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Avalanche Forecast

Archived

Feb 24th, 2019–Feb 25th, 2019

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

Regions

Jasper.

In addition to listed problems, be vigilant for isolated windslabs in the Columbia Icefields region. 

Weather Forecast

Cold, static High pressure continues. Monday: Mainly Sunny, Treeline Low -24, High -18, Light winds. Tuesday: Sunny, Low -25, High -17, Moderate Easterly Alpine winds easing to Light.Wednesday: Winds remain subdued, but cloud is possible and temperatures finally climb, possibly to -10. Mountain weather forecast available at Avalanche Canada.

Snowpack Summary

Towards the Icefields, the alpine is wind affected. The Jan 18 surface hoar layer (down 40cm) has faceted away in most places, but shows isolated sensitivity at treeline and below in the Icefields region. The midpack is mainly supportive, over depth hoar in shallow areas. Although structurally weak, this layer has been generally dormant lately.

Avalanche Summary

No notable avalanches were seen on Sunday, only evidence of previous small (size 1) loose dry and windslab avalanches from the previous several days. On Thursday near Nigel Pass, forecasters observed a small natural cornice fall trigger a size 1.5 Deep Persistent slab avalanche. This occurred on a steep, unsupported North aspect, at 2700m.

Confidence

Due to the number of field observations

Problems

Deep Persistent Slabs

Deep Persistent Slab avalanches are the release of a thick cohesive layer of hard snow (a slab), when the bond breaks between the slab and an underlying persistent weak layer deep in the snowpack. The most common persistent weak layers involved in deep, persistent slabs are depth hoar or facets surrounding a deeply buried crust. Deep Persistent Slabs are typically hard to trigger, are very destructive and dangerous due to the large mass of snow involved, and can persist for months once developed. They are often triggered from areas where the snow is shallow and weak, and are particularly difficult to forecast for and manage.

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.