!

I am the water quality sampling program lead. This involves prepping and planning sampling events with our field team, co-sampling agencies (DEQ/IOP, Shoshone-Bannock Tribes), and with the INL facilities.

We collect and handle all the groundwater samples, and review, evaluate, and manage the data we get back from the respective labs.

I am also the assistant core librarian at the USGS Idaho National Laboratory Lithology Core Storage Library where over 100,000 feet of linear core is stored.

We accept core our drillers and other clients bring in, inventory and describe the core, and provide instruction to people who come out and sample the core.

Lastly, I help with software development, helping create and update R-packages related to the projects in our office.

In my free time, I like to be either very lazy or very outdoorsy, it just depends on the day. On a lazy day, I like to read and hang out with my dogs. 📕🐕

When feeling outdoorsy, I enjoy hiking, bagging peaks, whitewater kayaking, all types of skiing, rock climbing, and even a little bit of biking (either road or mountain). I try to do something new every few months just to get out and meet new people. 🥾🛶🧗‍♀️🚵‍♀️

07/24/2023

Know your flow
Then you can go...


Check out the data for this location: waterdata.usgs.gov/monitoring-location/03189600/ =00065&period=P7D

Enter our photo contest for your photo to be featured just like this entry from last year!

Find out more 👉usgs.gov/recreatewithusgs

07/21/2023

In this , USGS scientists prepare a bacteria sampler for deployment.

Learning about the different harmful and beneficial bacteria in our local waterways helps us characterize . 🧫💧

07/20/2023

U.S. River Conditions from April 1, 2023 to June 30, 2023 at U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) 💧



River conditions range from driest conditions at a gage (red open circles) to the wettest (blue closed circles). A purple outer ring indicates flooding. https://www.usgs.gov/media/videos/us-river-conditions-april-june-2023



This data visualization summarizes 3 months of hydrologic events, such as in Florida and South-Central U.S. & in the Upper Midwest due rapid snowmelt.

07/19/2023

June conditions across the U.S. 💧

Wetter than normal conditions persisted for much of the Intermountain West, while much of the Eastern U.S. saw dry conditions.

made with https://github.com/usgs-vizlab/flow-tiles

Each tile shows the percent of USGS Water Resources streamgages by flow levels, using percentiles relative to the historic record at each site. This tells us if current streamflow conditions are wetter or drier than has been experienced at each site in the past.

For more water data visualizations, check out our website: labs.waterdata.usgs.gov/visualizations/vizlab-home

07/17/2023

View all available data on multiple graphs for any location, like here at the James River: waterdata.usgs.gov/monitoring-location/06473000/all-graphs/ =P7D

07/17/2023

Check near-real time data for multiple water monitoring locations at once: waterdata.usgs.gov/combined-location-graph/

07/14/2023

It’s !

Our work often takes us to scenic areas like the beautiful Fish River on Seward Peninsula, Alaska.

Give us a glimpse of your favorite scenic waterway by entering our photo competition!

Learn more: www.usgs.gov/recreatewithusgs

07/13/2023

Depending on where you live, droughts may be more common at some times of the year than others. But the timing of droughts, or seasonality, has changed since the 1950s.

We use U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) streamgage to measure how seasonality changes through time. Learn more about how U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) measures streamflow drought in our : https://labs.waterdata.usgs.gov/visualizations/what-is-drought/index.html #/

For many regions, droughts used to be more seasonal. Now, severe droughts are equally likely any time of the year. Other regions of the U.S. have seen the drought season shift. For example, in the Northwest, almost all severe droughts in the 1950s and 1960s happened in the fall. Now, severe droughts are more common in spring and summer.

Knowing when and where droughts occurred helps us predict future and inform management & sustainability. How do we predict future water availability? Learn about USGS drought prediction: https://www.usgs.gov/mission-areas/water-resources/science/drought-prediction-science

Download the behind this data visualization: doi.org/10.5066/P92FAASD

07/12/2023

🎉 🥳

Hi! I’m Laura LaPolice. I am a Navy Seabee Veteran and have been a Hydrologic Technician for 8 years. I don’t have a traditional science background but have always known my career path would not be typical.

