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Avalanche Forecast

Archived

Dec 13th, 2015–Dec 14th, 2015

Alpine
Natural avalanches unlikely, human triggered possible.
Treeline
Natural avalanches unlikely, human triggered possible.
Below Treeline
Natural avalanches unlikely.
Alpine
Natural avalanches unlikely, human triggered possible.
Treeline
Natural avalanches unlikely, human triggered possible.
Below Treeline
Natural avalanches unlikely.
Alpine
Natural avalanches unlikely, human triggered possible.
Treeline
Natural avalanches unlikely, human triggered possible.
Below Treeline
Natural avalanches unlikely.

Regions

Kananaskis.

Good ski quality, but keep in mind the early December persistent weak layer. This layer will be an issue for some time. Watch for wind loading at higher elevations.

Confidence

High

Weather Forecast

Monday will be mainly cloudy with little to no precipitation expected. Temperatures in the Alpine should reach a high of -9 °C. Winds are forecasted to be out of the northwest at 15 km/h. Tuesday could see some sunny breaks.

Avalanche Summary

Nothing new observed or reported.

Snowpack Summary

10cm of new snow overnight from convective flurries. Winds have remained light and as a result, there has been little snow redistribution and slab development except in the Alpine along immediate lee features such as ridge lines and cross-loaded terrain. Dec 4th persistent weak layer down 50-60cm at Treeline and is producing shears in the Moderate to Hard range. Dec 4th surface hoar was found up to 2300m in areas observed today but believe that this is not widespread, as we have previously only found it at 2100m and below.

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.