Tech Tools for Mapping

by Scott Dennis
December 22, 2010

The U.S. Geological Survey is the federal source for science about the earth. The organization provides information about the health of our ecosystems, and environmental and natural disasters. In Jackson, this technology helps monitor the Pearl River for flood control.

The survey’s state Water Science Center, located in Pearl, partners with federal, state and local agencies to monitor, conduct studies, and provide water information that benefits Mississippi’s citizens through publications, data, maps and application software. The Water Science Center also provides forecast information to the National Weather Service, which is then broadcast on the news.


Surface Water Information
Whether you’re monitoring river stages for flood tracking or checking for ideal conditions for a canoe trip on the Okatoma River, the USGS network of real-time surface water monitoring sites is a valuable tool. Mississippi’s real-time surface water data is available at
http://www.waterdata.usgs.gov/ms/nwis.

Users can subscribe, at no cost, to a “WaterAlert” service that sends e-mail or text message alerts when water rises to dangerous levels. (http://www.water.usgs.gov/wateralert).
• Select the site and data type. Use the interactive map to browse or enter a site number.
• Click “Subscribe.” You must submit each notification subscription separately.
• Choose to receive the notifications at your e-mail address or your text-enabled, SMS mobile phone. Also, select your desired notification settings, such as data type, threshold condition and frequency.

Shortly after you submit your form, a message containing your transaction ID will be sent to the e-mail address you specified. You must reply to this e-mail message, without altering it, to confirm and activate your subscription.


Other USGS websites of Interest:
To purchase maps, aerial photographs, satellite images, publications or other related data, visit http://www.usgs.gov/pubprod or call 1-888-ASK-USGS.

Other mapping services of interest include:
• Seamless Data Warehouse (http://www.seamless.usgs.gov), an interactive map interface that allows you to define an area of interest by drawing a box, defining coordinates or using available templates to cut out the area. Free downloads of up to 3 GB in one request, delivered in 250 MB files.

• Web Map Services (ArcIMS & WMS) allow access to seamless data within your GIS application.

• EarthNow (http://www.earthnow.usgs.gov) displays live or recent acquisitions from the Landsat 5 and Landsat 7 satellites as they pass over North America.

• The USGS Earth Resources Observation and Science (EROS) Data Center (http://www.edcwww.cr.usgs.gov) holds the world’s largest collection of images of the Earth acquired by civilian spacecraft and aircraft.

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