Snow plays a vital role in the energy and water budgets of drainage basins of western Canada. Various remote sensors such as Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS), Advanced Microwave Scanning Radiometer (AMSR-E) and Special Sensor Microwave/Imager (SSM/I) have been launched to map the snow cover extent (SCE), snow cover fraction (SCF), and snow water equivalent (SWE) across the globe. However, the distribution and variability of snow inferred from remote sensing products have not been comprehensively investigated in western Canada owing to its complex topography and harsh environment. So far, little research has been conducted on SCE-streamflow and SCE-SWE-runoff models focusing on Canadian watersheds where snow cover is very important for human well being. Although microwave remote sensing of snow is widely developed and applied in Canada, the retrieval of SWE in western Canada is not as well established owing to the complex topography in this area. Therefore, the Quesnel River Basin (QRB) of British Columbia is selected as a primary test site to develop and test SCE-streamflow and SCE-SWE-runoff models. Then the Mackenzie River Basin (MRB) is chosen as a secondary test site to apply the Environment Canada (EC) SWE retrieval algorithms to upscale the hydrometeorological research. In this thesis, a new approach referred to as the spatial filter (SF) method is developed to decrease the cloud coverage in the MODIS snow products. At the same time, the new snow products are evaluated based on in-situ observations of snow depth in the QRB. Then the relationships between SCF from MODIS, topography, and hydrometeorology of the QRB are explored. In addition, various retrieval algorithms of SWE from microwave remote sensing are tested in the QRB. At last, the Environment Canada algorithms of SWE from SSM/I are adopted to produce new SCF products evaluated with the MODIS snow products. The relationships between SWE and SCF from SSM/I and hydrometeorology are also investigated in the MRB ...The stud.

Extreme weather and climate change aggravate the frequency and magnitude of disasters. Facing atypical and more severe events, existing early warning and response systems become inadequate both in scale and scope. Earth Observation (EO) provides today information at global, regional and even basin scales related to agrometeorological hazards. This book focuses on drought, flood, frost, landslides, and storms/cyclones and covers different applications of EO data used from prediction to mapping damages as well as recovery for each category. It explains the added value of EO technology in comparison with conventional techniques applied today through many case studies.

The two principal topics of this workshop were hydrological modelling and microwave radiometry. The hydrologic models session concentrated on applications of GOES, NOAA, and Landsat data in various hydrologic watershed models and contained discussion on means of increasing the utility of satellites for hydrologic modellers. The microwave hydrology session focused on promising applications and the benefits of this method of data collection for monitoring, modelling and forecasting at field and basin scales. The publication includes the texts of all session presentations and related workshops. A list of participants concludes the proceedings.

Published by the American Geophysical Union as part of the Geophysical Monograph Series, Volume 163. The North, with its vast and varied landscapes, sparse population, and cold climate has always challenged its explorers: physically, mentally, logistically, and technically. The scientific community in particular has known such challenges in the past and does so today, especially in light of the projected intensification of climate change at high latitudes. Indeed, there are clear signs that change is already ongoing in many environmental variables: Air temperature and annual precipitation (including snowfall) are increasing in many regions; spring snow cover extent is decreasing; lake and river ice freeze-up dates are occurring later and breakup dates earlier; glaciers are retreating rapidly; permafrost temperatures are increasing and, in many cases, the permafrost is thawing; and sea-ice extent is at record minimums and thinning.