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Avalanche Forecast

Archived

Dec 4th, 2020–Dec 5th, 2020

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

Regions

Glacier.

A  temperature inversion will be warming the alpine today. Avalanche hazard will be highest on (or below) steep solar aspects.

Weather Forecast

A ridge of high pressure brings periods of sun today.  An established temperature inversion will keep things cold below treeline with an alpine high of + 3.0 C. Ridge winds SW 15-25km/h.  Temperatures (and avalanche hazard) will spike on Saturday with freezing levels climbing to 3400m. Seasonal weather returns on Monday with a cold winter storm.

Snowpack Summary

An overnight refreeze has left a crust on steep solar aspects in the alpine, which will break down by mid-day. Dry power sits on shaded aspects, though recent SW winds have created pockets of soft slab. Around TL there is a buried layer of surface hoar down 40cm. The Nov 5th crust is prominent, widespread, and sits under more than 1m of snow.

Avalanche Summary

No new avalanches were observed.

Confidence

Freezing levels are uncertain

Problems

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.