scholarly journals A Reconstruction of Snow-Avalanche Characteristics in Montana, U.S.A., Using Vegetative Indicators

1985 ◽  
Vol 31 (108) ◽  
pp. 185-187 ◽  
Author(s):  
David R. Butler ◽  
George P. Malanson
Keyword(s):  
Tree Ring ◽  
National Park ◽  
Natural Hazard ◽  
Snow Avalanche ◽  
Glacier National Park ◽  
Snow Avalanches ◽  
Southern Boundary ◽  
Tree Ring Data ◽  
Wet Snow

AbstractWidespread wet-snow avalanches were observed on the southern boundary of Glacier National Park, Montana, in February 1979. Severe tilting, scarring, and breakage of trees were observed along a transverse trim-line of one path, 70 m from a wet-snow deposit. Tree-ring data were used to establish the date of occurrence, and the nature of damage was used to characterize the avalanche event. The event probably included a previously unrecognized dry-snow avalanche and associated wind blast. Such events present different problems for natural-hazard planning. The nature of vegetative damage along the margins of avalanche paths is shown to be a useful indicator of the characteristics of past unobserved avalanche events.

scholarly journals A Reconstruction of Snow-Avalanche Characteristics in Montana, U.S.A., Using Vegetative Indicators

1985 ◽  
Vol 31 (108) ◽  
pp. 185-187 ◽  
Author(s):  
David R. Butler ◽  
George P. Malanson
Keyword(s):  
Tree Ring ◽  
National Park ◽  
Natural Hazard ◽  
Snow Avalanche ◽  
Glacier National Park ◽  
Snow Avalanches ◽  
Southern Boundary ◽  
Tree Ring Data ◽  
Wet Snow

AbstractWidespread wet-snow avalanches were observed on the southern boundary of Glacier National Park, Montana, in February 1979. Severe tilting, scarring, and breakage of trees were observed along a transverse trim-line of one path, 70 m from a wet-snow deposit. Tree-ring data were used to establish the date of occurrence, and the nature of damage was used to characterize the avalanche event. The event probably included a previously unrecognized dry-snow avalanche and associated wind blast. Such events present different problems for natural-hazard planning. The nature of vegetative damage along the margins of avalanche paths is shown to be a useful indicator of the characteristics of past unobserved avalanche events.

Tree-ring dating of snow avalanche history in Parâng Mountains (Southern Carpathians, Romania)

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Corina Todea ◽  
Olimpiu Pop
Keyword(s):  
Tree Ring ◽  
Snow Avalanche ◽  
Mountainous Area ◽  
Snow Avalanches ◽  
The Past ◽  
Avalanche Hazard ◽  
Hiking Trails ◽  
Traumatic Resin Ducts ◽  
Tree Ring Data ◽  
Southern Carpathians

<p>In high mountainous areas worldwide, snow avalanches represent one of the main morphodynamic processes which influence the morphology of steep slopes. They usually disturb the forests, and represent a significant natural hazard that may endanger the safety of tourists exposed along the hiking trails crossing the avalanche-prone slopes. In the context of the growing tourism activities in the area where tourist become exposed to snow avalanche hazard, there is need for detailed analysis for documenting the past activity of this geomorphic process, especially in remote areas where historical data is lacking. Such mountainous area without snow avalanche monitoring and archival records is in Parâng Mountains (Southern Carpathians, Romania). On forested slopes, trees disturbed by snow-avalanches may record in their growth rings information about the past event occurrence. The main aim of this study is to improve the knowledge about the past snow avalanche history using tree-rings approach. To this end, 57 disturbed spruce (Picea abies (L.) Karst.) trees growing along an avalanche path located on the western slopes of the Parâng Mountains were sampled and their growth disturbances (scars, traumatic resin ducts, compression wood and growth suppression sequences) served to reconstruct the snow-avalanche history back to 1950. Tree-ring analyses allowed reconstructing a minimum of 14 snow avalanche events which occurred in the past along the investigated path. The tree-ring approach presented in this study proved to be a valuable tool in reconstructing snow avalanche history and compliting the snow avalanche database in Parâng Mountains. The number and spatial extent of documented snow avalanches evidence the potential snow avalanche hazards in the study area. The tree-ring data from the present study, together with those presented by the previous studies in the study area may further contribute to the snow avalanche hazard assessment. </p>

scholarly journals Assessing the interaction between mountain forests and natural hazards at Nevados de Chillán, Chile, and its implications for Ecosystem-based Disaster Risk Reduction

