Influence of Snow Cover on Soil temperature and Freeze Thaw Cycles across the United States

Snow depth, air and soil temperature, and soil moisture were downloaded for five locations from the United States Department of Agriculture Soil Climate Analysis Network (SCAN) ( https://www.wcc.nrcs.usda.gov/scan ). These locations were selected for the following reasons: 1) because of their proximity to specific landscape types, and 2) they have consistent data from 2009-2015. For each selected station and winter season, the daily time series data were downloaded for the corresponding ‘Water Year.’ A ‘Water Year’ is defined as October 1st of the previous year to September 30th of the specified year. For example, the 2009/2010 winter season is within the 2010 Water Year. Snow depth measurements were converted from inches to centimetres. All analysis and plots where done using Microsoft Office Excel for each selected station and winter season.

Changes in soil temperature, as a result of a warmer climate, will have profound effects on cold regions ecosystems. It is hypothesized that reduced snow cover can result in lower soil temperatures, more extensive soil freezing, and an increased frequency of soil freeze-thaw cycles. The objective of this research project is to investigate whether these hypotheses are supported by recent soil and meteorological observations, from monitoring stations across the United States, with seasonally freezing and thawing ground. This data set will be used to support the project titled "Winter Soil Processes in Transition", which is Pillar 1-2 project under the Global Water Futures Program funded by Canada First Research Excellence Fund.

Rezanezhad, F., & Mills, R. (2019). Influence of Snow Cover on Soil temperature and Freeze Thaw Cycles across the United States. Waterloo, Canada: Canadian Cryospheric Information Network (CCIN). (Unpublished Data).

Mahantango Creek, Pennsylvania; Lye Brooke, Vermont; Hubbard Brook, New Hampshire; Crescent Lake # 1, Minnesota; Glacial Ridge, Minnesota; Lower Mulchatna, Alaska

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