A mountain can look completely still.

A blanket of snow rests quietly across the slope.

Nothing appears to be moving.

Until suddenly, everything does.

Millions of kilograms of snow begin accelerating downhill, transforming a peaceful mountain landscape into a rapidly moving mass of snow, ice, and air.

But what actually causes an avalanche?

And how can something as seemingly soft and light as snow become so powerful?

In The Hidden Physics of Avalanches, we explore the science behind one of nature's most dramatic gravitational phenomena.

We begin with the snowpack.

Eventually, under the right conditions, a small disturbance can trigger a much larger failure.

The physics is remarkably similar to what engineers study in slopes, soils, and other materials.

A stable slop ...