Connecting Peaks to Streams: Exploring Snowpack and Streamflow at Mount Mansfield

Backpacks unzipped, vests and fleeces and parkas were strewn about, and a group of researchers quickly added layer upon layer to combat the chill on top of Mount Mansfield. It was a perfectly warm fall day below the treeline, but it was a different story up on the tallest peak in Vermont, where the sun was covered by low-hanging clouds and the wind whipped voices away from their intended audience.

While it wasn't quite winter, the cold temperatures were fitting, as the group had joined together to discuss the Northeast Snow Survey (NESS) Feasibility Study. The study will identify opportunities to create a system of coordinated snow monitoring across the Northeast. Monitoring systems will collect snow, water, and temperature data, allowing scientists to track weather changes, make water estimates, and predict flooding events. Scott McKim, the Science Manager at the Whiteface Mountain Field Station, acknowledged that "visiting Mount Mansfield [is] not only an opportunity to appreciate the beauty of the region but also to engage with the crucial work of weather and snow monitoring that takes place there."

While the Western United States has a Snow Telemetry (SNOTEL) Network of more than 900 stations recording long-term snowfall, snow depth, temperature, and precipitation, the Northeast lacks a connected system of long-term weather stations and accurate snow models that can give data on the changing northeast climate.

The partners on top of Mount Mansfield came from across the United States to share their knowledge and to learn more about NESS, offering suggestions and asking questions of existing snow and weather monitoring programs. Participants hailed from the University of Vermont, NY State Mesonet, University of New Hampshire, Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) / Snow Telemetry Network (SNOTEL), Appalachian Mountain Club, Schoodic Institute, Radically Simple Consulting, and Burlington National Weather Service.

Sarah Nelson, Director of Research at the Appalachian Mountain Club, reflected on the importance of bringing together people from varying environments to work towards a common goal: "Arriving from mountain landscapes in Maine and New Hampshire, the summits of Mt. Mansfield and Whiteface Mountain were so familiar in form, and at the same time, unique in resources and opportunities. All of our northeastern mountains are facing similar threats, yet are lacking in many types of fundamental research and monitoring-such as snow information-that will help us understand and protect these systems for future ecological resilience and sociocultural enjoyment."

The day started off with Dr. Arne Bomblies from UVM introducing the Summit-to-Shore Snow Monitoring Network in Vermont, which aims to monitor snowpack characteristics and meteorological variables at a high spatial and temporal resolution. He discussed the features of the measurement station near the summit of Mt. Mansfield, which is equipped with a wind vane to measure wind speed, sensors to measure humidity and temperature, soil moisture sensors, and a snow scale to measure snow density and its water equivalent.

Dr. Arne Bomblies introduces the Summit-to-Shore Snow Monitoring Network in Vermont. Photo by Joshua Benes

The station is helping researchers learn more about the northeast's rapidly changing winters, specifically during events in which rain-on snow occurs and the snowpack is damaged. Bomblies and his graduate student, Anna Grunes, discussed the importance of the station to the network, as they could use its measurements to help develop a snow model for the eastern states and track snow and precipitation variability, putting data in context of continental changes.

The National Weather Service Burlington, Vermont staff also shared information about their snow stake and their monitoring infrastructure on the mountain. While they have a higher-tech monitoring system that transmits how much rainfall occurs at their station, their more iconic measuring unit is the "snow stake". This stake was first put up in 1954 and consists of a simple 12-foot-high wooden two-by-four, that is marked off with feet and stands at 3,900 feet of elevation on Mount Mansfield. The single data point has been tracked year after year, giving researchers records from the 1950s and the ability to see long term snow variability. The technology that Bomblies and Grunes are monitoring gives similar measurements to this stake, but with technology that allows automation and real-time transmission every ten minutes. The stake's proximity to the automated infrastructure allows them to dive deeper into the snowpack's history.

McKim explained that "observing the monitoring efforts firsthand highlighted how essential these systems are in tracking climatic patterns and understanding the changing dynamics of snowfall in the region. The data gathered at Mt. Mansfield and in the Summit-to-Shore system informs everything from local recreation to larger climate models, emphasizing the interconnectedness of regional efforts in a broader environmental context."

The Mount Mansfield measurement station is recording important measurements to help develop a snow model for the eastern states and track snow and precipitation variability.

After learning about these two important monitoring sites, participants from the varying affiliations asked key questions about the technology and the site geography, as well as offered up their suggestions on how to improve the research operations and long-term data. Before heading down into warmer elevations, Maddy Zimmerman, from UVM's Spatial Analysis Lab (SAL), shared how they are also collaborating on data collection with the Summit-to-Shore Project. Their lab is equipped and licensed to fly drones, all with the ability to hold a sensor or payload. Once the leaves fall off the trees in the Mount Mansfield area, the lab collects leaf-off data through imaging and LiDAR detection. By doing this before and after snowfall, Zimmerman and the SAL team can compare elevation levels and consequently, snow depth, contributing to the monitoring research by enhancing understanding of the variability of snow depth across the mountain.

As the afternoon arrived, the group descended the mountain for a tour of the Ranch Brook stream gauge and Mount Mansfield base monitoring site. They were led by Dr. Beverley Wemple, a hydrologic researcher and the director of UVM'S Water Resources Institute, and Garnet Williams, a UVM graduate researcher studying mid-winter melting.

Wemple explained that the stream monitoring at Ranch Brook shows the magnitude of extreme weather events in Vermont, as streams anchor water research. These water bodies can leverage infrastructure for many projects, including correcting national water models. Stream samples are important for finding the driving factor of run-off, which Williams is working on. His instrumentation is set up to understand how snow melt impacts stream flow, with the goal of using machine learning to correct stream level and flow conditions.

Garnet Williams, a UVM graduate researcher studying mid-winter melting, explains how snow melt impacts stream flow. Photo by Hannah Fischer

The interest in monitoring stream flow levels and snowpack conditions in the Northeast spiked significantly after a series of flooding events in Vermont. A large flooding event in 2011 stemmed from Hurricane Irene and broke long-standing flood records. This disaster was subsequently followed by more events in July 2023, December 2023, and July 2024, allowing for very little breaks between every "100 Year Flood", giving rise to a call for flood mitigation and new scientific modeling systems.

The participants had several opportunities to engage over the day, making meaningful connections to one another and understanding the diversity of knowledge each had to offer to NESS planning. Dr. Elizabeth A Burakowski, a Research Faculty member in the Institute for the Study of Earth, Oceans and Space at the University of New Hampshire emphasized the importance of the visit. "The day was extremely valuable for the NESS team and collaborators to tour the Mount Mansfield facilities and instrumentation", she said. "We had rich discussion on both challenges and opportunities that will inform our plans to expand automated snow and weather monitoring in northern New England."

The visit reinforced the need for a system of coordinated snow monitoring, as there is currently limited ability to predict flooding and water supply. It is critical to understand the environment and its impact on our landscapes and communities, especially in the changing northeast climate.

Public link

Please use the above public link if you want to share this noodl on another website.