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alejandro Casteller ◽  
Thomas Häfelfinger ◽  
Erika Cortés Donoso ◽  
Karen Podvin ◽  
Dominik Kulakowski ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Risk Reduction ◽  
Natural Hazards ◽  
Tree Ring ◽  
Land Use Planning ◽  
Disaster Risk Reduction ◽  
Disaster Risk ◽  
Process Models ◽  
Snow Avalanches ◽  
Tree Ring Data ◽  
Risk Reduction Measure

Abstract. Gravitational natural hazards such as snow avalanches, rockfalls, shallow landslides and volcanic activity represent a risk factor for mountain communities around the world. In particular where documentary records about these processes are rare, decisions on risk management and land-use planning have to be based on a variety of other sources including vegetation and tree-ring data and natural hazard process models. We used a combination of these methods in order to evaluate dynamics of snow avalanches and other natural hazards at Valle de las Trancas, in the Biobío Region in Chile. Along this valley, natural hazards threaten not only the local human population, but also the numerous tourists attracted by outdoor recreational activities. Given the regional scarcity of documentary records, tree-ring methods were applied in order to reconstruct the local history of snow avalanches and debris flow events, which are the more important weather-related processes at respective tracks. A recent version of the model Rapid Mass MovementS (RAMMS), that includes influences of forest structure, was used to calculate different avalanche parameters such as runout distances and maximum pressures, taking into consideration the presence/absence of forest along the tracks as well as different modelled return periods. Our results show that local Nothofagus broadleaved forests contribute to a reduction of avalanche runout distances as well as impact pressures on present infrastructure, thus constituting a valuable ecosystem disaster risk reduction measure that can substitute or complement other traditional measures such as sheds.

scholarly journals Velocity measurements of wet snow avalanche on the Dhundi snow chute

2010 ◽  
Vol 51 (54) ◽  
pp. 139-145 ◽  
Author(s):  
Agraj Upadhyay ◽  
Amod Kumar ◽  
Arun Chaudhary
Keyword(s):  
Slip Velocity ◽  
Video Data ◽  
Snow Avalanche ◽  
Surface Measurement ◽  
Late Winter ◽  
Snow Avalanches ◽  
Flow Measurements ◽  
Wet Snow ◽  
Measured Flow ◽  
Actual Flow

AbstractWet snow avalanches in India are common during the mid- and late winter in the Pir Panjal Range (2000–3000ma.s.l.) and during the late winter in the Great Himalayan Range (3000 ma.s.l. and above). Although it is well known that the presence of liquid water in snow makes the flow behaviour of wet snow avalanches different from that of dry snow avalanches, there exist few actual flow measurements with wet snow. The aim of this investigation is to understand the dynamics of wet snow avalanches by conducting medium-scale experiments (volumes of 3, 6 and 11 m3) on the Dhundi snow chute in Himachal Pradesh, India. We measured flow velocities using video data, as well as optical velocity sensors installed on the side walls and running surface. Measurement results relating to the slip velocity of the front and tail of the moving snow mass, as well as the average slip velocity, are presented. In addition, we use the results of the vertical velocity profile measurements to calculate the effective viscosity of snow at two locations within the flow. We identified a shear thinning type of behaviour, suggesting that a single avalanche rheology cannot describe wet snow avalanche behaviour.

scholarly journals Assessing the interaction between mountain forests and snow avalanches at Nevados de Chillán, Chile and its implications for ecosystem-based disaster risk reduction

2018 ◽  
Vol 18 (4) ◽  
pp. 1173-1186 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alejandro Casteller ◽  
Thomas Häfelfinger ◽  
Erika Cortés Donoso ◽  
Karen Podvin ◽  
Dominik Kulakowski ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Risk Reduction ◽  
Natural Hazards ◽  
Tree Ring ◽  
Land Use Planning ◽  
Disaster Risk Reduction ◽  
Disaster Risk ◽  
Process Models ◽  
Snow Avalanches ◽  
Tree Ring Data ◽  
Risk Reduction Measure

