Project title remote sensing of river discharge under critical flow conditionsproject period february 1, 2023 through january 31, 2026THE quantity of flow (discharge) in rivers is essential to plan…

The University of Idaho will receive $249,998 under a cooperative agreement from the U.S. Geological Survey to develop a new technique for remotely estimating river discharge using simple measurements from remote sensing imagery. The research will be conducted from February 1, 2023 through January 31, 2026 under the Assistance to State Water Resources Research Institutes program (CFDA 15.805).

The researchers will first quantify the accuracy of the new remote sensing technique against direct flow measurements from USGS stream gages to determine if it meets agency standards. They will evaluate what river conditions the technique can and cannot accurately estimate discharge. The researchers will further develop equations to improve technique accuracy and begin creating an open source tool to automate the calculations for broader use by managers and researchers with limited remote sensing or hydrology expertise. Results will be published and presented, and the tool made publicly available online. The new technique and associated tool could supplement direct measurements and provide estimates for difficult-to-access rivers, supporting infrastructure design and flood hazard planning.

Project title remote sensing of river discharge under critical flow conditionsproject period february 1, 2023 through january 31, 2026THE quantity of flow (discharge) in rivers is essential to plan and mitigate for natural hazards such as flooding. Remote sensing techniques (e.g., satellite images) are being increasingly used to estimate flow discharge to supplement commonly used direct measurements, which can be time consuming, costly, and difficult. Despite the promise of many of these remote sensing techniques, they often involve extensive calculations and data processing that could limit their broader applicability. The researchers propose a new technique to estimate discharge that involves simple measurements from remote sensing imagery and fast calculations that are likely to be accurate in mountain river channels, which currently lack extensive discharge measurements. The researchers will first quantify the accuracy of this technique to determine if IT meets USGS standards. The researchers will quantify technique accuracy by comparing its estimates to those provided by USGS gages in the same river. Further, the researchers will evaluate the river system conditions for which the technique can or cannot be accurately applied and will further develop equations to help improve technique accuracy. Finally, the researchers will begin to develop an open source tool that implements the technique and automates most (or all) of the calculation process. The tool will allow managers and researchers with limited remote sensing and flow hydraulics background to apply these calculations to determine river discharge. The results of this work will be published in a peer reviewed journal article and presented at a scientific conference. The tool will be made publicly available online for broad community use. The technique and associated tool could allow simple and fast estimates of river discharge using only remote sensing imagery. This could both supplement direct flow measurements and provide estimates of flow in rivers that are difficult or dangerous to directly access. Such discharge information is essential to plan infrastructure (e.g., roads, bridges, culverts, levees) design, particularly for flooding hazards.