Identification of Pacific Ocean sea surface temperature influences of Upper Colorado River Basin snowpack

dc.contributor.authorAziz, Oubeidillah A.
dc.contributor.authorTootle, Glenn A.
dc.contributor.authorGray, Stephen T.
dc.contributor.authorPiechota, Thomas C.
dc.contributor.otherUniversity of Tennessee System
dc.contributor.otherUniversity of Tennessee Knoxville
dc.contributor.otherUniversity of Wyoming
dc.contributor.otherNevada System of Higher Education (NSHE)
dc.contributor.otherUniversity of Nevada Las Vegas
dc.contributor.otherUniversity of Alabama Tuscaloosa
dc.coverage.spatialColorado River Watershed (Colo.-Mexico)
dc.coverage.spatialPacific Ocean
dc.coverage.spatialUtah
dc.coverage.spatialColorado
dc.date.accessioned2018-10-17T21:14:39Z
dc.date.available2018-10-17T21:14:39Z
dc.date.issued2010-07-27
dc.description.abstractGiven the importance of Upper Colorado River Basin (UCRB) snowpack as the primary driver of streamflow (water supply) for the southwestern United States, the identification of Pacific Ocean climatic drivers (e. g., sea surface temperature (SST) variability) may prove valuable in long-lead-time forecasting of snowpack in this critical region. Previous research efforts have identified El Nino-Southern Oscillation (ENSO) and Pacific Decadel Oscillation (PDO) as the main drivers for western U. S. snowpack, but these drivers have limited influence on regional (Utah and Colorado) UCRB snowpack. The current research applies for the first time the Singular Value Decomposition (SVD) statistical method to Pacific Ocean SSTs and continental U. S. snowpack to identify the primary Pacific Ocean climatic driver of UCRB snowpack. The use of SSTs eliminates any "bias" as to specific climate signals. The second mode of SVD identified a UCRB snowpack region (Colorado and Utah) and a corresponding Pacific Ocean SST region. A "non-ENSO/non-PDO" Pacific Ocean SST region between 34 degrees N-24 degrees S and 150 degrees E-160 degrees W was identified as being the primary driver of UCRB snowpack. To confirm the UCRB snowpack results, data from 13 unimpaired (or naturalized) streamflow gages in Colorado and Utah were used to evaluate and support the snowpack findings. Finally, a new and beneficial data set (western U.S. 1 March, 1 April, and 1 May snow water equivalent) was developed, which may be used in future research efforts.en_US
dc.format.mimetypeapplication/pdf
dc.identifier.citationAziz, O., et al. (2010): Identification of Pacific Ocean Sea Surface Temperature Influences of Upper Colorado River Basin Snowpack. Water Resources Research, 46(7). DOI: https://doi.org/10.1029/2009WR008053
dc.identifier.doi10.1029/2009WR008053
dc.identifier.urihttp://ir.ua.edu/handle/123456789/4043
dc.languageEnglish
dc.language.isoen_US
dc.publisherAmerican Geophysical Union
dc.subjectATLANTIC MULTIDECADAL OSCILLATION
dc.subjectSINGULAR-VALUE DECOMPOSITION
dc.subjectWESTERN UNITED-STATES
dc.subjectEL-NINO
dc.subjectCARIBBEAN RAINFALL
dc.subjectSUMMER DROUGHT
dc.subjectCLIMATE
dc.subjectVARIABILITY
dc.subjectENSO
dc.subjectPRECIPITATION
dc.subjectEnvironmental Sciences
dc.subjectLimnology
dc.subjectWater Resources
dc.subjectEnvironmental Sciences & Ecology
dc.subjectMarine & Freshwater Biology
dc.titleIdentification of Pacific Ocean sea surface temperature influences of Upper Colorado River Basin snowpacken_US
dc.typetext
dc.typeArticle
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