AI Governance
Data Centers
Drones
Climate
Privacy
2026 Maine Senate
Bob Dylan
Last Update: 10/26/2026 at 11:33 PM EST
Western Snow Drought
Coverage from Cowboy State Daily, Gizmodo, and others
Mountain snowpack acts as seasonal water storage across the American West, releasing runoff into rivers and reservoirs as it melts.
Warmer winters can mean more rain instead of snow, while heat can speed snowmelt, leaving less water available later and contributing to dry soils and heightened wildfire risk. These changes affect water supplies, hydropower, agriculture, recreation, and ecosystems across regions including the Sierra Nevada and Colorado River Basin. Understanding the links between temperature, snow accumulation, melt timing, and downstream impacts helps communities plan for variable water availability.
Looking Back
228 Day Timeline
Jan 22
Feb 26
Apr 9
May 14
Jun 18
Jul 30
Sep 3
History
10/03/2026
The update adds a clearer account of how rainier conditions and earlier melt shifted runoff forward, and reports active conservation and monitoring responses by water managers. These details sharpen the operational picture but do not change the story’s central assessment.
All Articles52 articles
Important
Researchers from the Colorado School of Mines and University of Wyoming found in a 2026 PNAS study that human-caused warming increased the likelihood of the Western U.S. snow drought.
9/6/2026 • Climate Science & Impacts • General
Researchers found that climate-driven snow-eater heatwaves in the western United States are becoming earlier and more frequent, rapidly melting mountain snowpack and increasing drought, wildfire, and flood risks.
8/13/2026 • Climate Science & Impacts • General
Researchers from Colorado and Wyoming found that human-caused climate change increased the likelihood of the West's severe snow drought across the Mountain West.
8/13/2026 • Climate Science & Impacts • General
Marianne Cowherd and collaborating researchers found in a July 20 study that climate change made the 2026 western U.S. snow drought about four times more frequent.
8/8/2026 • Climate Science & Impacts • General
A Colorado School of Mines-led attribution study in PNAS finds climate change increases low-snow winter drought likelihood across the U.S. West and projects much higher future risk.
7/22/2026 • Climate Science & Impacts • General
Colorado School of Mines researchers reported human-caused warming increased the 2026 Western snow drought odds, especially in the Upper Colorado River Basin.
7/20/2026 • Climate Science & Impacts • General
Researchers studying the Western United States found that increasingly early and widespread snow eater heat waves rapidly melt mountain snowpack, creating greater flooding and summer water-supply risks.
8/14/2026 • Climate Science & Impacts • General
Researchers reported attribution results in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences linking industrial warming to substantially higher likelihood of extreme snow droughts in the American West.
7/22/2026 • Climate Science & Impacts • General
Columbia University researchers report in Science that a warming climate has intensified a megadrought across the western United States and northern Mexico during 2000–2018.
1/1/1900 • Climate Science & Impacts • General
Researchers from UCLA NASA and the Columbia Climate School report a 22 year megadrought in the southwestern North American region spanning southern Montana to northern Mexico, with aridity likely to persist through 2022 due to anthropogenic warming.
1/1/1900 • Climate Science & Impacts • General
NOAA NCEI found spring 2026 was the second warmest on record in the contiguous U.S., driving record-low snowpack and severe drought that threaten runoff and water supplies.
6/8/2026 • Climate Science & Impacts • General
Climate change intensified a Western US snow drought during the discussed year, reducing summer water supplies and increasing groundwater use, wildfire risk, and agricultural stress across major basins.
8/20/2026 • Climate Science & Impacts • General
Climate risks from drought are expected to intensify during a strong El Nino period, amplifying heat, wildfire, and food and water insecurity in multiple regions.
5/7/2026 • Climate Science & Impacts • General
Climate Central-linked record warmth and a March 2026 heat wave in the western U.S. produced record-low April 1 snowpack, raising water and wildfire risks.
3/31/2026 • Climate Science & Impacts • General
Washington State Department of Ecology released a legislative forecast projecting more rain-based winter precipitation and summer water declines affecting Yakima Valley agriculture through the 2040s.
7/22/2026 • Climate Science & Impacts • General
Scientists report record spring drought across the Lower 48, with NOAA metrics and low snowpack indicating heightened wildfire, food, and water risks during the upcoming months.
4/18/2026 • Climate Science & Impacts • General
Scientists and water managers in the American West report record-warm winter and March heat reduced snowpack, shrinking Colorado River runoff and raising drought, wildfire risk, and water restriction planning.
4/8/2026 • Climate Science & Impacts • General
California snow surveys found Sierra Nevada snowpack at 18% of average by April 1 after extreme heat, increasing risks for water supply and wildfire management.
3/31/2026 • Climate Science & Impacts • General
Baker Perry and Julie Loisel organized a June 1-4 workshop at University of Nevada, Reno to address high-elevation climate risks to mountain water and ecosystems.
6/17/2026 • Climate Science & Impacts • General
NASA Earth Observatory reports snow drought in western United States in early 2026 due to warmer temperatures.
1/29/2026 • Climate Science & Impacts • General
Scientists report that record-low snowpack and record warm winter temperatures across the Western United States in early 2026 are endangering regional water supplies and increasing wildfire risk.
2/10/2026 • Climate Science & Impacts • General
In the Denver-to-Rocky-Mountains region and across the Great Lakes, warming has reduced snowpack and lake ice, shrinking reservoir and ecosystem stability.
5/30/2026 • Climate Science & Impacts • General
Guided climbing operations report shorter Mount Rainier and other mountain seasons in the 2020s as warming reduces snowpack and increases icefall, rockfall, and route-closure risks.
