Journal ArticleDOI
Effects of changes in winter snowpacks on summer low flows: case studies in the Sierra Nevada, California, USA
Reads0
Chats0
TLDR
In this article, the authors explore how future warming could affect the relationship between winter snowpack and summer low flows, using a distributed hydrologic model Regional Hydro-ecologic Ecosystem Simulation System (RHESSys) to simulate the response of two study catchments.Abstract:
Seasonal low flows are important for sustaining ecosystems and for supplying human needs during the dry season. In California's Sierra Nevada mountains, low flows are primarily sustained by groundwater that is recharged during snowmelt. As the climate warms over the next century, the volume of the annual Sierra Nevada snowpack is expected to decrease by ~40–90%. In eight snow-dominated catchments in the Sierra Nevada, we analysed records of snow water equivalent (SWE) and unimpaired streamflow records spanning 10–33 years. Linear extrapolations of historical SWE/streamflow relationships suggest that annual minimum flows in some catchments could decrease to zero if peak SWE is reduced to roughly half of its historical average. For every 10% decrease in peak SWE, annual minimum flows decrease 9–22% and occur 3–7 days earlier in the year. In two of the study catchments, Sagehen and Pitman Creeks, seasonal low flows are significantly correlated with the previous year's snowpack as well as the current year's snowpack. We explore how future warming could affect the relationship between winter snowpacks and summer low flows, using a distributed hydrologic model Regional Hydro-ecologic Ecosystem Simulation System (RHESSys) to simulate the response of two study catchments. Model results suggest that a 10% decrease in peak SWE will lead to a 1–8% decrease in low flows. The modelled streams do not dry up completely, because the effects of reduced SWE are partly offset by increased fall or winter net gains in storage, and by shifts in the timing of peak evapotranspiration. We consider how groundwater storage, snowmelt and evapotranspiration rates, and precipitation phase (snow vs rain) influence catchment response to warming. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.read more
Citations
More filters
Journal ArticleDOI
A precipitation shift from snow towards rain leads to a decrease in streamflow
TL;DR: In this article, the authors apply a water-balance framework to catchments in the United States and find a greater percentage of precipitation as snowfall is associated with greater mean streamflow.
Journal ArticleDOI
Hydrologic refugia, plants, and climate change.
Blair C. McLaughlin,David D. Ackerly,P. Zion Klos,Jennifer Natali,Todd E. Dawson,Sally E. Thompson +5 more
TL;DR: It is argued that mesic microenvironments will act as species‐specific refugia only if the nature and space/time variability in water availability are compatible with the ecological requirements of a target species, and that identification of hydrologicRefugia could form a cornerstone of climate‐cognizant conservation strategies, but that this would require improved understanding of climate change effects on key hydrology processes, including frequently cryptic processes such as groundwater flow.
Journal ArticleDOI
Snowmelt rate dictates streamflow
T. B. Barnhart,T. B. Barnhart,Noah P. Molotch,Noah P. Molotch,Noah P. Molotch,Ben Livneh,Ben Livneh,Adrian A. Harpold,John F. Knowles,Dominik Schneider,Dominik Schneider +10 more
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors presented a possible mechanism linking snowmelt rate and streamflow generation using a gridded implementation of the Budyko framework. But, they did not consider the effect of seasonal changes in regional air temperature on streamflow.
Journal ArticleDOI
Rain or Snow: Hydrologic Processes, Observations, Prediction, and Research Needs
Adrian A. Harpold,Michael L. Kaplan,P. Zion Klos,Timothy E. Link,James P. McNamara,S. Rajagopal,Rina Schumer,C. M. Steele +7 more
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors review the processes and physics that control precipitation phase as relevant to hydrologists, focusing on the importance of processes occurring aloft, and conclude that current PPMs are too simple to capture important processes and are not well validated for most locations.
References
More filters
Book
The Nature and Properties of Soils
Nyle C. Brady,Ray R. Weil +1 more
TL;DR: The Soils Around Us 2 Formation of Soils from Parent Materials 3 Soil Classification 4 Soil Architecture and Physical Properties 5 Soil Water: Characteristics and Behavior 6 Soil and the Hydrologic Cycle 7 Soil Aeration and Temperature 8 Soil Colloids: Seat of Soil Chemical and Physical Activity 9 Soil Acidity 10 Soils of Dry Regions: Alkalinity, Salinity, and Sodicity 11 Organisms and Ecology of the Soil 12 Soil Organic Matter 13 Nitrogen and Sulfur Economy of Soiles 14 Soil Ph
MonographDOI
Mitigation from a cross-sectoral perspective
Terry Barker,I. Bashmakov,Awwad Alharthi,Markus Ammann,Luis Cifuentes,John Drexhage,Duan Maosheng,Ottmar Edenhofer,Brian Flannery,Michael Grubb,Monique Hoogwijk,Francis Ibitoye,Catrinus J. Jepma,William A. Pizer,Kenji Yamaji,Shimon Awerbuch,Lenny Bernstein,André Faaij,Hitoshi Hayami,Tom Heggedal,Snorre Kverndokk,John Latham,Axel Michaelowa,David Popp,Peter L. Read,Stefan Schleicher,Michael D. Smith,Ferenc Toth,Bert Metz,Ogunlade Davidson,Peter Bosch,Rutu Dave,Leo Meyer +32 more
Book
Climate change and water.
TL;DR: The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) Technical Paper Climate Change and Water draws together and evaluates the information in IPCC Assessment and Special Reports concerning the impacts of climate change on hydrological processes and regimes, and on freshwater resources.
Regional climate projections
Jens Hesselbjerg Christensen,Bruce Hewitson,A. Busuioc,Aijun Chen,Xuejie Gao,R. Held,Richard G. Jones,R. K. Kolli,W. K. Kwon,René Laprise,V. Magana Rueda,Linda O. Mearns,C. G. Menendez,Jouni Räisänen,Annette Rinke,A. Sarr,Peter Whetton,Raymond W. Arritt,Rasmus E. Benestad,Martin Beniston,David H. Bromwich,Daniel Caya,Josefino C. Comiso,R. de Elia,Klaus Dethloff +24 more
TL;DR: Arritt et al. as discussed by the authors presented a survey of the state-of-the-art work in the field of sport psychology, including the following authors: R. Arritt (USA), R. Benestad (Norway), M. Beniston (Switzerland), D.Caya (Canada), J.C. Caya, J.F. Comiso, R.H. Feddema, A.L. Lowe (UK), A.S. Nokhandan (Iran), JC. New (UK, M.
Journal ArticleDOI
A Statistical-Topographic Model for Mapping Climatological Precipitation over Mountainous Terrain
TL;DR: In this article, the authors present an analytical model that distributes point measurements of monthly and annual precipitation to regularly spaced grid cells in midlatitude regions, using a combination of climatological and statistical concepts to analyze orographic precipitation.