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ENERGIX-Stort program energi

MESSENGER-SWE: Online, distributed permanent monitoring system for Ground truthing of Snow Water Equivalent Satellite Data.

Alternative title: MESSENGER-SWE: Online, distribuert permanent overvåkingssystem for Ground truthing av snøvannsekvivalente satellittdata.

Awarded: NOK 8.0 mill.

Hydroelectric power is by far the dominating energy source in Norway, accounting for approximately 95% of the total produced. Snow accumulates the mountainous regions throughout the winter and represents an essential energy storage in the national and international energy system. Improved knowledge on snow water equivalent (SWE), which describes the amount of water in the snowpack, can help improve meltwater run-off forecasting models, which regularly deviate from actual run-off by up to 30%. This in turn can help reservoir managers make better production control decisions to avoid situations such as water spill-off caused by underproduction, where meltwater continues to flow into full reservoirs, and energy production lost. Better forecasting could also help companies produce hydroelectricity when the pricing is optimal, instead of emptying the reservoirs due to uncertain flood forecasts. Smarter production can therefore lead to less economic and energy waste, and consequently more predictable prices in the energy market. Currently, there are no technologies available that are capable of giving accurate SWE measurements covering large areas. The MESSENGER-SWE project will seek to develop and demonstrate a groundbreaking cost effective distributed system for automated measurements of Snow Water Equivalent in hydropower catchments. MESSENGER-SWE will be a low cost, permanently installed system requiring little or no ground work, providing data with a regularity and coverage factor that is unobtainable using current in-situ, automated and survey based measurement methods. MESSENGER-SWE will be ideally suited for ground-truthing of Satellite estimates for SWE, and will therefore enable the possibility for daily updates of SWE measurements over regional and national length scales, and thereby enable improved melt-water runoff forecasts that reservoir managers can use to make better decisions regarding hydropower production control. The initial phase of the project has focused on research aspects related to the core measurement technology. Through a combination of modelling and experimentation, the project has demonstrated the feasibility to realize the MESSENGER-SWE system according to key criteria that were laid at the start of the project. Going forward, the project will have a greater focus on pilot studies that will test the technology under application realistic conditions over long period, and allow the development of methods for accurately calibrating the sensors, which is critical for the system to provide a good basis for ground-truthing of satellite derived SWE measurements.

The project has established the feasibility to realize the MESSENGER-SWE technology. MESSENGER-SWE will represent a new in the advance state-of-the-art for remote monitoring methods related to in situ snow measurements. The basic technology development behind MESSENGER-SWE will represent a significant advance on the state of the art for distributed fibre sensing. MESSENGER-SWE, in combination with satellite estimates for SWE will help improve accuracy of estimates for energy reserves and meltwater run-off forecasting models. More accurate forecasts enables reservoir managers to make better decisions regarding hydropower production. . MESSENGER-SWE will have a positive impact on the HSE conditions for employees in hydropower companies, as conventional manual SWE measurements are time-consuming and risky in demanding terrain. MESSENGER-SWE will facilitate better data inputs to models for flood estimation and will therefore be a valuable tool for preparation of efficient countermeasures and securing exposed areas.

The MESSENGER-SWE project will seek to develop and demonstrate a groundbreaking cost effective distributed system for automated measurements of Snow Water Equivalent (SWE) in hydropower catchments. MESSENGER-SWE will be a low cost, permanently installed system providing data with a regularity and coverage factor that is unobtainable using current in-situ, automated and survey based measurement methods. MESSENGER-SWE will be ideally suited for ground-truthing of Satellite estimates for SWE, and will therefore enable the possibility for daily updates of SWE measurements over regional and national length scales, and thereby enable improved melt-water runoff forecasts that reservoir managers can use to make better decisions regarding hydropower production control.

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Funding scheme:

ENERGIX-Stort program energi