Release Version: BetaRelease VersionBeta

The USGS Water Data source imports observed water data from the USGS Water Data APIs. IMSURGE creates time-series data from the selected monitoring location.

This integration currently supports:

  • Daily values
  • Continuous values

Setup

Prerequisites

Before setting up this integration, make sure you have a USGS Water Data credential if your IMSURGE workspace requires one. USGS Water Data APIs are public, but API keys are supported for higher request limits and more reliable usage.

Credential Setup

Use USGS Water Data Credentials to create or select the credential for this integration.

Integration Setup

After selecting the USGS Water Data credential, configure the integration in this order:

  • Data Type - Choose Daily values or Continuous values.
  • Country - Choose United States of America, Canada, or Mexico.

If United States of America is selected:

  • State - The state where the monitoring location is located.
  • County - The county where the monitoring location is located.
  • Monitoring Location - The USGS monitoring location IMSURGE reads from.

If Canada or Mexico is selected:

  • Province / State / Territory - The administrative region where the monitoring location is located.
  • Monitoring Location - The USGS monitoring location IMSURGE reads from.

Monitoring Location options are filtered to recent or active series using a 30-day freshness window, so locations whose latest available data is years old will not be shown during setup.

Reference

Credential fields are documented in USGS Water Data Credentials.

Daily values are intended for once-daily polling. Continuous values are intended for 15-minute polling. Backtrack is supported for up to 7 days.

Data Type Recommended Backtrack
Daily values 24hr Up to 7 days
Continuous values 15min Up to 7 days
Field Description Required
Data Type Type of USGS Water Data observations to collect. ✓
Country Country used to filter available monitoring locations. ✓
State United States state used to filter available monitoring locations. Required for United States
County United States county used to filter available monitoring locations. Required for United States
Province / State / Territory Canada or Mexico administrative region used to filter available monitoring locations. Required for Canada or Mexico
Monitoring Location Monitoring location IMSURGE reads from. ✓
Output Description
Device / Site The selected monitoring location.
Metrics USGS time series returned for the selected data type and monitoring location.
Metadata Monitoring location number, latitude, longitude, metric labels, and units where available.

Data Behavior

  • Monitoring Location setup captures site metadata such as monitoring location number, name, latitude, longitude, and available series metadata.
  • Runtime fetches data from the selected monitoring location using the selected data type.
  • IMSURGE uses USGS time-series identifiers internally for stable tracking.
  • User-facing metric labels are based on USGS parameter names, such as Discharge - Mean, Gage height - SelectedValue, and Temperature, water - Mean.
  • Units are taken from USGS where available.
  • Some USGS values may be provisional depending on USGS approval status.

Limitations

  • Data Availability - Some monitoring locations may not have recent data for the selected data type and therefore may not appear in the Monitoring Location dropdown.
  • USGS Updates - USGS metadata and values are maintained by USGS and may update on their own schedule.
  • Provisional Values - USGS daily and continuous APIs can return provisional values.

External References