Toward Western U.S. Seasonal Snowpack Prediction (Invited Presentation)

The majority of Western U.S. water supply is fed by cold season precipitation. In the mountainous west, this means much of the precipitation falls in the form of snow, where it accumulates in the mountains during the cold season before melting during the spring and summer. Water management practices have been developed based on historical spring snowmelt filling reservoirs. However, multi-year droughts are possible, with projections of lower snowpack in the coming decades. Loss of the natural reservoir of winter snowpack due to drought or winter rains can lead to reservoir draw downs and emergency drought measures. Seasonal and multi-seasonal snowpack prediction could provide useful information to manage water supply to meet demand and mitigate water related hazards. This talk will explore recent advancements in snowpack prediction, ongoing research, and outlines where the field needs to develop models and observations to further improve snowpack prediction.