NGWOS Ground Based Discrete Snowpack Measurements

Ground-based discrete snowpack measurements were collected during winter field campaigns starting in 2020. These data were collected as part of the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) Next Generation Water Observing System (NGWOS) Upper Colorado River Basin project focusing on the relation between snow dynamics and water resources. This data release consists of three child items. Each child item contains snow depth, snow density, snow temperature, or snow water equivalent values measured discretely in the field. The data are provided in comma separated value (CSV) files.

Categories: Data; Types: Downloadable, Map Service, OGC WFS Layer, OGC WMS Layer, Shapefile; Tags: Colorado, Colorado River, Hydrology, Integrated Water Science, Rocky Mountains, All tags... USGS Science Data Catalog (SDC), Water Resources, snow, snow density, snow depth, snow pit, snow temperature, snow water equivalent, snowpack, Fewer tags

Catchment-flowline network and selected model inputs for an enhanced and updated spatially referenced statistical assessment of dissolved-solids load sources and transport in streams of the Upper Colorado River Basin

This USGS data release consists of the synthetic stream network and associated catchments used to develop spatially referenced regressions on watershed attributes (SPARROW) model of dissolved-solids sources and transport in the Upper Colorado River Basin as well as geology and selected Basin Characterization Model (BCM) data used as input to the model.

Types: Citation; Tags: Actual Evapotranspiration, Arizona, Catchment, Climatic Water Deficit, Colorado, All tags... Dissolved-solids model, Excess Water, Geologic Formation, Geology, Groundwater Recharge, Hydrologic network, New Mexico, Potential Evapotranspiration, Precipitation, Runoff, SPARROW, Snowfall, Snowmelt, Snowpack, Soil Water Storage, Sublimation, USGS Science Data Catalog (SDC), Upper Colorado River Basin, Utah, Water Resources, Watershed, Wyoming, geoscientificInformation, inlandWaters, Fewer tags

HUC12-Monthly Summaries

This data release contains historical SnowModel (Liston and Elder, 2006) output for the Crown of the Continent and surrounding areas in Montana and Idaho, USA; and Alberta and British Columbia, Canada from September 1, 1981 through August 31, 2020. Fifteen daily variables were simulated or derived for this release: (1) snow water equivalent (swed), (2) liquid precipitation (rpre), (3) solid precipitation (spre), (4) albedo (albd), (5) glacial ice melt (glmt), (6) total precipitation (prec), (7) runoff (roff), (8) snow covered area (sca), (9) snow density (sden), (10) snowmelt (smlt), (11) snow depth (snod), (12) snow sublimation (ssub), (13) air temperature (tair), (14) wind speed (wspd), and (15) wind direction...

Categories: Data; Types: Downloadable, Map Service, OGC WFS Layer, OGC WMS Layer, Shapefile; Tags: Alberta, British Columbia, Crown of the Continent, Glacier National Park, Idaho, All tags... Montana, Northern Rocky Mountains, Waterton Lakes National Park, climatologyMeteorologyAtmosphere, precipitation (atmospheric), runoff, snow, snow and ice cover, snowmelt, snowpack, Fewer tags

Historical simulated snowpack and other hydrometeorology data at 90 m for the Crown of the Continent and vicinity, United States and Canada, water years 1981-2020

This data release contains historical SnowModel (Liston and Elder, 2006) output for the Crown of the Continent and surrounding areas in Montana and Idaho, USA; and Alberta and British Columbia, Canada from September 1, 1981 through August 31, 2020. Fifteen daily variables were simulated or derived for this release: (1) snow water equivalent (swed), (2) liquid precipitation (rpre), (3) solid precipitation (spre), (4) albedo (albd), (5) glacial ice melt (glmt), (6) total precipitation (prec), (7) runoff (roff), (8) snow covered area (sca), (9) snow density (sden), (10) snowmelt (smlt), (11) snow depth (snod), (12) snow sublimation (ssub), (13) air temperature (tair), (14) wind speed (wspd), and (15) wind direction...

