Snow hydrology

融雪是加拿大大部分地区对水资源最重要的贡献，因此不仅对加拿大的水安全至关重要，而且构成了气候变化对加拿大生态系统、社区和经济的许多影响的基础。由于气候和土地利用的变化，它在山区、草原和北方正在迅速变化。积雪模型用于许多水文、气象和生态应用。降雪过程已被确定为模式中持续存在弱点的一个领域。本研究的长期目标是通过提高对雪的基本认识来减少描述和预测雪水文的不确定性。本研究的具体目标是：1)提高对降雪和降雪能量输入的认识；2)提高对融雪和融水释放的认识；3)更好地描述雪与植被的相互作用。这种方法将把山区、北部和草原的创新实地观测方案与观测技术的实验室进展和基本雪水过程的数学模拟结合起来。实地方案、观测技术进步和计算机模拟将通过共同场址和一套计算平台对所有三个目标作出贡献。实地观测方案将利用已建立的研究盆地（高海拔-阿尔伯塔省的marmot Creek；高纬度-育空地区的Wolf Creek；草原/林地-萨斯喀彻温省的Smith Creek），用详细的物理测量来补充基线测量。观测方面的进展将主要集中在利用雪中的声波来确定积雪的内部结构和湿度。新的模式将在寒区水文模拟平台（CRHM）中进行评估，以确定改进的模式物理过程描述在多大程度上改善了寒区土壤湿度和河流流量的预测。

Snowmelt is the most significant contribution to water resources in most of Canada and so is not only vital to Canada's water security, but forms the basis for many impacts of climate change on Canadian ecosystems, communities and economies. It is changing rapidly in the mountains, prairies and north due to climate and land use change. Models of snowcover are used in many hydrological, meteorological and ecological applications. Snow processes have been identified as an area of continuing weakness in models. The long-term objective of this research is to reduce uncertainty in describing and predicting snow hydrology by improving the fundamental understanding of snow. The specific objectives of this research are to: 1) Improve the understanding of snowfall and energy inputs to snow, 2) Improve the understanding of snowmelt and meltwater release, 3) Better describe snow-vegetation interactions. The approach will combine innovative field observation programmes in the Mountains, North and Prairies with laboratory advances in observational techniques and mathematical simulations of the fundamental snow hydrology processes. The field programme, observational technique advance and computer modelling will contribute to all three objectives through common sites and suite of computational platforms. The field observation programme will use established research basins (high elevation -Marmot Creek, Alberta; high latitude - Wolf Creek, Yukon; prairie/woodland - Smith Creek, Saskatchewan) to supplement baseline measurements with detailed physical measurements. Observational advances will focus primarily on the use of sound waves in snow to determine the internal structure and wetness of the snowpack. New models will be evaluated in the Cold Regions Hydrological Modelling platform (CRHM) to determine the degree to which soil moisture and streamflow predictions in cold regions are improved by improved model physical process descriptions.