Nevada state climatologist urges expanded high‑elevation precipitation monitoring, highlights global mountain station projects

Dr. Baker Perry, Nevada state climatologist and a professor of climatology at the University of Nevada, Reno, told the Western Regional Water Commission on Oct. 15 that expanded, higher‑quality precipitation observations — especially at high elevations and for frozen precipitation — are essential for local water planning and drought monitoring.

Perry described international sensor networks he helps operate, including a network of weather stations on Mount Everest and high‑elevation stations in the Andes, and said those instruments revealed extreme events and processes that were previously undocumented. "We fundamentally don't understand all the processes driving the change that we're seeing in the high mountain drought," Perry said, adding that improved observations affect both water supply projections and flood hazard forecasting.

The presentation matters because Nevada's water supply depends on snow and mountain runoff, and Perry and other experts told commissioners the state currently lacks sufficient, elevationally distributed gauges that reliably measure solid precipitation. Perry described the state climate office's regular products — quarterly climate reports and monthly drought updates and outlooks — and said those reports are triggered when at least 50% of a county meets drought…