Mt. Emmons

Instabilities appeared to be small and isolated here. Slabs are thin and minimally developed.  The only obvious features of concern are leeward features with large, productive fetches that formed thicker, stiffer slabs earlier in the week. Snow surfaces going into our next loading event are weak on some shady aspects, with facets and surface hoar at mid and low elevations.  

We got a couple of collapses on E to NE aspects near treeline that only radiated 15 to 20 feet. They failed about 10" deep on the December dryspell layer. A stability test adjacent to one of the collapses produced ECTP1 results.

Snow surface observations:

• BTL northerlies:  A few inches of weak, small-grained facets (<1mm) above mostly supportive, occasionally breakable rain crusts.  This snow surface is noticeably weak and sluffed easily in steep terrain. 
• NTL northerlies:  Typically small-grained (~2 to 3mm) surface hoar above settled powder with some minor faceting.  
• ATL northerlies: Settled powder with some minor faceting and some wind-hardened snow; no obvious surface hoar was observed.  
• Southerlies: Moist and wet snow that will form melt-freeze crusts by tomorrow.