The Devils Lake Basin is a sub-basin of the larger Red River Basin located in east-central North Dakota. It is a terminal saline lake, which lacks an outlet until the lake level reaches a water surface elevation (WSE) of 1,458 ft asl (444.4 m). Lake levels have fluctuated continuously since the last glaciation, in response to natural climatic variations. The lake has risen steadily since 1993, severely affecting the infrastructure and residents living within the area. There has been much debate over whether the rising waters are caused by natural climatic variations or by the drainage of wetlands and agricultural lands in the upper basin for agricultural purposes. The purpose of this study is to examine the relationship between atmospheric circulation anomalies and historical water surface elevation fluctuations. Two independent datasets are used: the Spatial Synoptic Classification and the NCEP/NCAR Reanalysis datasets of precipitable water and 700 mb (hPa) geopotential height. The results from the two independent datasets show a small and inconsistent link between atmospheric circulation patterns and the water surface elevation changes. Some of the selected surge and drawdown years show physically consistent relationships to each of the datasets, but many of the results are inconclusive in establishing a conclusive relationship between historic water surface elevation changes and atmospheric circulation anomalies.
","abstract_html":"<p>The Devils Lake Basin is a sub-basin of the larger Red River Basin located in east-central North Dakota. It is a terminal saline lake, which lacks an outlet until the lake level reaches a water surface elevation (WSE) of 1,458 ft asl (444.4 m). Lake levels have fluctuated continuously since the last glaciation, in response to natural climatic variations. The lake has risen steadily since 1993, severely affecting the infrastructure and residents living within the area. There has been much debate over whether the rising waters are caused by natural climatic variations or by the drainage of wetlands and agricultural lands in the upper basin for agricultural purposes. The purpose of this study is to examine the relationship between atmospheric circulation anomalies and historical water surface elevation fluctuations. Two independent datasets are used: the Spatial Synoptic Classification and the NCEP/NCAR Reanalysis datasets of precipitable water and 700 mb (hPa) geopotential height. The results from the two independent datasets show a small and inconsistent link between atmospheric circulation patterns and the water surface elevation changes. Some of the selected surge and drawdown years show physically consistent relationships to each of the datasets, but many of the results are inconclusive in establishing a conclusive relationship between historic water surface elevation changes and atmospheric circulation anomalies.</p>","abstract_has_math":false,"creators":["Knish, Emily Ann"],"institution":null,"degree_name":"Master of Science (MS)","degree_level":"Thesis","degree_discipline":"Geography & Geographic Information Science","degree_department":null,"school":null,"contributors":["Paul Todhunter"],"advisors":[],"committee_chairs":[],"committee_members":[],"year":2012,"date_issued":"2012-01-01T08:00:00Z","date_published":"2012-01-01T08:00:00Z","updated_at":"2026-07-24T03:26:17Z","subjects":["Atmospheric Circulation Anomalies, Devils Lake, ND, NCEP/NCAR Reanalysis, Spatial Synoptic Classification, Water Surface Elevation"],"languages":[],"rights":[],"rights_urls":[],"identifier_entries":[]},"links":{"outbound_url":"https://commons.und.edu/theses/1297","outbound_label":"Repository record","outbound_source":"dc:identifier"},"metadata_groups":[{"id":"people","label":"People","entries":[{"key":"dc:contributor","label":"Contributor","values":["Paul Todhunter"]},{"key":"dc:creator","label":"Author","values":["Knish, Emily Ann"]}]},{"id":"academic_context","label":"Academic Context","entries":[{"key":"thesis:degree_discipline","label":"Discipline","values":["Geography & Geographic Information Science"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_level","label":"Degree Level","values":["Thesis"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_name","label":"Degree Name","values":["Master of Science (MS)"]}]},{"id":"subjects_keywords","label":"Subjects and Keywords","entries":[{"key":"dc:subject","label":"Dc Subject","values":["Atmospheric Circulation Anomalies, Devils Lake, ND, NCEP/NCAR Reanalysis, Spatial Synoptic Classification, Water Surface Elevation"]}]},{"id":"identifiers","label":"Identifiers","entries":[{"key":"dc:identifier","label":"Identifier","values":["https://commons.und.edu/theses/1297"]}]},{"id":"additional","label":"Additional Metadata","entries":[{"key":"dc:description.abstract","label":"Abstract","values":["The Devils Lake Basin is a sub-basin of the larger Red River Basin located in east-central North Dakota. It is a terminal saline lake, which lacks an outlet until the lake level reaches a water surface elevation (WSE) of 1,458 ft asl (444.4 m). Lake levels have fluctuated continuously since the last glaciation, in response to natural climatic variations. The lake has risen steadily since 1993, severely affecting the infrastructure and residents living within the area. There has been much debate over whether the rising waters are caused by natural climatic variations or by the drainage of wetlands and agricultural lands in the upper basin for agricultural purposes. The purpose of this study is to examine the relationship between atmospheric circulation anomalies and historical water surface elevation fluctuations. Two independent datasets are used: the Spatial Synoptic Classification and the NCEP/NCAR Reanalysis datasets of precipitable water and 700 mb (hPa) geopotential height. The results from the two independent datasets show a small and inconsistent link between atmospheric circulation patterns and the water surface elevation changes. Some of the selected surge and drawdown years show physically consistent relationships to each of the datasets, but many of the results are inconclusive in establishing a conclusive relationship between historic water surface elevation changes and atmospheric circulation anomalies.
"]},{"key":"dc:title","label":"Title","values":["The Relationship Between Atmospheric Circulation Patterns And Water Surface Elevation In Devils Lake, North Dakota: 1965-2010"]}]}],"canonical_facts":{"dc:contributor":["Paul Todhunter"],"dc:creator":["Knish, Emily Ann"],"dc:description.abstract":["The Devils Lake Basin is a sub-basin of the larger Red River Basin located in east-central North Dakota. It is a terminal saline lake, which lacks an outlet until the lake level reaches a water surface elevation (WSE) of 1,458 ft asl (444.4 m). Lake levels have fluctuated continuously since the last glaciation, in response to natural climatic variations. The lake has risen steadily since 1993, severely affecting the infrastructure and residents living within the area. There has been much debate over whether the rising waters are caused by natural climatic variations or by the drainage of wetlands and agricultural lands in the upper basin for agricultural purposes. The purpose of this study is to examine the relationship between atmospheric circulation anomalies and historical water surface elevation fluctuations. Two independent datasets are used: the Spatial Synoptic Classification and the NCEP/NCAR Reanalysis datasets of precipitable water and 700 mb (hPa) geopotential height. The results from the two independent datasets show a small and inconsistent link between atmospheric circulation patterns and the water surface elevation changes. Some of the selected surge and drawdown years show physically consistent relationships to each of the datasets, but many of the results are inconclusive in establishing a conclusive relationship between historic water surface elevation changes and atmospheric circulation anomalies.
"],"dc:identifier":["https://commons.und.edu/theses/1297"],"dc:subject":["Atmospheric Circulation Anomalies, Devils Lake, ND, NCEP/NCAR Reanalysis, Spatial Synoptic Classification, Water Surface Elevation"],"dc:title":["The Relationship Between Atmospheric Circulation Patterns And Water Surface Elevation In Devils Lake, North Dakota: 1965-2010"],"thesis:degree_discipline":["Geography & Geographic Information Science"],"thesis:degree_level":["Thesis"],"thesis:degree_name":["Master of Science (MS)"]},"updated_at":"2026-07-24T03:26:17Z"}