'Snow deluge' years on the decline across the US West, thanks to climate change: Study
While climate change is in general increasing the ferocity and frequency of severe weather events, the same effects may not apply to the massive snow dumps that occasionally pummel the U.S. West.
The quantity of snow that falls during so-called "snow deluge" years — such as the big 2023 snow season in California — is on the decline, according to a new study, published on Monday in the Proceedings for the National Academy of Sciences.
“There’s a common narrative with climate change that extreme weather events are getting more extreme,” lead author Adrienne Marshall, an assistant professor of geology and geological engineering at Colorado School of Mines, said in a statement.
“But with snow deluge, we’re not seeing that’s the case," Marshall continued. "Instead, what we’re seeing across the western U.S. is that snow deluges decline, too.”
To draw their conclusions, the scientists modeled snowpack data from California's Sierra Nevada, while also accessing snow survey results and automated snow telemetry observations: unattended, automated snow measurement sites that transmit information to a central database.
The researchers found that the amount of snow during deluge years would drop up to 58 percent by late century under a moderate warming scenario. They observed that total snowfall in an average year would decline even more — by about 73 percent during the same period, per the study.
“Should we expect our big snow years to stop happening? The answer we get here is, ‘Kind of,'" Marshall said.
The snow-water-equivalent — the amount of water contained in snowpack — in peak April 1, 2023, readings showed that California's deluge was about a one in 54 year event, according to the study.
Snow droughts, meanwhile, are becoming more common. These snow-free periods can materialize from either warmth or dryness alone, while deluges require both cool and wet conditions, the authors noted.
While warmth doesn't necessarily mean less precipitation, it does increase the chance that such precipitation will appear as rain — which doesn't accumulate on mountains and melt in the spring in the way that snowpack does.
Ultimately, the authors found that their results were not only applied to California, but also to areas across the U.S. West — and could potentially have far-reaching impacts on humans and wildlife.
Recent experiences have shown that snow deluges can either enhance the winter ski season by extending it or curtail activities due to infrastructural damage, the researchers explained. Summer recreation and hydropower operations are also affected by how much and when the snow accumulates as well as when it melts.
For all their capacity to boost a region's water supply, snow deluges can also "breed complacency," as they can generate deceptively high runoff during a given year, the authors warned. With that suddenly copious supply, managers might feel less pressed to develop adaptation plans, the researchers added.
"Snowpack acts as a massive reservoir that stores water for the summer when we need it most," Marshall said. "When we lose that, we get runoff at a time of year when we don’t need it as much.”
Date: | |
Tag: | Climate |
Topics
Filter
-
Sweltering heat across Asia was 45 times more likely because of climate change, study finds
Sizzling heat across Asia and the Middle East in late April that echoed last year’s destructive swelter was made 45 times more likely in some parts of the continent because of human-caused climate change, a study Tuesday foundABC News - Health - Climate -
30-year Treasury yield falls for 3rd straight week after data indicate ‘serious headwinds’ for U.S. economy
Rates on U.S. government debt finished slightly higher on Friday even after new Conference Board data pointed to softer economic conditions ahead. However, yields finished lower for the week, with the 30-year rate experiencing its third straight ...MarketWatch - Business
More from The Hill
-
LeVar Burton chimes in on House Oversight fight with 'words of the day'
Former “Reading Rainbow” host LeVar Burton chimed in Friday on the recent fight in the House Oversight and Accountability Committee. “Words of the day; bleach, blond, bad, built, butch and body,” Burton said in a post on the social platform X. ...The Hill - Politics -
Raskin calls Greene House Oversight brawl 'a failure of leadership'
House Oversight and Accountability Committee Ranking Member Jamie Raskin (R-Md.) called the recent verbal battle in his committee sparked by Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene's (R-Ga.) words “a failure of leadership.” “So, this was a failure of ...The Hill - Politics -
Biden's Voldemortian theory of privilege: The president whose voice must not be heard
It appears that Joe Biden is "he who must not be heard."The Hill - Politics - Joe Biden -
Do you live in one of America's 15 fastest-growing cities?
With just a couple of exceptions, the fastest growing cities in America are located in the South, according to new data from the U.S. Census Bureau.The Hill - Politics -
Arizona Attorney General confirms Rudy Guiliani served indictment after taunting prosecutors
Arizona Attorney General Kris Mayes (D) confirmed via social media that former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani had been served in the state’s 2020 election case against him. “The final defendant was served moments ago. @RudyGiuliani nobody is ...The Hill - Politics