Dependence of Snowfall on Temperature
D'OOGE has reported1 a correlation between amount of snowfall in inches and temperature at the time of snowfall. His data showed that maximum depth of snowfall occurred at a daily mean temperature of − 11° C. ; Bossolasco2 correlated frequency of occurrence of snowfall with temperature and found maximum occurrence at approximately the same temperature. These observers assumed that the mean daily temperature recorded at the level of observation was a reasonable estimate of the temperature at the level of formation of the snow. From the data presented, conclusions were drawn concerning nucleation of snow crystals.
Climatology of snowfall and related meteorological variables with application to roof snow load specifications
Representative statistical models of snowfall and related meteorological variables, important in snow hydrology research, are also required for many engineering design problems. Design roof snow loads, if based on the balance between deposition of snow by individual snowfalls and subsequent depletion by wind action and various thermodynamic mechanisms, in addition to aerodynamic characteristics of particular roof shapes, require the development of statistical models of various meteorological variables which influence the process.Mathematical models suitably describing the statistics of individual snowfall amounts, wind speed and directions, and air temperature are presented in this paper. These results are based on the analysis of daily meteorological data obtained at some 28 Canadian stations with typical record lengths of about 30 years. The suitability of the developed probability distribution of daily snowfall magnitudes is examined through comparisons of both derived parent and extreme value statisti...
Lake Muzahi, Rwanda: limnological features and phytoplankton production
Lake Muhazi, a small lake of Rwanda (East Africa) was studied from 1986 to 1990. A dramatic decrease of the catch of Oreochromis niloticus (350 T y−1 in the fifties vs 30 T y−1 in 1982) suggested a loss of productivity or overfishing. In the same period, other ecological changes occurred: the submerged macrophytes regressed and there was a decrease in Secchi depth (0.65 m in 1987 vs 1.5 m in the fifties). Compared to other lakes of the same area, the plankton production seemed low. The results of the present study characterize lake Muhazi as a shallow lake with a rather unstable diurnal stratification and with slight differences in mixing regime between its eastern, deepest part and its western, shallowest part. Secchi disk depth does not vary seasonally to a large extent. The water has a rather high mineral content (conductivity of about 500 µS cm−1 at 25 °C) and low concentrations of dissolved N and P, except in the hypolimnion, where NHinf4sup+-N can be high.Two species, Microcystis aeruginosa and Ceratium hirundinella, account for most of the phytoplankton biomass, which is about 50–80 mg chlorophyll a m−2 in the euphotic zone, usually with little seasonal variation. Daily gross production estimates amount to about 6 to 9.5 g O2 m−2 d−1 with a significant difference between the two parts of the lake. Data on C:N and C:P ratio in the phytoplankton suggest that some N deficiency might occur in the eastern part. Moreover, the Zm:Zc ratio could also lead to rather low net production rates (0.21–0.25 d−1 for a mixed layer of 4 m)In conclusion, the primary production of lake Muhazi is medium for African lakes and the hypothesis that decreased planktonic production could account for a reduced fish production should be discarded. Whereas the present yield of the fishery is only 20 kg ha−1 y−1, the yield estimated from primary production ranges between 46 and 64 kg ha−1 y−1. This could be reached through proper management. Finally, some hypotheses are given to explain the ecological changes which occurred in the lake.