This document provides an overview of Lynn Fenstermaker's research monitoring climate variability and its impacts in Nevada. Some key points: 1) Fenstermaker established the Nevada Climate-Ecohydrological Assessment Network (NevCAN) to monitor climate and environmental responses across elevation gradients. NevCAN has multiple research stations collecting meteorological and soil data. 2) Early NevCAN results show differences in precipitation and air temperature across elevations in the Snake Range. Downscaled climate model data is also being used. 3) Fenstermaker's other research assesses climate impacts on basin-wide evapotranspiration and vegetation using Landsat imagery and eddy covariance tower data. A strong correlation was found between annual

1. Monitoring Climate Variability And Impact In NV:
What's A PA Country Gal Doing In The Desert?
Lynn Fenstermaker, PhD
CA State Dominguez Hills
Women in Science Guest Speaker Series

2. Preview
1) How did a PA Country Gal become a science
geek and end up in the desert?
2) What is the Desert Research Institute?
3) Some of my research projects:
- Monitoring Climate Variability
- Impact of Climate on Basin Scale ET
- One slide about a “hot” new NV research

3. How Did I Become a Science Geek?
1) Early childhood 4-H projects on: geology,
fossils, insects and soil conservation

4. 2) The Undersea World of Jacques Cousteau

5. 1st Step West – PSU Soil Judging
(Soil Ode to Dean Hay)
Estimating Soil Texture
at Practice Pit
All Female (almost) PSU
Team Competing at Nat’l
Soil Judging Contest in NE

6. 2nd Step West:
M.S. Thesis Research in Utah
Diurnal Reflectance and Emittance
Characteristics of a Desert Surface

7. The Move from Rural PA to Urban Desert
(Courtesy of Lockheed and Google Earth)
Northeastern PA
Southern NV

8. Jack of All Trades
B.S. Environmental Resource Management,
Soil Science Emphasis
Penn State University
M.S. Agronomy
Remote Sensing Emphasis
Penn State University
Ph.D. Biological Sciences
Physiological Ecology Emphasis
University of NV, Las Vegas

9. What is the Desert Research Institute?
Nevada System of Higher Education’s
Global Environment Research Institution
Founded in 1959, the primary purposes
of the Institute are to:
•
•
•
•
•
Foster and conduct fundamental scientific,
economic, social or educational
investigations and applied research for
industry, governmental or private agencies
or individuals.
Encourage and foster a desire in students
and faculty to conduct research.
Discover and develop talent for conducting
research.
Acquire and disseminate knowledge
related to the projects undertaken.
And to promote all research for higher
education and State of Nevada

10. Entrepreneurial Culture and World Class Facilities
•
~559 employees with ~155 research faculty
•
Non-tenure / soft-money structure:
•
Faculty are not tenured and generate their own salaries
(no state-funded positions)
•
Faculty bring ~$40M into Nevada’s economy!
•
At any given time, DRI conducts about 300 research projects worldwide.
•
Over 60 specialized labs & research facilities.
•
DRI invests ~ $1.6M annually in non-state dollars for support of UNR and
UNLV graduate students.

11. Research Structure
Research Divisions:
•
Atmospheric Sciences
•
Earth and Ecosystem Sciences
•
Hydrologic Sciences
Integrated Science Centers:
•
Center for Advanced Visualization, Computation, and
Modeling (CAVCaM)
•
Rogers Center for Environmental
Remediation and Monitoring (CERM)
•
Watersheds and Environmental Sustainability (CWES)
•
Clean Technologies and Renewable Energy Center (CTREC)

12. (Nevada Climate-ecohydrological Assessment Network)
NevCAN: Measuring Climate and
Environmental Response in the Great Basin
Lynn Fenstermaker (DRI) Director
Scotty Strachan (UNR) Operations Coordinator
Science Board: J. Arnone (DRI), F. Biondi (UNR), D. Devitt (UNLV), L. Fenstermaker (DRI), R.
Jasoni (DRI), B. Lyles (DRI), G. McCurdy (DRI), S. Mensing (UNR), L. Saito (UNR), S. Strachan

