We did not observe any obvious sign of instability. We did observe blowing snow along ridgetops due to light to moderate winds.
Observation: Turnagain
Location: Sunburst
Sunburst weather station is back online!! We accessed the weather station from Taylor Pass and successfully replaced the battery and repaired a broken wire.
Observer Comments
Weather
Clear skies
COLD! 3F to 12F (Windchill -5F to -20F)
Ridgetop winds were 5-10mph gusting to 25mph
Wind direction varied from SW to NW
No new precip
Snow surface
1000'- (only at road level) very small 2-3mm surface hoar on 3" of loose snow(near surface facets)
Above 1000' to 3000'(just below ridgetops)- 3" of loose settled snow (near surface facets)
Ridgetops - scoured/sastrugi/rime
Snowpack
Below 2000' the snowpack is faceting out due to very cold temps and shallow snow depths. A few handpits revealed 10"-15" of loose unconsolidated snow (no much of a slab) sitting on an ice crust on the ground The snow in these handpits disintegrated upon pulling.
We didn't dig in the upper elevations
Wendy warming her hands while replacing the battery at Sunburst weather station.
Blowing snow near the Sunburst weather station. Westerly winds shifted between SW and NW throughout the day.
Sastrugi along the ridge to Sunburst Wx station
A glide crack on Sunburst SW face that continues to grow, widen, and spit out chunks of snow.
Beautiful sky and blowing snow on Bard Peak in Portage Valley
A good reference while the cold arctic air impacts Southcentral, AK