A new study published in GSA Today is changing the way scientists answer that question—using data from NASA’s SWOT satellite to track how rivers erode, transport sediment, and reshape landscapes across Earth.

Read the paper: geosociety.co/Stroud_et_al

#NASA #RemoteSensing #Geomorphology

I Wrote Research Funding Announcements for NIH for 22 Years. This Year They’ve Published 14 How NIH went from 756 funding announcements to 14 in two years — and what it means for every disease that depends on federal research

This is an incredible documentation of the systematic, intentional collapse of American health science, by Elizabeth Ginexi.

open.substack.com/pub/elizabet...

Thanks for featuring our study on #HydrologyPaperOfTheDay, Nicholas!

Hydrology Paper of the Day @geoallen.bsky.social on distinguishing between lakes and reservoirs by SWOT observations: estimating storage by the LakeFlow algorithm; statistical tests for differences; characterizing variability; and understanding reservoir inflows and outflows.

Thanks, dad. Yes, air will become more humid as it travels along the length of a lake's surface. I believe this effect is included in some more sophisticated lake evaporation models but we kept it simple in ours

Cross correlation results for lagging outflow discharge estimates at 779 lakes. (a) Map showing each lake’s lag time in days at the highest Spearman correlation (ρ). (b) The percentage of natural lakes and reservoirs based on the lag time with the highest ρ.

Our new paper uses #SWOT_satellite data to differentiate between natural & managed lake dynamics across North America. We find that inflows & outflows of managed lakes are significantly more variable than natural lakes, revealing signatures of reservoir operations: doi.org/10.1088/1748...

New paper by Katie McQuillan leverages satellite radar to map lake evaporation at 25× finer resolution than operational surface analysis products, opening up applications from improved gauge placement to evaluating geoengineering strategies doi.org/10.1109/LGRS...

Thanks, Dad

New paper is featured on the cover of GSA Today 🥳

We show that the #SWOT satellites's radar observations are a valuable new source of data for studying river processes/ fluvial geomorphology.

Led by Molly Stroud @mollystroud.bsky.social @vt-science.bsky.social

Paper: doi.org/10.1130/GSAT...

Time to get your public comments in on the proposed Waters of the U.S. rule that would strip protections for countless wetlands and streams.

Trout unlimited has a tool on their page that will automatically send your message to the EPA as well as your representatives:

www.tu.org/conservation...

Flip the Fair 2025 Inspired Young Minds and Future Scientists from Roanoke City Public Schools Nov. 5, 2025. Flip the Fair celebrated its fourth year this fall, continuing the tradition that began in 2022. This event invited fifth grade students from Roanoke City Public Schools to step into the...

Grad students in my group participate in the 2025 Flip the Fair science fair and research expo in Salem Virginia

Global Rivers Group members: Emily Ellis, Steve Yoon, Yohtaro Kobayashi, David Go, Hana Thurman, and George Allen show off their mussels at the Claytor Lake Mussel Salvage event

Yohtaro Kobayashi and Hana Thurman search for native mussels as David Go and Emily Ellis clean up trash in the background

This weekend my research group volunteered at the Claytor Lake Mussel Salvage event near Blacksburg, VA. We surveyed and relocated hundreds of native mussels during the scheduled biennial lake drawdown. #UtProsim

@vtgeosciences.bsky.social @vt-science.bsky.social

Join the Global Flood Partnership (GFP) 2025 Fall Webinar Series!

On November 19, 2025 (16:00 CET), we bring you three expert talks on how Earth-Observation data is transforming flood mapping, risk assessment, and resilience strategies.

Register here: lnkd.in/gjYX3GV8

See also: lnkd.in/gRQFuk_J

Another SWOT Science Team Meeting for the books!

27 things we wish we’d known when we started our PhDs Nature - Nature’s survey of PhD candidates reveals hard-won wisdom on choosing supervisors, managing mental health and surviving academic culture.

27 things we wish we’d known when we started our PhDs

Nature’s survey of PhD candidates reveals hard-won wisdom on choosing supervisors, managing mental health and surviving academic culture.

We’re on Capitol Hill with 225 Earth & space scientists — including @aas.org and @planetarysociety.bsky.social — urging Congress to reopen the government and protect NASA science. 🚀🌍

Join us: buff.ly/a3YuGgY

#ScienceIsEssential #AGU

NASA-ISRO Satellite Sends First Radar Images of Earth’s Surface Preliminary images from the most powerful Earth radar satellite ever launched offer a tantalizing glimpse of the science the mission will be able to deliver.

First NISAR L-band images released! They look great! www.jpl.nasa.gov/news/nasa-is...

Looking for a postdoc, and interested in river-coastal linkages, #remote sensing, and time series analysis? Come work with us @natureatcal.bsky.social on an exciting project led by @rachelspatial.bsky.social! CC @sfs-src.bsky.social @aslo.org @cerfscience.bsky.social ‪‪@caseagrant.bsky.social‬

Volcanic island somewhere?

Ad for 2 graduate student positions and and 1 lab and field assistant position at UCSB. More info go to audreythellman.weebly.com

Hello freshwater friends! I’m starting a lab(!!) and recruiting 2 students to start Fall 2026 and a lab/field assistant to start this Fall 2025! Research topic is broad: rivers 🛶, ice/snow ❄️, nutrients 🍂, algae 🌱see below for more info

Please pass this along to any interested folks :)

Correct! SWOT has a 21-day repeat orbit but most places are observed more frequently because of swath overlap

SWOT Captures Hydrologic Waves Traveling Down Rivers Surface Water and Ocean Topography data show downstream changes in river height during a flow wave hydrologic event By removing the river's long profile, flow wave events are visualized as hydrog...

Absolutely - we are developing a method to automatically identify and track these flood waves with SWOT. Stay tuned! In the meantime, here's the first paper on the topic if you're interested: agupubs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10....

"Seen" meaning retrieved water surface elevation data over rivers while a flood wave is propagating down a river. Here are three examples of flood waves/flow waves traveling down rivers, including one in the Colorado River, TX - near the Guadalupe River:

Flood waves like those that devastated Texas last week can be seen by the NASA #SWOT satellite. Another reason to support #NASA Earth Science

AGU H3S invites you to submit an abstract to our session at #AGU25 Thinking Outside the Box Plot:
Communicating Science Beyond the Paper! The session explores creative ways to communicate research. Conveners: @adischner.bsky.social
@acarneiromar.bsky.social
@gescilam.bsky.social
Cee Nell
Emily Ellis

AGU H3S invites you to contribute to our session at #AGU25 Hydrology Student, Postdoc, and
Early Career Flash Talks! This session highlights
research performed by fellow Early Career Researchers within the field of Hydrology. Conveners: Matthew Preisser and Kathryn Moore

Hang in there and give yourself a break!

Donut chart shows the relative contributions of each stream order to basin total river and stream surface area (RSSA)

This has implications for how we calculate river and stream surface area (RSSA) at the global scale

Stacked histograms of river widths colored by stream order in the Mississippi basin

Scaling these widths across the Mississippi basin, we find an emergent fractal distribution of river widths (black line)