Snowfalls by grain

2001/07/09 Elhuyar Zientzia

• Geologia

It seems that the snow jump behaves like a liquid in its slope descent, but according to some Finnish researchers the fall occurs with the dynamics of solids.

The dynamics of the jump depends on the size of the pieces of snow. When the snow specimens are very small, they accumulate compact and the snow jump occurs in blocks. Finnish scientists at the Finnish University of Jyväskylä, Jan Eltström and Jussi Timon, have discovered that snow moves with the dynamics of solids. For this they have developed the theoretical model of snow and simulated the jump.

In the model the snow is organized in plates. Through the computer, they simulated that the snow plates fall down different sides. They analyzed how these plates break and how snow falls occur.

Today, many scientists are investigating the process of breaking snow plates using acoustic signals. The goal is to predict the snow cascade, so the theoretical work of the Finns of Eltström and Timon can be of help.