Rain, not snow: Extraordinary warmth leaves mountains less snowy across the West

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At UC Berkeley’s Central Sierra Snow Laboratory, located at 6,894 feet above sea level near Donner Pass, researchers collect detailed measurements of the snowpack each day.There is still some snow on the ground to measure, but less than they usually see in late January.

The reason: Extraordinary warmth has been the norm across the West this winter.Many areas, from the Sierra Nevada to the Rocky Mountains, have experienced record or near-record high temperatures since November.The result is a snowpack far smaller than average for this time of year in most parts of the mountains, especially at lower elevations.“The story so far at the lab has been that we’ve had a warm winter where we’ve had plenty of rain, not necessarily as much snow as we would hope,” said Andrew Schwartz, the lab’s director.So far this winter, the lab has recorded precipitation that measures 120% of average, but the warm temperatures have meant more precipitation falling as rain rather than snow.As of Jan.

23, the snowpack at the lab stood at 61% of average for this time of year, with about 2 feet of snow covering the ground around the facility.Other areas are faring worse.In parts of Utah, Colorado and other Western states, federal data show snow levels at some locations are at or near record lows.Across the Sierra Nevada, measurements show that California’s snowpack stands at 66% of average for this time of year.

There are regional differences, with the northern Sierra measuring 50% of average and the southern Sierra at 86% of average — boosted by above-average snowpack on some of the high peaks.There has been very little snow in low-elevation and mid-elevation areas this winter — a symptom of climate change, as warmer temperatures push average snowlines higher.“That is the classic global warming mountain snowpack signature,” said Daniel Swain, a climate scientist with UC Agriculture a...