Snow

For much of the year, Canada’s north is covered by a dynamic snow cover.  With its high reflectivity, insulating properties, and cooling of the atmosphere, snow exerts a tremendous influence on northern weather and climate.  Its presence, absence and physical properties also impact the daily lives of northerners (travel, hunting, water supply, infrastructure) and their surrounding ecosystems.

Scientists at the Canada Centre for Mapping and Earth Observation have been developing satellite-based methodologies for producing useful snow cover products that map snow cover extent at regional, national and hemispheric scales. This work ensures that Canadians have access to the most accurate and stable measure of changes in snow cover in Canada’s changing north.