Overview

The Observed Data dialog provides a centralized interface for assigning observed time-series gages to basin elements. Rather than navigating to each element individually, users can view all elements in a basin model and assign observed flow, stage, and snow water equivalent (SWE) gages from a single table.

Opening the Dialog

1. Open a basin model so that it is the currently selected basin.
2. From the menu bar, select Parameters | Observed Data.

The menu option is only enabled when a basin model is selected and the basin map is open. The dialog title displays the name of the active basin model.

Dialog Layout

The dialog contains three areas:

  • Filter and Sort Controls at the top of the dialog.
  • Element Table in the center, showing basin elements and their gage assignments.
  • Apply and Close Buttons at the bottom right.

Filter and Sort Controls

  • Element Type (left): A dropdown that filters the table by element type. Options include All, Subbasin, Reach, Reservoir, Junction, Diversion, Source, and Sink. The default selection is All, which displays every hydrologic element in the basin model.
  • Sort (right): A dropdown that controls the row ordering. Options are:
    • Hydrologic: Elements are ordered by their hydrologic connectivity in the basin model (the default ordering from the basin).
    • Alphabetic: Elements are sorted alphabetically by name.

Element Table

The table has four columns:

Basin Element - The name of the element. This column is read-only.
Observed Flow - Assigns a flow gage to the element. Click the cell to open a dropdown of available discharge gages.
Observed Stage - Assigns a stage gage to the element. Click the cell to open a dropdown of available stage gages.
Observed SWE - Assigns a snow water equivalent gage to the element. This column is only editable for subbasin elements. Non-subbasin rows appear grayed out.

Each gage dropdown includes a --None-- option at the top to clear an assignment.

Proximity Sorting

When a gage dropdown opens, the gages are automatically sorted by geographic proximity to the basin element. The closest gage appears at the top of the list. This sorting requires that both the basin element and the gages have defined latitude and longitude coordinates. If coordinates are not available, gages fall back to alphabetic ordering. Gages without coordinates are listed after all proximity-sorted gages.

Gage Tooltips

Hovering over a gage name in the dropdown displays a tooltip with the gage's description, if one has been defined.

Change Tracking

When a gage assignment is changed, the cell text color changes to indicate the modification has not yet been saved. Changes are not persisted until the Apply button is clicked.

Applying Changes

Click Apply to save all modified gage assignments to the basin model. After applying, the table refreshes to reflect the saved state. Cells return to their normal text color.

Click Close to dismiss the dialog. Any unapplied changes are discarded.

Element Types

The dialog displays the following hydrologic element types:

  • Subbasin
  • Reach
  • Reservoir
  • Junction
  • Diversion
  • Source
  • Sink

Non-hydrologic element types (such as analysis points or grid cells) are not shown.

Notes

  • The Observed SWE column is only available for subbasin elements because snow water equivalent observations are a property of subbasins, not other element types.
  • The dialog opens the basin model when launched and closes it when dismissed. Avoid closing the basin model from another part of the application while the dialog is open.
  • If gages are added, deleted, or renamed while the dialog is open, the gage dropdowns update automatically.