Automated Snow Pillows (ASP): Interpretation and Commentary

Commentary updated to June 6, 2008

Commentary
Snow Water Equivalent data at all BC ASP's are summarized in the following table: ASP SUMMARY

Snowmelt began vigorously in mid-May, and snow pillows across a range of elevations have now lost, and are continuing to lose, substantial portions of their accumulated winter snowpack. Over the past week (with near normal temperatures) most snow pillows have been losing snow water at the rate of approximately 15-30 mm per day.

A number of snow pillows are now at or near zero, including:
- Upper Fraser: McBride, Barkerville
- Nechako: Mount Wells, Mount Pondosy
- Thompson: Cook Creek
- Kootenay-Columbia: Moyie Mountain
- Okanagan: Brenda Mine
- Coastal: Nostetuko River, Upper Mosley Creek
- Peace: Pulpit Lake, Aiken Lake
- Skeena/Nass: Lu Lake, Cedar-Kitteen
- North-East: Kinaskan, Deadwood

Many other snow pillows have about one-half of their snow water remaining. Some pillows, particularly at high elevation Interior locations (Thompson, Upper Fraser, Columbia, Kootenay), and coastal and Vancouver Island locations, still have 50-75% of their peak snow water left to melt.

The snow pillow graphs are updated daily.

Caution in use of these data:

It should be noted that the snow pillow graphs plotted on these Web pages and the preceding commentary are based on preliminary data from snow pillows with widely varying periods of record. Caution should be exercised in drawing conclusions as the pillow record may not be accurate or represent the whole of the basin in which it is situated. Automatic Snow Pillow technology is relatively new, so many pillows have comparatively short periods of record. Apparent "record" readings may be the highest or lowest of short records and not indicative of abnormal conditions.