Item: Geomatics Use in Fieldwork for Public Avalanche Forecasting: Yukon Case Study
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Date: 2012
Abstract: In the winter of 2012 the Canadian Avalanche Center in collaboration with the Yukon Avalanche Association unveiled a new public avalanche forecast for the Yukon and Northern BC. The development of this program is detailed in a companion paper (Smith & Sharp, 2012). The Klondike forecast region is characterized by an absence of the data streams that traditionally form the foundation of regional public avalanche forecasting in Canada. A pilot field program was tasked with developing systems to gather, synthesize and communicate data on avalanche occurrences, trends in the snow pack, and local weather observations. This program faced a variety of operational challenges but also presented an exciting opportunity for experimentation and innovation. This paper explores how geomatics provided effective solutions to overcoming some of the operational challenges faced by the field program. A geographic information system is described that was instrumental in cataloging resources, terrain photos, and information about recreational use in the forecast area. It also aided in the exchange of field observations between the local field team and the forecast team based in Revelstoke BC, over 2000 km away. In addition spatially track the field teamʼs movements helped target observations and ensure a broad dispersion of data sampling. After a successful first season, avenues for further development include: 1) calibrating and incorporating numerical snow pack simulation models to augment field data in the region; and 2) further developing the use of geomatics to analyze and categorize terrain in order to better target observations and improve operational efficiency.
Object ID: issw-2012-892-898.pdf
Language of Article: English
Presenter(s): unknown
Keywords: canadian avalanche centre, snowpack model, avalanche forecasting
Page Number(s): 892-898
Subjects: snow simulation avalanche forecasting canadian avalanche centre