Digital Rivers Lab

Global hydrology from satellites

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

We use decades of Landsat imagery and newer missions such as SWOT to measure river migration, sediment, and water surface elevation for rivers around the world, including the many rivers without a stream gauge.

Ted Langhorst

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

Ted leads the Digital Rivers Lab at the University of Wyoming, jointly appointed in the School of Computing and the Department of Geology and Geophysics. Ted is a hydrologist that focuses on understanding the quantity and quality of water resources over a wide range of temporal and spatial scales. His research is focused in 3 related directions:

Using satellite remote sensing data to observe global hydrological patterns
Developing low-cost, open-source sensors to expand observational data
Building generalizable DL models for better understanding of surface processes.

Ultimately, his work aims to translate these observational and predictive tools into actionable information to improve human well-being and ecosystem management.

Low-cost, open-source sensors

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

We design OpenOBS, an open-source turbidity and depth logger that costs a fraction of a commercial instrument. Its low cost lets field campaigns deploy many sensors at once, including under river ice.

Generalizable deep learning

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

We build deep learning models that combine climate reanalysis, satellite imagery, and in-situ records to estimate river discharge, sediment flux, and lake ice where direct measurements are sparse.

MS/PhD opportunity

Thu, 24 Sep 2026 10:52:09 -0600

I am searching for a student to join the lab in the Fall of 2027. There are a variety of available research projects spanning from water resource management in Wyoming to global remote sensing of river processes. This funded position also has the opportunity for the student to define new projects based on their interests. The ideal applicant will have some experience with hydrology, remote sensing, and or programming languages.

The Digital Rivers Lab is open

Thu, 10 Sep 2026 00:00:00 +0000

The Digital Rivers Lab is now open at the University of Wyoming, jointly in the School of Computing and the Department of Geology and Geophysics.

Assimilating SWOT Level 4 River Discharge into a Macroscale Hydrologic Model

Sun, 01 Mar 2026 00:00:00 +0000

Mind the Cloud: Propagation of Cloud-Induced Bias in Lake Surface Water Temperature Remote Sensing and Modeling

Thu, 01 Jan 2026 00:00:00 +0000

Estimating Daily Suspended Sediment Flux from Multiple Data Sources using Deep Learning

Fri, 10 Oct 2025 00:00:00 +0000

Modeling Daily Ice Cover in Northern Hemisphere Lakes with a Long-Short Term Memory Neural Network

Wed, 01 Jan 2025 00:00:00 +0000

Global Cloud Biases in Optical Satellite Remote Sensing of Rivers

Thu, 15 Aug 2024 00:00:00 +0000

Estimating Riverine Total Suspended Solids from Spatiotemporal Satellite Sensor Fusion

Mon, 01 Jan 2024 00:00:00 +0000

How Do You Sample a Frozen River? Increasing K–12 STEM Engagement Through Real-World Problem Solving and Scientific Research

Mon, 01 Jan 2024 00:00:00 +0000

Observation of High Sediment Concentrations Entrained in Jumble River Ice

Mon, 01 Jan 2024 00:00:00 +0000

Increased Scale and Accessibility of Sediment Transport Research in Rivers Through Practical, Open-Source Turbidity and Depth Sensors

Thu, 01 Jun 2023 00:00:00 +0000

Athabasca River Avulsion Underway in the Peace-Athabasca Delta, Canada