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[pct-l] Donner Summit



Although warm temps and sun do a lot to melt snow, wind is the
grand-daddy of snow eaters.     As you can imagine, the visible light
bounces off the white snow.  The infra-red heating rays apparently
will go right through the snow to the ground and hopefully melt from
the bottom up.  The nasty UV rays also are reflected as anyone who has
failed to wear sunblock on a sunny snow slow will tell you.

Warm air helps, but the insulating nature of snow (all that trapped
air space) helps the snow hang on.  The air adjacent to the snow is
cooled.  Wind helps strip this layer off.

Around Colorado such winds are called 'chinooks'.  I am told the
literal translation of 'chinook' is "snow eater."

cheers,
terry

On 5/23/05, Daniel Braunstein <dpbraunstein@hotmail.com> wrote:

> Upon reaching Tahoe Meadows, we discovered that the TRT there still has
> about 2 feet of snow on it,  a little surprising considering the warm temps,
> and the fact that it is an area that gets sunlight nearly all day. Temps are
> forecast in the mid to upper 80s all week in Reno, and even low 80s at lake
> level, so the snow should be melting.