Tags: Alberta, British Columbia, Climatology, Crown of the Continent, Ecology, All tags... Glacier National Park, Idaho, Montana, Northern Rocky Mountains, USGS Science Data Catalog (SDC), Waterton Lakes National Park, climatologyMeteorologyAtmosphere, precipitation (atmospheric), runoff, snow, snow and ice cover, snowmelt, snowpack, Fewer tags

Projecting Future Streamflow in the Colorado River Basin

The Colorado River is the dominant water source for the southwestern United States, crossing through seven states before reaching Mexico. The river supplies water to approximately 36 million people, irrigates nearly six million acres of farmland within and beyond the basin, and contributes an estimated 26 billion dollars each year to the region’s recreational economy. Yet the Colorado River’s water supply is already fully allocated, meaning that the economic and environmental health of the region is closely tied to the river’s streamflow. Climate projections for the Southwest show a future marked by chronic drought and substantial reductions in streamflow. The region has already been impacted by climate change,...

Categories: Project; Types: Map Service, OGC WFS Layer, OGC WMS Layer, OGC WMS Service; Tags: 2013, CA, CASC, CMIP5, CO River Basin, All tags... Colorado River, Completed, Drought, Drought, Drought, Fire and Extreme Weather, Drought, Fire and Extreme Weather, Extreme Weather, Extreme Weather, Federal, Morro Bay, Multiple, NV, Projects by Region, Rivers, Streams and Lakes, Rivers, Streams and Lakes, Southwest, Southwest, Southwest, Southwest CASC, Water, Coasts and Ice, Water, Coasts and Ice, bay-delta, drought, dynamical downscaling, ecosystem, ensemble, enso, gcm, hydrology, la nina, management, model, monsoon, multiple, pdf, precipitation, public health, regional climate projection, season, semi-arid, snowpack, sst, streamflow, streamflow projection, weather, Fewer tags

Final Report: Predicting Snow Water Equivalence (SWE) and Soil Moisture Response to Restoration Treatments in Headwater Ponderosa Pine Forests of the Desert LCC

The U.S. Forest Service plans to conduct forest restoration treatments through the Four Forest Restoration Initiative (4FRI) on hundreds of thousands of acres of ponderosa pine forest along the Mogollon Rim of Arizona over the next 20 years with the goals of reducing wildfire hazard and improving forest health. The 4FRI’s key objective is to thin and burn the forests to create within-stand openings that “promote snowpack accumulation and retention which benefit groundwater recharge and watershed processes at the fine (1 to 10 acres) scale.” However, little is known about how these openings created by restoration treatments affect snow water equivalence (SWE) and soil moisture, which are key parts of the water balance...

Categories: Data; Types: Map Service, OGC WFS Layer, OGC WMS Layer, OGC WMS Service; Tags: 2013, AL-04, AZ-01, Academics & scientific researchers, Applications and Tools, All tags... Arizona, Centennial Forest, Coconino National Forest, Conservation NGOs, Conservation Planning, Data Acquisition and Development, Desert Landscape Conservation Cooperative, EARTH SCIENCE > TERRESTRIAL HYDROSPHERE > SNOW/ICE > SNOW WATER EQUIVALENT, Federal resource managers, Four Forest Restoration Initiative (4FRI) area, GIS, Gus Pearson Natural Area, Informing Conservation Delivery, LCC, LCC Network Science Catalog, Presentation, Publication, Report, Report, Training/Outreach/Workshop, Tribes, United States, Verde River Basin, biota, climate change, completed, forest management, forest structure, forest thinning, ponderosa pine forests, remote sensing, restoration, snow, snowpack, soil moisture, water, wildfire, Fewer tags

Historical (2001-2013) and End-of-Century Future Climate Simulated Snowpack and Hydrometeorology for the Gallatin River, Montana and Wyoming

This data release contains output from a numerical snow simulation for a 65 kilometer (km) × 81 km model domain in parts of Montana and Wyoming, United States, encompassing the Gallatin River watershed upstream of the U.S. Geological Survey streamgage near Gallatin Gateway, MT (06043500). Weather Research and Forecasting (WRF) Model convection-permitting and orography-resolving regional climate simulations with 4-km horizontal resolution provided the atmospheric forcing conditions to SnowModel in both a historical and future climate scenario. Two continuous, 13-water-year (2001-2013) WRF model simulations were utilized: (1) a historical climate control (CTL) simulation forced using ERA-Interim reanalysis, and (2)...