13. NevCAN Goal
Develop standardized infrastructure with real time data
collection to:
 1) measure and analyze effects of climate variability and
change on ecosystem and disturbance regimes
 2) better quantify and model changes in water balance and
supply under climate change

14. NevCAN Snake Range Transect
Salt Desert Shrub West
Salt Desert Shrub East
Sagebrush East
Subalpine East
Great Basin National Park
Sagebrush West
Pinyon Juniper West
NevCAN Transect Locations
Subalpine West
Montane West
False Color Infrared Landsat TM
May 31, 2007

15. Snake Range West Transect

16. NevCAN Snake Range Stations
Salt Desert Shrub West
Elevation = 1757 m; Landholder = BLM
Sarcobatus vermiculatus, Artemisia tridentata
Sagebrush West
Elevation = 1790 m; Landholder = Long Now Foundation
Artemisia tridentata, Sarcobatus vermiculatus

17. NevCAN Snake Range Stations
Pinyon Juniper West
Elevation: 2200 m; Landholder: BLM
Pinus monophylla, Juniperus osteosperma
Montane West
Elevation = 2810 m; Landholder = Long Now Foundation
Abies concolor, Pinus flexilis

18. NevCAN Snake Range Stations
Subalpine West
Elevation: 3355 m; Landholder: Long Now Foundation
Pinus longaeva, Pinus flexilis
Subalpine East
Elevation: 3070 m; Landholder: GBNP
Picea engelmannii, Populus tremuloides

19. NevCAN Snake Range Stations
Sagebrush East
Salt Desert Shrub East
Elevation: 1560 m; Landholder: NV Land Trust;
Artemisia tridentata, Bromus tectorum
Elevation:1560 m, Landholder: BLM, webcam view
Sarcobatus vermiculatus, Atriplex confertifolia

20. NevCAN Sheep Range Transect
Subalpine (NRCS SCAN)
Montane
Pinyon Juniper
Blackbrush
Mojave Desert Shrub
Las Vegas
False Color Infrared Landsat TM
May 15, 2007

21. Sheep Range Transect
All sites on U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service property

22. NevCAN Sheep Range Stations Cont.
Mojave Desert Shrub
Elevation: 900 m; Landholder: US FWS
Larrea tridentata, Ambrosia dumosa
Blackbrush
Elevation: 1670 m; Landholder: US FWS
Yucca brevifolia, Atriplex canescens, Coleogyne ramosissima

23. NevCAN Sheep Range Stations Cont.
Pinyon Juniper
Elevation: 2065 m; Landholder: US FWS
Pinus monophylla, Purshia stansburiana
Montane
Elevation: 2320 m; Landholder: US FWS
Pinus ponderosa, Juniperus osteosperma

24. Site Instrumentation
Basic Meteorological
Sensors:
-Net radiation
-PAR
-Air Temperature
-Relative Humidity
-Wind Speed/Direction
-Precipitation (Geonor, tipping
bucket and ultrasonic snow depth)
Soil Sensors:
-Soil Temp at 5 depths
-Soil Moisture at 5 depths
-Soil Matric Potential
Air Temperature
Plant Sensors:
-Sap flow
-Point Dendrometers
Other:
-Surface Runoff
-Webcam
Soil moisture

25. Basic Sensors

26. Solar Radiation
CS300 (pyranometer)
Maximum, Minimum,
Average, Standard Deviation
LI190 (PAR)
Average
CNR1
(net radiation: long-/short-wave incoming/outgoing radiation)
Average individual components
Sensor Body Temperature

27. Air
HMP50 (relative humidity and air temp)
Maximum, Minimum,
Average
CS106 (barometric pressure)
Average
RM Young 05103 (wind speed – direction)
Maximum, Minimum, Average,
Vector, Vector Direction,
Standard Deviation,

28. Thermocouples
Air Temperature: 2 and 10 meters
Maximum, Minimum, Average
Soil Temperature: 2.5, 5, 10, 20, and 50 cm
Maximum, Minimum, Average

