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Avalanche Forecast

Archived

Jan 26th, 2014–Jan 27th, 2014

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

Regions

Northwest Coastal.

Confidence

Fair - Timing or intensity of solar radiation is uncertain on Monday

Weather Forecast

Overnight and Monday: Continued warm air at higher elevations overnight and Monday morning. The inversion is expected to break down Monday afternoon or evening bringing more seasonal alpine temperatures. Mostly cloudy during the day with light Southeast winds.Tuesday: Freezing levels are expected to continue to drop from about 1500 metres in the morning to about 1000 metres in the afternoon. Mostly cloudy with light precipitation in the afternoon and Southwest winds building to moderate values.Wednesday: Cloudy with light precipitation and moderate Northwest winds.

Avalanche Summary

Reports of moist and wet point releases from very steep terrain on solar exposed aspects. Glide cracks are reported to be opening up and "creeping" down slopes, with a couple of glide avalanches releasing up to size 1.5.

Snowpack Summary

Reports tell us that there has not been much crust recovery at higher elevations due to the temperature inversion. The top 20-30 cm of snow in the alpine has been reported as isothermal in some areas. Melt-freeze crusts have been developing at lower elevations due to temperature fluctuations with overnight low temperatures dropping below freezing. New surface hoar has been reported on slopes that are sheltered from the sun at and below treeline. Some very sheltered alpine north aspects are facetting near the surface. A well settled mid and lower snowpack may rest on basal facets, especially in thin snowpack areas at higher elevations.

Problems

Loose Wet

Loose Wet avalanches are the release of wet unconsolidated snow or slush. These avalanches typically occur within layers of wet snow near the surface of the snowpack, but they may quickly gouge into lower snowpack layers. Like Loose Dry Avalanches, they start at a point and entrain snow as they move downhill, forming a fan-shaped avalanche. Other names for loose-wet avalanches include point-release avalanches or sluffs. Loose Wet avalanches can trigger slab avalanches that break into deeper snow layers.

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.