Deep instabilities remain a concern. This is not the time to ski the big line. Also, watch for periods of intense solar radiation that will rapidly destabilize the snow. The snowpack is still in winter mode, but the sun has a spring-time punch to it.
Weather Forecast
A mix of sun and cloud is expected Thursday with occasional light flurries. Alpine temperatures will be near -3 degrees with winds light to moderate from the SW. Friday could bring 5 to 7cm of snow.
Avalanche Summary
No new naturally-triggered slides were observed today, however every other day this week we have observed a fresh large avalanche that is associated with either the Feb 10th layer or the basal facets. Sporadic activity seems to continue. Avalanche control on Mt. Buller today produced two size 2.0 avalanches and several other minor results.
Snowpack Summary
No new snow overnight. Crusts on solar aspects at all elevations which are breaking down in the afternoon if exposed to solar radiation. The Feb 10th layer remains reactive down 90 to 120cm in the snowpack. This layer is responsible for continued natural and human-triggered avalanches over the past week.
Problems
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.