Item: Improvement of Snow Grain Simulations by the Multi-Layered Thermodynamic Snow Model SNOWPACK: Implications to Avalanche Risk Assessment
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Title: Improvement of Snow Grain Simulations by the Multi-Layered Thermodynamic Snow Model SNOWPACK: Implications to Avalanche Risk Assessment
Proceedings: International Snow Science Workshop 2014 Proceedings, Banff, Canada
Authors:
- Jean-Benoit Madore [ Université de Sherbrooke, Sherbrooke, Qc, Canada ]
- Kevin Coté [ Université de Sherbrooke, Sherbrooke, Qc, Canada ]
- Alexandre Langlois [ Université de Sherbrooke, Sherbrooke, Qc, Canada ]
Date: 2014-09-29
Abstract: The snow thermodynamic multi-layers model SNOWPACK was developed by the Swiss Federal Research Institute (WSL/SLF) in Switzerland in order to address the risk of avalanches by simu-lating the vertical geophysical and thermophysical properties of snow. SNOWPACK risk assessments are based on the simulation of snow microstructure (i.e. grain size, sphericity, dendricity and bond size). Pre-vious research has shown a systematic bias in the grain size simulations (equivalent optical grain size) over several areas in northern Canada. Snow specific surface area (SSA), a grain size metric, was meas-ured using a laser-based system measuring snow albedo through an integrating sphere (InfraRed Inte-grating Sphere, IRIS) at 1310 nm. Optical grain size was retrieved from the SSA measurements in order to be compared with the optical equivalent snow grain radius from SNOWPACK outputs. A field campaign was conducted during the 2014 winter in the Canadian Rockies to validate the bias and. Three study plots were selected, each with its own climate particularities. The first site was located at Mt. Fidelity in Glacier National Park, BC. The second site was located within the Marmot Basin ski resort in Jasper National Park, AB and finally, the third site is located in Réserve naturelle des Chic-Chocs, QC. Profiles of snow temperature, density, grain size (IRIS) were conducted, and stratigraphic analysis completed using visual interpretation, combine with a snow micropenetrometer (SMP). The measurements are expected to pro-vide detailed information on snow microstructure, leading to a snow grain correction coefficient for SNOWPACK for the improvement of snow stability predictions.
Object ID: ISSW14_paper_P1.41.pdf
Language of Article: English
Presenter(s):
Keywords: SNOWPACK, grain size, avalanche risk assessment, snow stability index, snow micropenetromer
Page Number(s): 613-617
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