Baseflow from Snow and Rain in Mountain Watersheds
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  • Release Date: 2024-07-08
  • baseflow
  • peak SWE
  • precipitation during snowmelt
  • summer rain
  • Colorado
Video Introduction

This video is adapted from 10.3390/w16121665

After peak snowmelt, baseflow is the primary contributor to streamflow in snow-dominated watersheds. These low flows provide important water for municipal, agricultural, and recreational purposes once peak flows have been allocated. This study examines the correlation between peak snow water equivalent (SWE), post-peak SWE precipitation, and baseflow characteristics, including any yearly lag in baseflow. To reflect the hydrologic processes that are occurring in snow-dominated watersheds, researchers propose using a melt year (MY) beginning with the onset of snowmelt contributions (the first deviation from baseflow) and ending with the onset of the following year’s snowmelt contributions. Researchers identified the beginning of an MY and extracted the subsequent baseflow values using flow duration curves (FDCs) for 12 watersheds of varying sizes across Colorado, USA. Based on the findings, peak SWE and summer rain both dictate baseflow, especially for the larger watersheds evaluated, as identified by higher correlations with the MY-derived baseflow. Lags in the correlation between baseflow and peak SWE are best identified when low-snow years are investigated separately from high-snow years. The MY is a different and more effective approach to calculating baseflow using FDCs in snow-dominated watersheds in Colorado.

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Fassnacht, S.; Flynn, H.; Macdonald, M.S.; Pfohl, A.K.D. Baseflow from Snow and Rain in Mountain Watersheds. Encyclopedia. Available online: https://encyclopedia.pub/video/video_detail/1310 (accessed on 27 July 2024).
Fassnacht S, Flynn H, Macdonald MS, Pfohl AKD. Baseflow from Snow and Rain in Mountain Watersheds. Encyclopedia. Available at: https://encyclopedia.pub/video/video_detail/1310. Accessed July 27, 2024.
Fassnacht, Steven, Helen Flynn, Marin S. Macdonald, Anna K. D. Pfohl. "Baseflow from Snow and Rain in Mountain Watersheds" Encyclopedia, https://encyclopedia.pub/video/video_detail/1310 (accessed July 27, 2024).
Fassnacht, S., Flynn, H., Macdonald, M.S., & Pfohl, A.K.D. (2024, July 08). Baseflow from Snow and Rain in Mountain Watersheds. In Encyclopedia. https://encyclopedia.pub/video/video_detail/1310
Fassnacht, Steven, et al. "Baseflow from Snow and Rain in Mountain Watersheds." Encyclopedia. Web. 08 July, 2024.
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