Hydrologic Data Collection via Geostationary Satellite

The river and flood forecast and warning service of the National Weather Service depends on meteorological data and a vast hydrologic reporting network of nearly 5000 river and rainfall stations. Reports are collected daily or on a criteria basis during periods of heavy rainfall and/or high flow in the rivers. Less than 15 percent of the hydrologic network is telemetered. Although most of the observations are recorded automatically on site, an observer must telephone the report to a data collection center for relay to one of the twelve National Weather Service River Forecast Centers. In 1967-1969, an experiment in river and rainfall data collection via NASA's ATS-1 satellite was conducted. The technical and operational feasibility of data collection from remote sites via satellite was proved in the test. NASA will launch for NOAA in 1973 the first in a planned series of geostationary operational environmental satellites (GOES). In conjunction with this, a prototype network is scheduled for installation in the Columbia Basin of the Pacific northwest. This system could form the basis for a national data collection system to serve the nation's water resources users. During the next decade, it is anticipated that the hydrologic data collection network will double in order to satisfy river and flood forecast service needs placed upon the National Weather Service. GOES, with its continuous data collection and relay function, holds promise for providing a life-saving and economic space-age benefit.