Tags: Gallatin River, Montana, Rocky Mountains, USGS Science Data Catalog (SDC), Water Resources, All tags... Wyoming, climatology, climatologyMeteorologyAtmosphere, hydrology, runoff, snow, snowmelt, snowpack, water budget, water resources, Fewer tags

Predicting Snow Water Equivalence (SWE) and Soil Moisture Response to Restoration Treatments in Headwater Ponderosa Pine Forests of the Desert LCC

Northern Arizona University will build upon the U.S. Forest Service Four Forest Restoration Initiative in Northern Arizona to investigate how restoration efforts can affect the water volume available in the snowpack and soil moisture in the Desert LCC. This project will result in a tool that can be used to predict the water volume in snowpack and soil moisture response to various forest treatments.

Categories: Data, Project; Types: Map Service, OGC WFS Layer, OGC WMS Layer, OGC WMS Service; Tags: 2013, AL-04, AZ-01, Academics & scientific researchers, Applications and Tools, All tags... Arizona, Centennial Forest, Coconino National Forest, Conservation NGOs, Conservation Planning, Data Acquisition and Development, Desert Landscape Conservation Cooperative, EARTH SCIENCE > TERRESTRIAL HYDROSPHERE > SNOW/ICE > SNOW WATER EQUIVALENT, Federal resource managers, Four Forest Restoration Initiative (4FRI) area, GIS, GIS, Gus Pearson Natural Area, Informing Conservation Delivery, LCC, LCC Network Science Catalog, Presentation, Project, Publication, Report, Training/Outreach/Workshop, Tribes, United States, Verde River Basin, biota, climate change, climate change, completed, forest management, forest management, forest structure, forest structure, forest thinning, forest thinning, onGoing, ponderosa pine forests, ponderosa pine forests, remote sensing, remote sensing, restoration, restoration, snow, snow, snowpack, snowpack, soil moisture, soil moisture, water, water, wildfire, wildfire, Fewer tags

The Influence of the North Pacific Jet Stream on Future Fire in California

In California, increased wildfire activity has been linked to decreasing snowpack and earlier snowmelt. Not only has this translated into a longer fire season, but reduced snowpack has cascading effects that impact streamflow, water supplies, agricultural productivity, and ecosystems. California receives 80% of its precipitation during the winter, so mountain snowpack plays a critical role in replenishing the state’s water supply. One factor that affects the amount of winter precipitation (and therefore snowpack) in California is the North Pacific Jet (NPJ)—a current of strong, high altitude winds that occur over the northern Pacific Ocean. Winters when the NPJ is located further north than normal are drier than...

Categories: Project; Types: Map Service, OGC WFS Layer, OGC WMS Layer, OGC WMS Service, Report; Tags: 2013, CA, CA-wide, CASC, Completed, All tags... Drought, Fire and Extreme Weather, Drought, Fire and Extreme Weather, Drought, Fire and Extreme Weather, Federal, Fire, Fire, Landscapes, Landscapes, NPJ, Other Landscapes, Other Landscapes, Other Water, Other Water, Plants, Plants, Projects by Region, Projects by Region, Science Tools for Managers, Science Tools for Managers, Southwest, Southwest, Southwest, Southwest CASC, Water, Coasts and Ice, Water, Coasts and Ice, Wildlife and Plants, Wildlife and Plants, atmosphere, climatology, decadal, ecological response, ecosystem, ecosystem, fire, hydrological response, jet stream, management, north pacific jet, snowmelt, snowpack, tree ring reconstruction, tree rings, water, wildfire, wildfire, Fewer tags

Using Climate and Water Models to Examine Future Water Availability and Biodiversity in California and the Great Basin

As the predicted impacts of climate change are becoming more apparent, natural resource managers are faced with the task of developing climate adaptation plans. These managers need state-of-the-art, scientifically based information upon which to base these management plans and decisions consistently across California and the Great Basin. This project applies historical, current, and projected climate data to a regional water model to examine water availability, biodiversity, and conservation. Analysis of this climate and hydrology data is expected to help managers understand areas in the region and landscape where the effects of climate change are expected to be the most profound. The study also addresses how the...

