This book provides a critical update of the most recent and innovative developments of avalanche science. It aims at re-founding avalanche science on clear scientific bases, from field observations and experiments up to mathematical and physical analysis and modeling. In this respect, it stands in a still unoccupied but fundamental niche amidst the abundant avalanche literature.
In the current context of a accelerated climate warming, the book also discusses possible evolutions of snow cover extent and stability. It also shows how the present analysis can be extended, in mountainous areas, to other gravitationally induced phenomena that are likely to take over from avalanches under specific circumstances.
The text is supported by online links to field experiments and lectures on triggering mechanisms, risk management, and decision making.
INTRODUCTION SNOW, AN INTRIGUING, COMPLEX AND CHANGEABLE SOLID 2.1: From ice to snow 2.2: Snow crystals 2.3: From snowfalls to snow layers 2.4: Snow as a granular medium 2.5: Snow as a porous medium: the concept of percolation BASICS OF DEFORMATION, FRACTURE AND FRICTION PROCESSES 3.1: Deformation of solids 3.2: Fracture initiation and extension 3.3: Griffith's criterion 3.4: The brittle to ductile transition 3.5: Coulomb's law of friction SLAB AVALANCHE RELEASE: DATA AND FIELD EXPERIMENTS 4.1: Geometry and dynamical characteristics 4.2: Statistical aspects: scale invariance 4.3: The weak layer, starting point for slab avalanche release 4.4: Stability and Bridging indexes SLAB AVALANCHE MODELING 5.1: Old myths and beliefs to shoot down 5.2: Basis for modeling 5.3: Statistical approach: Playing with cellular 5.4: Sliding or sticking? 5.5: Slab avalanche release in four steps SUPERFICIAL AND FULL-DEPTH AVALANCHES 6.1: Loose snow avalanches 6.2: Full depth avalanches 6.3: Summary SNOW AND AVALANCHES IN A CLIMATE WARMING CONTEXT 7.1: Climate change 7.2: Possible consequences on avalanching SUMMARY AND CONCLUSION APPENDIX A COMPLEXITY AND CRITICAL PHENOMENA A1: From simple to complex systems A2: Scale invariance and self-organized criticality APPENDIX B MODELING A FLUID TO SOLID PHASE TRANSITION IN SNOW WEAK-LAYERS. B1: A fluid to solid phase transition in healable granular materials B2: Application to slab avalanche release APPENDIX C STABILITY OF A SINTERED WEAK LAYER DISK SURROUNDED BY A RING-SHAPED FLUID WEAK LAYER ZONE
"François Louchet received an engineering degree at Ecole Nationale Supérieure des Mines (Nancy, France), the ""Agrégation"" degree in Physics, and a PhD in Solid State Physics. For more than 30 years he has been Professor of Condensed Matter Physics at Grenoble University (Grenoble Institute of Technology). He was also Invited Professor at Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (Switzerland), invited scientist at the Balseiro Institute, Bariloche (Argentina), and at Charles University, Prague (Czech Republic), Guest Scientist at Los Alamos National Laboratory (USA), OCMR Distinguished Lecturer at Mc Master University, Hamilton, and Kingston University (Ontario, Canada). He is the secretary of the Data-Avalanche Association, and a member of the European Physical Society and of the French Physical Society. Now retired, he keeps on with his research activity, more particularly on theoretical aspects of instabilities in Physics and Geophysics."
Reviews for Snow Avalanches: Beliefs, Facts, and Science
Provides the best overall understanding of avalanche science in the most practical way. * Henry Schniewind, Director of Henry's Avalanche Talk (HAT), London and Val d'Isère *
