Articles | Volume 16, issue 2
https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-16-505-2022
https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-16-505-2022
Research article
 | 
11 Feb 2022
Research article |  | 11 Feb 2022

GNSS signal-based snow water equivalent determination for different snowpack conditions along a steep elevation gradient

Achille Capelli, Franziska Koch, Patrick Henkel, Markus Lamm, Florian Appel, Christoph Marty, and Jürg Schweizer

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Cited articles

Appel, F., Koch, F., Rösel, A., Klug, P., Henkel, P., Lamm, M., Mauser, W., and Bach, H.: Advances in snow hydrology using a combined approach of GNSS in situ stations, hydrological modelling and Earth observation: a case study in Canada, Geosciences, 9, 44, https://doi.org/10.3390/geosciences9010044, 2019. 
Avanzi, F., Bianchi, A., Cina, A., De Michele, C., Maschio, P., Pagliari, D., Passoni, D., Pinto, L., Piras, M., and Rossi, L.: Centimetric accuracy in snow depth using unmanned aerial system photogrammetry and a MultiStation, Remote Sensing, 10, 765, https://doi.org/10.3390/rs10050765, 2018. 
Bojinski, S., Verstraete, M., Peterson, T. C., Richter, C., Simmons, A., and Zemp, M.: The concept of essential climate variables in support of climate research, applications, and policy, B. Am. Meteorol. Soc., 95, 1431–1443, https://doi.org/10.1175/bams-d-13-00047.1, 2014. 
Boniface, K., Braun, J. J., McCreight, J. L., and Nievinski, F. G.: Comparison of snow data assimilation system with GPS reflectometry snow depth in the Western United States, Hydrol. Process., 29, 2425–2437, https://doi.org/10.1002/hyp.10346, 2015. 
Botteron, C., Dawes, N., Leclere, J., Skaloud, J., Weijs, S. V., and Farine, P. A.: Soil moisture & snow properties determination with GNSS in Alpine environments: Challenges, status, and perspectives, Remote Sensing, 5, 3516–3543, https://doi.org/10.3390/rs5073516, 2013. 
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Short summary
Snow occurrence, snow amount, snow density and liquid water content (LWC) can vary considerably with climatic conditions and elevation. We show that low-cost Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) sensors as GPS can be used for reliably measuring the amount of water stored in the snowpack or snow water equivalent (SWE), snow depth and the LWC under a broad range of climatic conditions met at different elevations in the Swiss Alps.