Schneedecke

As the avalanche danger can vary greatly, even on a small scale, due to different factors such as precipitation distribution or complex topography (altitude, exposure, terrain), as much feedback as possible helps forecasters to get a more accurate picture of the avalanche situation. This is exactly where SnObs comes in! An avalanche warning platform for everyone!

The heavens have given us plenty of presents for Christmas. It's still cool at the moment and there's still plenty of powder under the northern slopes of the Alps. But we are also thinking of all those on the southern slopes of the Alps who are unfortunately more likely to go for a walk in the foehn this year.

The time has come. The Oracle says "all systems go", squeezes into the skintight clothing of an attractive pit crew member, as found in motor racing, and waves the green flag, officially heralding the start of the Christmas race.

In many places, the Alps are a winter wonderland. Nevertheless, we have a mixed assessment of the start of the season. There has been some nice precipitation, but none of it has been heavy. The snow conditions across the Alps are neither bad nor good for mid-December. The prospects for new snow are similar. I therefore describe the situation with the beautiful Spanish proverb: ni fu ni fa.

The euphoria and fun that skiing triggers in many people is always associated with the dangers that this sport entails, especially in open terrain.

It feels like we've only blinked once and the season is already over. But so much has happened and it's been great. The start in December was brilliant, hopes were high for an exceptional season - but the weather and winter had its own plans. From Christmas onwards, the Alps were hit by unusually mild temperatures, which continued throughout the winter. It was a season full of highs and lows - literally. Because while we were looking forward to the powder days, the snow cover retreated regrettably early to well over 1500 m altitude, and the touring options were massively restricted, especially at lower altitudes. But spring was kind to us, bringing back the winter for a good ten days in April and providing good conditions for the alpine touring season.

Foehn storms in the north, metres of fresh snow at (very) high altitudes in the south, record temperatures followed by a sharp drop in temperature with a cold front: the last few days have been quite something. The weather has now calmed down somewhat. The next, much weaker southerly foehn is on the horizon for the weekend, probably with summer heat and no precipitation.

In the search for weak layers within the snowpack, Salzburg-based GEORESEARCH GmbH and Tyrolean company Lo.La Peak Solutions GmbH are testing a new method for recording snowpack stratigraphy as part of the STRATIFY research project. In contrast to conventional snow profiles, the data is recorded from the air, more precisely by drone and GPR (Ground Penetrating Radar).

"Nothing can happen in the forest." - This is probably one of the most widespread misconceptions among skiers. It is true that statistically there are fewer avalanche accidents in the forest. However, those who are lulled into a false sense of security are unconsciously taking a high risk and acting carelessly. In today's SnowFlurries we therefore take a look at how the forest influences snowpack stability and what skiers need to bear in mind.

Winter made a brief appearance in the south last week, as the latest ConditionReports show. CRs from the north, on the other hand, indicate that the snow is becoming less, at least regionally. According to Salta's CR from 10 February, "Great cloud scenery and very pleasant slush snow" are highlights of recent touring days in the northern Alps. Jacobanselm even found a small layer of powder on 13 February and "only" south-facing sharks.

Fortunately, this season got off to a very snowy start and provided a good foundation. It stayed that way until shortly before Christmas. The so-called Christmas thaw materialised just in time for Christmas.

Numerical weather forecasts and snow models are now very good, but there is still room for improvement. In the mountains, the complex topography is one of the biggest challenges for weather models. Every mountain peak and every valley influences the movement of the atmosphere and thus small-scale processes such as snow drifting.