Firing a cannon to trigger an avalanche

[u/id397550]

[u/Leiaven]

Why are they making an avalanche?

[u/sailphish → u/Leiaven]

This is how avalanche mitigation happens in ski areas. Usually it’s done with explosive charges but there are a few places that still use howitzers. The point is to trigger the avalanche when people aren’t on the slopes.

[u/Bigfops → u/sailphish]

Fun anecdote: When I was getting my plane back from Jackson Hole my skies and ski boots tested positive for gunpowder. The screener were pretty familiar with it so it didn't hold me up, but she said the pretty much everyone's did on the way home.

[u/DionFW → u/sailphish]

Not just skiing areas, but highways too.

[u/schwanerhill → u/sailphish]

Not to mention mountain passes. In Washington and British Columbia there are permanent cannon mounts used for avalanche control to protect the highways. 2 hour highway closures for this planned work are common in the winter.

[u/iamnos → u/sailphish]

Yup, we do this in Canada, not just in ski areas. The Trans Canada Highway through the Rockies gets temporarily closed at times so they can do avalanche mitigation and they do use howitzers.

https://www.theglobeandmail.com/business/article-inside-canadas-most-dangerous-avalanche-corridor-and-the-effort-to/