Boletín de aludes

Northern New Mexico

Taos Avalanche Center
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Peligro de aludes

Sat
Alta montaña
2 · Moderado
Límite del bosque
2 · Moderado
Bajo el límite
1 · Débil
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Desactualizado: este boletín caducó 5 years ago. Estás viendo condiciones pasadas, no el boletín vigente.

Lo esencial

Triggering a persistent slab avalanche on facets/depth hoar near the ground has become increasingly difficult as we move further away from the last significant loading event. However, the consequences remain high if you did, as these avalanches would be large, breaking on or near the ground and able to propagate widely across the slope. Avoid trigger points on the margins of the slab, rock outcroppings, and steep convex rolls as these are places you're more likely to impact deeper weak layers.

Problemas de aludes

  • Persistent Slabs

    • Alta montaña
    • Límite del bosque
    • Bajo el límite del bosque
    Probabilidad
    Possible
    Tamaño
    1–2

    Dense slabs rest on top of weak faceted snow near the ground on northerly aspects.  As we push further away from the last loading event, triggering an avalanche has become more difficult.  Avoid areas where you're more likely to impact and collapse weak layers.  This will be on the margins of the slab, near rock outcrops and steep rollovers or where the overall snowpack is less than 120cm. Immediate feedback of unstable snow like audible collapses and shooting cracks most likely will not be present and give you a false sense of security.  You can avoid this problem by staying off of northerly aspects, or taking the time to dig a pit to assess if the slope you plan to play on harbors this strong over weak snowpack structure. Avalanches may break on or near the ground and will be large enough to injure or bury you.

    Dense slabs rest on top of weak faceted snow on or near the ground.  In stability tests its taking hard force to get these layers to fail.  

Avalanche Discussion

A cold front today will drop temperatures from the mid-40's we've had these last couple of days.  Unfourtanetly, this system is not overly impressive, with a couple of flakes flying later today into this evening and potentially an inch or two of snow.  Over the last two days, sun and warm temperatures have created crusts on solar aspects especially at lower elevations. Moderate to strong winds at upper elevations earlier in the week produced stiff supportable slabs and break wind crusts.  Skiing and riding right now is highly variable but you can still find soft snow (near surface facets) in wind sheltered north facing terrain.

Weak faceted snow on the ground is capped by dense slabs near and above treeline on northerly facing terrain.  We continue to get these weak layers to fail with hard force in shallow snowpacks (< 120cm) in extended column tests.  These facets/depth hoar layers on the ground have been showing signs of strengthening and healing but we're not fully there yet.  At upper elevations, overall snowpack depths vary greatly and yesterday in Long Canyon, snowpack depths are much shallower than the Williams Lake side of life.  It's these shallowier snowpacks that you're more likely to impact faceted weak layers near the ground.  

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