|
News Release
November 19, 2008
Story Idea
What: Boise State geoscientist is helping an international group of
researchers develop “snow radar” to assess snowpack for water forecasts
Hans-Peter Marshall, researcher and new assistant geosciences professor at
Boise State University, believes there is more to a reflection than meets
the eye — especially when the eye belongs to a satellite. Since 2003, he has
been providing high-resolution “ground truth” surveys of snowpack water
content for satellite calibration experiments, collaborating with scientists
from NASA, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, the U.S.
Forest Service and universities in the U.S. and Europe.
 |
 |
Marshall1, Marshall2
Cutlines at end
of release
Click to enlarge images |
Using portable radar he developed while working on his Ph.D., Marshall can
estimate the amount of water the snowpack represents orders of magnitude
faster than gathering and weighing core samples by hand. He also uses this
system to simulate airborne and satellite measurements to better understand
the snow’s effect on these signals and believes space-based “snow radar” may
be key to accurately assessing depth and water content at the watershed and
mountain range scale worldwide.
Marshall explained how the system works in a National Public Radio segment
that aired on “Morning Edition” Nov. 14 in Washington and Nov. 17 in Oregon
and Idaho.
“You measure a reflection from the surface of the snow and then a reflection
from the ground. You time the amount of time it takes that signal to go
through. It’s on the order of nanoseconds. It’s a very short signal, but
from that you can estimate the amount of water that snowpack represents,”
Marshall told regional NPR reporter Tom Banse.
If the research team’s work bears fruit, irrigators, drinking water
utilities, dam operators and fish biologists in dry climates like southern
Idaho’s will have an easier time assessing mountain snowpack levels that
help indicate stream flows and overall environmental health. Marshall will
start monitoring the snowpack at local field sites this winter.
For more information, contact Hans-Peter Marshall at (208) 426-1416 or
hpmarshall@boisestate.edu. To
hear audio from his recent interview on NPR, visit
http://news.opb.org/article/3558-measuring-mountain-snowpack-space.
Boise State University is “The New U Rising” with record student enrollment,
new academic buildings, additional degree programs and a growing research
agenda. Learn more at www.boisestate.edu.
FOR CUTLINES
Marshall1: Hans-Peter Marshall making snow density measurements.
Marshall2: Hans-Peter Marshall, his sled dog Yukon and Andy Gleason of the
University of Colorado making radar measurements at 12,000 feet in an
avalanche starting zone.
The Office of Communications and Marketing - Boise State
University
1910 University Drive - Boise Idaho 83725-1030
Located in Capitol Village, 2225 W. University Drive
email
communications@boisestate.edu
Last reviewed on
Monday, December 01, 2008
|
