HR: 0800h
AN: C21B-0475    [Abstracts]
TI: Modeling Spring Snowmelt Dynamics in a Northern Rockies Basin using a Modified Temperature-Index Model
AU: * Meierbachtol, T W
EM: toby.meierbachtol@umontana.edu
AF: Geosciences Department University of Montana - Missoula, 32 Campus Drive #1296, Missoula, MT 59812-1296,
AU: Harper, J T
EM: joel.harper@umontana.edu
AF: Geosciences Department University of Montana - Missoula, 32 Campus Drive #1296, Missoula, MT 59812-1296,
AU: Moore, J N
EM: johnnie.moore@umontana.edu
AF: Geosciences Department University of Montana - Missoula, 32 Campus Drive #1296, Missoula, MT 59812-1296,
AB: Water resources and ecological processes in snow-dominated basins are directly forced by spring snowmelt processes. Here we investigate snowmelt volume and timing in the Middle Fork Flathead River Basin, a large (2903 km2) basin located west of the continental divide in the northern Rockies. We developed a spatially distributed snow melt model which employs a degree-day approach modified to incorporate solar radiation influences on melt. Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) snow-cover products are piped into the model to determine snow covered area (SCA). Snowpack and climate variables were determined using Snowpack Telemetry (SNOTEL) data and other climate station data. A radiation proxy can be calculated without the need for additional data, improving on the model while maintaining its simplistic need for meteorological inputs. Climate and solar radiation data were input to the model and combined with the SCA data derived from MODIS snow-cover products to generate snowmelt volumes during the melt period for each study year. Incorporation of solar radiation effects elucidates the processes driving melt and allows for visualization of the spatial variations in snowmelt throughout the watershed.
DE: 0700 CRYOSPHERE (4540)
DE: 0736 Snow (1827, 1863)
DE: 0740 Snowmelt
DE: 0742 Avalanches
DE: 0764 Energy balance
SC: Cryosphere [C]
MN: 2007 Fall Meeting