scholarly journals Temporal and spatial variability of North American prairie snow cover (1988-1995) inferred from passive microwave- derived snow water equivalent imagery

2000 ◽  
Vol 36 (1) ◽  
pp. 255-266 ◽  
Author(s):  
C. Derksen ◽  
E. LeDrew ◽  
B. Goodison
Keyword(s):  
Spatial Variability ◽  
Snow Cover ◽  
North American ◽  
Snow Water Equivalent ◽  
Passive Microwave ◽  
Temporal And Spatial Variability ◽  
Snow Water ◽  
Temporal And Spatial ◽  
North American Prairie

The effect of spatial variability on the sensitivity of passive microwave measurements to snow water equivalent

2013 ◽  
Vol 136 ◽  
pp. 163-179 ◽  
Author(s):  
Benjamin J. Vander Jagt ◽  
Michael T. Durand ◽  
Steven A. Margulis ◽  
Edward J. Kim ◽  
Noah P. Molotch
Keyword(s):  
Spatial Variability ◽  
Snow Water Equivalent ◽  
Passive Microwave ◽  
Microwave Measurements ◽  
Snow Water

scholarly journals Experimental measurements for improved understanding and simulation of snowmelt events in the Western Tatra Mountains

2016 ◽  
Vol 64 (4) ◽  
pp. 316-328 ◽  
Author(s):  
Pavel Krajčí ◽  
Michal Danko ◽  
Jozef Hlavčo ◽  
Zdeněk Kostka ◽  
Ladislav Holko
Keyword(s):  
Spatial Variability ◽  
Snow Cover ◽  
Air Temperature ◽  
Snow Water Equivalent ◽  
Flood Forecasting ◽  
Snow Accumulation ◽  
Small Scale ◽  
Climatic Data ◽  
Tatra Mountains ◽  
Snow Water

AbstractSnow accumulation and melt are highly variable. Therefore, correct modeling of spatial variability of the snowmelt, timing and magnitude of catchment runoff still represents a challenge in mountain catchments for flood forecasting. The article presents the setup and results of detailed field measurements of snow related characteristics in a mountain microcatchment (area 59 000 m2, mean altitude 1509 m a. s. l.) in the Western Tatra Mountains, Slovakia obtained in winter 2015. Snow water equivalent (SWE) measurements at 27 points documented a very large spatial variability through the entire winter. For instance, range of the SWE values exceeded 500 mm at the end of the accumulation period (March 2015). Simple snow lysimeters indicated that variability of snowmelt and discharge measured at the catchment outlet corresponded well with the rise of air temperature above 0°C. Temperature measurements at soil surface were used to identify the snow cover duration at particular points. Snow melt duration was related to spatial distribution of snow cover and spatial patterns of snow radiation. Obtained data together with standard climatic data (precipitation and air temperature) were used to calibrate and validate the spatially distributed hydrological model MIKE-SHE. The spatial redistribution of input precipitation seems to be important for modeling even on such a small scale. Acceptable simulation of snow water equivalents and snow duration does not guarantee correct simulation of peakflow at short-time (hourly) scale required for example in flood forecasting. Temporal variability of the stream discharge during the snowmelt period was simulated correctly, but the simulated discharge was overestimated.

scholarly journals Time-series analysis of passive-microwave-derived central North American snow water equivalent imagery

2002 ◽  
Vol 34 ◽  
pp. 1-7 ◽  
Author(s):  
C. Derksen ◽  
A. Walker ◽  
E. LeDrew ◽  
B. Goodison
Keyword(s):  
Time Series ◽  
Land Cover ◽  
North American ◽  
Snow Water Equivalent ◽  
Winter Season ◽  
Weighted Average ◽  
Passive Microwave ◽  
Central Canada ◽  
Snow Water ◽  
Total Study Area

AbstractThe Meteorological Service of Canada has developed a series of operational snow water equivalent (SWE) retrieval algorithms for central Canada, based on the vertically polarized difference index for the 19 and 37 GHz channels of the Special Sensor Microwave/Imager (SSM/I). Separate algorithms derive SWE for open environments, deciduous, coniferous and sparse forest cover. A final SWE value represents the area-weighted average based on the proportional land cover within each pixel. In this study, 5 day averaged (pentad) passive-microwave-derived SWE imagery for the winter season (December–February) of 1994/95 is compared to in situ data from central Canada in order to assess algorithm performance. Investigation of regions with varying proportional land cover within the four algorithm classes shows that retrieved SWE remains within ±10–20mm of surface observations, independent of fractional within-pixel land cover. Following algorithm evaluation, ten winter seasons (1988/89 through 1997/98) of pentad central North American SWE imagery are subjected to a rotated principal-component analysis (PCA). Although there are no trends in total study-area SWE, the PCA results identify the interseasonal variability in the SWE accumulation and ablation centers of action through the SSM/I time series.

