It took several coats before it started to look like actual rock. The first couple of passes didn't look too good - the mountain looked as if it had a bad camouflage pattern. Using standard acrylic paints (from Hobby Lobby), I mixed up some dark grey and brown colors to feed through my airbrush. After the foam dried, I used the pull saw to trim off the rounded areas. I used an additional can of spray foam to fill in holes and remake areas that didn't look quite right.
The first coat of paint helped to highlight areas that needed work. After the first coat was dry, I installed the mountain over the fireplace to ensure the train would make it through the tunnel.
The foam soaked up the paint so it took several coats before it looked right. Together with its three-dimensional variant Alpine3D, SNOWPACK is being used in diverse fields, including for studies relating to the influence of climate change and snow stability issues, for hydrological studies, as well as in road network weather applications, permafrost research and in connection with snowfarming.After I was satisfied with the way the rock faces look, I applied layer of light grey latex paint. It has been applied successfully to the Alps, Scandinavia, North America, Japan, Russia, China, India, Chile and the polar regions (Greenland and Antarctica). More than 200 scientists working in over 35 institutions are using SNOWPACK for research purposes. Such coupled models are used to examine the depositing of snow and changes in the snowpack in steep terrain, or to forecast the condition of ski runs to be used for racing. If it is coupled to models of the atmospheric boundary layer, for example, a terrain model can be implemented to estimate snow transport, or the spatial energy balance can be calculated. Other applicationsĪpart from operating as a standalone programme, SNOWPACK is often combined with other models as well. SNOWPACK is also in operational service in other countries. The modelling of snow metamorphism yields appropriate grain types and is capable of simulating key processes, such as the formation of depth hoar and surface hoar. Validations of SNOWPACK have shown that the calculations concerning the mass balance and energy budget are reliable. The model is connected to a relational database, which stores both the measured values and the results produced by the model. SNOWPACK thus generates additional information concerning the state of the snowpack at the places where the automatic measuring stations are situated. The measured values, which drive the model, are transmitted to the SLF hourly.
These stations measure the wind, air temperature, relative humidity, snow depth, surface and soil temperature, reflected shortwave radiation and, in a few cases, three temperatures within the snowpack. SNOWPACK is in operational service within a network of around 160 automatic weather and snow measuring stations distributed throughout Switzerland. Thanks to its Lagrangian grid, SNOWPACK can also simulate very thin layers, including ice lenses. Any number of layers can be simulated, including weak layers and transitional boundaries, such as those formed by surface or depth hoar (cup-shaped crystals). Soil and rock layers can be modelled down to a variable depth, which is a useful option particularly when simulating permafrost. Water content etc.) can also be added to the model. To enhance the simulation of the soil/snowpack interface, soil layers (including ice formation, It models snow as a porous three-phase (ice / liquid water/ water vapour) medium. It focuses on vertical gradients and transfers at the expense of lateral transfers. SNOWPACK is based on the modelling of a one-dimensional soil/snow/vegetation column (Fig.