We are in the process of migrating all NASA Earth science data sites into Earthdata from now until end of 2026. Not all NASA Earth science data and resources will appear here until then. Thank you for your patience as we make this transition.
Read about the Web Unification Project
Rivers/Streams Data Access and Tools
NASA has rivers and streams datasets that help researchers characterize their location, condition, and how they factor into Earth's processes. Access a range of data and data tools such as AppEEARS, Worldview, and the SWOT Swath Visualizer to make the most of rivers and streams data.
Rivers/Streams Datasets
| Dataset Sort descending | Version | Platform | Instrument | Temporal Extent | Spatial Extent | Spatial Resolution | Data Format |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ABoVE: AirSWOT Ka-band Radar over Surface Waters of Alaska and Canada, 2017 | 1 | B-200 | AirSWOT | 2017-07-08 to 2017-08-17 |
N: 70.4944 S: 46.8451 E: -98.629 W: -149.834 |
multiple | |
| ABoVE: AirSWOT Radar, Orthomosaic, and Water Masks, Yukon Flats Basin, Alaska, 2015 | 1 | B-200 | AirSWOT, CAMERA | 2015-06-15 to 2015-06-15 |
N: 66.8978 S: 65.9282 E: -145 W: -148 |
multiple | |
| ABoVE: Environmental Conditions and Subsistence Resource Access, Alaska, 2016-2017 | 1 | FIELD SURVEYS | VISUAL OBSERVATIONS, CAMERA | 2016-02-15 to 2017-06-22 |
N: 67.0834 S: 61.7 E: -141.267 W: -160.72 |
CSV | |
| ABoVE: Seasonal Dissolved Gases and Isotopes in Arctic Alaska Rivers | 1 | FIELD SURVEYS, LABORATORY | SURVEYING TOOLS, MASS SPECTROMETERS, IRMS | 2022-06-05 to 2022-09-04 |
N: 70.3337 S: 68.4519 E: -148.3 W: -149.4 |
CSV | |
| BOREAS HYD-09 Streamflow Data | 1 | STREAMFLOW STATION | STREAM GAUGES | 1994-01-01 to 1996-12-31 |
N: 55.92 S: 53.86 E: -98.38 W: -104.82 |
ASCII | |
| CO2 and CH4 Fluxes from Waterbodies, Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta, Alaska, 2016-2019 | 1 | SATELLITES, FIELD SURVEYS, COMPUTERS | Sentinel-2 MSI, SENTINEL-1 C-SAR, WATER BOTTLES, Computer | 2016-07-07 to 2019-07-07 |
N: 61.6781 S: 60.895 E: -162.073 W: -163.82 |
multiple | |
| ENVISAT MERIS Regional Binned Inland Waters (ILW) Data, version 5.0 | 5.0 | ENVISAT | MERIS | 2002-03-21 to 2012-05-09 |
N: 90 S: -90 E: 180 W: -180 |
netCDF-4 | |
| ENVISAT MERIS Regional Inland Waters (ILW) Data, version 5.0 | 5.0 | ENVISAT | MERIS | 2002-03-21 to 2012-05-09 |
N: 90 S: -90 E: 180 W: -180 |
netCDF-4 | |
| ENVISAT MERIS Regional Mapped Inland Waters (ILW) Data, version 5.0 | 5.0 | ENVISAT | MERIS | 2002-03-21 to 2012-05-09 |
N: 90 S: -90 E: 180 W: -180 |
netCDF-4 | |
| Export and Leaching of Carbon and Nitrogen from Mississippi River Basin, 1901-2099 | 1 | MODELS | Computer | 1901-01-01 to 2099-12-31 |
N: 53 S: 24.5 E: -62 W: -126 |
multiple | |
| GPM Ground Validation Iowa Flood Center (IFC) Stream Flow IFloodS V1 | 1 | GROUND STATIONS | STREAM GAUGES | 2013-03-31 to 2013-06-30 |
N: 43.3423 S: 40.7275 E: -90.4685 W: -95.7045 |
XML | |
| GPM Ground Validation USGS Stream Flow IFloodS V1 | 1 | GROUND STATIONS | STREAM GAUGES | 2008-07-24 to 2013-07-01 |
N: 43.4697 S: 40.6017 E: -90.1904 W: -96.5619 |
XML | |
| ISLSCP II Atmospheric Carbon Dioxide Consumption by Continental Erosion | 1 | NOT APPLICABLE | NOT APPLICABLE | 1986-01-01 to 1995-12-31 |
N: 90 S: -90 E: 180 W: -180 |
Shapefile | |