5/4/2026 • Climate Science & Impacts • General
Adrian Harpold at the University of Nevada, Reno reports that unusually warm Sierra Nevada winters shift snowpack and runoff timing, reducing late-season water and increasing wildfire risk.
4/15/2026 • Climate Science & Impacts • General
Western states in the United States face snow drought as record warmth from February through March reduces snowpack across major basins.
3/12/2026 • Climate Science & Impacts • General
Forecast models reveal record western heat and rapid snowmelt driving water management challenges in winter 2025-2026 across the western United States.
3/13/2026 • Climate Science & Impacts • General
Arizona water authorities closed San Carlos Reservoir indefinitely on June 5, 2026, after drought reduced inflows, caused hypoxia, and led to near-total fish kill.
6/18/2026 • Climate Science & Impacts • General
NOAA and the U.S. Drought Monitor report a record U.S. spring drought in 2026, driving agricultural yield and wildfire risks across the Southeast.
5/10/2026 • Climate Science & Impacts • General
Russ Schumacher and Daniel Swain report record-low mountain snowpack across the American West after historically warm winter and extreme March heat, increasing dry-season water and fire risks.
3/31/2026 • Climate Science & Impacts • General
In the Western United States, snowpack is well below average this winter, raising wildfire risk and threatening water supplies.
3/4/2026 • Climate Science & Impacts • General
California state water officials report January snow surveys showing Sierra Nevada snowpack well below average across the western United States.
1/30/2026 • Climate Science & Impacts • General
Climate change attribution links hotter air to more severe drought, and a super El Nino may amplify drought and wildfire risks in 2026.
5/7/2026 • Climate Science & Impacts • General
Warm snow drought conditions in California and the Sierra Nevada are accelerating snowmelt, shrinking snowpack, and increasing wildfire and water-supply risks in 2026.
3/29/2026 • Climate Science & Impacts • General
Interesting
Climate Central reported that exceptional heat and rain-dominated winter conditions across the western United States reduced mountain snowpack, increasing water shortages and wildfire risk.
4/14/2026 • Climate Science & Impacts • General
Portland State University researchers report that Oregon wildfire-burned forest snow in the western Cascades melts faster during rain-on-snow events, increasing flood and water-supply risks.
4/1/2026 • Climate Science & Impacts • General
California water officials report Sierra Nevada snowpack fell to 18% of historical average on April 1 after late-season March heat accelerated snowmelt.
3/31/2026 • Climate Science & Impacts • General
Climate scientists in the western US report warm March conditions that melted depleted snowpack, advancing melt schedules and increasing April water and wildfire risk.
3/31/2026 • Climate Science & Impacts • General
University of Washington researchers report rain-on-snow warming increases ice-crust avalanches and complicates regional avalanche forecasting across Washington, Idaho, and Montana.
3/27/2026 • Climate Science & Impacts • General
University of Washington researchers, published February 25 in ARC Geophysical Research, project more rain-on-snow ice crusts and avalanche-prone layers in inland Pacific Northwest winters.
3/23/2026 • Climate Science & Impacts • General
University of Washington researchers report that warmer winters in the Pacific Northwest increase rain-on-snow and ice-crust formation, altering avalanche risk by region.
3/23/2026 • Climate Science & Impacts • General
In the US West, record-low snowpack during a historic snow drought is increasing water shortage and wildfire risks as unusual warmth linked to climate change accelerates snowmelt.
3/21/2026 • Climate Science & Impacts • General
Sierra Avalanche Center and UC scientists warn that a warm winter followed by heavy storms in northern California on Tuesday produced unstable storm slabs and deadly avalanche conditions in the Sierra Nevada.
2/19/2026 • Climate Science & Impacts • General
March heat across nine U.S. states coincides with critically low western snowpack as Tropical Cyclone Maila and Asia heat-stress risks threaten multiple regions.
4/6/2026 • Climate Science & Impacts • General
Experts warn that historic snowpack decline and a mid-March heat wave across the Colorado River Basin and nearby states will raise summer risks to water supply, Lake Powell power generation, and wildfire conditions.
3/30/2026 • Climate Science & Impacts • General
Water managers and researchers report record-low Mountain West snowpack in March, raising Colorado River Basin water-supply, hydropower, and wildfire risks.
3/21/2026 • Climate Science & Impacts • General
California researchers report snowpack decline and heat waves in the Sierra Nevada during this winter.
3/16/2026 • Climate Science & Impacts • General
Forecasters and climate scientists warned this week in the Sierra Nevada, California, that warm antecedent conditions followed by rapid heavy snowfall produced high avalanche danger and multiple fatalities.
2/19/2026 • Climate Science & Impacts • General
In the United States, record-low western snowpack is cutting runoff and accelerating drought-driven wildfire risk while federal and city agencies pursue water conservation and alternative supplies.
6/10/2026 • Adaptation & Resilience • General
Oregon, facing drought and higher wildfire risk after NOAA forecasts a dry spring, issued drought emergencies for three eastern counties as snowpack dropped to about one-third of normal.
4/5/2026 • Adaptation & Resilience • General
Satellite observations over 43 years indicate Northern Hemisphere snow cover loss and earlier snowmelt, heightening western U.S. water and wildfire risks and accelerating Arctic cryosphere change.
3/24/2026 • Climate Science & Impacts • General
Scientists in California this winter report warm conditions and storms, signaling climate driven hazards.
2/23/2026 • Climate Science & Impacts • General
California water officials report Sierra snowpack at 66 percent of average as February storms arrive, signaling continued drought risk.
2/28/2026 • Climate Science & Impacts • General