Snowpack Archives

March 7, 2025 147

The downward trajectory for snow carries serious consequences for water supplies, wildlife habitat, wildfire activity and outdoor recreation. By Mitch...

WATER DESK: How much runoff comes from the West’s snowpack?

The Water Desk

News

February 3, 2025 132

Snowmelt dominates many Western rivers, but climate change will reduce that contribution as raindrops replace snowflakes. By Mitch Tobin, The...

NASA: New NASA Instrument for Studying Snowpack Completes Airborne Testing

NASA/JPL

News

October 30, 2024 138

By NASA Summer heat has significant effects in the mountainous regions of the western United States. Melted snow washes from...

NATIONAL PARK SERVICE: Planning for resilience: Understanding the connections between forests, fire, water, and drought

National Park Service

News

September 4, 2024 154

By the National Park Service You may know Yosemite National Park for its spectacular scenery, waterfalls, granite rock faces, or...

DOE: When a summer drought begins in the winter: investigating snow drought

Press Release/Notice

News

August 29, 2024 183

From Shannon Brescher Shea, Department of Energy, Office of Science From thirsty agricultural crops to whitewater rafters contemplating a low...

WATER DESK: Q&A: Defining the “snow deluge” and projecting its future

The Water Desk

Science

May 31, 2024 56

Scientist Adrienne Marshall explains why these extreme snow years are expected to decline in our warming world. By Mitch Tobin,...

WATER DESK: Ten visuals that show how climate change is transforming the West’s snow and water supply

The Water Desk

News

April 27, 2024 277

By Mitch Tobin, the Water Desk A recent federal synthesis of climate change research paints a grim portrait of snow’s...

NOTEBOOK FEATURE: Future extremes: New models zoom in on California snowpacks and storms

Robin Meadows

Notebook News and Features

February 23, 2024 387

by Robin Meadows When it comes to water, winter is a time of promise and peril in California. Our fate...

DESERT RESEARCH INSTITUTE: A new tool can help protect California and Nevada communities from floods while preserving their water supply

Desert Research Institute

Science

February 21, 2024 125

DRI’s Anne Heggli is partnering with the National Weather Service to understand flood risk from rain-on-snow storms in real-time, protecting...

NIDIS: Changing climate behind sharp drop in snowpack since 1980s

NIDIS

News

January 25, 2024 131

Study finds steepest drops in areas of the Northern Hemisphere reliant on snow for water. By Morgan Kelly, Dartmouth Scientific...

COURTHOUSE NEWS: ‘Snow drought’ darkening California’s water outlook

Courthouse News Service

Agency News

January 23, 2024 134

While statewide rainfall is below average, climatologists are especially concerned about the lack of snow in California’s largest “reservoir” —...

EOS: Dust Is Melting Snow—And Current Models Can’t Keep Up

American Geophysical Union

News

October 25, 2023 48

Mountain snowpack melts quicker when coated in dust. This cyclical problem is forcing water forecasts to evolve. By Kara West,...

THE CONVERSATION: Why rain on snow in the California mountains worries scientists

The Conversation

News

March 14, 2023 1

By Keith Musselman, University of Colorado Boulder, The Conversation Another round of powerful atmospheric rivers is hitting California, following storms...

PNNL: Studying water in the mountain air

Pacific Northwest National Laboratory

Science

April 26, 2022

PNNL scientists participate in project to collect climate data in Colorado mountains By Allan Brettman, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory An...

CAL MATTERS: No, California’s drought isn’t over. Here’s why.

Cal Matters

News

January 5, 2022

California today issued emergency drought rules aimed at wasteful water use. Although snowpack is 150% of average today, climatologists predict...

Snowpack

WATER DESK: 9 graphics that visualize EPA’s climate change indicators for snow

WATER DESK: How much runoff comes from the West’s snowpack?

NASA: New NASA Instrument for Studying Snowpack Completes Airborne Testing

NATIONAL PARK SERVICE: Planning for resilience: Understanding the connections between forests, fire, water, and drought

DOE: When a summer drought begins in the winter: investigating snow drought

WATER DESK: Q&A: Defining the “snow deluge” and projecting its future

WATER DESK: Ten visuals that show how climate change is transforming the West’s snow and water supply

NOTEBOOK FEATURE: Future extremes: New models zoom in on California snowpacks and storms

DESERT RESEARCH INSTITUTE: A new tool can help protect California and Nevada communities from floods while preserving their water supply

NIDIS: Changing climate behind sharp drop in snowpack since 1980s

COURTHOUSE NEWS: ‘Snow drought’ darkening California’s water outlook

EOS: Dust Is Melting Snow—And Current Models Can’t Keep Up

THE CONVERSATION: Why rain on snow in the California mountains worries scientists

PNNL: Studying water in the mountain air

CAL MATTERS: No, California’s drought isn’t over. Here’s why.

DAILY DIGEST, 3/14: Report: FIRO at Oroville and New Bullards Bar can increase region’s resilience to floods; Three SJV agencies may band together to tackle widespread sinking; How Trump is already adding to Colorado River water worries; EPA to review reach of Clean Water Act; and more …