The most recent snow cover information is given below. They are generally 1-4 days old. Click on a thumbnail to get the full image, description, and credits.
Important: The products shown on the "Cryosphere Now" pages provide a variety of perspectives on the state of the cryosphere. They are for purposes of illustration and comparison and are not necessarily endorsed by GCW as "authoritative".
Note: Some of the products are not available during the summer.
The Global Snow and Ice Cover Map is derived from combined observations of METOP AVHRR, MSG SEVIRI,
GOES Imager and DMSP SSMIS. The algorithm is fully automated. This is an experimental product. It is a
NOAA/NESDIS product. (Courtesy of Peter Romanov).
The EC Global Snow Cover plot is from the Weather office of Environment Canada's (EC) Canadian Meteorological
Centre (CMC). It is a daily, global map of snow cover/depth and sea surface temperature anomalies.
The GCW/FMI SWE Tracker is a product of the Finnish Meteorological Institute (FMI), based on GlobSnow snow
water equivalent (SWE). It was developed as part of the GCW Snow Watch project. It illustrates the current
Northern Hemisphere snow water equivalent relative to the long-term mean and variability.
NOTE: The SWE retrievals can be unreliable in summer between approximately late May and early October.
Therefore, the plots might not be updated during that period.
The Environment Canada (EC) GCW Snow Cover Extent Tracker provides an estimate of the current Northern
Hemisphere snow cover extent relative to the 1998-2011 period based on the Canadian Meteorological
Centre operational daily snow depth analysis. The analysis uses real-time surface snow depth observations
and model-derived information. More information, and trackers for North America and Eurasia, are available
at the Canadian Cryospheric Information Network.
The Environment Canada (EC) GCW Snow Water Equivalent Tracker provides an estimate of current Northern
Hemisphere SWE relative to the 1998-2011 period. It is based on the Canadian Meteorological Centre
operational daily snow depth analysis with SWE estimated using a density look-up table. The CMC analysis
uses surface real-time snow depth observations and model-derived information. More information, and
trackers for North America and Eurasia, are available at the Canadian Cryospheric Information Network.
The GMASI Snow Trackers are derived from combined observations of METOP AVHRR, MSG SEVIRI,
GOES Imager and DMSP SSMIS. The Global Multisensor Snow/Ice Cover Map (GMASI) algorithm is
fully automated. It is a NOAA/NESDIS product. (Courtesy of Peter Romanov).
Weekly NH SCE for the current snow year (purple) plotted with the mean (grey dashed line), maximum (blue),
and minimum (orange) SCE for each week. Mean weekly SCE and extremes calculated using the period from
October 1966 forward. Weekly means for the period of record are used for 9 missing months during 1968,
1969, and 1971 to create a continuous time series. Missing months fall between June and October. Courtesy of
the Rutgers Global Snow Lab.
IMS is the Interactive Multi-Sensor Snow and Ice Mapping System from the National Ice Center.
JAXA-NiPR composite image product with sea ice concentration, sea surface temperature, and snow depth on land.
From AMSR2 data. More plots are available from the National Institute of Polar Research (NIPR) Arctic Data archive
System (ADS).
The Rutgers Global Snow Lab, Rutgers University, generates many snow products. This is the daily
IMS snow extent. Text annotations were added here.
The Rutgers Global Snow Lab, Rutgers University, generates many snow products. This is the daily
IMS snow cover departure from the long-term average. Text annotations were added here.
The GMASI Snow Trackers are derived from combined observations of METOP AVHRR, MSG SEVIRI, GOES Imager
and DMSP SSMIS. The Global Multisensor Snow/Ice Cover Map (GMASI) algorithm is fully automated. It is a
NOAA/NESDIS product. (Courtesy of Peter Romanov)
The GMASI Snow Trackers are derived from combined observations of METOP AVHRR, MSG SEVIRI, GOES Imager
and DMSP SSMIS. The Global Multisensor Snow/Ice Cover Map (GMASI) algorithm is fully automated. It is a
NOAA/NESDIS product. (Courtesy of Peter Romanov)
NOHRSC plots are from the NOAA National Operational Hydrologic Remote Sensing Center Snow Analyses.
NOHRSC plots are from the NOAA National Operational Hydrologic Remote Sensing Center Snow Analyses.
Snow depth across Japan based in situ measurements compiled by the Research Institute for Natural
Hazards & Disaster Recovery (RINHDR).
