APPLICATION OF THE SNOW TELEMETRY (SNOTEL) AND SOIL CLIMATE ANALYSIS NETWORK (SCAN) FOR ASSESSING WATER RESOURCE CONDITIONS AND TRENDS IN THE UNITED STATES

摘要

The USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) operates and maintains two critical data networks for assessing and evaluating the water resources in the U.S. The Snow Survey and Water Supply Forecasting (SSWSF) Program, in existence since 1935, operates over 800 high-elevation automated SNOw TELemetry (SNOTEL) sites across the Western U.S. and Alaska. This network transmits data on snow water equivalent, snow depth, temperature, precipitation, and many other climatic parameters in near real-time and serves these data on the internet. The Soil Climate Analysis Network (SCAN) consists of over 180 stations in 40 States and U.S. territories. SCAN transmits hourly soil moisture and soil temperature data, as well as many other climatic parameters. These two networks provide an important component to a national assessment of climatic conditions and trends. Many recent and on-going activities as part of the SSWSF Program have greatly enhanced the capabilities for water resources and climate investigations. In the SSWSF Program, automation of manual snow course sites to SNOTEL has been continuing since the late 1970s and provides daily quality controlled data for locations across the Western U.S. Determination of new SNOTEL sites has been enhanced with the development of the Basin Analysis ArcGIS (BAGIS) tool that allows for delineation of spatial characteristics relevant to choosing site locations in data-sparse areas. Improvements and addition of new sensors, including soil moisture and temperature, at SNOTEL sites is expanding and improving the types and quality of climatic data at the sites. Application of the VIPER modeling software is improving water supply forecasting capabilities and skill for watersheds.