A COMPARISON OF GEOSTATISTICAL METHODOLOGIES USED TO ESTIMATE SNOW WATER EQUIVALENT

The need to monitor and forecast water resources accurately, particula rly in the western United States, is becoming increasingly critical as the demand for water continues to escalate. Consequently, the Nationa l Weather Service (NWS) has developed a geostatistical model that is u sed to obtain areal estimates of snow water equivalent (the total wate r content in all phases of the snowpack), a major source of water in t he West. The areal snow water equivalent estimates are used to update the hydrologic simulation models maintained by the NWS and designed to produce extended streamflow forecasts for river systems throughout th e United States. An alternative geostatistical technique has been prop osed to estimate snow water equivalent. In this research, we describe the two methodologies and compare the accuracy of the estimates produc ed by each technique. We illustrate their application and compare thei r estimation accuracy using snow data collected in the North Fork Clea rwater River basin in Idaho.