# Presentation: 023641

## Automated Snow Sensor Experiment

_**Overview**_
**In 2003, Nolan Doesken (Colorado State Climatologist) was granted funding from Headquarters, to perform testing of snow sensors.**
**Also in 2003, the Grand Rapids Weather Forecast Office and a few other NWS field offices purchased automated snow sensors, due to the need for improvement of snowfall readings.**
**In 2004, a partnership developed between NWS field offices and Colorado State University, with respect to an increase in the number of offices performing testing.**

***NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE ***
***WFO GRAND RAPIDS MI***

## National Test Sites...

## Automated Snow Sensor Experiment

**	****	****-first fence is 10' radius from sensor****	**
**	****	****-second fence is 20' radius from sensor**
**2)  Digital sensor output brought into a Linux Box**
**Depth and Temperature readings are parsed and stored in a MYSQL database every 5-minutes using an algorithm to minimize outliers**
**4)    HTML PHP pages have been written to query database and allow visual access to data or graphical output**

***NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE ***
***WFO GRAND RAPIDS MI***

**Inner Ring 10' from sensor**

**Outer Ring 20' from sensor**

***Automated Snow Sensor Experiment***

## Ultrasonic Depth Sensor 

***with temperature probe***

| An integrated temperature probe with solar radiation shield, provides an air temperature measurement for properly compensating the distance measured.  An embedded microcontroller calculates a temperature compensated distance and performs an error checking routine. 
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**The Judd Communications ultrasonic depth sensor is an inexpensive solution for remotely measuring snow depth. **
**The sensor works by measuring the time required for an ultrasonic pulse to travel to and from a target surface. **

## Side View of Sensor...

## Benefits of automated Snow Sensor...

**- Provides snowfall data in remote locations**
**- Provides snowfall data around the clock (24-hrs)**
**- Allows for the analysis of melting and compaction rates**
** ****Provides snowfall rates for Short Term Forecasting (*****NOW’s*****)**
** ****Provides enhanced service to customers**

***Benefits of automated Snow Sensor...***

## Example of a 7-day graphical output

***Example of a 7-day graphical output***

**Freezing Line**

## January 7, 2004 event...

**Looking north from east side...**

**Looking north from west side...**

**Soil temperature sensor**

**Frost depth gauge**

**Snow Sensor**

## Automated Snow Sensor Data...

***January 7, 2004***

**Time (UTC) – Date****	****              Temp (°C)       Temp (°F)     Depth**** ****(Inch)**

**False Reports**

| 12:45 - 01/07/2004 | -11.5 | 11.3 | 7.8 |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 12:40 - 01/07/2004 | -11.5 | 11.3 | 7.9 |
| 12:35 - 01/07/2004 | -11.5 | 11.3 | 7.8 |
| 12:30 - 01/07/2004 | -11.5 | 11.3 | 7.8 |
| 12:25 - 01/07/2004 | -11.0 | 12.2 | 7.1 |
| 12:20 - 01/07/2004 | -11.5 | 11.3 | 6.5 |
| 12:15 - 01/07/2004 | -11.5 | 11.3 | 7.3 |
| 12:10 - 01/07/2004 | -11.5 | 11.3 | 7.6 |
| 12:05 - 01/07/2004 | -11.5 | 11.3 | 7.8 |
|  |  |  |  |

**?**

## January 28, 2004 Blizzard Event...

**Looking north from east side...**

**Looking north from west side...**

**Uniform distribution of snow inside inner circle...**

## Automated Snow Sensor Data...

***January 26 - 28, 2004***

**Light snow collapsing...**

**   ****Time (UTC) – Date****	****	****            Temp (°C)         Temp (°F)   ****	****Depth (Inch)**

| 23:50 - 01/27/2004 | -7.0 | 19.4 | 10.2 |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 23:45 - 01/27/2004 | -7.0 | 19.4 | 10.1 |
| 23:40 - 01/27/2004 | -6.5 | 20.3 | 9.9 |
| 23:35 - 01/27/2004 | -6.5 | 20.3 | 9.8 |
| 23:30 - 01/27/2004 | -6.5 | 20.3 | 9.7 |
| 23:25 - 01/27/2004 | -7.0 | 19.4 | 9.7 |
| 23:20 - 01/27/2004 | -6.5 | 20.3 | 9.4 |
| 23:15 - 01/27/2004 | -6.9 | 19.6 | 9.6 |
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## Internal Software Capabilities

***Internal Software Capabilities***

***Forecaster User Interface***

## Internal Software Capabilities

**This manual snowfall report form is merged with the snow sensor database to allow direct comparison between manual and automated sensor readings.**

***Manual snow observation entry ***

## Internal Software Capabilities

***Internal Software Capabilities***

***Archive Retrieval GUI***

## Internal Software CapabilitiesArchived Database

## Future Enhancements...

**1) Improve algorithms to handle false reports and snow collapses during events**
**2) Introduce additional snow sensors to enhance sensitivity :    **
**	****-Lake Effect Snow**
**	****-Low Water Equivalent Snow**
**3) Increase outer fence for drifting pattern :**
**	****-this would decrease likelihood of turbulent eddies in atmosphere **
**	****over snow sensor**
**4) Introduce Wind Sensors to study eddy patterns over wind fence**
** **

## Automated Snow Sensor Experiment

**For additional information check out our website at****: **
- _[http://www.crh.noaa.gov/grr/snowsensor](http://www.crh.noaa.gov/grr/snowsensor)_
**or contact:**
**David Beachler MIT WFO GRR ****david.beachler@noaa.gov**