Title:

Melting Snows: The Threatened Lifeblood of the Western US

Day:

Friday

Date:

2012-06-22

Start Time:

07:00pm

End Time:

Sponsor:

JPL

Type:

Public Lecture

Summary:

Snowmelt from the Sierra Nevada and the mountains of the Upper Colorado River Basin provides the water upon which Western society is built. In recent years, increases in population and drought have pushed water demand past snowmelt-dominated supply.

Description:

The von Kármán Lecture Series: 2012

Dr. Thomas Painter
Research Scientist in the Water and Carbon Cycles Group, in the Earth Sciences Section, JPL

Snowmelt from the Sierra Nevada and the mountains of the Upper Colorado River Basin provides the water upon which Western society is built. In recent years, increases in population and drought have pushed water demand past snowmelt-dominated supply. Climate change and dust deposition from disturbed lands have already begun the encroachment on this precious resource. Drops of lake levels on Lake Mead have threatened unprecedented domestic and international reductions in deliveries and the threat to southern California’s water supply of a seismic breach of levies in the Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta hangs like the Sword of Damocles. JPL is developing the Airborne Snow Observatory and other systems to bring the nation to a mature monitoring of our snow resource to anchor cutting edge science and water management in an uncertain future.

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Location:

The Vosloh Forum at Pasadena City College

Address:

1570 East Colorado Blvd.

City:

Pasadena

Contact Name:

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