Snow conditions 13. 5. 2024

Description of the situation and forecast (Monday, 13. 5. 2024)

General danger level - Monday, 13. 5. 2024
The danger is level 1 on the European five-level scale - LOW.
Main problem: wet snow
Danger pattern: Spring situation

Risk assessment
The danger of triggering snow avalanches is currently LOW, level 1. At the end of the week, individual wet snow avalanches were triggered in the high mountains on sufficiently steep slopes due to sunny weather. Now, due to cloudiness, there is no influence of the sun, but especially under load, a wet snow avalanche may be triggered or a slab may collapse.

Snow conditions
The snowpack is mostly stable. The situation is a typical spring one, with snow remaining only in the high mountains; bare ground on southern slopes is significantly higher than in shady areas. Above about 2300 m, there is still quite a lot of snow. The most recently fallen snow has completely settled and largely melted, the old snowpack is transformed and fairly stable. There are still some slabs.

Expected weather development
Today, on Monday, cloudy and also foggy weather will prevail with occasional local showers, possibly thunderstorms. The snow line will mostly be above 2300 m above sea level. A weak south to southwest wind will blow. Tomorrow it will be initially cloudy and foggy, with individual showers or slight local precipitation here and there, the amount will not be large. The snow line will be similarly high as today. In the afternoon, it will partially clear from the east. A weak southeast wind will blow. On Wednesday, in the eastern part of the mountains there will initially be some sun, but it will cloud over during the day. Elsewhere it will be cloudy from the morning, and especially in the west, already foggy. Precipitation will spread from the west, not much of it. The snow line will be slightly higher than on Tuesday. A weak wind from southern directions will blow. The weather will not settle by the end of the week. Especially on Saturday it is likely to be mostly dry, on Sunday local precipitation will be somewhat more probable again.

Trend in snow conditions
The snowpack will remain mostly stable in the coming days. Since, except for Wednesday morning, there will be no sunny weather in most of our mountains, the situation will not change much during the day. Only on the highest peaks will some new snow accumulate. From steep slopes, a wet snow avalanche may still release, and you yourselves may trigger it where there is more snow and it has not slid yet. The snowpack is only in the high mountains, the snow will slowly melt, but it will occasionally snow on the highest peaks, as it does not appear that a significantly warmer air mass will reach us in the next 10 to 14 days. WITH THIS DAY WE ARE ENDING THE REGULAR PUBLICATION OF AVALANCHE REPORTS. We will start publishing them again in the autumn depending on the snow conditions in the mountains.

Next publication: Friday, 15. 11. 2024

Source: ARSO