Gleitschneelawine

Sliding snow avalanches cannot be triggered by a regular additional load - neither as a skier nor as a blaster. Why is that the case?

Summer firn is a little-known type of snow among skiers - but summer mountaineers often encounter it. We discuss the most important characteristics of snow that is usually reserved for hardy ski tourers and pick up where the last SnowFlurry left off.

The International Snow Science Workshop (ISSW) takes place every two years, alternating between the USA, Canada and Europe. The last ISSW was held in Breckenridge, Colorado, in October 2016. The ISSW is the largest scientific conference on snow and avalanches and offers snow researchers from various disciplines the opportunity to get together. Over the next few weeks, we will be taking a closer look at the findings presented there. We start with some news on the topics of model chains, fracture mechanics and avalanche detection.

There have already been five avalanche fatalities in (South) Tyrol this season. Unfortunately, because where there is snow and mountains, there are also avalanches - no matter what time of year.