Part 1—Download Streamflow Data

Step 1 –
Select the Geographic Area from the USGS

Access the USGS Real-Time Water Data for the Nation website. Then select Massachusetts from the Geographic Area menu in the upper right-hand corner of the web page, and click Go.

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Step 2 –
Select the Statewide Streamflow Table

In the new window that opens, click on the heading Statewide Streamflow Table to the right of the map.


Step 3 –
Choose the Station, the Type of Data, and the Time Frame for the Data

In the new window that opens, scroll down to the Merrimack River Basin and click on the station number for the Sudbury River at Saxonville. On the new page that opens, change the setting for "Available data for this site" from Time-series: Real time data to Time-series: Daily data and click GO. On the new page that opens, scroll down to the order form and perform the following steps:

  • In the box for Available Parameters, select Discharge (Mean).
  • Under Period of Record, check the timeframe for which data is available.
  • In the box for Output format select Tab-separated.
  • Enter 2000-01-01 for the Begin date and 2000-12-31 for the End date.
  • Click Go. The data will display in the window of your browser.
About Output Format: The first three options will open graphs right on the web page. These are not useful in this chapter since the goal is to compare streamflow with precipitation. The Table option will likewise open a table right on the web page. The Tab-separated option opens a new page that you can save to your computer and later open in Microsoft Excel.

Step 4 –
Save the Data with a New Name

In your browser's menu bar, under File select File > Save Page As... and save the data to a folder you can easily relocate. Change the file name from dv.txt to flowsud_2000.txt.

If you run into problems downloading the data, use this link flowsud_2000.txt (Text File 12kB Apr13 07) Right-click on a PC, or control-click on a Mac, to download the streamflow data for use in this chapter.