Snow conditions 18.3.2022

General avalanche danger level - Friday, 18. 3. 2022
Danger is level 1 on the European five-level scale - LOW.
Main problem: wind slab
Danger pattern: Cooling after warm weather / warming after cold

Risk assessment
Avalanche danger is LOW everywhere due to renewed cooling, level 1. The snowpack is mostly well bonded. Only on steep southern slopes can a small slab avalanche be triggered, or you can trigger it with significant additional load mainly from late morning to late afternoon. With colder temperatures again, the risk of slipping has increased.

Snow conditions
With cooling, the snow has refrozen and consolidated again. Only in some shady gullies there may still be some wind-blown snow that is poorly bonded and soft. Wind-exposed locations are scoured, even down to bare ground. On southern slopes in the mid-mountains, it is often bare or there is little snow. During the day, it melts only below about 1300 m above sea level on sun-exposed spots, where there is already little snow.

Forecast weather development
Today partly clear with occasional increasing cloudiness. Weak to moderate northeast wind will blow. Zero isotherm at about 1200 m above sea level. Tomorrow partly clear with moderate cloudiness, more in the eastern part of our mountains. Weak to moderate easterly wind. On Sunday mostly clear, in the eastern Karawanks and on Pohorje occasionally moderately cloudy. Weak to moderate easterly to southeasterly wind. Slightly colder. On Monday somewhat warmer in the heights. Clear, weak to moderate wind from easterly directions.

Trend in snow conditions
The snowpack is stable and mostly hard. Despite cooling, the snowpack will soften somewhat during the day on southern mid-mountain slopes and freeze at night. There is considerable risk of slipping. From Sunday onwards, weather will be clear, so the sun will be strong. On Sunday, due to low temperatures, it won't affect the snowpack much yet, but from Monday onwards, snow on southern slopes will melt more during the day, become less stable, and thin out lower down. No major changes in avalanche conditions until Monday. The next avalanche bulletin will be published on Monday, 21.3.2022.

Next issue: Monday, 21. 3. 2022

Source: ARSO