Aspen

Snowpack

Colin Mitchell · Dec 8, 2014 · Aspen

Weather

Warm. Sky was mostly covered with high clouds. A light breeze and the cloudiness were keeping the snow cool.

Snowpack

Average height of snow was around 8". A melt-freeze crust was present everywhere the sun could hit the snow, even on N'ly aspects. On top of the crust was either 3-4 mm SH, or a thin layer of NSF. Below the crust was all faects and depth hoar. S'ly aspects were holding little snow, and many areas have melted out. My pit location, a shaded NE aspect was holding about 16" of snow. Rounding was winning out in the deeper snow and mid-pack layers had gained strength since last weeks obs (see snow profiles). Depth hoar at the ground was definitely rounding. Although still F hard, it was no longer propagating clean fractures on ECT tests, so it has shown some signs of strengthening.