Weather Forecast
An arctic ridge of high pressure is dominating the region. Mostly clear, cold and dry conditions are expected today and Saturday. Expect alpine temps of -10 to -20, with light N/NW winds. On Sunday, a weak weather system will move through the province, bringing cloudy skies but little snow. On Monday, the clear skies and cold temps will return.
Snowpack Summary
5cm of snow has buried various surfaces, with moderate winds moving it around. On steep solar aspects it will bond poorly to a suncrust, and elsewhere it will help preserve surface hoar and surface facets. In the alpine it hides hard windslabs and challenging skiing. The mid-pack is well settled and strong, with weaker basal layers.
Avalanche Summary
No new natural avalanches were observed yesterday. Small loose avalanches (sluffs) have been triggered by skiers in steep terrain. Recently, field teams were able to ski-cut thin (5cm) hard slabs in wind affected areas in the alpine.
Problems
Loose Dry
Loose Dry avalanches are the release of dry unconsolidated snow and typically occur within layers of soft snow near the surface of the snowpack. These avalanches start at a point and entrain snow as they move downhill, forming a fan-shaped avalanche. Other names for loose-dry avalanches include point-release avalanches or sluffs.
Wind Slabs
Wind Slab avalanches are the release of a cohesive layer of snow (a slab) formed by the wind. Wind typically transports snow from the upwind sides of terrain features and deposits snow on the downwind side. Wind slabs are often smooth and rounded and sometimes sound hollow, and can range from soft to hard. Wind slabs that form over a persistent weak layer (surface hoar, depth hoar, or near-surface facets) may be termed Persistent Slabs or may develop into Persistent Slabs.