The Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) installs, operates and maintains an extensive, automated system to collect snowpack and related climatic data in the western United States called SNOTEL (for SNOwpack TELemetry). SNOTEL sensors collect hourly data on temperature, precipitation and snow water equivalent. Data can be displayed as tables or graphs for individual stations, drainage basins or regions. Data can also be displayed on snowpack maps. The data ranges from the 1970s to the present. Climate studies, air and water quality investigations, and resource management concerns are all served by the SNOTEL network. The high-elevation watershed locations and the broad coverage of the network provide important data collection opportunities to researchers, water managers, and emergency managers for natural disasters such as floods or droughts.
