Snow is the major source of water in the Western US and in the world. The accuracy of snow measurement has profound impact on the precision of water availability and stream-flow forecasts.

The Snomonstor line of snowpack sensors is the solution to provide these measurements at lower cost of ownership compared to current sensor systems. Using GPS satellites the Snowmonstor calculates snow depth, density, snow water equivalency, and liquid water content. Measurement of all these parameters with a single low-cost instrument will greatly increase our ability to monitor snowpack by enabling higher density networks and providing parameters currently unmeasured by monitoring networks. These sensors were developed with funding from the USDA Small Business Innovative Research (SBIR) program and matching funds from the State of Montana.