Swiss Snow Institute develops laser for avalanche risk assessment

Snow Institute develops laser to assess avalanche danger Keystone-SDA

The WSL Institute for Snow and Avalanche Research (SLF) is developing a laser system to better assess the risk of avalanches on traffic routes.

The all-terrain lasers are designed to shorten the duration of road and rail closures during challenging snow conditions.

+ What’s triggering avalanches?

The SLF in Davos announced on Tuesday that the results were promising after the first winter of testing. A known avalanche-prone area, a north-facing slope, was monitored using two terrain scanners positioned away from the pistes of the Jakobshorn ski area.

The laser scanners provide data directly from potential avalanche starting areas, offering a better basis for assessing whether roads or tracks should be closed due to the risk of avalanches. Until now, such decisions have been based on weather and snow data, the avalanche bulletin, local observations, and the personal experience of those involved.

Hourly monitoring

The laser scanners now also measure how the snow depths are distributed in the avalanche area. The devices measure every hour, with precision to the nearest decimetre. At around CHF30,000 ($33,873) for two measuring stations, the costs are also comparatively low.

The devices used are known as LiDAR devices, which are also employed in the automotive industry for driver assistance systems. They use laser pulses to measure the distance to objects and the intensity of the light reflected back from them.

+ What’s the real risk from avalanches?

“The high potential of the system is already apparent,” SLF geomatics engineer Pia Ruttner-Jansen is quoted as saying in the press release. Next winter, she plans to build on her results and aims to set up additional measuring stations at a second location. This time, it should preferably be a south-facing slope.

Translated from German by DeepL/sp

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