Before the First Snow
First choose a convenient spot away from the obstacles
such as a house, garage, shed, fence, large bushes, and
trees. Generally it should be about 10-12 feet from a 6 foot
fence. These objects aid in the piling up (drifting) of the
snow near them. The ideal spot will usually be in the middle
of your back or front yard away from trees and not in an
area frequently disturbed by pets.
Measure Snow Using a Snowboard
The goal is to achieve the most representative and accurate
measurement of snow accumulation, which is widely
known to be obtained using a snowboard.
A snowboard should be any lightly colored board that is
about 2 feet by 2 feet. A piece of plywood painted white
works very well. Ideally, it should be painted white to minimize
heating by sunlight. Place your snowboard in the spot
you have chosen. Mark the location of the snowboard with
a stake so you can find it after a fresh snowfall. Note: The location of the snowboard can change from snow event to snow event, depending on the wind speed and direction.
Measuring Snowfall
Snowfall is measured to the nearest tenth of an inch. Measure the greatest amount of snowfall that has
accumulated on your snowboard since the last observation. You can measure on a wooden deck or natural surface if
a snowboard is not available. Snowfall should not be measured more than 4 times in 24 hours. You can
measure the hourly snowfall rate, but do not clean off your board (or natural surface) each hour. Only clean off the board (or measuring area) when
you take one of the four daily measurements. Once the snow ends, add up the measurements from each time
the snowboard was cleaned to reach a storm total.
Special cases:
- Snow falls and accumulates on the snowboard, but then melts. In this case, the snowfall is the greatest
depth of snow observed on the board before it begins to melt. If this occurs several times, measure the
snowfall after each snow shower and add each measurement for the total snowfall.
- Snow falls and melts continuously on the board. In this case, if the snow never reaches a depth of a
tenth of an inch, then a trace of snowfall is recorded.
- Snow has blown or drifted onto the snowboard. In this case, take several measurements from around the
yard where the snow has not drifted, being careful only to measure new snow. Take an average of the
various measurements to arrive at a total.
- Sleet counts towards total snowfall, freezing rain accumulation does not.
Measuring Snow Depth
The depth of snow on the ground includes both new snow and
old snow which was in place. Measure the total snow depth at
several locations in your yard which have not drifted or blown.
Take an average of these measurements to arrive at the snow
depth. Sometimes old snow can be very hard and crusty underneath
the new snow. Be sure that the ruler gets all the way down
to the underlying ground. Snow depth is
measured to the nearest inch.
Relaying Real Time Information
- Real time reports are just as important to the NWS as snowfall measurements. Here are a few examples of
information that would be beneficial to forecast and warning operations.
- Change in precipitation type (rain to snow, snow to freezing rain, etc
- Snow Accumulation of 1 inch or more
- Heavy Snowfall Rate (example: snowing at 1 inch per hour)
- Significant Blowing or Drifting snow
- Is the snow, ice, or blowing snow having a major impact on travel
- What is occurring is not what is in the forecast
- Property damage
- Power outages
- Flooding
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