The mission of the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) Water Mission Area is to provide the information and understanding needed for wise management of the Nation's water resources. Inherent in this mission is the responsibility of collecting data that accurately describe the physical, chemical, and biological attributes of water systems. These data are used for environmental and resource assessments by the USGS, other government agencies and scientific organizations, and the general public. Reliable and quality-assured data are essential to the credibility and impartiality of the water-resources appraisals carried out by the USGS. The development and use of guidelines for Measuring Discharge with Acoustic Doppler Current Profilers from a Moving Boat are necessary to achieve consistency in the use of scientific methods and procedures, document the methods and procedures used, and maintain technical expertise in the process. USGS hydrographers and hydrologists can use this manual to ensure that the data collected are of the quality required to fulfill our mission. This 2013 update of Measuring Discharge with Acoustic Doppler Current Profilers from a Moving Boat contains the most current information and guidance regarding acoustic Doppler current profilers (ADCPs) used by the USGS at the time of publication. The following memoranda are considered superseded or duplicated by the policy and procedures in this report and need not be referenced in the future: 2012.01-Processing ADCP Discharge Measurements On-site and Performing ADCP Check Measurements 2011.08-Exposure time for ADCP moving-boat discharge measurements made during steady flow conditions 2009.05-Publication of the Techniques and Methods Report Book 3-Section A22 "Measuring Discharge with Acoustic Doppler Current Profilers from a Moving Boat" and associated policy and guidance for moving boat discharge measurements 2009.02-Release of WinRiver II Software (version 2.04) for Computing Streamflow from Acoustic Doppler Current Profiler Data 2006.04-Availability of the report "Application of the Loop Method for Correcting Acoustic Doppler Current Profiler Discharge Measurements Biased by Sediment Transport" by David S. Mueller and Chad R. Wagner (USGS Scientific Investigations Report 2006-5079) and guidance on the application of the Loop Method 2005.05-Guidance on the use of RD Instruments StreamPro Acoustic Doppler Profiler 2005.04-Release of WinRiver Software version 10.06 for Computing Streamflow from Acoustic Profiler Data 2003.04-Release of WinRiver Software version 10.05 for Computing Streamflow from Acoustic Profiler Data iv 2002.03-Release of WinRiver Software (version 10.03) for Computing Streamflow from Acoustic Profiler Data 2002.01-Configuration of Acoustic Profilers (RD Instruments) for Measurement of Streamflow 2002.02-Policy and Technical Guidance on Discharge Measurements using Acoustic Doppler Current Profilers The development of new and improved ADCPs is ongoing, as are the research and practical field experience with existing and new ADCPs, which li...

The use of acoustic Doppler current profilers (ADCP) for discharge measurements and three‐dimensional flow mapping has increased rapidly in recent years and has been primarily driven by advances in acoustic technology and signal processing. Recent research has developed a variety of methods for processing data obtained from a range of ADCP deployments and this paper builds on this progress by describing new software for processing and visualizing ADCP data collected along transects in rivers or other bodies of water. The new utility, the Velocity Mapping Toolbox (VMT), allows rapid processing (vector rotation, projection, averaging and smoothing), visualization (planform and cross‐section vector and contouring), and analysis of a range of ADCP‐derived datasets. The paper documents the data processing routines in the toolbox and presents a set of diverse examples that demonstrate its capabilities. The toolbox is applicable to the analysis of ADCP data collected in a wide range of aquatic environments and is made available as open‐source code along with this publication. Published 2012. This article is a U.S. Government work and is in the public domain in the USA.

The U.S. Geological Survey and other international agencies have collaborated to conduct laboratory and field validations of acoustic Doppler current profiler ͑ADCP͒ measurements of streamflow. Laboratory validations made in a large towing basin show that the mean differences between tow cart velocity and ADCP bottom-track and water-track velocities were −0.51 and −1.10%, respectively. Field validations of commercially available ADCPs were conducted by comparing streamflow measurements made with ADCPs to reference streamflow measurements obtained from concurrent mechanical current-meter measurements, stable rating curves, salt-dilution measurements, or acoustic velocity meters. Data from 1,032 transects, comprising 100 discharge measurements, were analyzed from 22 sites in the United States, Canada, Sweden, and The Netherlands. Results of these analyses show that broadband ADCP streamflow measurements are unbiased when compared to the reference discharges regardless of the water mode used for making the measurement. Measurement duration is more important than the number of transects for reducing the uncertainty of the ADCP streamflow measurement.

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