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Snowmelt delay by oversnow travel
Author(s) -
Hogan A. W.
Publication year - 1972
Publication title -
water resources research
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.863
H-Index - 217
eISSN - 1944-7973
pISSN - 0043-1397
DOI - 10.1029/wr008i001p00174
Subject(s) - snowpack , snowmelt , snow , hydrology (agriculture) , environmental science , winter storm , elevation (ballistics) , water equivalent , snow cover , physical geography , snow field , meteorology , geology , atmospheric sciences , geography , geotechnical engineering , geometry , mathematics
Oversnow vehicles compact the snowpack several inches as a result of their passage; drifting snow tends to refill these tracks to ambient level. This repeated travel and drifting result in storage of much greater water content in the snowmobile trails than in the adjacent undisturbed snowpack. A brief field study was initiated to determine the magnitude of the increase in water content and the time delay of snowmelt in an area frequently traveled by oversnow vehicles. The area chosen for study was an abandoned farm with an elevation of 700–1100 feet msl near the confluence of the Schoharie and Mohawk valleys. The area is quite hilly, and the rather steep slopes face north or east. Average snowfall in this area is about 80 in./year. During the study year approximately 120 inches fell, and there was continuous total snow cover from December 4, 1970, until the first bare spots appeared on April 1, 1971. Snowmobile travel began with the first snow and continued through the winter, the last known passage occurring after the snowstorm of April 10. No accurate log of time or number of snow vehicle traverses was maintained; however, 25–50 passages per week would be a reasonable estimate of traffic over the most often used trail.