4.04.2022
General avalanche danger level - Monday, 4. 4. 2022
Danger is level 3 on the European five-level scale - CONSIDERABLE.
Main problem: wind slab, wet snow, new snow
Danger pattern: Cooling after warm weather / warming after frost
Danger pattern: Spring situation
Risk assessment
Avalanche danger due to abundant snowfall above about 1800 m is CONSIDERABLE, level 3, lower down MODERATE, level 2. Especially steeper slopes are dangerous, where there is a thick layer of loose snow on a hard snow base. We expect that especially in the high mountains dry snow avalanches will still occur today. On Sunday morning and forenoon, a strengthened northerly wind blew especially on exposed locations, which especially on southern slopes around ridges and saddles built wind slabs. There you can trigger a wind slab avalanche already with minor loading.
Snow conditions
Even at the end of the week and in the night to Monday it was occasionally still snowing. In the mid-mountains a total of up to 0.5 m fell since Thursday, in the high mountains even close to 1 m of new snow, which has already settled somewhat. Surprisingly, quite some snow fell also in the past night, from 5 to 15 cm. Mostly it snowed with weak wind, only on Sunday morning a strengthened northerly wind blew at exposed places, which on southern slopes created small wind slabs, crusts and deposits. New snow is mostly dry, only in lower locations and in the mid-mountains it became somewhat wet yesterday during the day and froze overnight. Especially in the high mountains there is a considerable amount of unsettled snow, which will today still avalanche especially from sufficiently steep slopes.
Forecast weather development
Today it will be mostly cloudy and partly foggy, somewhat less cloudiness in the eastern part of our mountains. Especially in the morning and early forenoon it will occasionally snow lightly somewhere, in the afternoon light precipitation possible especially somewhere in the western areas. A weak southwesterly will blow, which will strengthen slightly in the afternoon. Temperature at 1500 m around -3, at 2500 m around -8 °C. Tomorrow fairly sunny, especially in the western and southern Julian Alps and in the hills of northern Primorska and Notranjska particularly in the morning cloudy and below around 1800 m foggy, in the high mountains partly clear. Occasionally the cloud layer may also appear on slopes of the western and central Karawanks and Kamnik Alps. Mostly a weak westerly or northwesterly will blow. It will warm up noticeably! The zero isotherm will rise above 2000 m. At midday temperature at 1500 m around 3, at 2500 m around -2 °C. Also in the continuation of the week the western-southwesterly weather situation will persist. On Wednesday temporarily somewhat less moisture. Still more cloudiness and also fog in the hills of northern Primorska to the ridge of the Bohinj-Tolmin mountains, elsewhere fairly sunny with some variable cloudiness. A weak to moderate southwesterly will blow. Temperature at 1500 m at midday around 4, at 2500 m around 0 °C.
Tendency of snow conditions
Today the conditions in the mountains will still be completely wintery. Another centimeter of snow may also fall. Tomorrow, however, it will warm up significantly. A period of spring situation will set in again. Tomorrow during the day snow will especially on sun-facing slopes quickly become wet and unstable. Wet snow avalanches expected from sufficiently steep slopes. Exception more shady locations in the high mountains, where it will still be dangerous for dry snow avalanches, especially around ridges and saddles, where there is some windpacked snow. In the night to Wednesday snow will mostly freeze, during the day it will become wet again. Conditions will remain demanding for some time and especially during the day quite avalanche-prone. Avalanche danger will thus be in the morning and initially forenoon MODERATE, level 2, midday and afternoon above around 1800 m CONSIDERABLE, level 3. The next avalanche bulletin we will publish on Wednesday, 6.4.2022.
Next publication: Saturday, 4. 6. 2022
Source: ARSO