Any way to get the Precipitation numbers from the USGS feed on the Flow Info page? I know I can click through to the source USGS page to get the precipitation info, but it would seem useful to have it on the flow info page.

With the recent flash flooding issues in north Georgia (Etowah, Amicalola, Chattahoochee, etc), it would be helpful in predicting the water levels if we could easily see that info.

Thanks!
-Jack

Hello Jack,

I believe that ability is now built into our gauge database. You can list multiple gauges for a reach and they can be different kinds of measurements, such as precipitation. One hope is that we will be able to calculate virtual gauges based on precipitation as well as stream gauges.

Help us out. Tell us what precipitation gauges should be shown on what River Reach pages. Provide the names and provide links if you really want to be nice. Our gauge database has a lot of precipitation gauges in it, so we need to know the exact name to get the right one.

Once we know which gauges to put with with reaches, a local Stream Team member or one of us regional members can link up the gauges to see how they work.

Paul Martzen

For instance, this gauge:
[www.americanwhitewater.org]

From the USGS site that the “source gauge” links to, it shows precipitation info:
[waterdata.usgs.gov]

Also shown here in the tabular data form:
[waterdata.usgs.gov]

Or tab delimited:
[waterdata.usgs.gov]

I think most USGS gauges (dare I say all) have the precipitation info for the gauges currently in use on the site.

I don't see the precipitation info on the USGS web pages for the gauges in WV.

Yeah, we have a ton of precipitation gauges in the AW gauge database now. Click on the Menu item for River Info, National River database to look at the river database, national map. Click on the checkmark for gauges. Then click on the state that you are interested in. A long list of gauges will show up. Many of them will be for precipitation. In West Virginia also.

I just tried to add a precipitation gauge to the Etowah 2) Hightower to US 19 reach, but it did not behave nicely, so I removed it.
[www.americanwhitewater.org]
That looked like the reach affected by the gauge linked above. It may take some time to work out bugs.

I will be away from computers for the next week, so can't fool with it for awhile. Maybe Matt or others have linked precipitation gauges.

ok, thx. Any way to correct the Etowah 3 gauge (Hwy 9 - Hwy 136)? It's been the Dahlonega gauge for a long time. Recently it was changed to the Dawsonville gauge. No way can you run that section at 110cfs based on the Dawsonville gauge. That section should be linked to the same gauge as the Etowah 2 (Hightower to US 19): [www.americanwhitewater.org]

FWIW, regarding "most USGS gauges (dare I say all) have the precipitation info for the gauges currently in use on the site.", that is a significant overstatement of fact.

In Wisconsin, for example, USGS maintains 219 'real time' river gauges. Of those, 198 have streamflow (cfs) conversion data, and 98 have precip data (so, about half).

For Georgia, the numbers are considerably better. A total of 281 gauges, 220 with Streamflow (CFS), and 224 with precip data.

So, it varies state to state. as to how many USGS gauges have rainfall data. FWIW.

Rob Smage
AW member since 1992, volunteer since 2000, Midwest Regional StreamTeam Leader