[ a v a l a n c h e s   :   p r e d i c t i o n ]

For a long time, all knowledge of avalanches was gathered by watching, digging out, and rescuing victims. The first organized scientific studies were started in 1931 by the Swiss Federal Institute for Snow and Avalanche Research, in a small wooden hut on the Weissfluhjock Mountain in the Alps. Researchers huddled in blankets to keep warm as they worked.

In 1946, the Institute’s wooden hut was replaced by a modern, three-story building near a series of avalanche slopes, and equipped with up-to-date technology. The Institute studies the relationship between weather and snow conditions, the causes of snow slides, how avalanches move and might be controlled, their relationship to forests, and the effects of pollution on Alpine trees. The Institute also helps train volunteer observers and guides, who send weather information to radio stations that give daily avalanche reports. This way, skiers and hikers can get the most current information in different languages from a telephone hotline.

In the United States, the Colorado Information Center was established in 1974 to serve the same purpose. Now, there are similar centers in Alaska, Washington, California, and Utah. Around the world, there are other laboratories that study avalanche behavior, notably in Sapporo, Japan; Grenoble, France; and Fort Collins, Colorado.

Technology has come a long way since the first avalanche scientists ventured out into mountain passes to study snow. Experts are now able to predict, to some degree, where dangerous areas are located. By examining snow fall, temperature, weather conditions, and terrain, they can estimate where heavy snow build-ups may be precursors to an avalanche. After finding areas of danger, the next step is to prepare and prevent the White Dragon of legend from coming to life.

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