| ISLSCP II Global River Fluxes of Carbon and Sediments to the Oceans | 1 | NOT APPLICABLE | NOT APPLICABLE | 1947-01-01 to 1998-12-31 |
N: 90 S: -90 E: 180 W: -180 |
Shapefile | |
| ISLSCP II HYDRO1k Elevation-derived Products | 1 | NOT APPLICABLE | NOT APPLICABLE | 1986-01-01 to 1995-12-31 |
N: 90 S: -90 E: 180 W: -180 |
Shapefile | |
| ISLSCP II River Routing Data (STN-30p) | 1 | NOT APPLICABLE | NOT APPLICABLE | 1986-01-01 to 1995-12-31 |
N: 90 S: -90 E: 180 W: -180 |
Shapefile | |
| LBA Regional Boundary for the Amazon and Tocantins River Basins, 5-min | 1 | NOT APPLICABLE | NOT APPLICABLE | 1972-01-01 to 1972-12-31 |
N: 10 S: -30 E: -30 W: -85 |
Binary | |
| LBA Regional Hydrographic Data, 1-Degree, Release 2.2 (Cogley) | 1 | NOT APPLICABLE | NOT APPLICABLE | 1970-01-01 to 1990-01-01 |
N: 10 S: -25 E: -30 W: -85 |
multiple | |
| LBA Regional River Discharge Data (Coe and Olejniczak) | 1 | STREAMFLOW STATION | STREAM GAUGES | 1903-01-01 to 1999-12-31 |
N: 10 S: -25 E: -30 W: -85 |
multiple | |
| LBA-ECO CD-06 Amazon River Basin Land and Stream Drainage Direction Maps | 1 | MAPS | DIGITIZER | 1940-01-01 to 1960-01-01 |
N: 6 S: -20.5 E: -48.5 W: -80.5 |
Shapefile | |
| LBA-ECO CD-06 Carbon Cycling in Rivers in Amazonas and Acre, Brazil: 2005-2006 | 1 | LABORATORY | FLUORESCENCE MICROSCOPY, MASS SPECTROMETERS | 2005-07-16 to 2006-09-25 |
N: -2.589 S: -10.073 E: -58.746 W: -72.7 |
CSV | |
| LBA-ECO CD-06 Physical, Political, and Hydrologic Maps, Ji-Parana River Basin, Brazil | 1 | AERIAL PHOTOGRAPHS, MAPS | DIGITIZER | 1970-01-01 to 2001-12-31 |
N: -8.0333 S: -12.9269 E: -60.015 W: -63.4153 |
Shapefile | |
| LBA-ECO LC-01 Hydrography, Morphology, Edaphology Maps, Northern Ecuadorian Amazon | 1 | MAPS | DIGITIZER | 1983-01-01 to 1993-12-31 |
N: 0.5909 S: -1.1779 E: -75.1612 W: -78.0009 |
Shapefile | |
| LBA-ECO LC-02 Tributary Coordinates, Acre River, Tri-national River Basin: 2003-2004 | 1 | SATELLITES | GPS | 2003-02-01 to 2004-07-30 |
N: -9.0658 S: -11.99 E: -68.7408 W: -70.59 |
CSV | |
| LBA-ECO LC-04 Macrohydrological Routing Data for the Amazon and Tocantins River Basin | 1 | NOT APPLICABLE | NOT APPLICABLE | 1967-01-01 to 1996-12-31 |
N: 6 S: -21.12 E: -45 W: -80 |
multiple |
Featured Rivers/Streams Observation Method: SWOT
NASA's Surface Water and Ocean Topography (SWOT) platform surveys Earth’s surface water and measures how water bodies, such as rivers and streams, change with time. SWOTS measures water height using its primary instrument, the Ka-band Radar Interferometer (KaRIn).
Recently released datasets from the SWOT mission provide scientists with previously unavailable measurements of Earth's surface water.
9 MIN READ
Validated science data products from the Surface Water and Ocean Topography (SWOT) mission are available through NASA Earthdata Search.
Hydrocron enables users to receive all Surface Water and Ocean Topography (SWOT) observations for a specific river ID within a specified date range.
The Surface Water and Ocean Topography (SWOT) Swath Visualizer provides a visualization of two instruments’ coverage of Earth's surface: the Ka-band Radar Interferometer and altimeter.
Frequently Asked Questions
Earthdata Forum
Our online forum provides a space for users to browse thousands of FAQs about research needs, data, and data applications. You can also submit new questions for our experts to answer.
Submit Questions to Earthdata Forumand View Expert Responses