Snowpit from Rubicon Peak

Location Name: 
Rubicon Peak
Region: 
West Shore Area
Date and time of observation: 
Wed, 01/06/2016 - 13:00
Location Map: 
United States
38° 59' 28.32" N, 120° 8' 0.528" W
US


Red Flags: 
Recent loading by new snow, wind, or rain

Observation made by: Forecaster
Snowpit Observations
More detailed information about the snowpack: 

About 3 inches of new snow accumulated in the Rubicon area today. This snow fell on top of about 6-7 inches from yesterday and all of that rested on top of the old snow surface. General observations and snowpit data indicated that the storm snow is bonding well to the old snow surfaces and did not reveal significant signs of instability in near and below treeline sheltered slopes. In more exposed near and above treeline terrain lighter than forecasted winds meant that wind slabs remained small and observations also showed that they had bonded well to the snow below them. 

Snowpit or crown profile photo or graph: 
Weather Observations
Blowing Snow: 
Yes
Cloud Cover: 
100% of the sky covered by clouds
Air temperature: 
Below Freezing
Wind Speed: 
Light
Precipitation: 
Snow
Air temperature trend: 
Static
Wind Direction: 
Southwest
Accumulation rate: 
Less than 1 in. per hour
More detailed information about the weather: 

Light snow during the day. Only about 3 inches of accumulation had fallen by 2:30pm. Winds also remained light to moderate even along the summit of Rubicon.