Water Resources Research Act Program

Details for Project ID AK-2023-003

Has Peak Flow been reached? Hindcasting and Forecasting Dixon Glacier Runoff

Institute: Alaska
Year Established: 2023 Start Date: 2023-09-01 End Date: 2024-08-31
Total Federal Funds: $17,000 Total Non-Federal Funds: $17,000

Principal Investigators: Kai Myers

Project Summary: The Bradley Lake hydropower project is hoping to expand its capacity to service an additional 30,000 homes. This project will determine the availability of glacial meltwater from a nearby glacier to assist the expansion. As Dixon Glacier melts, it produces more meltwater, but at a certain point the volume of the glacier is small enough that the meltwater decreases. This project will model the hydrological timeline to determine if the peak flow has already happened, and if it has not, will model when it is likely to occur.