29. Soil
CS650 (soil water content reflectometer)
Average, Sensor Temperature
Conductivity, Salinity
CS229 (soil water matric potential Ψ)
-10 to 2500 kPa
DPHP (dual probe heat pulse; East30Sensors)
(soil thermal conductivity,
diffusivity, and specific heat)

30. Precipitation
TE525 (Tipping bucket)
Event, Accumulation, Sensor Temperature
Geonor T200 (precip weighed by vibrating wire)
Frequency, Accumulation
Judd (ultrasonic depth sensor – for snow)
Average, Maximum, Minimum, Standard
Deviation, Sensor Temperature

31. Vegetation Sensors
Point dendrometer at
Snake Subalpine East
Sap flow sensor at Snake NDVI sensor at Snake
Pinyon-Juniper West
Eddy Covariance site
Photo: B. Johnson

32. Runoff Collectors

33. Canon PTZ Internet Camera
Monitoring of weather, phenology, show melt and sensor conditions
Oct 1, 2011
Mar 19, 2012
May 6, 2012
Sept 9, 2011, 12:00
Sept 9, 2011, 16:00
Snake Subalpine West
seasonal changes above
Sheep Pinyon Juniper
hourly differences of a
nearby wildfire

34. NRCS Soil Description
and Characterization
Zone
Soil Taxonomy
Altitude
(m)
Salt Desert West
Fine-loamy, mixed superactive mesic
Xeric Calciargids
1756
Sagebrush West
Loamy-skeletal, mixed superactive,
mesic Xeric Calciargids
1790
Pinyon-Juniper
West
Loamy-Skeletal, superactive mesic
shallow Cambidic Durixerolls
2200
Montane West
Fine, smectitic Xerollic Haplocryalfs
2810
Subalpine West
Loamy-skeletal, mixed, superactive
Calcic Pachic Argicryolls
3355
Subalpine East
Loamy-skeletal, mixed, superactive
Xeric Haplocryolls
3070
Sagebrush East
Fine-loamy, mixed, superactive,
mesic Xeric Calciargids
1835
Salt Desert East
Fine, smectitic, mesic Typic
Calciargids
1560
Mojave Desert
Shrub
Loamy-skeletal, carbonatic, thermic
Typic Torriorthents
900
Blackbrush
Transect
Loamy-skeletal, carbonatic, mesic,
shallow Calcic Petrocalcids
1670
Pinyon-Juniper
Loamy-skeletal, mixed, superactive,
mesic, Calcic Argiustoll
2065
Montane
Clayey-skeletal, mixed, super,
mesic, Aridic, Lithic Argiustoll
2320
Snake
Sheep

35. EARLY RESULTS
Snake Range Transect Precipitation
Monthly Precipitation HY 2011-2012
Sagebrush West
Pinyon-Juniper West
Montane West
Subalpine West
Subalpine East
Sagebrush East
Salt Desert East
Total Precipitation (mm)
120
100
80
60
40
20
0

36. Snake Range Transect Precipitation

37. NevCAN Annual Precipitation

38. Snake Range Transect Air Temperature
East – West Comparison, Avg, Min and Max
50
30
20
10
0
-10
-20
Dec-12
Oct-12
Aug-12
Feb-12
Dec-11
Oct-11
Aug-11
Jun-11
Apr-11
Feb-11
Dec-10
Oct-10
Aug-10
-40
Jun-12
-30
Apr-12
Sagebrush West
Sagebrush East
Jun-10
Air Temperature Degree C
40

39. Data Example: Sapflow vs Air Temperature:
Snake Montane West: Tree 1, White Fir
5/8/2011 4:00 pm
5/8/2011 5:00 pm
Snow
Cover
5/9/2011 10:00 am
5/11/2011 2:00 pm
5/11/2011 6:00 pm
Data from Britt Johnson and Jay Arnone

40. NevCAN: Downscaling Climate Model Data
Mean Temperature: from GCM ~250km to 4km
John Mejia and KC King

41. Snow Depth Monitoring and Other Imagery
NASA JPL: Airborne Snow Observatory
(lidar and spectral imaging) plans regular
flights over the Snake Range this winter.
They have previously acquired snow-free
images
DOE Remote Sensing Lab: Plans to test
airborne radiation sensor for snow
depth/SWE monitoring.
Snake Subalpine West
SNWA: 6” aerial photography of entire
region acquired in 2006.

