From Meghan Collins with “Mountain Rain or Snow” (1/8/25)

A longtime partner of the Winter Wildlands Alliance SnowSchool program, Mountain Rain or Snow has expanded its winter weather citizen science project into the intermountain region of Idaho, Eastern Washington, and Eastern Oregon. This year, we need your help tracking winter weather!

When it’s snowing or raining, you can put the your region on the map by participating in Mountain Rain or Snow, a project that tracks snowstorms at temperatures around freezing. Send reports of rain, snow, or mixed precipitation through Mountain Rain or Snow’s mobile phone app. On your phone, visit www.rainorsnow.org/signup to get started. 

Why track winter weather?

Normally, we think of snow falling at air temperatures below 32°F – but in the world of weather forecasting, that isn’t always the case. In some mountain regions like ours, the shift from snow to rain during winter storms may actually occur at warmer temperatures approaching 38°F. It’s notoriously difficult to track winter precipitation in the mountains because it can vary over the course of minutes and across short distances.

That’s where you come in. Your real-time reports of rain, snow, or mixed precipitation help improve snow accumulation predictions. Direct observations, made by people, are the most accurate way to update the technologies that drive our weather forecasts, making them more accurate for mountain communities like yours. Sending ground-truthed observations of what is falling from the sky right now is helping to advance these technologies. Send reports from work or home, while out in the mountains or on the range, or from the passenger seat of car. 

How can I get started?

• Sign up: Text INTERMOUNTAIN to 855-909-0798 or visit www.rainorsnow.org/signup. There’s no app download required—everything works through your phone’s browser.
• Send a report: When it’s raining, snowing, or there’s a wintry mix, open the app and select the precipitation type. Then hit “Send it!”
• Identify mixed precipitation: Mixed precipitation looks like rain starting to crystallize or snow beginning to melt and fall faster.

The Mountain Rain or Snow team sends weather alerts by text message so you will know which storms are the most important to send observations. 

Last year, observers shared over 32,000 reports of precipitation nationwide. Join the community of observers to put our region on the map!

For more information about the project, visit www.rainorsnow.org. This project is a collaboration between DRI, UNR, and Lynker. The Mountain Rain or Snow team is supported by a grant from NASA.