Avalanche Radar Coming to Wyoming’s Hoback Canyon Could Be a Game-Changer for Mountain Safety

Avalanches are one of the scariest natural disasters out there—fast, violent, and often completely unexpected, Wide Open Spaces reports.

But thanks to new technology, there’s finally hope for a little more warning before snow starts roaring down the mountain.

Wyoming’s Hoback Canyon, a stretch of road known for its avalanche danger, is getting a serious upgrade: a cutting-edge avalanche radar system that could dramatically improve safety in the area.

The new radar, announced by Cowboy State Daily, is designed to detect avalanches in real-time—no matter the weather, time of day, or visibility conditions. And that could be a total game-changer.

“The biggest thing about this system was the speed at which we could close the road,” said Stephanie Harsha, spokesperson for the Wyoming Department of Transportation (WYDOT). “[With this new system, we would] save a lot of drivers if we could close it and eliminate that factor of people being in the canyon when that happens.”

Traditional avalanche monitoring depends on people in the field, watching the slopes and relying on weather models. But this new system brings in round-the-clock radar and sensor monitoring, able to pick up on shifting snow, ice, and debris along known avalanche paths.

The result? Instant alerts when things start to move, giving crews precious time to shut down roads and put emergency plans in place before disaster strikes.

Hoback Canyon doesn’t just deal with snow slides—it’s also vulnerable to landslides and debris flows, especially during the spring melt and heavy rainstorms. The new radar will help detect those threats, too, making this one of the most advanced hazard-monitoring systems in the region.