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.
Below Treeline
Natural avalanches unlikely.
Alpine
Natural avalanches unlikely, human triggered possible.
Treeline
Natural avalanches unlikely.
Below Treeline
Natural avalanches unlikely.
Regions
Jasper.
A few centimeters of snow are expected overnight. If this occurs, hopefully this will soften up the skiing, and if so perhaps a few isolated, small soft slabs (10-15) might form in windloaded areas.
Weather Forecast
The ridge of high pressure that has dominated the pattern for the last week is being pushed out of the area by a southwesterly flow. A cold front will cross the Jasper area on Wed night leaving a maximum of 5 cm of snow. Thursday will see broken skies, no precipitation, moderate NW winds, and alpine temperatures ranging from -5 to -10.
Snowpack Summary
No significant changes to the snowpack in the last 24-hours. Widespread wind effect in most exposed areas at and above treeline has created hard slabs which overlie a weakness of facets or surface hoar down 10-40 cm (depending on location). Tests indicate a shear on this layer, but triggering is unlikely due to the stiffness of the slab.
Avalanche Summary
No new avalanches were observed along the Maligne Lake road today.
Confidence
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.
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.
