I am currently a NOAA senior hydrologist at the Pacific Northwest River Forecast Center.
In my spare time, I like to dabble in river hydrology with particular interests in aquatic mobile sensor platforms, sensor networks, simple modeling, data assimilation, and occasional data management.
In my spare time, I like to dabble in river hydrology with particular interests in aquatic mobile sensor platforms, sensor networks, simple modeling, data assimilation, and occasional data management.
Past projects:
@ UNR:
Currently assisting with new sensing platforms (DTS and unmanned aerial system, UAS, data collection systems w/ CTEMPS). UAS systems development and initial data interpretation shows promise for identifying potential river corridor characteristics and processes at very high resolutions (1-10 cm scale). DTS assistance has been provided in lake systems.
Also, I am assisting with water quality in-situ sensing for and modeling of primary production @ Lake Tahoe and Castle Lake.
Co-conspirators:
Scott Tyler
Sudeep Chandra
Currently assisting with new sensing platforms (DTS and unmanned aerial system, UAS, data collection systems w/ CTEMPS). UAS systems development and initial data interpretation shows promise for identifying potential river corridor characteristics and processes at very high resolutions (1-10 cm scale). DTS assistance has been provided in lake systems.
Also, I am assisting with water quality in-situ sensing for and modeling of primary production @ Lake Tahoe and Castle Lake.
Co-conspirators:
Scott Tyler
Sudeep Chandra
Transport and tracking nutrient movement within a watershed remains a great challenge. Along the lower Merced River, we collect high spatial resolution data delivering water quality sensors and high-frequency GPS as a method to characterize both spatially groundwater (GW) discharges to surface water (SW) systems and associated constituent loading.
Pleasant questions: (1) How does increased spatial resolution increase our understanding of GW-SW-nutrient dynamics on human impacted watersheds? (2) If impacts are apparent, how does one better measure, model, and anticipate the dynamics in an economical fashion? (3) Are such data sets presented within current watershed models, and if not, how do we best address this interface? (4) How does one extrapolate dense data to scales of interest (for ecosystem services, unmeasured local GW elevation gradients, etc.) when considering system conditions (directional, fluid-connected) and assumptions (for mixing and biogeochemical conditions)?
Co-conspirators (all UCM):
Tom Harmon
Sandra Villamizar
Chris Butler
Patrick Barnes
Vivian Duong
David Vilcherrez Jr.
Kyndall Burgfeld
Brendan Smith
(likely forgetting some others, apologies!)
Pleasant questions: (1) How does increased spatial resolution increase our understanding of GW-SW-nutrient dynamics on human impacted watersheds? (2) If impacts are apparent, how does one better measure, model, and anticipate the dynamics in an economical fashion? (3) Are such data sets presented within current watershed models, and if not, how do we best address this interface? (4) How does one extrapolate dense data to scales of interest (for ecosystem services, unmeasured local GW elevation gradients, etc.) when considering system conditions (directional, fluid-connected) and assumptions (for mixing and biogeochemical conditions)?
Co-conspirators (all UCM):
Tom Harmon
Sandra Villamizar
Chris Butler
Patrick Barnes
Vivian Duong
David Vilcherrez Jr.
Kyndall Burgfeld
Brendan Smith
(likely forgetting some others, apologies!)
Maintaining thermal regimes for ecosystem suitability in heavily managed river systems can be a challenge in face of climatic variability. We examine the potential of pool structures, (of riffle-pool sequences), in rivers as a means to maintain adequate thermal refuge along the San Joqauin River (SJR) by modeling ideal pool geometries and analyzing geometric effects on temperature stratification.
Co-conspirators, affiliation during project:
Tom Harmon, UCM
Kumarswamy Sivakumaran, UCM
Sandra Villamizar, UCM
Andy Aguilar, UCM
Co-conspirators, affiliation during project:
Tom Harmon, UCM
Kumarswamy Sivakumaran, UCM
Sandra Villamizar, UCM
Andy Aguilar, UCM
In collaboration with a UCLA robotic design team, we studied high resolution mixing characteristics at the SJR-Merced River confluence. The rapidly deployable Networked InfoMechanical System (NIMS-RD) delivered water quality sensors and velocimeters in a lateral raster pattern collecting data at four transects up- and downstream of the SJR-Merced River confluence.
Co-conspirators, affiliation during project:
William Kaiser, UCLA
Michael Stealey, UCLA
Amarjeet Singh, UCLA
Victor Chen, UCLA
Tom Harmon, UCM
Jason Fisher, UCM
Sandra Villamizar, UCM
Alex Rat'ko, UCM
Chris Butler, UCM
... and many others; apologies if I forgot!
Co-conspirators, affiliation during project:
William Kaiser, UCLA
Michael Stealey, UCLA
Amarjeet Singh, UCLA
Victor Chen, UCLA
Tom Harmon, UCM
Jason Fisher, UCM
Sandra Villamizar, UCM
Alex Rat'ko, UCM
Chris Butler, UCM
... and many others; apologies if I forgot!