us army corps of engineers building strong ® swe volunteer observation network for the great plains...

US Army Corps of Engineers

BUILDING STRONG®

SWE Volunteer Observation Network for the Great Plains

Kevin Stamm, Kevin Grode,

U.S. Army Corps of EngineersNovember 2010

BUILDING STRONG®

Interagency Cooperative Plains Snow Survey

Assessment of plains snow cover Depth and snow water equivalent Scheduled frequency Standardized method & reporting

Location Missouri River Basin and Northern Plains

Supports flood, runoff/water-supply, and reservoir release forecasts

BUILDING STRONG®

Interagency Cooperative Plains Snow Survey

Cooperating Agencies State of North Dakota State of South Dakota National Weather Service U.S. Army Corps of Engineers U.S. Bureau of Reclamation U.S. Geological Survey

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Survey Equipment

Standard 3-inch inside diameter snow tube

Shovel Spring or digital scale Folding ruler Bucket with handle Pick axe Snow survey data sheet Calculator

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Procedure

Select a site with minimal drifting ¼-mile from upwind obstructions

Collect and composite 5 snow cores from a cross pattern

Weigh the total sample and divide by the conversion factor

#5

#2

#3#1

#4

Collected/Calculated Data

Latitude/Longitude General snow conditions

(drifting, snow consistency)

Snow depth Frost depth & estimated

soil moisture Ground ice thickness Snow density Snow water equivalent

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Data Collection

Reporting to a centralized location/database

Uploaded on a regular bi-monthly schedule

Initial collection through spreadsheet

Future collection through website

Access through website

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Equipment Prices

Equipment Cost

Fiberglass hand-built tube (NWS) materials labor

$185.00

Snowmetrics tube (12-inch length) $150.00

Rickly Adirondack snow tube (48-inch length) $685.00

Rickly Federal snow tube (30-inch length) $315.00

COE-Omaha steel snow tube & tools (30-inch length)* $300.00

* Omaha District design, locally fabricated

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Favorable Conditions for Beetles

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BUILDING STRONG®

BUILDING STRONG®