Latest news with #CAIC
Yahoo
4 days ago
- Climate
- Yahoo
After Avalanche, Forecasters Urge Caution in Colorado Backcountry
Spring has arrived and the backcountry beckons, but the Colorado Avalanche Information Center (CAIC), after an accident north of Ophir, still wants skiers to think about avalanche May 29, a skier was caught by an avalanche in Gold King Basin, Colorado, according to an accident report. They and their partner, a snowboarder, had begun descending an east-oriented face. First, the snowboarder rode downhill. Then, the skier followed, triggering a wet loose avalanche. Thankfully, the incident ended without injury. The skier quickly freed themself from the avalanche's path, avoiding being dragged through rocks. But the avalanche did carry a timely reminder.'Just because it's nearly June doesn't mean avalanche season is over,' the CAIC wrote in a recent social media update. 'We refer to avalanche years—not seasons—because avalanches can happen any time of year where there's snow on steep slopes.'Want to keep up with the best stories and photos in skiing? Subscribe to the new Powder To The People newsletter for weekly updates. The CAIC recommended that backcountry travelers begin and end their days early. As the sun melts the snow, the risk of wet loose avalanches can CAIC also wrote that skiers and snowboarders should move off steep slopes whenever there's a rain-on-snow event, track overnight temperatures, and favor areas with deeper across the CAIC's forecast regions throughout Colorado, the avalanche danger is to the CAIC's forecast discussion, a significant number of the recently reported avalanches across Colorado have been small, wet slides. The avalanches mostly haven't been large enough to bury a skier or snowboarder, but they could sweep someone off their feet, which could be a problem, depending on the terrain hazards. As the lift-accessed ski season winds down in Colorado and elsewhere, the backcountry is becoming the only place skiers and snowboarders can continue chasing those who'd prefer to ski while avoiding the risk of slides, though, a few options still remain. Arapahoe Basin, Colorado, plans to remain open until June 8, making it the state's latest open ski area. In California, Mammoth Mountain intends to spin the lifts through June 15. Timberline Lodge, Oregon, as is tradition, will stay open deep into the warmer months. And, in Wyoming, near the Montana border, North America's only ski area that exclusively operates in the summer, Beartooth Basin, is just starting its Avalanche, Forecasters Urge Caution in Colorado Backcountry first appeared on Powder on May 30, 2025
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Business Standard
21-04-2025
- Business Standard
China steps up testing of sixth-gen stealth fighters amid tensions with US
China appears to be accelerating test flights of its next-generation stealth aircraft, with new videos and images of two advanced fighter jets emerging on Chinese social media platforms in recent weeks, as reported by The South China Morning Post. The increased activity coincides with rising geopolitical tensions between Beijing and Washington. Unofficially referred to as the J-36 and J-50, the aircraft were spotted near the headquarters of their respective developers — Chengdu Aircraft Industry Corporation (CAIC) in Sichuan and Shenyang Aircraft Corporation (SAC) in Liaoning. The visuals were widely shared on platforms such as Weibo and Douyin. Footage reportedly filmed in early April shows the CAIC-developed J-36 conducting sharp aerial manoeuvres over Chengdu. The aircraft's distinctive ginkgo leaf-like wing shape, small trailing edge flaps, and delta configuration suggest a focus on extreme agility and advanced flight control. One video, allegedly shot by a motorist near the CAIC airfield, showed the jet flying at low altitude over a highway as it prepared to land, with its unique dorsal inlet and three exhaust nozzles clearly visible. Meanwhile, the SAC-developed J-50 reappeared in clearer detail in early April. A photo taken on April 4, followed by flight videos dated April 8 and 16, were posted online by aviation enthusiasts. These visuals captured the J-50's lambda wing platform, articulated wingtips, and side weapon bays. Observers also noted its refined diverterless supersonic inlet design, which blends smoothly with the aircraft's fuselage and enhances stealth. J-36, J-50 features Both jets feature tailless airframes, which are considered a hallmark of sixth-generation stealth fighters and contribute to radar evasion. The two aircraft were first seen in December 2023, but these recent visuals offer the clearest look yet at China's most advanced combat aircraft in development. While Chinese authorities have not officially confirmed the existence of either fighter, the repeated sightings and analysis by open-source intelligence communities suggest that China is making significant strides in military aviation. US pushes forward with sixth-gen fighter programme The developments come as the United States moves forward with its own sixth-generation fighter programmes, including the F-47 for the Air Force, which US President Donald Trump said has been undergoing secret testing for several years. On March 21, US President Trump awarded Boeing a contract to build what is expected to be the Air Force's most advanced fighter to date, an announcement that surprised many. However, details regarding its specifications, capabilities, and operational role remain under wraps, leaving many in the defence community speculating about its design and potential impact on modern warfare. The unveiling of the F-47 project is part of the broader US strategy to maintain a technological edge in the ongoing military aviation arms race.
