tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6168620747792092240.post7930877345456399083..comments2024-03-27T15:09:59.039-06:00Comments on Wasatch Weather Weenies: A Remarkable Alta Snow BurstJim Shttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15799757451626876963noreply@blogger.comBlogger6125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6168620747792092240.post-1292667958750855692017-03-28T18:58:58.096-06:002017-03-28T18:58:58.096-06:00Was touring near Davenport at that time. Very int...Was touring near Davenport at that time. Very intense snowfall and was light small crystals coming down as hard as it could. Even S facing high elevation was near blower returning to car at 2:30. Wasatch McQuackhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13413147745727940663noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6168620747792092240.post-50932570371577799422017-03-28T11:10:45.905-06:002017-03-28T11:10:45.905-06:00It's tough to hold back the caustic effects of...It's tough to hold back the caustic effects of solar radiation this time of year. Temperatures at 8500 feet yesterday reached about 36 degrees. That, with some solar radiation and long wave radiation from the low clouds is enough to do the damage. Jim Shttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15799757451626876963noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6168620747792092240.post-22158447687895672702017-03-28T10:43:10.596-06:002017-03-28T10:43:10.596-06:00Adam:
Nice, helpful analysis. Good points too wi...Adam:<br /><br />Nice, helpful analysis. Good points too with regards to fall speed and transport. Thanks for adding it.<br /><br />Jim<br />Jim Shttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15799757451626876963noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6168620747792092240.post-52799472587586157632017-03-28T10:40:17.232-06:002017-03-28T10:40:17.232-06:00I was at Snowbird and what was a dust on crust day...I was at Snowbird and what was a dust on crust day turned in to an amazing powder day in literally an hour. There were spots where it felt like over a foot fell during that time. What I found interesting was that for the first two hours the snow at the bottom was very very light. Around 3 pm that snow turned really more dense. I suspect it's because the temps were high at the base allowing the snow to set up quicker? Regardless it was a strange epic day. Patrick Phillipshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16604308740916026438noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6168620747792092240.post-66487930395826370172017-03-28T10:20:10.091-06:002017-03-28T10:20:10.091-06:00This burst also shows up well on the Snowbird Snow...This burst also shows up well on the Snowbird SnowCam time lapse between 11:40 AM and 12:40 PM. My guess is that it is related to the high reflectivity feature between 1700 and 1715Z (11 to 11:15 AM) to the south of Snowbird and Alta, which is well before your loop starts. The KMTX radar beam width, if refracting normally, extends between 11000' and 17000' in this location, so into the dendritic growth zone for this event. The winds at Baldy are SE at this time with what appears to be SW flow in the radar echo region. Considering a snow terminal fall speed of ~1 m/s, and a possible region of upslope lift with the SE flow impinging on the Little Cottonwood ridge crest limiting the fall rate of the snow and causing rapid growth and aggregation, I think the snow could be carried all the way to the front side of Snowbird and Alta reaching the ground at mid-mountain in a half hour to hour time frame from when the radar observed the feature to the south.Adam Varblehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14991968453822376063noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6168620747792092240.post-11169871884860953512017-03-28T10:11:39.547-06:002017-03-28T10:11:39.547-06:00Watson employee here; Snowed very hard ( at times...Watson employee here; Snowed very hard ( at times, couldn't see angle station from the shelter) from about 11:30 to 1. Flakes were larger after 12:30. Very little wind. One of the best ski "moments" of the year, especially "Keyhole". Guessed about 10" on the Watson outdoor (2nd floor) deck, very fluffy on top of about 2 inches of denser stuff that fell earlier that morning. Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com