Forecaster Observation - FAA Ridge, Whitefish Range

Location Name: 
Forecaster Observation - FAA Ridge, Whitefish Range
Region: 
Whitefish Range - Southern (south of Coal Creek)
Date and time of observation: 
Tue, 12/08/2015 - 11:30
Location Map: 

Red Flags: 
Recent loading by new snow, wind, or rain
Observation made by: Forecaster
Snowpit Observations
More detailed information about the snowpack: 

Dug pits on both sides of FAA Peak at around 6800 feet. SW winds were loading North through East aspects and cross loading NW and SE aspects. 

N side snowpit harbored 29cm of new snow atop FC snow. CT8 Q2 RP @ 29 cm from sfc (new/old snow interface)CT11 Q2 RP @ 37 cm from sfc above rain CR. This test was done with top 25 cm removed. ECTX.

S side snowpit harbored new snow above a MF crust from sunny days. This was ~30 cm from the sfc.ECTX.Rain CR was also 50cm from sfc.

Snowpit or crown profile photo or graph: 
Snowpack photos: 
Any other comments about the observation or links to outside pages that have more info on the observation: 

Skiers on Skook Face in southern WF Range reported active wind loading and cornice formation.

 

Weather Observations
Blowing Snow: 
Yes
Cloud Cover: 
100% of the sky covered by clouds
Air temperature: 
Below Freezing
Wind Speed: 
Moderate (Small trees sway)
Precipitation: 
Snow
Air temperature trend: 
Warming
Wind Direction: 
Southwest
Accumulation rate: 
Less than 1 in. per hour
More detailed information about the weather: 

Active wind loading. Snow level this morning and afternoon (1300) was around 5000-5500 ft.

Activity: 
Skiing
Precip Rate: 
S2; moderate snowfall, 2cm/hour
High Temp. (C): 
-1.1
Low Temp. (C): 
-1.7