Weather and Climate Inventory, National Park Service, Greater Yellowstone Network

Davey, C; Redmond, K; Simeral, D

An inventory of weather and climate patterns in the Greater Yellowstone Network, including information such as the difference between climate and weather, the methods used in the inventory, the criteria used for locating stations, and the results of the inventory. Climate drives many of the environmental processes in the Greater Yellowstone network of parks(GRYN). Climate variations are responsible for short and long-term changes in ecosystem fluxes of energy and matter and they have profound effects on underlying geomorphic and biogeochemical processes. Future changes in climate will, in turn, have tremendous impacts on these processes. Monitoring climate facilitates interpretation of other vital sign measurements. Efforts to manage various native plant and animal species in the GRYN, and the control of invasive species, are very sensitive to both short-term and long-term climate variations. The responses of the GRYN landscape to these climate variations highlight the region’s sensitivity to possible future climate changes. For these reasons, climate was identified as a high-priority vital sign for GRYN and climate is one of the 12 basic inventories to be completed for all Inventory and Monitoring Parks. Because of the importance of climate to almost every aspect of both ecology and park management, this project was initiated to inventory past and present climate monitoring efforts. The primary objective of climate and weather monitoring for the GRYN is to provide monthly and annual summaries of climate data, including precipitation and temperature, and determine long-term trends in seasonal and annual patterns of climate parameters and soil moisture.

Weather and Climate Inventory, National Park Service, Greater Yellowstone Network

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