Categories: Project; Types: Map Service, OGC WFS Layer, OGC WMS Layer, OGC WMS Service; Tags: 2012, CA, CA Central Valley, CA-wide, CASC, All tags... Completed, Federal, Great Basin, Multiple, Other Water, Other Water, Projects by Region, Southwest, Southwest CASC, Water, Coasts and Ice, Water, Coasts and Ice, air temperature, basin characteristics, climate change, climatic water deficit, downscale, et, gcm, great basin, hydrology, model, precipitation, recharge, runoff, snowpack, stream flow, tools, vulnerability, website, Fewer tags

Vulnerability Assessment and Adaptation Strategies for Focal Resources of the Sierra Nevada

This project supports a collaborative, multi-stakeholder effort led by the U.S. Forest Service (USFS) to develop a largescale vulnerability assessment and associated adaptation strategies for focal resources of the Sierra Nevada. The purpose of this effort is to provide information and tools for Forest Planning and management (e.g., NEPA analyses, Forest Plan revisions, Climate Scorecard) and other natural resource management (e.g., SWAP) and conservation efforts to prepare for climate change impacts in the Sierra Nevada. Specifically, our objectives are to: (1) assess the vulnerability of focal resources to climate change, (2) use spatial analysis and expert input to prioritize conservation areas or actions, and...

Categories: Data, Project; Tags: 2012, 2013, Applications and Tools, CA, California Landscape Conservation Cooperative, All tags... Conservation Plan/Design/Framework, Decision Support, Decision support, Federal, Federal resource managers, Forest, LCC, LCC Network Science Catalog, Map, Population & Habitat Evaluation/Projection, Population and Habitat Evaluation/Projection, Private land owners, Project, Science Project, Sierra Nevada, Sierra Nevada, State agencies, Vulnerability Assessment, Vulnerability Assessment, adaptation, assessment, assessment, assessment, assessment, briefing, completed, connectivity, conservation, database, environment, fire, invasive species, map, multiple, outreach, refugia, snowpack, stakeholder, tool, training, trees, usfs, vertebrates, vulnerability, workshop, Fewer tags

Historical simulated snowpack and other hydrometeorology data at 30 m for the Crown of the Continent and vicinity, United States and Canada, water years 1981-2020

This data release contains historical SnowModel (Liston and Elder, 2006) output for the Crown of the Continent and surrounding areas in Montana, USA; and Alberta and British Columbia, Canada from September 1, 1981 through August 31, 2020. Fifteen daily variables were simulated or derived for this release: (1) snow water equivalent (swed), (2) liquid precipitation (rpre), (3) solid precipitation (spre), (4) albedo (albd), (5) glacial ice melt (glmt), (6) total precipitation (prec), (7) runoff (roff), (8) snow covered area (sca), (9) snow density (sden), (10) snowmelt (smlt), (11) snow depth (snod), (12) snow sublimation (ssub), (13) air temperature (tair), (14) wind speed (wspd), and (15) wind direction (wdir). The...

Types: Map Service, OGC WFS Layer, OGC WMS Layer, OGC WMS Service; Tags: Alberta, British Columbia, Climatology, Crown of the Continent, Glacier National Park, All tags... Idaho, Montana, Northern Rocky Mountains, USGS Science Data Catalog (SDC), Waterton Lakes National Park, climatologyMeteorologyAtmosphere, precipitation (atmospheric), runoff, snow, snow and ice cover, snowmelt, snowpack, Fewer tags

SnowModel Simulations for the 2022–23 Water Years, near Coal Creek, San Juan Mountains, Colorado, USA

This data release contains SnowModel snow evolution simulation output from water years 2022 to 2023 (October 1, 2021, through September 30, 2023) on a 100-meter (m) geospatial grid for a 3 kilometer (km) × 2 km model domain near Coal Creek off Coal Bank Pass in the San Juan Mountains in southwest Colorado, USA. The three quantities simulated for this release were snow water equivalent for the standard model configuration (swe_standard), snow water equivalent for an open canopy model configuration (swe_open), and incoming shortwave radiation for the open canopy model configuration (qsin_open). The simulation used to produce these outputs was forced using meteorology from the National Land Data Assimilation System...

Tags: Colorado, Hydrology, Rocky Mountains, San Juan Mountains, USGS Science Data Catalog (SDC), All tags... Water Resources, climatology, hydrology, runoff, snow, snowmelt, snowpack, water budget, water resources, Fewer tags