Lake Powell on August 6, 2022, compared to August 16, 2017.
The 2nd biggest tank in the United States now stands at its least expensive level considering that it was completed the mid-1960s.
Lake Powell, the second-largest reservoir in the United States, now stands at its most affordable level considering that it was filled out the mid-1960s. The view from above is sobering.
A key component of the western U.S. water supply, Lake Powell is presently filled to simply 26 percent of capacity. This is its floor given that 1967. On August 22, 2022, the water elevation of the lakes surface area was 3,533.3 feet. This is more than 166 feet listed below “full pool” (elevation 3,700 feet).
On August 22, 2022, the water elevation of the lakes surface was 3,533.3 feet. The August 2017 images were picked due to the fact that they represent one of the highest water levels of the past years. On August 16, 2017, the water elevation on the lake, as determined at Glen Canyon Dam, was 3,633.04 feet. On August 6, 2022, it stood at 3,535.38 feet, nearly 98 feet lower. Particularly, more water will be released from Flaming Gorge Reservoir, about 455 river miles upstream of Lake Powell; and less water will be launched from Lake Powell downstream to Lake Mead.
August 16, 2017.
August 6, 2022.
The natural-color satellite images on this page show portions of Lake Powell in the summertimes of 2017 and 2022, as observed by Landsat spacecraft. The Operational Land Imager on Landsat 8 obtained the 2017 images, while the 2022 images were acquired by Operational Land Imager-2 on Landsat 9. Lake Powell straddles the border of southeastern Utah and northeastern Arizona; many of the area shown is in Utah. (For a year-by-year view, go to the Earth Observatory function World of Change: Water Level in Lake Powell.).
August 16, 2017– August 6, 2022.
The August 2017 images were chosen since they represent one of the highest water levels of the past decade. On August 16, 2017, the water elevation on the lake, as determined at Glen Canyon Dam, was 3,633.04 feet. On August 6, 2022, it stood at 3,535.38 feet, nearly 98 feet lower.
The Colorado River basin is managed by the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation (USBR) and other agencies to provide electrical power and water to roughly 40 million people. This consists of, most especially, the cities of Las Vegas, Phoenix, Los Angeles, and San Diego– in addition to 4 to 5 million acres of farmland in the Southwest. River water is set aside to states (including tribal lands) and Mexico through laws such as the 1922 Colorado River Compact.
1980– 2022.
Downstream from Lake Powell, water storage at Lake Mead on August 22 stood at 28 percent of capability, and the entire Colorado river system held just 34 percent. At the very same time, approximately 86 percent of the acreage across 9 western states was impacted by some level of drought. This is according to the August 16 report from the U.S. Drought Monitor.
August 16, 2017– August 6, 2022.
Federal water supervisors have actually been required to reduce the quantity of water that will be portioned out to states around the Colorado River watershed in the 2023 water year, after 3 years of intense dry spell and 20 years of long-lasting drought in the American Southwest. According to an August 16 statement from the U.S. Department of the Interior, Arizona will get 21 percent less water from the Colorado River system next year; Nevada will get 8 percent less; and Mexico will get 7 percent less.
Based on August 2022 modeling projections, USBR anticipates overall inflows to Lake Powell to be simply 62 percent of average for the year. Hydrologists forecast that by January 1, 2023, Lake Powell levels might drop to about 3,522 feet.
August 16, 2017– August 6, 2022.
In an August 16 status report for Glen Canyon Dam, USBR noted that “2 separate immediate drought action actions … will assist prop up Lake Powell by nearly 1 million acre-feet of water … through April 2023. To protect Lake Powell, more water will stream into the lake from upstream reservoirs and less water will be launched downstream.” Particularly, more water will be released from Flaming Gorge Reservoir, about 455 river miles upstream of Lake Powell; and less water will be launched from Lake Powell downstream to Lake Mead.
NASA Earth Observatory images by Joshua Stevens, using Landsat data from the U.S. Geological Survey and lake elevation data from the Bureau of Reclamation.
