Big thaw at the weekend

After 10 days of continually freezing conditions at the Wildland mountain observatory on Druim nam Bo, warm air on Saturday brought a thaw to high altitudes – and significant melt.  Some 41.2 mm of snowmelt was recorded through the rain gauge.  The ground had been frozen and gradually climbed above zero – escaping from freezing some 16 hours after the air temperature.

Water level in the adjacent pond rose some 5 cm, soil moisture content rose from 2% to 18% – though the initially low value may be a reflection of freezing conditions.  The rise in pond level began 2 hours after thaw began to be recorded by the rain gauge.