Abstract. Gravitational natural hazards such as snow avalanches, rockfalls, shallow landslides and volcanic activity represent a risk to mountain communities around the world. In particular, where documentary records about these processes are rare, decisions on risk management and land-use planning have to be based on a variety of other sources including vegetation, tree-ring data and natural hazard process models. We used a combination of these methods in order to evaluate dynamics of natural hazards with a focus on snow avalanches at Valle Las Trancas, in the Biobío region in Chile. Along this valley, natural hazards threaten not only the local human population, but also the numerous tourists attracted by outdoor recreational activities. Given the regional scarcity of documentary records, tree-ring methods were applied in order to reconstruct the local history of snow avalanches and debris flow events, which are the most important weather-related processes at respective tracks. A recent version of the model Rapid Mass MovementS (RAMMS), which includes influences of forest structure, was used to calculate different avalanche parameters such as runout distances and maximum pressures, taking into consideration the presence or absence of forest along the tracks as well as different modeled return periods. Our results show that local Nothofagus broadleaf forests contribute to a reduction of avalanche runout distances as well as impact pressure on present infrastructure, thus constituting a valuable ecosystem disaster risk reduction measure that can substitute or complement other traditional measures such as snow sheds.

Reconstructing snow-avalanche activity with tree rings in Maramureş Mountains (Eastern Carpathians, Romania)

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Armelle Decaulne ◽  
Ionela-Georgiana Răchită ◽  
Mihai Hotea ◽  
Vasile Timur Chiş ◽  
Olimpiu Traian Pop
Keyword(s):  
Tree Ring ◽  
Tree Rings ◽  
Climatic Factors ◽  
Climatic Conditions ◽  
Snow Avalanche ◽  
Snow Avalanches ◽  
Joint Research ◽  
Eastern Carpathians ◽  
Joint Research Project ◽  
Callus Tissues

<p> <span>Snow avalanches </span>represent a common phenomenon <span>in Maramureş Mountains (Eastern Carpathians, Romania)</span> where they <span>occur frequently on higher steep slopes and reach in the runout zones the valley bottoms below 1000 m a.s.l. The presence of particular topo-climatic conditions influences the patterns of avalanche activity in terms of past frequency and spatial extent along the slope valleys. As the past snow-avalanche activity is not documented by written reports in the area, reliable information about avalanche history is missing. </span>However, the slopes are forested, trees repeatedly disturbed by snow avalanches record evidence of past events. <span>For this study we reconstructed the avalanche activity using tree rings as a source of proxy data. To date the snow-avalanche history, dendrochronological investigations have been carried out in two avalanche paths, along which living trees showed clear external signs of past disturbances related to mechanical impacts produced by snow avalanches. In each investigated path, a total number of 52 and respectively 118 trees have been sampled and their spatial position recorded with a GPS device. Tree-growth </span>anomalies (e.g. scars, callus tissues, the onset sequences of tangential rows of traumatic resin ducts, compression wood, growth suppression and release sequences) <span>related to snow avalanche disturbance identified within tree rings served to reconstruct past events with an annual resolution. The results indicate that, apart the 2005 major event witnessed and also confirmed by tree-ring dating, multiple other events have been reconstructed since the beginning of 20</span><sup><span>th</span></sup><span> century. Despite some inherent limitations of tree-ring methods in reconstructing past avalanche events, these dendrochronological investigations confirm their utility in deciphering the patterns of avalanche activity in Maramureş Mountains. Tree-ring studies contribute to a better understanding of the role of topographical and climatic factors which influence the spatio-temporal occurrence of snow avalanches.</span></p><p><span>This study represents a contribution to the joint research project 09-AUF, </span><span>‘‘</span><span><em>Activité des avalanches de neige dans les Carpates Orientales Roumaines et Ukrainiennes - </em></span><span> ACTIVNEIGE</span><span>’’</span><span>, co-funded by the </span><span><em>Agence Universitaire de la Francophonie (AUF)</em></span><span> and </span><span><em>Institutul de Fizică Atomică (IFA), Romania</em></span><span>.</span></p>

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