42. For More Info, Data and Webcam Access
Contact: Lynn.Fenstermaker@dri.edu; 702-862-5412
Information at NV Climate Change Portal (NCCP)
http://sensor.nevada.edu
 Corrected Data available at WRCC :
Snake Transect:
http://www.wrcc.dri.edu/GBtransect/
Sheep Transect:
http://www.wrcc.dri.edu/SRtransect/
 Access Webcams at: http://134.197.38.180/

43. Assessing Climate Variability and
Its Impact on Basin Wide ET and Vegetation
Lynn Fenstermaker1, Dale Devitt2 , Brian Bird2, Jay Arnone1
Richard Jasoni1and Jessica Larsen1
Desert Research Institute1 and University of Nevada Las Vegas2
Funded by the Southern Nevada Water Authority

44. Study Site
• Spring Valley in east central
NV (100 km by 15 km)
• ET Estimation: empirical
relationship between eddy
covariance data and average
growing season NDVI
• 5 sites in native shrub
(greasewood and big sage),
1 mixed grass/shrub site and
2 irrigated agriculture
3
7
2b
2
5, 6
4
1

45. Spring Valley 1 (27% cover)

46. Spring Valley 2 (100% cover)

47. Spring Valley 2b (100% cover)

48. Spring Valley 3 (32% cover)

49. Spring Valley 4 (100% cover)

50. Spring Valley 5 (85% cover)

51. Spring Valley 6 (76% cover)

52. Spring Valley 7 (19% cover)

53. Methods
• Landsat TM 5 scenes from the growing season
were calibrated, atmospherically corrected
and normalized
• NDVI was calculated for each image date,
cloud and shadow areas were replaced and
average growing season NDVI was calculated
• Empirical relationship between annual tower
ET and average growing season NDVI was
determined for tower footprint areas.
• ET images were calculated and footprint pixels
were compared to tower ET

54. Impact of Precipitation on
Vegetation in Phreatophytic Zone

55. Graphic Footprint Representation:
Weighted footprint based on wind speed and direction; Hsieh et al. (2000)
Footprint diameters: 1000m to 4000m

56. Empirical Relationship
Between ET and Avg NDVI
Footprint Weighted Average NDVI
1.0
Snv1
SnV2
SV1
SV2b
SV3
SV4
SV5
SV6
SV7
WRV2
0.8
0.6
0.4
0.2
0.0
(n = 30, r2 = 0.954)
-0.2
0
200
400
600
800
1000
Annual Tower ET (mm)
1200
1400

57. Accuracy Assessment Results
This means that in the worst case ET
estimation accuracy is 68 to 70% and in
the best case 93%.

58. Assessing Climate Change Treatment Effects with a Radio Control
Helicopter Multispectral Platform
Dr. Lynn Fenstermaker, Desert Research Institute ▪ Eric Knight, University of Nevada, Las Vegas
Standard color digital photo
Multispectral CIR photo
25
Class I RC helicopter,
55.7” length
Sensor Package: Tetracam multispectral
camera simulating green,
red and IR Landsat
bands; altimeter
20
% Green Cover
UAV Platform:
15
10
5
0
D
D
D
D
D
D
-D
-D
-D
-D
-D
-D
I-0 I-0-N I-10 10-N I-40 40-N NI-0 I-0-N I-10 10-N I-40 40-N
N
N
IIN
NI
NI
Treatment
I = irrigated, NI = not irrigated
0 kg ha-1 Nitrogen, 10 kg ha-1 Nitrogen, 40 kg ha-1 Nitrogen
D = disturbed, ND = not disturbed
Climate Treatment Effects on
Plant Cover

59. Thank You and Any Questions?
Science Can Get Tangled At TImes
But Takes You to Great Places
Couldn’t Resist One More Soil Slide:
Glossic Horizon in Arkansas Fragipan Soil
Hidden Beauty of the Natural World