Article

Climate and Water Monitoring at White Sands National Park: Water Year 2023

Two people in the distance hike on top of rolling pristine white sand dunes with blue mountains looming on the horizon.
White Sands National Park

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Overview

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

At White Sands National Park (Figure 1), Chihuahuan Desert Inventory and Monitoring 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 White Sands National Park, we monitor climate, groundwater, and springs, among other vital signs.

Surface water and 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., WY2023 runs from October 2022 through September 2023). This web report presents the results of climate and water monitoring at White Sands National Park in WY2023.

Map of three wells, two on the western park border and one southeast of the park border, and three wells, one on the western, one on the northern, and one on the eastern park borders.
Figure 1. Monitored weather station at White Sands National Park.

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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), and 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 (White Sands Natl Mon #299686) has been operational at White Sands National Park since 1939 (Figure 1). The White Sands Natl Mon station typically provides a reliable climate dataset. However, in WY2023 the station was missing data on 28 days. As a substitute, climate analyses in this year’s report use current year and 30-year averages (1991–2020) of gridded surface meteorological (GRIDMET) data from the location of the COOP station. Subsequent reports may revert to the weather station as the data source depending on future data quality.

GRIDMET is a spatial climate dataset at a 4-kilometer 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 and that assigned to a grid cell. Data from both weather stations and GRIDMET are accessible through Climate Analyzer.

Brown, scrubby shrubs and a couple trees dot the landscape of white sands on undulating hills in front of mountains with a rocky escarpment.
White Sands National Park

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Precipitation

Annual precipitation at White Sands National Park in WY2023 was 5.92″ (15.0 cm), 3.54″ (9.0 cm) less than the 1991–2020 annual average. In WY2023, only September received more than average precipitation (Figure 2). Precipitation totals in October, February, May, June, and August were slightly to moderately below the 1991–2020 averages. Substantially below average precipitation (≤ 51% of average) occurred in December, January, March, and July. November and April were completely dry. The largest single month precipitation deficit occurred in July, which only received 0.20″ (0.51 cm), compared to the average of 1.59″ (4.0 cm).

Air Temperature

The mean annual maximum temperature at White Sands National Park in WY2023 was 78.3°F (25.7°C), 0.2°F (0.1°C) below the 1991–2020 average. The mean annual minimum temperature in WY2023 was 43.9°F (6.6°C), 0.7°F (0.4°C) above the long-term average. Mean monthly maximum temperatures were below the 1991–2020 averages by as much as 5.2°F (2.9°C) in October–June, except in December (Figure 2). Mean monthly minimum temperatures oscillated above and below the long-term averages in October–June and were frequently very close to the average. Both mean monthly maximum and minimum temperatures were above average by up to 4.5°F (2.5°C) in July–September.

Climogram showing April and November were dry, September had above average precipitation, and all other months were below average. Monthly max and min temperatures were below or similar to average October to June and above average August and September.
Figure 2. Climogram showing monthly precipitation and mean maximum and minimum air temperatures in water year (WY) 2023 and the 1991–2020 averages at White Sands National Park. Data Source: GRIDMET via climateanalyzer.org.

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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 White Sands National Park indicates that WY2023 was drier than the 1991–2023 average 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.

Bar graph showing that conditions in WY2023 are drier than the long-term average.
Figure 3. Reconnaissance drought index for White Sands National Park, WY1991–2023. Drought index calculations are relative to the time period selected (1990–2023). Choosing a different set of start/end points may produce different results. Data source: GRIDMET via climateanalyzer.org.

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Springs

Background

Springs, seeps, and tinajas (discrete pools in a rock basin or impoundments in bedrock) are small, relatively rare biodiversity hotspots in arid lands. They are the primary connection between groundwater and surface water and are important water sources for plants and animals. For springs, the most important questions we ask are about persistence (How long was there water in the spring?) and water quantity (How much water was in the spring?). Springs reporting is by water year (WY), which begins in October of the previous calendar year and goes through September of the current calendar year (e.g., WY2023 runs from October 2022 through September 2023). WY2023 springs sampling at White Sands National Park occurred on 26 January and 22 March 2023. Water persistence is monitored continuously throughout the water year, but in this report we only present WY2023 persistence data up to the springs sampling visit date.

