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Culture Documents
Cynthia O'Carroll
Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, Md.
(Phone: 301/614-5563)
RELEASE: 02-28
This month, dozens of scientists on the ground, in the air and using
satellite observations will begin a multi-year experiment to study
winter snow packs on the Colorado side of the Rocky Mountains. The
purpose of this NASA-funded experiment is to improve the estimation of
snow amount and forecasting of spring flooding due to snowmelt, and to
study the role of cold lands within the Earth's climate.
Scientists and students from six federal agencies and many universities
will be using skis, snowmobiles and aircraft to survey and sample snow
during this NASA Cold Land Processes Experiment (CLPX). They will also
use microwave measurements from satellites and aircraft to measure
characteristics of the snow pack and the freeze/thaw state of the land
surface.
The CLPX field campaign will employ two aircraft and measurements from
NASA's Terra and Aqua satellites to gather snow data by remote sensing.
The data gathered on the ground and from the aircraft will then be
compared to the information obtained by the satellites. Aqua is being
launched this year and will be operational for the 2003 campaign. By
determining the accuracy of the satellites and developing improved snow
sensors, researchers hope to someday be able to measure snow quantity
and frozen ground from space for the global views needed by forecast
models.
http://www.gsfc.nasa.gov/topstory/20020216coldland.html
http://www.nohrsc.nws.gov/~cline/clp.html
http://lshp.gsfc.nasa.gov
http://www.crrel.usace.army.mil
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