December 27, 2019

    YESTERDAY:

    Thursday  December 26, 2019. 15:00 Hrs. -7.3 Deg C with a 15-25 KPH SE wind.

    Thursday morning. 09:30 Hrs. -6 Deg C in the valley. Nice snow making temperatures.

    Very weak front with little precipitation.

    A few breaks in the afternoon.

    Thursday afternoon. A very weak dry frontal band.

    Big picture Thursday.

Weather Observations for December 27, 2019 taken at 06:00 Hours.

2240 meters      -9, Winds were 35-45 KPH SE--Horstman Hut

2180 meters      -9, Winds were 30-35 KPH SW--Whistler Peak
1860 meters      -7, Winds were 10-20 KPH SE --Rendevous 

1835 meters      -6 Winds were  15-30 KPH SW--Round House

1650 meters      -5, 7 cm in 12 Hrs, 7 cm in 24 Hrs, Base 95 cm --Pig Alley
1560 meters .    -3, 5 cm in 12 Hrs, 5 cm in 24 Hrs, Base 50 cm--Catskinner

  660 meters      -2, Valley Temp, Max temp Yesterday was -1.3, 1.5 mm of precip yesterday.

    As of 07:00 Hrs we have overcast skies, variable visibility, and snowing very lightly.

FORECAST:

A weak ridge builds for today with unsettled weather in a Westerly flow aloft. Lingering flurries this am with a few sunny breaks this afternoon. The freezing level will hover in the 600 meter range. An upper trough will push in for Saturday with periods of light precipitation but there is not much moisture associated with this warm front followed by a weak cold front into early Sunday morning. Weak ridging for Sunday into Monday with more unsettled dry weather. Warmer frontal bands will bring light precipitation for Tuesday into Thursday of next week. Guesstimates: trace-2 cm by Saturday morning, 3-6 cm by Sunday morning, trace by Monday morning.

    GOES IR image from this am.

    High on the door step again with some weak ridging for today.

    Fronts along the coast.

    Drying Trend for today.

     An upper trough brings some precipitation for Saturday.

    Weak upper trough for Sunday.



    AVALANCHE ACTIVITY:

    Two people injured, six buried in an avalanche in Andermatt, SWI. Article below.          Net Pic

    The avalanche in Andermatt.                                                                                              Net Pic

    Fracture line in Andermatt.                                                                                                Net Pic

    Austrian Rescue Team. Skier buried for 5 hours survives avalanche. Article below.    EPA EFE Pic

    Locally, some Sz 1.5- 2 Sc Xe, on Whistler.



    INFORMATION & OBSERVATIONS:

    Short course but still fun to beat your friends. 

    Thin cloud cover with just a trace of new Thursday afternoon.

    Bit of a gremlin in the newest Gondola.

    Some of the better conditions are on the man made at lower elevations.

    Boxing day afternoon.


From Avalanche Canada MIN Reports:

Gargoyles: Dec 23, 2019

Anif: Dec 26, 2019


Persistent slab problems heal slowly. Avoid jumping the gun on our still-fragile snowpack structure. Natural avalanches may have tapered off, but large human-triggered avalanches that propagate widely remain a very real possibility.



Videos: 

Out Boarding Avalanche: Dutch Draw, Utah

Rescue Scene: Andermatt



ARTICLES:

Austrian skier buried for 5 hours survives an avalanche: Styrian Mountains

Rescuers Comb Austrian, Swiss avalanches in case of victims: Europe

Avalanche hits Piste in Andermatt Resort: Switzerland

Parks Canada warns of considerable avalanche risk in B.C. & Alberta: Canadian Press

Third Backcountry avalanche triggered near area of fatal December slide: Utah

Crowded backcountry Ski slopes increase risk to skiers endangering each other: Glacier Hub