At a Glance

Two winter storms boosted Sierra snowpack by several feet in a week.Snowpack in the Sierra is above average for the first time since the 2016-2017 winter season.The snowfall plays an important role in California's water supply.

One of America's snowiest locations, the Sierra Nevada, picked up almost 8 feet of snow in one week, providing an important resource for California's seemingly endless water woes.

Squaw Valley Ski Resort saw 94 inches of snow (7.8 feet) in seven days ending 9 a.m. PST Monday. Several other ski resorts picked up over 6 feet of snow in that same period of time.

Snowfall totals for the seven days ending Jan. 21, 2019 at 9 a.m. PST.

(Snow totals from National Weather Service - Reno, Nevada)

Much of that snow was from last week and then Sunday into early Monday.

You can see the growth of the snowpack from Jan. 14 to Jan. 22 in this animation. The purple and pink shadings represent deeper snowpack.

(NOHRSC/NOAA)

Snowpack fell behind average in the Sierra by early January after an.

On Jan. 3, snowpack was just 62 percent of average in the northern Sierra, 68 percent in the central Sierra and 70 percent in the southern Sierra.

Since that time, it's made a major comeback. For example, snowpack in the central Sierra was more than .

Snowpack across the mountain range is also above average for the .

The Sierra has a reputation for piling up several feet of snow quickly when the jet stream points an active storm track into the state.

Parts of the Sierra picked up almost last March. A barrage of storms in January 2017 brought more than 10 feet of snow in seven days.

Spring and summer snowmelt of Sierra snowpack is crucial to California's water supply. It recharges reservoirs during the state's dry summer and early fall, so the amount of water content it contains is important.

"More than of California’s developed water supply originates in the Sierra Nevada serving end users throughout the state," the Sierra Nevada Conservancy says.