Lea Hartl

"You don't say nice weather!" - That's what we learned at university. Of course, you don't say "bad weather" either. In fact, the WeatherBlog still tries to avoid such subjective expressions, after all, tastes differ and if you try hard, you can still get something out of boring weather conditions (technical term) from a meteorological point of view.

The PowderAlert has already announced it and anyone looking out of the window in the Northern Alps will notice it: it's been a long time since rain or even snow instead of sun and high fog! A nice change that we have a cold front from the northwest to thank for.

BCA and ARVA will each be launching a new avalanche transceiver next season, although these are more likely to be overhauled versions of familiar models than fundamentally new inventions. The various airbag systems remain unchanged and are merely packaged in new colors. The only completely new feature appears to be a microwave scanner that records "snow profiles".

PowderGuide partner Penguin is a small and - in our opinion - very likeable clothing company from Switzerland that produces a manageable collection ranging from ski underwear to hardshells according to the motto "by freeriders for freeriders". This week, the S.Café Hoodie - a fleece midlayer - is our Gear of the Week.

The Arva Reactor Ultralight 25L is, as the name suggests, the lightweight model in the now tried and tested Reactor series and, in addition to its low weight, impresses above all with its high carrying comfort and individual customisation options.

Every two years, the International Snow Science Workshop (ISSW) brings together scientists and practitioners from a wide range of different, but always snow-related, subject areas. New findings and research results are presented in various thematic blocks - so-called sessions. We break the whole thing down into more or less digestible morsels and summarize the sessions of the ISSW2018 for you every two weeks.

In the last few days, the WeatherBlog has often heard the question of whether the current weather misery can be blamed on climate change. It's somehow to blame for everything and in the meantime we've often read that it's causing more "extreme" or simply more persistent weather conditions. So what's this all about again?

The dry, very sunny weather will stay with us until Friday. The partly pronounced inversion in the valleys is creating a kind of winter feeling with cold temperatures and visibility limited by high fog (and fine dust), but in the mountains there is no sign of the cold, dark winter - according to hearsay.

The sun isn't just coming, it's already here and it's starting to get a bit boring. The WeatherBlog was looking for musical inspiration for today's issue and now can't decide whether STS or Rammstein is more suitable.

The new year begins as the old one ends: lots of sunshine, mild temperatures at high altitudes, cold in the valleys due to inversions and nocturnal radiation into the mostly starry sky. The flow will remain west to southwest and there is no significant precipitation in sight for the time being.

Every two years, the International Snow Science Workshop (ISSW) brings together scientists and practitioners from a wide range of different, but always snow-related, subject areas. New findings and research results are presented in various thematic blocks - so-called sessions. We break the whole thing down into more or less digestible morsels and summarize the sessions of ISSW2018 for you every two weeks. This time: Hazard communication and perception.

A strong westerly to north-westerly flow will determine the Christmas weather in the Alpine region. This current brought a warm front yesterday (Tuesday), followed by a cold front today. While the lowlands and lower valleys will be quite wet, considerable amounts of fresh snow will fall at higher altitudes.