Page "Avalanche" Paragraph 6

Avalanches are classified by their morphological characteristics and are rated by either their destructive potential, or the mass of the downward flowing snow.

Some of the morphological characteristics used to classify avalanches include the type of snow involved, the nature of the failure, the sliding surface, the propagation mechanism of the failure, the trigger of the avalanche, the slope angle, slope aspect, and elevation.

The size of an avalanche, its mass and its destructive potential are rated on a logarithmic scale, typically of 5 categories, with the precise definition of the categories depending on the observation system or geographic region in which the avalanche occurs.