Regions
Northwest Inland.
Confidence
Fair - Timing or intensity of solar radiation is uncertain
Weather Forecast
Overnight and Sunday: Becoming cloudy overnight with continued warm air at higher elevations. Mix of sun and cloud at higher elevations with valley cloud during the day, and alpine temperatures about + 5 C. Light Northerly winds becoming Easterly by evening. Freezing level close to 2500 metres.Monday: Mostly cloudy with some chance of clear periods in the afternoon. Light Southerly winds and continued warm air between 1500-2500 metres elevation.Tuesday: Another day with warm alpine temperatures, a mix of sun and cloud, and light winds. The temperature inversion is expected to break down by the evening as cloud and light precipitation move into the region.
Avalanche Summary
Reports of numerous loose wet avalanches releasing naturally from solar aspects at and above treeline up to size 1.5. Cornices are reported to be sagging and could trigger the persistent weak layers if they fall off during daytime warming.
Snowpack Summary
A report from the Bulkley Valley suggests that it is like a spring snowpack in the alpine. Solar aspects are reported to be wet and becoming isothermal in the top 15-30 cm. There appears to be little or no crust recovery overnight due to the warm air trapped at higher elevations. A new layer of surface hoar is growing in shaded areas on North aspects in the alpine. Basal depth hoar continues to be a concern; warm temperatures should encourage settlement in the long term, but may increase the likelihood of triggering this deeply buried weak layer in the short term.
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.