USGS science picks(r you drink water from your tap use elec...)

Date:11/4/2009

r you drink water from your tap, use electricity or canoe down your local river, chances are, you benefit from USGS streamgages. A streamgage measures the height and how much water is flowing in a river or stream. This information is used by drinking water suppliers, water treatment plant operators, engineers, wildlife managers, recreationalists and many others. There are over 7,500 streamgages in the United States that transmit real-time data by satellite every one to four hours. This streamflow information is available to everyone for free online at http://waterdata.usgs.gov/nwis/rt. The amount of water in rivers or streams is not constant, and knowing how much water is available is critical to those who use and manage the water. Details on the importance of streamgages are available in a USGS Corecast video at http://www.usgs.gov/corecast/details.asp?ep=106 or on the National Streamflow Information Program Web site at http://water.usgs.gov/nsip/. For more information, contact Mike Norris at mnorris@usgs.gov or (603) 226-7847.

Why Celebrate GIS Day on Nov. 18?

Scientists find geographic information systems (GIS) indispensable. These systems are used to store, view and analyze information, especially maps. They can contain data about human populations, storm damage, migratory bird routes and the location of crops. Geographers at the USGS National Wetlands Research Center measure coastal land loss (http://www.nwrc.usgs.gov/special/landloss.htm) along the Gulf Coast by combining information from aerial photography, satellite images, radar and elevation data into GIS. Using GIS, they can accurately map the 1900 square miles of coastal lands that Louisiana has lost since the 1930s. These systems ar
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Contact: Kara Capelli kcapelli@usgs.gov 703-648-5086 United States Geological Survey Source:Eurekalert

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