We Hypothesize:

Seasonal changes in snowpack have a profound influence on the energetics and population dynamics (e.g. the energy expenditure, foraging patterns, predator-prey interactions, hibernation, etc) of wildlife that reside in snow covered regions. That said, substantial uncertainty remains in understanding the key processes that drive the life cycle of snow in regions with sparse meteorological stations and complex terrain. This uncertainty greatly impedes our understanding of how snowpack characteristics impact wildlife populations, which makes it difficult to predict how climate change may impact wildlife as it alters snowpacks. The overarching goal of our study is to address the coupled questions: what are the key factors driving snow accumulation and disappearance during shoulder seasons, and which snow properties are most important for wildlife applications? To address this question, we are partnering with wildlife biologist Laura Prugh from the School of Environmental and Forest Sciences at the University of Washington and with snow assimilation specialist Mike Durand from Ohio State University to determine how we can best use snow measurements from space to predict snow factors important to wildlife.