This video from the American Avalanche Institute out of Jackson, WY shows a widespread layer of depth hoar throughout the bottom of the snowpack in the Tetons.
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If you aren’t familiar with depth hoar, it can be a common culprit when it comes to deep slab avalanches as well as dormant persistent slabs. Bottomline, it’s no good for the current snowpack and we advise that all skiers in the area use caution when traveling in avalanche prone terrain.
Stay Safe!
What is Depth Hoar?
“Mechanically, depth hoar is one nasty dude. Depth hoar behaves like a stack of champagne glasses. Although it’s stronger in compression than in shear, it can also fail in a catastrophic collapse of the layer. Fractures commonly propagate long distances and around corners. Almost all catastrophic, climax avalanches (involving the entire season’s snow cover) fail on depth hoar.”– National Avalanche Center