Loose Wet
- Hochgebirge
- Waldgrenze
- Unterhalb der Waldgrenze
- Wahrscheinlichkeit
- Possible
- Größe
- 1
For two consecutive nights now, air temperature inversion conditions kept overnight lows well above freezing in most locations at the mid and upper elevations. Another superficial snow surface refreeze is expected to have occurred last night reliant on radiational cooling of the snowpack. Increasing cloud cover last night may have decreased the efficiency of radiational cooling, possibly creating a thinner refreeze than what existed yesterday morning. By the late morning to midday hours today, this surface refreeze will weaken and melt away in sun exposed areas and a loose wet avalanche problem will exist for the rest of the day. Avalanche size is expected mostly at D1 with up to size D2 possible in areas where the upper snowpack is less consolidated.
Monitor snow surface melt throughout the day. The wetter and softer the upper snowpack becomes, the more likely it is for loose wet avalanches to occur. Once surface snow is more than a couple of inches deep, it’s time to exit avalanche terrain or move to an aspect with a firmer snow surface. Small loose wet avalanches could still have undesirable consequences in our relatively thin snow cover conditions as there are plenty of obstacles and hazards to hit.