Seasonal snow performs a major function in international water and vitality cycles, and billions of individuals worldwide depend on snowmelt for water assets wants, together with water provide, hydropower, agriculture, and extra. Monitoring snow water equal (SWE) is crucial for supporting these purposes and for mitigating damages attributable to snowmelt flooding, avalanches, and different snow-related disasters. Nevertheless, our means to measure SWE stays a problem, significantly in northern latitudes the place in situ SWE observations are sparse and satellite tv for pc observations are impacted by the boreal forest and environmental situations. Regardless of restricted in situ SWE measurements, native residents in Arctic and sub-Arctic areas present an unlimited and beneficial physique of place-based information and observations which can be important for understanding snowpack conduct in northern areas.
As a part of a joint NASA SnowEx, NASA’s Minority University Research and Education Project (MUREP) for American Indian and Alaska Native STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, & Mathematics) Engagement (MAIANSE), and Global Learning & Observations to Benefit the Environment (GLOBE) Program partnership, a crew of scientists together with NASA intern Julia White (NASA Goddard House Flight Middle, College of Alaska Fairbanks), Carrie Vuyovich (NASA Goddard House Flight Middle), Alicia Joseph (NASA Goddard House Flight Middle), and Christi Buffington (College of Alaska Fairbanks, GLOBE Implementation Workplace) is finding out snow water equal (SWE) throughout Inside Alaska. This challenge combines satellite-based interferometric artificial aperture radar (InSAR) information, primarily from the Sentinel-1 satellite tv for pc, with ground-based observations from the Snow Telemetry (SNOTEL) community and GLOBE (International Studying Observations to Profit the Atmosphere). Collectively, these information sources assist the crew examine how SWE varies throughout the panorama and the way it impacts native ecosystems and communities. The crew can also be getting ready for future integration of information from NASA’s upcoming NISAR (NASA ISRO Artificial Aperture Radar) mission, which is predicted to boost SWE retrieval capabilities.
After a collaborative go to to the classroom of Tammie Kovalenko in November 2024, Delta Junction junior and senior highschool college students in vocational agriculture (Vo Ag) lessons, together with members of Future Farmers of America (FFA), started gathering GLOBE information on a snowdrift positioned simply outdoors their classroom. Because the challenge progressed, college students developed their very own analysis questions. One scholar, Fianna Rooney, took the challenge even additional — presenting analysis posters at each the GLOBE Worldwide Digital Science Symposium (IVSS) and each the FFA Regional and Nationwide Conventions. Her work highlights the rising function of Alaskan youth in science, and the way student-led inquiry can enrich each training and analysis outcomes. (This journey was funded by the NASA Science Activation Program’s Arctic and Earth SIGNs – STEM Integrating GLOBE & NASA – challenge on the College of Alaska Fairbanks.)
In February 2025, the crew collaborated with Delta Junction Junior Excessive and Excessive Faculty college students, together with the Delta Junction Trails Affiliation, to conduct a GLOBE Intensive Remark Interval (IOP), “Delta Junction Snowdrifts,” to gather Landcover photographs, snow depth, and snow water equal information. Because of aligned pursuits and analysis targets on the Alaska Satellite tv for pc Facility (ASF), the challenge was additional expanded into Spring 2025. Collaborators from ASF and the Alaska Middle for Unmanned Plane Programs Integration (ACUASI) collected excessive decision airborne information over the snowdrift on the Delta Junction Junior and Senior Excessive Faculty. This complementary dataset helped strengthen connections between satellite tv for pc observations and ground-based scholar measurements.
This effort, led by a NASA intern, scientists, college students, and Alaskan group members, highlights the ability of collaboration in advancing science and training. Subsequent steps will embrace collaboration with Native Alaskan communities close to Delta Junction, together with the Healy Lake Tribe, whose huge, generational information shall be of nice worth to deepening our understanding of Alaskan snow dynamics.
Study extra about how NASA’s Science Activation program connects NASA science consultants, actual content material, and experiences with group leaders to do science in ways in which activate minds and promote deeper understanding of our world and past: https://science.nasa.gov/learn/about-science-activation/