Analysis of snow-cover observations made during November - March at 27 stations in Alaska, Canada and the northern United States for a 2 to 11 year period showed that the average snow density can be classified in four general categories:Category 1 (density 0.20 to 0.23 g/cm3), inland stations reporting light winds;Category 2 (0.24 to 0.27 g/cm3), stations reporting moderate winds;Category 3 (0.28 to 0.30 g/cm3), inland and coastal locations with stronger winds;Category 4 (0.32 to 0.36 g/cm3), cold and windy stations of the Arctic. Skewness coefficients computed for each static 1 showed bias toward lower densities for cat. 1 and 2, and bias toward higher densities for cat. 3 and 4. A nomograph in which the average winter air temperature and wind speed are the independent variables makes it possible to estimate the average snow-cover density for any location in the Arctic, subarctic and North Temperate Zones.
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