25cm of new snow overnight at treeline and up to 50cm over the last 4 days. LOTS of snow is available for transport. If the forecast extreme SW winds occur on Tuesday, there will be a spike in Avalanche Danger.
Confidence
Fair - Wind speed or direction are uncertain on Tuesday
Weather Forecast
Light flurries expected Tuesday bringing up to 10cm of snow. A severe spike in the high altitude winds are forecast which will shift to the SW and reach 125km/h. Alpine temperatures will be near -5 with a significant cooling trend to begin on Wednesday.
Avalanche Summary
Several loose naturally triggered avalanches were heard but not seen today. Estimate the sizes were between 1.0 and 2.0. Possibly some were triggered by cornice collapses and all originated in steep N and E aspects in the Alpine.
Snowpack Summary
25 of new snow overnight with storm snow totals up to 50cm from the last 4 days. Storm slab formation is extensive in the alpine, but is highly variable at treeline.
Problems
Storm Slabs
Storm Slab avalanches are the release of a cohesive layer (a slab) of new snow that breaks within new snow or on the old snow surface. Storm-slabs typically last between a few hours and few days (following snowfall). Storm-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.
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.
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.