Natural Avalanches: Causes And Effects Of Avalanches

Avalanches
Avalanches are large amounts of snow, ice, and rocks rapidly moving down a mountainside. They can have many causes, some are natural and others are artificial. Some examples of natural avalanche causes include new rain or snow; these can in fact cause a cluster of snow to suddenly dislodge and downpour on a mountainside. Earthquakes and the natural movement of animals are also known to have caused avalanches in the past. The movement of the animals or earthquakes slowly or rapidly moves the snow until it is moved so much that it becomes loose and again runs down a mountainside. Artificial triggers consisting of things like snowmobiles, skiers, gunshots, and explosives. Avalanches usually occur during the winter and spring, as they are

Once they begin, they have three segments:

• The starting zone, is one of the most dangerous areas and the most unpredictable. Snow that is unstable can break free from its surroundings and begin to slide; most of the time starting zones would be higher up on the slopes, often above the tree line. Due to this, in the right conditions, snow can still break away at any point on the slope.
• The track, is the path, channel or course that the avalanche flows down the mountainside. You can often see avalanche tracks, even in the summer because of missing trees. If there is a lack of trees on the mountainside, it is a clue that large avalanches flow through frequently in that area. There could also be a large pile up at the bottom of a slope, again indicating that avalanches pass through often.
• The runout, is where the snow and debris eventually comes to a halt. When the snow eventually begins to slow or stop, it compacts and creates a wall like concrete. Due to this it is one of the most dangerous parts of the avalanches for skiers, hikers, snowmobilers, this is so because they can normally not dig themselves out and are forced to wait for assistance.
Time of