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ARS Home » Pacific West Area » Boise, Idaho » Northwest Watershed Research Center » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #115096
Title: LONG-TERM PRECIPITATION DATABASE: REYNOLDS CREEK EXPERIMENTAL WATERSHED, IDAHO, USA

Submitted to: Water Resources Research
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 4/16/2001
Publication Date: 4/20/2001
Citation: Hanson, Clayton L., Long-Term Precipitation Database: Reynolds Creek Experimental Watershed, Idaho, USA., Water Resources Research, journal, pp 2831-2834, v. 37, 2001.

Interpretive Summary: There is a very limited amount of long-term hydrometeorology information available for the Inland Pacific Northwest that can be used by researchers to describe the climate of this semi-arid mountainous region and for engineering design. For these reasons, an unique precipitation database has been developed and made available on the web for the 35 year record, January 1962 through September 1996, for the Reynolds Creek Experimental Watershed located in the Owyhee Mountains in southwest Idaho. Precipitation on this watershed ranges from 236 mm on the lowest elevation at the north end of the watershed to 1123 mm at the southwest corner of the watershed. Data from 53 gauging sites that have been in operation or that are still in operation in the watershed are stored as breakpoint and hourly records in the USDA-ARS, Northwest Watershed Research Center database.

Technical Abstract: An extensive precipitation database has been developed over the past 35 years with the first records starting in January 1962 and going through September 1996 from the Reynolds Creek Experimental Watershed located near the north end of the Owyhee Mountains in southwest Idaho. Precipitation ranges from 236 mm on the lowest elevations at the north end of the watershed to 1123 mm at the southwest corner of the watershed. There are continuous 35 year records available for 12 sites, 20-32 year records available for 8 sites, 10-19 year records available for 25 sites, and 4-9 year records for 8 sites for a total of 53 sites.All of these data have been stored as breakpoint and hourly records in the USDA-ARS, Northwest Watershed Research Center database. These breakpoint and hourly data are available from the anonymous ftp site: ftp.nwrc.ars.usda.gov.