List of Springs

Scroll down or click on a spring below to view monitoring results.

EC-30 Spring ǀ Garton Pond ǀ Salt Ponds/Bradford Spring

A flat, open landscape with whitish, sandy soil dotted with grass clumps.
Figure 4. EC-30 Spring at White Sands National Park, March 2023.

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EC-30 Spring

EC-30 Spring (Figure 4) cannot be characterized by a single spring type, so we categorize it as “other,” although it is closest to a helocrene spring (low-gradient wetland) or limnocrene spring (spring that emerges as a pool). The spring is in a flat, open area near the northeast corner of White Sands National Park and emerges from multiple orifices across the landscape. These orifices form distinct potholes less than 30 cm in diameter and of varying depths (0.0–0.5 m). When the water table is high, the surrounding area is submerged under shallow, standing water, and when it is low, the potholes are the only wetted areas. The WY2023 visit occurred on 22 March 2023, and the spring was wetted (contained water).

Site Condition

In WY2023, we rated EC-30 Spring (Figure 5) slightly disturbed by contemporary human use based on a well-maintained barbed-wire fence on the spring periphery (rated undisturbed to moderately disturbed in the past); slightly disturbed by non-native, feral animals because of scat and footprints from oryx (Oryx gazella) throughout the spring area (rated undisturbed to slightly disturbed in the past); moderately disturbed by roads/ohv trails, with a minimally developed dirt road located 10–40 m away from the spring orifices (rated undisturbed to moderately disturbed in the past); and highly disturbed by exotic plant removal because of previous Tamarix treatment (rated slightly to moderately disturbed in the past). No other natural or human-caused disturbances were observed at EC-30 Spring in WY2023.

As in past years, we did not observe invasive non-native crayfish or American bullfrog (Lithobates catesbeianus) at EC-30 Spring in WY2023. We observed one invasive non-native plant: 1–5 tamarisk individuals (Tamarix sp.; 1–5 plants to scattered patches observed in 2019–2021).

We did not observe any obligate/facultative wetland plants at EC-30 Spring in WY2023.

A person next to an upright pole pointing to a depression in a flat, white, sandy area with dispersed clumps of grass.
Figure 5. The primary orifice of EC-30 Spring at White Sands National Park, March 2023.

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Water Quantity

Sensors are deployed and data are downloaded during our annual visit, which takes place in the middle of the water year; the dates of these visits are indicated by black diamonds in the persistence graph (Figure 6). The temperature sensor indicated that EC-30 Spring was wetted for 173 of 173 days (100%) measured up to the WY2023 visit. In prior water years, the spring was wetted 52.6–100% of the days measured across entire water years.

Area chart showing the spring was mostly wetted during the measured period (April 2021 to April 2023), except during the summer of 2022. The sensor malfunctioned in fall of 2022, resulting in missing data until the WY2023 visit.
Figure 6. Water persistence through 22 March 2023 in EC-30 Spring, White Sands National Park. White areas indicate dates before sensors were first deployed or after the WY2023 visit. Black diamonds indicate sensor deployment dates.

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As in past years, there was no measurable discharge at EC-30 Spring due to lack of surface flow and gradient.

Wetted extent was also not measured because our standard methods for standing water are not feasible at this site. We are exploring alternate methods to measure wetted extent at the site in the future.

Water Quality

Core water quality (Table 1) and water chemistry (Table 2) data were collected at the primary sampling location at orifice B (Figure 5). Dissolved oxygen and total dissolved solids levels were within the ranges of prior values. Specific conductivity and temperature values were lower than in past years. The pH probe failed a post-calibration check, so pH data are not available for the WY2023 visit. Alkalinity, calcium, chloride, magnesium, potassium, and sulphate values were all within the ranges of prior measurements.

