The role of snow cover in forming spring flooding on Belarus rivers

Abstract

The article presents the results of the research about snow cover characteristics observed in Belarus within a representative period of 1945–2019. Excessive or insufficient amount of snow may cause such problems for the country’s economy as winter crops damping-off, frost-killing of seedlings, snowdrift on highways and railways, deformation of buildings and structures under snow loads, spring floods in rivers. The purpose of this research is to determine the role of snow cover in forming spring flooding on Belarus’ rivers. The authors have estimated space-time variability of the characteristics of snow cover in Belarus and revealed their transformations over the last few decades. The calculation of spring snowmelt allowed them to determine how much snow water equivalent contributes into the yearly river runoff. The maps created in this research can be used to forecast spring floods.