Unlabeled

Big U.S. rivers at selected gauges: drainage area vs average flow, 1995–2024

At their gauges the Missouri drains 522,500 square miles, the Ohio 144,000. Yet the Ohio carries 199,980 cubic feet of water a second, the Missouri 93,619.

What does this axis measure?
What does this axis measure?
Big U.S. rivers at selected gauges: drainage area vs average flow, 1995–2024: 34 points, a scatter chart.
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Average flow (cubic feet per second)
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Drainage area (square miles)
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The data: 34 points
Drainage area (square miles)Average flow (cubic feet per second)
20,6721,827
21,25119,287
22,4173,674
22,452684
23,0001,465
23,900576
24,900660
24,90025,514
25,56025,357
26,459140
26,74326,215
27,10041,184
28,63533,655
29,450801
34,8007,250
37,30025
42,0032,293
44,4458,555
44,8504,988
45,3398,123
47,2835,880
57,85054
59,7566,888
69,09911,672
75,29310,067
85,3708,429
92,96032,586
144,000199,980
194,000124,732
237,000177,040
246,7002,233
263,700214,730
522,50093,619
713,200250,610
Source
U.S. Geological Survey, National Water Information System: drainage areas and annual mean discharges at stream gauges; one gauge per river chosen and 30-year averages calculated by Unlabeled
Licence
Public domain (U.S. government work)
Read
2026-10-16
Drawn
34 points as the puzzle showed them · scatter · log scale
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