The Naval Research Laboratory’s Scientific Development Squadron One, also designated VXS-1, has participated in a NASA-sponsored event that tested a variety of sensors and techniques used to water measurements in snow.
NRL said Wednesday the SnowEx mission tested sensors, scanners and radar systems aboard the VXS-1’s Lockheed Martin-built NP-3C Orion maritime patrol aircraft at Senator Beck Basin and in the Rocky Mountains of Grand Mesa, Colorado.
Forest Service officials and NASA scientists noted that a capacity to measure water levels in snow over different terrains will help calculate water supplies in various parts of the world.
Edward Kim, a project scientist at NASA for the SnowEx project, said that information collected from overhead flights combined with data from ground team units will help the agencies establish a global picture on water supplies.
Kim added that measurements collected from campaigns such as SnowEx can potentially lead to the development of a snow-observing satellite mission.
