Glossary

Crown

Credit
Avalanche Quebec

A skier inspects the crown of a slab avalanche.

The crown is the uppermost part of the fracture of a slab avalanche.

The crown is the uppermost part of the fracture of a slab avalanche, where the slab breaks away from the snowpack overhead. It connects to the flanks of the avalanche on either side and sits perpendicular to the bed surface of the avalanche. The height of the crown is generally used when measuring the dimensions of an avalanche.