scholarly journals “WEBSNOW”: ESTIMATION OF SNOW COVER FROM FREELY ACCESSIBLE WEBCAM IMAGES IN THE ALPS

2020 ◽  
Vol V-2-2020 ◽  
pp. 695-701
Author(s):  
S. Flöry ◽  
C. Ressl ◽  
M. Hollaus ◽  
G. Pürcher ◽  
L. Piermattei ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Spatial Variability ◽  
Snow Cover ◽  
Temporal Resolution ◽  
Small Scale ◽  
Mountain Areas ◽  
Processing Times ◽  
Temporal And Spatial Variability ◽  
The Alps ◽  
Temporal And Spatial ◽  
Aerial Platforms

Abstract. The alpine snow cover exhibits a high spatial variability in the horizontal and vertical directions even on a very small scale, mainly caused by the high variability of alpine terrain. To quantify the annual and inter-annual snow dynamics continuously reliable measurements of the temporal and spatial variability are required. While remote sensing from satellite and aerial platforms have been successfully used to estimate snow cover at larger scales, especially in mountain areas spatial and temporal resolution are too low to capture local changes. In the alpine region, webcam images are freely available for touristic purposes capturing images at high frequency intervals. Within the WebSnow project the feasibility of using such images for the detection of snow was investigated. With the developed workflow, processing times could be reduced and satisfactory results obtained. Our results show, that webcam networks have the potential for monitoring snow at high spatial and temporal resolution.

scholarly journals Discrimination of a wet snow cover using passive microwave satellite data

1993 ◽  
Vol 17 ◽  
pp. 307-311 ◽  
Author(s):  
A.E. Walker ◽  
B.E. Goodison
Keyword(s):  
Snow Cover ◽  
Snow Water Equivalent ◽  
Winter Season ◽  
Microwave Remote Sensing ◽  
Passive Microwave ◽  
Western Canada ◽  
Polarization Data ◽  
Wet Snow ◽  
Snow Water ◽  
Remote Sensing Methods

Snow-cover monitoring using passive microwave remote sensing methods has been shown to be seriously limited under melt conditions when the snowpack becomes wet. A wet snow indicator has been developed using DMSP SSM/I 37 GHz dual-polarization data for the open prairie region of western Canada. The indicator is used to identify areas of wet snow and discriminate them from areas of snow-free land. Validation and testing efforts have illustrated that the addition of the indicator to the current SSM/I snow water equivalent algorithm provides a more accurate representation of spatial snow coverage throughout the winter season for the open prairie region. The improved spatial and temporal information resulting from the use of the indicator enhances both climatological and hydrological analyses of snow-cover conditions using passive microwave data. Although the wet snow indicator has only been validated for the open prairie region of western Canada, it may also be applicable to other regions of similar terrain and vegetative characteristics. However, in areas of dense vegetation, such as the boreal forest, the performance of the indicator is poor due to the generally low 37 GHz polarization differences of the vegetation cover.

scholarly journals Spatial Variability of Snow Water Equivalent – The Case Study from the Research Site in Khibiny Mountains, Russia

2019 ◽  
Vol 67 (1) ◽  
pp. 110-112 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anton Yu. Komarov ◽  
Yury G. Seliverstov ◽  
Pavel B. Grebennikov ◽  
Sergey A. Sokratov
Keyword(s):  
Spatial Variability ◽  
Snow Cover ◽  
Snow Water Equivalent ◽  
Snow Density ◽  
Hydrological Characteristic ◽  
Snow Water ◽  
Exact Position ◽  
Seasonal Snow Cover ◽  
Uniform Area

Abstract The aim of the investigation was assessment of spatial variability of the characteristics of snowpack, including the snow water equivalent (SWE) as the main hydrological characteristic of a seasonal snow cover. The study was performed in Khibiny Mountains (Russia), where snow density and snow cover stratigraphy were documented with the help of the SnowMicropen measurements, allowing to determine the exact position of the snow layers’ boundaries with accuracy of 0.1 cm. The study site was located at the geomorphologically and topographically uniform area with uniform vegetation cover. The measurement was conducted at maximum seasonal SWE on 27 March 2016. Twenty vertical profiles were measured along the 10 m long transect. Vertical resolution depended on the thickness of individual layers and was not less than 10 cm. The spatial variation of the measured snowpack characteristics was substantial even within such a homogeneous landscape. Bulk snow density variability was similar to the variability in snow height. The total variation of the snowpack SWE values along the transect was about 20%, which is more than the variability in snow height or snow density, and should be taken into account in analysis of the results of normally performed in operational hydrology snow course SWE estimations by snow tubes.

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