Applications
Satellite-based information on snow cover days (SCD) and snow water equivalent (SWE) can be applied for climatological assessment of snow conditions in vast areas. It provides insight on climatological differences between the highlands and lowlands, which may not be captured by in-situ measurements if the observation network is sparse. As satellite-based time series are getting longer it is possible to track regional and global climate trends.
Satellite-based SWE can provide information about snow melt conditions and meltwater availability in the region. Accurate information on snow cover is important for short-term weather forecasts, climate trend analysis, forecasting of hydrological extremes (drought and flood), and water resource management (Dong et al., 2005). Long-term variations of snow cover parameters are important for agriculture, recreation and civil engineering, among others.
Information about snowpack conditions is of particular interest for the hydrological community. Hydrologists generally want to know how much water is stored in a basin in the form of snow. Hydrologists are also concerned with the areal distribution of the snow, its condition and the presence of liquid water in it. In general, all these indicators of snow are difficult to measure and are likely to vary considerably from point to point (WMO CHy-14, 2012). This requirement of spatially consistent snow data can be met by using satellite data.