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YBASIN

YBASIN: Yampa Basin Atmosphere and Soil Moisture Integrated Network

Tracking snow, soil, and change across the Yampa River Basin.

Soil moisture data is essential to understanding water availability in snowmelt-driven watersheds like the Yampa Basin. The Yampa Basin Atmosphere and Soil Moisture Integrated Network (YBASIN) collects real-time, place-based climate and hydrologic data to help communities, land managers, and researchers better prepare for a drier and less predictable water future.

For more information about the project, or to explore partnership opportunities, contact:
Sally Cariveau
sally.cariveau@westernresilience.org (970) 871-9299 ext. 107

Our Partners

Logo with a stylized orange and blue circle featuring a water droplet and a white lightning bolt inside. Below the circle, bold blue text reads "CW3E.
Logo of Colorado Mountain College featuring a yellow sun rising behind mountain peaks and a blue bird in flight above the mountains, with the college name in bold blue letters below.
A person wearing safety gear climbs a tall metal weather tower in a grassy field, adjusting equipment under a clear blue sky with trees in the background.

Why Soil Moisture?

In high-elevation headwaters, soil moisture plays a powerful role in determining how much snowmelt actually reaches rivers and streams. When soils are dry, they act like a sponge absorbing snowmelt before it becomes runoff.

In water year 2021, snowpack in the Yampa Basin was 89% of median, but stream flows dropped to just 30% of average. A major factor? Dry soils.

This relationship between soil moisture, snowpack, and streamflow is being reshaped by:

  • Warmer winter temperatures
  • Decreased snowpack
  • Aridification of soils
  • Earlier melt and shorter runoff seasons

By monitoring soil and atmospheric conditions together, YBASIN helps improve forecasting, planning, and resilience.

How the Network Works

Launched in 2021 through a partnership between Western Resilience Center (formerly YVSC), the Center for Western Weather and Water Extremes, and Colorado Mountain College, YBASIN is a growing network of long-term monitoring stations placed strategically throughout the basin.

These stations collect:

  • Soil moisture
  • Snow depth
  • Temperature
  • Precipitation
  • Wind and humidity
  • Atmospheric pressure

The data supports both near-term forecasting and long-term understanding of climate impacts.

Want the technical details?
View live station data on CW3E’s website

Snow-covered pine trees on a sunny winter day, with bright sunlight shining through the trees and casting long shadows on the snowy ground under a clear blue sky.
A blue water droplet icon with a percentage symbol inside, set against a light gray circular background.

Anemometer

This sensor measures horizontal wind speed and direction at the site

A blue sun-like shape with pointed rays and a circular center, set against a light gray background within a circle.

Solar Panel

This solar panel provides electrical power for the station to run

A blue cloud with three diagonal lines beneath it, representing rain, on a light gray circular background.

Rain Gauge

This sensor is measuring liquid precipitation (i.e. rainfall)

 

A blue water droplet icon with a percentage symbol inside, set against a light gray circular background.

Soil Moisture and Temperature

These six sensors are buried in the ground and measure the profile of soil’s moisture content and temperature at 5, 10, 15, 20, 50, 100cm depths

Blue line drawing of a web page displaying a thermometer icon and a bar and line graph, set against a light grey circular background.

Barometer and Datalogger

The barometer is measuring atmospheric pressure and datalogger houses the programming for the station and sensors, converts the data and stores it

A blue snowflake icon centered on a light gray circular background.

Snow Depth

The snow depth sensor is measuring the height or depth of the snowpack

A blue sun with three lines.

Pyranometer

This sensor is measuring the incoming solar radiation

A blue chat bubble with three horizontal lines inside, representing text, is centered on a light gray circular background.

Communications

The cellular gateway allows the data collected at the station to be transmitted in near real-time through a cellular network

 

Blue icon showing a water droplet and a gauge or meter with lines indicating movement, all on a light gray circular background, symbolizing water measurement or monitoring.

Fuel Temperature and Humidity

These sensors are measuring a proxy for the surrounding fuel temperature and moisture of woody materials

A blue icon of a thermometer in front of a cloud, inside a gray circle, representing weather or temperature.

Temperature and Relative Humidity

This sensor is measuring the air temperature and relative humidity

A tall weather monitoring tower stands in a clearing with sensors and instruments attached, surrounded by icons representing wind, temperature, humidity, sunlight, precipitation, snow, soil, and air quality. Pine trees and blue sky in background.

Click image to enlarge

Where the Stations Are

Each station was sited based on local land conditions, stakeholder needs, and climate sensitivity.

A person wearing black gear works on a tall metal weather station tower in a clearing surrounded by pine trees, under a cloudy sky.

Stagecoach Ski East

Located on private land south of Stagecoach Reservoir

View station data

Two people work on a tall weather station tower in a grassy field; one stands on a ladder adjusting equipment, while the other stands nearby. Leafless trees and a cloudy sky are in the background.

Elkhead Creek

Located upstream from Elkhead Reservoir

View station data

A person wearing black gear works on a tall metal weather station tower in a clearing surrounded by pine trees, under a cloudy sky.

Lower Elk

Located upstream from the confluence of the Elk River and Yampa River

View station data

Image of a YBASIN station, a tall set of poles and measuring devices, in a field, with a person posing in front of it.

Carpenter Ranch

Located on the Nature Conservancy’s Carpenter Ranch outside of Hayden, Colorado

View station data

Image of a YBASIN station, a tall set of poles and measuring devices, in a field.

Knott

Located on private property near Oak Creek, Colorado

View station data

Image of a YBASIN station, a tall set of poles and measuring devices, in a field.

Red Creek

Located on private property south of Steamboat Lake

View station data

Image of a YBASIN station, a tall set of poles and measuring devices, in a field, with two people working in front of it.

Colorado Mountain College

Located on Colorado Mountain Colleges’ Steamboat Springs campus

View station data

Photo of a YBASIN Station and a person standing in front of it.

Todd Creek

Located on private property near the Town of Yampa

View station data

Photo of a soil moisture monitoring station with people standing working on it and mountains and forest in the background.

Alpine Zephyr

Located on private property in the Deep Creek area in North Routt.

View station data

A calm river flows alongside grassy banks under a blue sky with scattered white clouds, with rolling green hills in the background.

In the News

YBASIN has been featured in regional stories highlighting its growth, funding, and relevance to water planning.