EC-30 Spring Data Tables

A flat, open landscape with dense, brown vegetation in the center bare ground in the foreground, and mountains in the background.
Figure 7. Garton Pond at White Sands National Park, January 2023.

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Garton Pond

Garton Pond (Figure 7) is a helocrene spring (a spring that emerges into marshy, wet meadow settings—low-gradient wetlands). The wetland area is about 20 m long, between 5 and 10 m wide, and 0.2–0.8 m deep. A dense stand of bulrush (Schoenoplectus sp.) populates the pool. The WY2023 visit occurred on 26 January 2023, and the spring was wetted (contained water).

Site Condition

In WY2023, we rated Garton Pond (Figure 8) slightly disturbed by roads/ohv trails based on a park staff road leading to the spring (rated moderately to highly disturbed in the past); slightly disturbed by exotic plant removal because of cut Tamarix stumps surrounding the spring (rated slightly to moderately disturbed in the past); slightly disturbed by drying, with evidence that the spring was confined to a smaller section of a larger depression that could have once held more water (rated undisturbed to slightly disturbed in the past); and slightly disturbed by wildlife based on scat, trails leading into the spring, and dug up sediment piles (rated undisturbed to slightly disturbed in the past). No other natural or human-caused disturbances were observed at Garton Pond in WY2023.

As in past years, we did not observe invasive non-native crayfish or American bullfrog (Lithobates catesbeianus) at Garton Pond in WY2023, nor did we observe any invasive non-native plants.

We observed one obligate/facultative wetland plant at Garton Pond in WY2023: bulrush (Schoenoplectus sp., a sedge observed in 2017–2021).

A person pointing to the ground near the base of a wooden post positioned in dense, dried vegetation.
Figure 8. The primary sampling location at Garton Pond in White Sands National Park, January 2023.

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Water Quantity

Sensors are deployed and data are downloaded during our annual visit, which takes place in the middle of the water year; the dates of these visits are indicated by black diamonds in the persistence graph (Figure 9). The temperature sensor indicated that Garton Pond was wetted for 118 of 118 days (100%) measured up to the WY2023 visit (Figure 5). In prior water years, the spring was wetted 42.5–100% of the days measured across entire water years.

Area graph showing Garton Pond has been wetted since the WY2019 visit, with a few dry periods in summer 2019 and 2020. The sensor indicated drying from summer 2018 until the WY2019 visit. Data are missing between the WY2017 and WY2018 visits.
Figure 9. Water persistence through 26 January 2023 in Garton Pond, White Sands National Park. White areas indicate dates before sensors were first deployed or after the WY2023 visit. Black diamonds indicate sensor deployment dates.

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As in past years, there was no measurable discharge due to a lack of surface flow in WY2023.

Wetted extent was evaluated using a method for standing water. Width averaged 6.8 m (22.3 ft), depth averaged 1.7 cm (0.7 in), and length averaged 14.8 m (48.6 ft) in WY2023. The width and length of the spring were consistent with previous measurements, while depth was lower than in previous years. (Table 3).

Water Quality

Core water quality (Table 4) and water chemistry (Table 5) data were collected at the primary sampling location in the deepest part of the pool (Figure 8). Dissolved oxygen, specific conductivity, and total dissolved solids values were consistent with ranges of previous measurements. Temperature was lower than prior years, while pH was higher than in the past. Alkalinity, calcium, and magnesium values were all consistent with prior years. Chloride and sulphate values were higher than in the past, and the level of potassium was lower.

Garton Pond Data Tables

Salt Ponds/Bradford Spring

Bradford Spring is located on Holloman AFB so we only share data and/or publish data with their permission.

Report Citation

Authors: Susan Singley, Kara Raymond, Arturo Aguilar

Singley, S., K. Raymond, and A. Aguilar. 2025. Climate and Water Monitoring at White Sands National Park: Water Year 2023. Chihuahuan Desert Network, National Park Service, Las Cruces, New Mexico.

Past Reports

Water Year 2022 Web Report

Tags

White Sands National Park

Last updated: August 7, 2025