River Watch Screensaver
The River Watch screensaver is a live gauge of America's rivers — water height and flow at USGS monitoring stations, charted over the last day — from the key-less USGS Water Services API. It's free, runs in your browser, and ESC exits.
How the River Watch screensaver works
The saver fetches the last day of readings for the river gauge you choose from the USGS Water Services API — a public, key-less feed.
It charts the gage height over the past 24 hours as a water-blue line and area, with the current value shown large.
Streamflow in cubic feet per second appears as a secondary readout, alongside the 24-hour range.
The chart redraws on a timer so the river level stays current.
A worked example
For a gauge like Potomac · Washington DC you watch the height trace climb and fall over the day — say 2.92 ft now, 2,450 ft³/s flowing — the line filling in as fresh 15-minute readings arrive.
Settings & tips
- River gauge chooses which USGS monitoring station to watch.
- Refresh sets how often the readings update.
- Accent recolours the chart.
Frequently asked questions
- Is the river data live?
- Yes. The readings come from the USGS Water Services feed, updated roughly every 15 minutes, and the chart refreshes while it runs.
- What do the numbers mean?
- Gage height is the water level in feet at the station; streamflow is the volume passing in cubic feet per second.
- Does it need a key?
- No. The USGS Water Services API is free and key-less; the saver only needs an internet connection.
- Which rivers can I pick?
- A built-in set of U.S. gauges including the Potomac, Delaware, Mississippi, Sacramento and Willamette.
- Is it free?
- Yes — free, no download, in your browser.