Six American rivers, each drawn as a single year: January on the left,
December on the right. The pale threads are the ten individual years
2015–2024; the solid shape is the typical one. Every river has a
season, and no two rivers agree on when it is — except the one where a dam decides.
Tap or hover any river.
Data & source
Source: USGS National Water Information System, daily mean discharge
(parameter 00060) at six gauges, 2015–2024, fetched
— · public domain. Each river is scaled to its own typical
peak, because they differ by three orders of magnitude — the shapes compare, the
heights do not. Provisional recent values may be revised by USGS. Six gauges chosen
to contrast regimes, not to represent the country.