After separating from the Navy, I used my GI bill to get my Associate’s degree in applied science in the Culinary Arts. I was in my mid 20’s when my now coworker patroned the restaurant I was interning at. He found out I was a Veteran and told me about the VRA program.

With ZERO experience & knowledge about hydrology, I jumped at the exciting opportunity to work outside in nature, learning about water science. My coworkers & supervisor showed me so much grace while learning all things that make up a good, well-rounded Hydrologic Tech.

I have expanded my knowledge in almost all disciplines my field office has to offer and have grown my leadership skills outside of my office on a national level for training and employee resource outreach.

My current role is far-reaching. I maintain a full surface water field trip that includes groundwater, water quality, and precipitation sites and lead a team that provides Storm Response training across the USGS.

This training helps build an understanding of the “flow of science” between “boots on the ground” technicians and the modeler’s that are trying to predict and map flood waters and wave destruction.

It also refines, reinforces, and teaches new skills that can be applied to events that range from river flooding on the Mississippi to Cat 5 hurricanes that decimate the coast.

I am the lead for a National Storm Tide Monitoring training group and am 1 of 3 lead field techs for the National Oceanographic Partnership Program (NOPP) to monitor Real-time and Observed Measurements of Hurricane ­Induced Hydrodynamics and Flooding.

I also co-chair the Women in Science (WIS) group that provides a place for women to bring forward women-specific concerns and work to find solutions that can benefit all in the center.

I am a very creative, outgoing, & curious person waiting for the next adventure. Learning new skills frustrates me but brings me great joy at the same time. I seek the hard in things and will not give up until I feel I have gotten it 95% right.

I enjoy the simple things in life outside of work. You will always find me spending time with my 2 wonderful daughters and husband. Cooking and feeding others is my love language, and health and fitness is a habit I have maintained for almost 10 years.

07/07/2023

A U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) scientist measures discharge in Ashwaubenon Creek near Little Rapids, WI, as part of a cooperative project with NEWWater which utilizes an adaptive management approach to meet phosphorus standards and improve water quality contributing to the Lower Fox River and Green Bay.

07/05/2023

The U.S. has a long history of droughts.

U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) streamgage show us when and where the most severe droughts have occurred in the last 100 years.

Drought severity is a measurement that incorporates both drought duration (how long) and intensity (how dry). Learn how U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) measures streamflow : https://labs.waterdata.usgs.gov/visualizations/what-is-drought/index.html #/

Knowing when and where droughts occurred helps us predict future and inform management and sustainability. How do we predict future water availability? Learn about USGS drought prediction: https://www.usgs.gov/mission-areas/water-resources/science/drought-prediction-science

Download the behind this : doi.org/10.5066/P92FAASD

07/04/2023

Happy Independence Day! On days like today, we are especially grateful for clean water, public lands, and those who fight to keep us safe. 🏞⛲🎆

Get outside today, enjoy the water, and !

07/01/2023

Happy

If H2O is water, then what is H2O4?
Get it? H2O... for... 😁

It’s for drinking, washing, and of course recreating! 🤣

Water you waiting for? by entering our public on Instagram!

Learn more: www.usgs.gov/recreatewithusgs

Thanks to last year's participant, mattkearnswv, for this photo.

06/30/2023

Necropsies help us understand ecosystem health.

A WVU grad student and USGS lab technician perform smallmouth bass necropsies for a health assessment in the Susquehanna River drainage that helps determine if & how environmental changes and/or contamination affect fish health.

06/29/2023

Grab your cameras and take some photos while you’re out on, in, or near the water on public lands!

Submit your photos to our public photo contest on Instagram, : www.usgs.gov/recreatewithusgs

06/24/2023

It's the . Where are you camping?

Be sure to enter our photo contest, . www.usgs.gov/recreatewithusgs

06/22/2023

Have you ever wondered how the measures ? Check out this new by to find out.