---
res:
  bibo_abstract:
  - Hydrological models commonly use very simple snow accumulation and melt models
    based on air temperature information, namely, a temperature threshold for snow
    accumulation as well as for snowmelt, and a melt factor. This utility emerges
    due to the simplicity, efficiency, and generally good performance of such models
    if sufficient calibration information is available. At scales beyond single gauged
    catchments, the estimation and evaluation of the temperature thresholds and the
    melt factor has been difficult due to a lack of observations on snow accumulation
    and melt. Using a recently published Northern Hemisphere snow water equivalent
    dataset (NH-SWE) and co-located climate station observations of temperature and
    precipitation (4736 stations across the Northern Hemisphere), this work estimates
    melt factors and temperature thresholds for snow modelling based on station observations
    and provides the first large-scale and long-term (1950–2023) evaluation of a simple
    temperature-index snow model and its parameters across a diverse range of snow
    climates. Our study reveals that the 0 °C as precipitation-phase threshold captures
    most snowfall days (89 %) and the 0 °C as snowmelt initiation threshold captures
    most snowmelt days (76 %). Adjusting large-scale uniform threshold values does
    not consistently improve performance across all snow accumulation and melt metrics.
    Estimated melt factors based on observations converge towards 3–5 mm (°C d)−1
    for deeper snowpack climates (peak snow water equivalent >300 mm), but their estimation
    may be more challenging for colder climates with shallower snowpacks (<300 mm),
    conditions where the derived melt factors cover a wider range (1 to 12 mm (°C d)−1)
    and a much higher interannual and spatial variability. The temperature-index snow
    model performs consistently well, on average, across the available Northern Hemisphere
    data set for estimating long-term mean values of seasonal snow cover onset, snowmelt
    season onset, mean snow accumulation and snowmelt rates, but challenges may arise
    due to biases in temperature records or solid precipitation undercatch. Peak snow
    water equivalent is likely underestimated for deep or alpine snowpacks, while
    it is likely overestimated for shallow snowpacks in the coldest and continental
    climates. The best median performance of the temperature-index approach lies on
    relatively shallow snowpacks in temperate climates. This study provides valuable
    insights into temperature-threshold snowfall modelling and temperature-index melt
    modelling for applications across diverse climates and environments, and the results
    should help refine regional modelling approaches to enhance our understanding
    of snowpack responses to global warming.@eng
  bibo_authorlist:
  - foaf_Person:
      foaf_givenName: Adrià
      foaf_name: Fontrodona-Bach, Adrià
      foaf_surname: Fontrodona-Bach
      foaf_workInfoHomepage: http://www.librecat.org/personId=f06891fd-9f42-11ee-8632-a20971c43046
  - foaf_Person:
      foaf_givenName: Bettina
      foaf_name: Schaefli, Bettina
      foaf_surname: Schaefli
  - foaf_Person:
      foaf_givenName: Ross
      foaf_name: Woods, Ross
      foaf_surname: Woods
  - foaf_Person:
      foaf_givenName: Joshua R.
      foaf_name: Larsen, Joshua R.
      foaf_surname: Larsen
  bibo_doi: 10.5194/hess-30-2613-2026
  bibo_issue: '9'
  bibo_volume: 30
  dct_date: 2026^xs_gYear
  dct_isPartOf:
  - http://id.crossref.org/issn/1027-5606
  - http://id.crossref.org/issn/1607-7938
  dct_language: eng
  dct_publisher: Copernicus Publications@
  dct_title: Estimating robust melt factors and temperature thresholds for snow modelling
    across the Northern Hemisphere@
...