Snotel

It's key information collected across 900 SNOTEL sites in the West where about up to 80% of the water comes from mountain snowmelt, Domonkos said.

SNOTEL sites are remote backcountry weather stations that measure snow and transmit the data wirelessly, which help inform decisions about water management.

The SNOTEL sites also monitor temperature, wind speed and snow depth, broadcasting their automated results back to scientists’ computers every 15 minutes.

The Yellowstone Basin is reported at 95% of normal ranging from 134% at Sylvan Lake to 60% at the White Mill snotel site.