Snow Depth Measurement Variability Across Two Study Domains

The spatial distribution of snow across a watershed or a landscape is important for understanding the location of water storage across a watershed, the energy content of the snowpack, the rate and timing of snow melt, and for hydrological and climate modelling. It has been related to topographic variables, such as elevation, slope, and aspect, and vegetation, and wind based topographic variables. Snow depth has been shown to be more variable than density. To minimize local variation, often five snow depth measurements are averaged, based on a center point and depths measured a short distance away in the cardinal directions. Others have used three depth measurements with the location recorded at the center. We increased the number of snow depth measurements per point over two one-square kilometer domains. Near Togwotee Pass Wyoming, we collected 150 sets of 21 points measured at 1-m intervals in the four cardinal directions and near Cameron Pass Colorado, we collected 200 sets of 11 points measured at 1-m intervals in two directions. Using these data we analyzed the spatial distribution of snow depth variation and compared those interpolations to the distribution of the average snow depth. The nature of snow depth variation was less obvious than the distribution of snow depth. Subsequent analysis used in-situ canopy information to better explain the distribution of snow depth variance.