Warm, moist air pushing in to the region from the SW will bring with it an increase in Avalanche Danger by midweek. The new snow will be sitting on top a a variety of old surface layers ranging form sun crusts to soft and hard windslabs.
Confidence
Fair - Timing, track, or intensity of incoming weather is uncertain on Tuesday
Weather Forecast
A SW flow beginning early Tuesday is forecast to bring with it strong to extreme winds, up to 30mm of precipitation by Thursday AM and rising temperatures - a classic setup for increasing Avalanche Danger.
Avalanche Summary
A few loose dry from steep lee terrain.
Snowpack Summary
In open alpine terrain expect to encounter soft slabs, hard slabs and sastrugi due to widespread wind effects. Sheltered areas that have been shaded offer loose dry snow while solar aspects sport a mix of variable crusts.
Problems
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.
Persistent Slabs
Persistent Slab avalanches are the release of a cohesive layer of snow (a slab) in the middle to upper snowpack, when the bond to an underlying persistent weak layer breaks. Persistent layers include: surface hoar, depth hoar, near-surface facets, or faceted snow. Persistent weak layers can continue to produce avalanches for days, weeks or even months, making them especially dangerous and tricky. As additional snow and wind events build a thicker slab on top of the persistent weak layer, this avalanche problem may develop into a Deep Persistent Slab.