Climate and Water Monitoring at Capulin Volcano National Monument: Water Year 2022

Capulin Volcano National Monument, New Mexico. NPS/Melissa Weih

Overview

Together, climate and hydrology shape ecosystems and the services they provide, particularly in arid and semi-arid ecosystems and across the Southern Plains (Woodhouse and Overpeck 1998). Understanding changes in climate, groundwater, and surface water is key to assessing the condition of park natural resources—and often, cultural resources.

At Capulin Volcano National Monument (Figure 1), Southern Plains Network scientists study how ecosystems may be changing by taking measurements of key resources, or “vital signs,” year after year—much as a doctor keeps track of a patient’s vital signs. This long-term ecological monitoring provides early warning of potential problems, allowing managers to mitigate them before they become worse. At Capulin Volcano National Monument, we monitor climate and groundwater, among other vital signs.

Groundwater conditions are closely related to climate conditions. Because they are better understood together, we report on climate in conjunction with water resources. Reporting is by water year (WY), which begins in October of the previous calendar year and goes through September of the water year (e.g., WY2022 runs from October 2021 through September 2022). This article reports the results of climate and groundwater monitoring at Capulin Volcano National Monument (Figure 1) in WY2022.

Reference: Woodhouse, C. A., and J. T. Overpeck. 1998. 2000 years of drought variability in the central United States. Bulletin of the American Meteorological Society 79(12): 2693–2714. https://doi.org/10.1175/1520-0477(1998)079%3C2693:YODVIT%3E2.0.CO;2

Figure 1. Weather station near Capulin Volcano National Monument and groundwater well in the park. NPS

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Pronghorn antelope navigate a dusting of snow near the entrance of the park. NPS

Climate and Weather

There is often confusion over the terms “weather” and “climate.” In short, weather describes instantaneous meteorological conditions (e.g., it’s currently raining or snowing, it’s a hot or frigid day). Climate reflects patterns of weather at a given place over longer periods of time (seasons to years). Climate is the primary driver of ecological processes on earth. Climate and weather information provide context for understanding the status or condition of other park resources.

Methods

A National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Cooperative Observer Program (NOAA COOP) weather station (Capulin NM 291450) is located 2.9 miles (4.7 km) south of Capulin Volcano National Monument and has been operational since 1995 (Figure 1). This station typically provides a reliable climate dataset. However, in WY2022 the station was missing data for 39 days. Therefore, climate analyses in this report use 30-year averages (1991–2020) and gridded surface meteorological (GRIDMET) data for WY2022 from the location of the station. Subsequent reports may revert to the weather stations as the data source, depending on future data quality.

GRIDMET is a spatial climate dataset at a 4-km resolution that is interpolated using weather station data, topography, and other observational and modeled land-surface data. Temperature and precipitation estimated from GRIDMET may vary from actual weather at a particular location depending on the availability of weather station data and the difference in elevation between the location of interest and that assigned to a grid cell. Data from both weather stations and GRIDMET are accessible through Climate Analyzer.

Precipitation

Annual precipitation at Capulin Volcano NM in WY2022 was 15.37″ (39.0 cm; Figure 2), which was 1.90″ (4.8 cm) less than the 1991–2020 annual average. Monthly precipitation totals in WY2022 were 25–48% greater than the 1991–2020 monthly averages in January, February, June, and July. November, December, April, and September were very dry, receiving 42% or less precipitation than the 1991–2020 monthly averages.

Air Temperature

The mean annual maximum temperature in WY2022 was 66.1°F (18.9°C), 2.0°F (1.1°C) above the 1991–2020 average. The mean annual minimum temperature in WY2022 was 34.1°F (1.2°C), 0.2°F (0.1°C) below the 1991–2020 average. Mean monthly maximum and minimum temperatures in WY2022 varied up to 9.1°F (5.1°C) relative to the 1991–2020 monthly averages (Figure 2).

Figure 2. Climogram showing monthly precipitation and mean maximum and minimum air temperature in water year 2022 and the 1991–2020 means at Capulin Volcano National Monument. Data source: GRIDMET via climateanalyzer.org. NPS

Drought

Reconnaissance drought index (Tsakiris and Vangelis 2005) provides a measure of drought severity and extent relative to the long-term climate. It is based on the ratio of average precipitation to average potential evapotranspiration (the amount of water loss that would occur from evaporation and plant transpiration if the water supply was unlimited) over short periods of time (seasons to years). The reconnaissance drought index for Capulin Volcano National Monument indicates that WY2022 was drier than the 1991–2022 average, and it was the third consecutive year of drought from the perspective of both precipitation and potential evapotranspiration (Figure 3).

Reference: Tsakiris G., and H. Vangelis. 2005. Establishing a drought index incorporating evapotranspiration. European Water 9: 3–11.

Figure 3. Reconnaissance drought index for Capulin Volcano National Monument, water years 1991–2022. Drought index calculations are relative to the time period selected (1990–2022). Choosing a different set of start/end points may produce different results. Data source: GRIDMET via climateanalyzer.org. NPS

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Capulin Volcano National Monument. NPS

Groundwater

Groundwater is one of the most critical natural resources of the Southern Plains and American Southwest, providing drinking water, irrigating crops, and sustaining rivers, streams, and springs throughout the region.

Methods

Capulin Volcano National Monument groundwater is monitored at one well, the park’s water supply well NM-26614 (Figure 1). The New Mexico Bureau of Geology and Mineral Resources began monitoring the well in 2022 using manual methods. In water years 2014–2017, the Southern Plains Network monitored the well using automated methods. Both data sets are available at the Healy Collaborative Groundwater Monitoring Network.

Recent Findings

Groundwater levels were collected twice in WY2022 (Table 1). Regular well pumping causes the water level to drawdown approximately 0.6 ft (0.2 m). The monitoring data indicate that water level is slowly declining in the well (Figure 4) although additional data are needed to rigorously evaluate trends.

Table 1. Groundwater Monitoring Results (click on this tab to view table)

Table 1. Groundwater monitoring results in water year 2022 (WY2022), Capulin Volcano NM (amsl = above mean sea level; bgs = below ground surface).

| State Well Number | Location | Wellhead Elevation
(ft amsl) | Mean Depth to Water
(ft bgs) | Mean Water Level Elevation
(amsl ft) | Change in Elevation
from WY2021 (± ft) | Change in Elevation from
Earliest Recorded Water
Level (± ft and year of
first record) |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| NM-26614 | Capulin Volcano NM | 7,272.00 | 646.14 | 6,625.86 | Not applicable | −11.74 (1972) |

Figure 4. Depth to water in feet below ground surface (bgs) at one groundwater monitoring well, water years 2014–2022, Capulin Volcano National Monument. NPS

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Report Citation

Authors: Kara Raymond, Andy Ray

Raymond, K., and A. Ray. 2023. Climate and Water Monitoring at Capulin Volcano National Monument: Water Year 2022. Southern Plains Network, National Park Service, Pecos, New Mexico.

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