2010 FLOODING: LARAMIE, WYO.

The Laramie River topped its banks in June 2010 Albany County as a result of snowmelt, flooding several streets and parks in the City of Laramie (more information on Laramie Boomerang). City’s Greenbelt and several properties were severely impacted as a result of this flooding event. Albany County Emergency Management personnel had to divert water upstream of Laramie to protect properties in the city.

Data collected by Thematic Mapper on the Landsat 5 satellite on 21 June 2010 (above) shows the extent of flooding (water appears black in color). Laramie River appears as a narrow, meandering feature in the 29 June 2007 (normal flow) image also acquired by Landsat 5.

Data collected by Landsat and other moderate resolution satellites can be used to gain insights about past flooding patterns and devise plans to minimize the impacts of future floods.

Landsat satellites are jointly managed by USGS (http://landsat.usgs.gov/) and NASA (http://landsat.gsfc.nasa.gov/).