2.03.2012
In recent days it has been sunny and very warm in the mountains for this time of year. The air has been dry. The snow cover has therefore softened during the day, transforming somewhat faster also in the gullies, and frozen at night, remaining unfrozen only in lower elevations. A crust has strengthened on the surface. The snow has also settled somewhat.
The snow cover is mostly covered with a crust, which however mostly does not bear human weight. Only in places in the gullies is the snow still soft.
There is a lot of wind-blown snow.
Significant snow cover extends in gullies mostly up to about 800 m elevation, on shady slopes it is bare much higher in many places. At 1500 m elevation in the Julian Alps there is about 80 cm of snow, elsewhere about 50 cm.
Above 2000 m in the Julian Alps there is about 120 cm of snow. The avalanche danger is mostly level 1. Only sufficiently steep slopes are dangerous, especially places with wind-blown snow, which can release with greater additional loading mainly midday and in the afternoon.
Especially on windward spots there is danger of slips particularly in the morning and part of the forenoon.
It will mostly be dry until the weekend. It will slowly cool down, the freezing level will drop to about 1600 m by Sunday morning, and to about 1200 m by Monday morning.
The snow cover will therefore become more stable and remain frozen longer. Due to more cloudiness, the sun will no longer affect snow transformation as much. More sunny only in the western Julian Alps on Saturday.
New report will be issued on Monday, 5.3.2012.
General avalanche danger is level 1 on the European five-level scale.
Source: ARSO