Articles | Volume 23, issue 1
https://doi.org/10.5194/nhess-23-293-2023
https://doi.org/10.5194/nhess-23-293-2023
Research article
 | 
26 Jan 2023
Research article |  | 26 Jan 2023

Temporal evolution of crack propagation characteristics in a weak snowpack layer: conditions of crack arrest and sustained propagation

Bastian Bergfeld, Alec van Herwijnen, Grégoire Bobillier, Philipp L. Rosendahl, Philipp Weißgraeber, Valentin Adam, Jürg Dual, and Jürg Schweizer

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Cited articles

Bair, E. H., Simenhois, R., van Herwijnen, A., and Birkeland, K.: The influence of edge effects on crack propagation in snow stability tests, The Cryosphere, 8, 1407–1418, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-8-1407-2014, 2014. 
Behiri, J. C. and Bonfield, W.: Crack velocity dependence of longitudinal fracture in bone, J. Mater. Sci., 15, 1841–1849, https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00550605, 1980. 
Bergfeld, B., van Herwijnen, A., Reuter, B., Bobillier, G., Dual, J., and Schweizer, J.: Dynamic crack propagation in weak snowpack layers: insights from high-resolution, high-speed photography, The Cryosphere, 15, 3539–3553, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-15-3539-2021, 2021. 
Bergfeld, B., van Herwijnen, A., Bobillier, G., Larose, E., Moreau, L., Trottet, B., Gaume, J., Cathomen, J., Dual, J., and Schweizer, J.: Crack propagation speeds in weak snowpack layers, J. Glaciol., 68, 557–570, https://doi.org/10.1017/jog.2021.118, 2022. 
Bergfeld, B., van Herwijnen, A., and Schweizer, J.: Time series data on dynamic crack propagation in long propagation saw tests, EnviDat [data set], https://doi.org/10.16904/envidat.365, 2023. 
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Short summary
For a slab avalanche to release, the snowpack must facilitate crack propagation over large distances. Field measurements on crack propagation at this scale are very scarce. We performed a series of experiments, up to 10 m long, over a period of 10 weeks. Beside the temporal evolution of the mechanical properties of the snowpack, we found that crack speeds were highest for tests resulting in full propagation. Based on these findings, an index for self-sustained crack propagation is proposed.
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