Capacitance measurement for classification of snow packs to estimate avalanche risk

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Increased backcountry access by skiers, snowmobilers and industrial workers to avalanche-prone terrain in remote regions has led to numerous catastrophic events and fatalities each year. Creating a device that can inform its users about the risk of avalanche given the snow and weather condition can prevent such events and deaths. Fraser Instruments Ltd. has developed a handheld and easy-to-use tool that addresses the immediate need of both amateurs and professionals to some extent, but they are currently pursuing the development of a more advanced snowpack analysis device called AvyStick that can reliably assess the risk in much broader scenarios based on most dominant parameters involved. Incorporating numerous electronic sensors for the testing and analysis of snow pit data, the new AvyStick device will aid backcountry users in the decision making process of whether or not the skiable terrain is safe from avalanches. The objective of the proposed project is to develop a miniaturized snow sensor that can measure important properties of snow much more accurately using the capacitance signature of snowpack at different layers. Specifically, Fraser Instruments will work with Najjaran's research laboratory to incorporate highly sensitive capacitance-based lab-on-chip probes as well as its customized hardware and software into AvyStick to increase its robustness and accuracy. The proposed research will aim to develop the appropriate sensor, which can achieve a less than 5% error when measuring the weight (a percentage of water content) and relating it to the density of various types of snow. The technology will be implemented into a palm-sized device to save users time with their avalanche analysis thereby improving the quantity and quality of data an individual is able to acquire during assessment.