South China Morning Post
21-04-2025
- South China Morning Post
China's sixth-gen stealth fighter test flights reveal high-level manoeuvrability
China appears to be ramping up testing of its two sixth-generation stealth fighters, with numerous sightings reported in recent weeks amid growing geopolitical tensions with the United States Advertisement Videos and pictures purporting to show the two aircraft in the skies over the respective headquarters of their developers in China's southwest and northeast have emerged, with the most recent appearing on Chinese social media on Thursday. In the latest video, the Chengdu Aircraft Industry Corporation (CAIC) fighter – unofficially referred to as the J-36 – can be seen performing sharp turns and other manoeuvres against the sky. If the footage is genuine, it suggests that the aircraft's unique design, which has been compared to the shape of a ginkgo leaf, has been combined with an advanced computer flight control system to achieve 'super-manoeuvrability'. Military commentator Song Zhongping said the J-36's unique design of trailing edge control surfaces and split flaps on the wings of the delta platform, on top of an advanced flight control system, could ensure the fighter's extreme agility. Advertisement 'The aerodynamics of these small flaps enhances the aircraft's lateral movement ability greatly. To work with that, China's flight control programming must already be at a world-leading level,' he said. Song added that the finalised version of the plane would be very likely to be powered by vector thrusting engines, which he said would be a further boost to the J-36's super-manoeuvrability.
CBS News
16-04-2025
- Climate
- CBS News
Colorado Avalanche Information Center wants your opinion on forecast communications
The Colorado Avalanche Information Center is looking for your help to create a better-understood risk forecast for avalanches in mountainous areas of the state. In a post on social media, the state-run organization addressed its community: "How do you understand the North American Avalanche Danger Scale? We're running a survey to learn how people use and interpret the Danger Scale—and we want to hear from YOU! You don't need to be an expert. Your feedback helps make avalanche safety info clearer and more effective for everyone." "Communicating the forecast that we produce is really the hardest part," Ethan Greene, CAIC Director, said. "We've been doing this a long time where we're pretty good at forecasting avalanche hazard, although the scale of that and how precise that can be is certainly limited by a lot of different factors. But communicating that to people and really getting it to them at a time and a place and in a way where it can impact their decisions and help them stay really what we're trying to do." The current danger scale has been in place for years and runs from 1 to 5; the smaller the number, the lower the chance for an avalanche to trigger. A lot of things go into that formula to achieve the "danger scale" number, Greene explained, so making sure the variables are obvious is helpful to the people checking for better information. "Changing the scale itself is certainly not off the table," Greene said. "We did change it about 20 years ago, and the Europeans are in the middle of looking at making some changes to their scale. But making really big changes to it is a tough and laborious and time-consuming process. So it's certainly not off the table."
CBS News
21-03-2025
- Climate
- CBS News
New snow and strong winds increase avalanche danger across Colorado
Another storm is moving into the high country this weekend, increasing concern for avalanches. Experts warn that more snow and wind has created widespread considerable avalanche danger across most of the sate with the southeast mountains sitting at moderate danger. This photo, shared by the Colorado Avalanche Information Center (CAIC), shows the type of avalanches the CAIC is worried about with new snow moving in. Ski, snowboard, and snowmobile-triggered avalanches are happening on steeper slopes drifted by winds. Wind loaded, rocky areas will be the most dangerous slopes heading into the weekend. The wind and the snow are not the only problem. You can see on this snowpack profile taken near Sunlight Ski Resort, there are weak lower layers. The main concern, is any avalanche that happens in the newly wind drifted snow could potential break into some of the deeper weak layers closer to the ground leading to very large avalanches that experts warn would be difficult to survive. Anyone traveling in the backcountry should always carry proper safety gear, including an avalanche transceiver, probe, and shovel, and know how to use those tools. Daily avalanche forecasts can be found at
