Ostalpen

When Ullr orders a Melange and a snowfall for five euros for the bus driver at the tobacconist, you know that it will only snow in the east of Austria.

Two skiing software developers were dissatisfied with the range of free slope maps available online and created their own map without further ado. The OpenSlopeMap covers Austria, South Tyrol, Bavaria and Slovenia, can be used online and offline and is free of charge. Developer Peter Schnappauf on the OpenSlopeMap project:

The Tambora volcano is located on the Indonesian island of Sumbawa. In April 1815, Tambora erupted, with far-reaching consequences not only for the surrounding area, but for the whole world. The WeatherBlog recently read a book about it.

On February 19, 1916, the largest avalanche accident in the Eastern Alps to date occurred on the Mitterbergsattel between the Mandlwand (Hochkönig) and the Hochkeil, with over 200 people buried and 58 dead. Gerd Frühwirth has compiled some interesting records from contemporary witnesses to mark the hundredth anniversary.

Hurrah, it's snowing! The WeatherBlog has been skiing and the air has once again glistened so beautifully. We wonder why. Unfortunately, the glittering, original and organic snow produced in real clouds is not yet enough for skiing everywhere, so we also look at some interesting aspects of artificial snow production.

The time has come, it's finally snowing really fluffy powder, unfortunately most of it again for those who are already blessed with it from Ullr.

Once upon a time, a high pressure bridge over Central Europe provided stable mountain weather for days on end. Unfortunately, the wind didn't really want to play along, so the avalanche situation remained tense in many places, and annoyingly on a sunny weekend with fresh snow ...

Just in time for the meteorological start of spring, the weather is changing and the wintry weather of the last few days is being replaced by increasing high pressure.

The general weather situation and the associated weather remains unchanged, at least for the time being. A change is in the offing at the beginning of next week. What exactly it will bring, however, is uncertain.

After the first powder days of winter 2013/14 and high-pressure weather, the weather will become more unstable again at the weekend.

Snowfall brings Frankfurt Airport to a standstill, there is a 100-car pile-up on a highway in Hesse, Spanish climbers are complaining about the incessant rain, Andorra is drowning in snow and, at least in the Eastern Alps, nothing is happening at all, although a few days ago masses of snow were predicted here too. What's going on?

The Tyrolean meteorologists are more important these days than at any other time of the year: the Hahnenkamm race at the weekend needs to be looked after, with precise forecasts and nowcasting thanks to weather stations set up on the Streif.