
According to the authors, the particular ways that snow cracks and collapses is a telltale sign of avalanche formation. Certain crack patterns can foreshadow whether or not a slab of snow will cascade down the slope in a tumbling mass of disaster, or simply collapse onto itself.
This means that contrary to popular belief, crack sizes don't necessarily increase as the slope angle decreases. Rather, snow slides can happen at any slope angle, there is no is minimum requirement.
Researchers modeled the most common type of avalanche, known as slab avalanches, where a giant chunk of

By investigating the structure of snow layers, which are comprised of hollowed-out ice grains that form cavities, researchers determined that patterned cracks in the snow can spread over large areas, triggering avalanches.
Comments
Post a Comment