{"id":2411,"date":"2026-10-01T01:20:00","date_gmt":"2026-09-30T16:20:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/onepress.co.kr\/index.php\/briefing\/2026-10-01-lake-powell-record-low-en\/"},"modified":"2026-10-01T01:45:14","modified_gmt":"2026-09-30T16:45:14","slug":"2026-10-01-lake-powell-record-low-en","status":"publish","type":"briefing","link":"https:\/\/onepress.co.kr\/index.php\/briefing\/2026-10-01-lake-powell-record-low-en\/","title":{"rendered":"Lake Powell fell to 3,517.24 feet, below the 2023 record low"},"content":{"rendered":"

2026-10-01 01:20 KST<\/strong><\/p>\n

Lake Powell in the U.S. West stood at 3,517.24 feet above sea level on September 10, 2026, in record-low territory.<\/p>\n

That was 2.68 feet below the previous record of 3,519.92 feet in April 2023. It does not mean Glen Canyon Dam had already stopped generating power.<\/p>\n

What drove the record<\/h2>\n

The Upper Colorado Basin received little mountain snow in winter 2025\u20132026, and record warmth depleted that snowpack further. Weak spring snowmelt allowed the lake to cross below the old record on August 15 and continue falling into September.<\/p>\n

How close was the power threshold<\/h2>\n

The September 10 level was about 27 feet above the 3,490-foot minimum power pool, below which turbines cannot generate effectively. That gap is a snapshot, not a guarantee; inflows, releases and season can change it.<\/p>\n

\"Lake
This AI-generated image explains the topic; it is not a photograph of an actual event, observation or field site.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Why one reservoir matters widely<\/h2>\n

The Colorado River system supplies water and power to more than 40 million people and irrigates roughly five million acres of farmland. Those figures describe the whole river system, not the number of direct Lake Powell users.<\/p>\n

What happens next<\/h2>\n

The Bureau of Reclamation released extra water from Flaming Gorge Reservoir and reduced releases from Powell to protect power generation. Snowpack, monthly operating plans and measured lake elevation are the next evidence to watch.<\/p>\n

Primary source and independent checks<\/h2>\n

Primary source: NASA Earth Observatory<\/a><\/p>\n

Institutional explanation: U.S. Bureau of Reclamation \ub300\uc751 \ubc1c\ud45c<\/a><\/p>\n

Independent check: NASA Earthdata \ub3c5\ub9bd \uad00\uce21 \uc124\uba85<\/a><\/p>\n

Read in other languages<\/h2>\n

\ud55c\uad6d\uc5b4<\/a> \u00b7 English<\/a> \u00b7 Espa\u00f1ol<\/a> \u00b7 \u65e5\u672c\u8a9e<\/a> \u00b7 Ti\u1ebfng Vi\u1ec7t<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Lake Powell measured 3,517.24 feet on September 10, 2026, 2.68 feet below its 2023 record. It remained above the 3,490-foot power threshold, but operating room for water and electricity narrowed.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"featured_media":0,"template":"","meta":[],"class_list":["post-2411","briefing","type-briefing","status-publish","hentry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/onepress.co.kr\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/briefing\/2411","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/onepress.co.kr\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/briefing"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/onepress.co.kr\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/briefing"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/onepress.co.kr\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2411"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}