NASA tests snow cover measuring technology on largest mesa in the world

GRAND JUNCTION, Colo. (KKCO/Gray News) - Snow scientists from NASA and Boise State University were up on the Grand Mesa testing new radar technology to monitor snow cover Thursday, which is a part of NASA’s SnowEx campaign.

NASA said that no single satellite-borne sensor has yet been demonstrated to accurately measure the planet’s snow water equivalent.

Mapping the amount of snow on a mountain range can give an accurate idea of how much snow melt will go into rivers and streams, necessary for water management, flood forecasting, hydro-power forecasting, avalanche-related problems and much more.

Grand Mesa is one of 20 field sites where the technology is being tested.

The team of snow scientists gathered on the Grand Mesa, the largest mesa in the world, from their base of operations, the Grand Mesa Lodge, to work with an aircraft that took off from Grand Junction Regional Airport.

The aircraft used an instrument featuring radar sensors developed by the University of Massachusetts.

The team on the ground launched from the lodge to a testing site around 40 minutes away.

Hans Peter “HP” Marshall explained why Grand Mesa was an ideal location to test snow-measuring radar technology.

“Having a place like Grand Mesa that’s at 11,000 feet gives us a much better chance of having dry snow conditions and it’s a flat area. It’s the largest mesa in the world, and that allows us to test these instruments in a relatively simple topography.”

Snow melt-generated water supply provides around 70% of the western United States’ water supply, and it’s a prized commodity that is expected to decrease this century, NASA said.

In recent years, Northern Hemisphere snow cover has been declining at a rate greater than Arctic sea ice.

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