On October 29, 2024, NASA's Earth Science Technology Office (ESTO) announced significant progress in snowmelt forecasting with the development of SNOWWI, a dual-frequency synthetic aperture radar. This technology aims to improve the accuracy of snowmass measurements, critical for freshwater supply in the western United States, where melted snow contributes up to 75% of annual freshwater.
The SNOWWI prototype successfully flew for the first time in Grand Mesa, Colorado, gathering valuable data on winter snowfields. Paul Siqueira, the principal investigator and professor at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst, emphasized the transition from laboratory hardware to a functioning instrument that produces meaningful data.
SNOWWI, which stands for Snow Water-equivalent Wide Swath Interferometer and Scatterometer, utilizes two Ku-band radar signals to analyze snowpack. The high-frequency signal assesses the snow's microstructure, while the low-frequency signal measures total depth, allowing researchers to differentiate between these influences more effectively.
From an altitude of 2.5 miles (4 kilometers), SNOWWI can map 40 square miles (100 square kilometers) in 30 minutes. Plans are underway to adapt SNOWWI for satellite missions in collaboration with Capella Space.
Future field campaigns will further test SNOWWI's capabilities, particularly in complex terrains. Chris Derksen, a glaciologist involved in the project, noted the potential for SNOWWI to provide a reliable global database of snowpack measurements, crucial for managing freshwater resources and ecological health.
“Snowmelt is money. It has intrinsic economic value,” Derksen stated, highlighting the importance of monitoring this resource effectively.