 Poster: A snowHead
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Local resort forecast, and other French forecasts, sometimes mention a "talweg". My huge French dictionary translates this into English as "talweg". Not a lot of help. My rudimentary German can't make sense of it either ("valley away"??). Could someone explain it, please? 
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
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I think it's a trough. A thalweg or talweg is normally a line connecting equal points of height in a valley - but specifically the lowest ones. In a weather forecast, I'd expect it to be a trough. A trough is an elongated area of low pressure that can turn into a more classic low pressure region, but often does not. They can create cloud and rain on their leading edge and if they meet up with other conditions for instability can enhace their effects. That's pretty poor definition on my part, but you get the idea.
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You need to Login to know who's really who.
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Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
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kuwait_ian, yes, sorry. I knew that, but didn't write that. 
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You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
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I think it's the centre of a low pressure area. The isobars in a depression link points with the same pressure - the innermost isobar links the points with the lowest pressure - hence the literal translation of "valley line". From a forecasting standpoint, it implies that wind speed & direction will be very variable. The high pressure equivalent is a dorsal.
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your all wrong, isnt it some kind of monster out of Lord of the Rings?!! 
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You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
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Julian T, it could be a applied to a LP as well, but I assumed the "weg" bit meant a trough. I think a depression in German is "Tief" something, high pressure being "Hoch" something. A dorsal I think is a ridge rather than a HP region - though that may be a French/German difference.
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I found this on meteo.fr
" Un thalweg (ou talweg), encore appelé creux barométrique , est une région dépressionnaire de l' atmosphère prenant à l'horizontale une forme suffisamment allongée pour qu'on puisse y distinguer un axe passant par son centre : la direction de cet axe reste à près uniforme sur les différentes surfaces où est examinée la dépression , c'est-à-dire sur la surface du niveau moyen de la mer et sur les différentes surfaces isobares standards . La forme et la cote des lignes isobares au niveau moyen de la mer ou celles des lignes isohypses sur une surface isobare mettent alors en évidence, sur chaque surface quasi horizontale, une "vallée" qui est le tracé de l'axe du thalweg, rassemblant les points de la dépression où la courbure des lignes isobares ou isohypses est maximale (autour de ces lignes, le vent circule dans le sens inverse des aiguilles d'une montre pour l'hémisphère Nord, dans le sens opposé pour l'hémisphère Sud : on parle de courbure cyclonique ). La configuration topographique inverse d'un thalweg est celle qui est associée aux régions anticycloniques de l'atmosphère et s'appelle une dorsale "
neither my French nor my meteorology are equal to this, but it's obviously a trough (thankyou, skanky), and I suppose that a "dorsale", defined in the final sentence, is what we would call a "ridge".
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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In German . It means Valley way (line)
In German "Tief" is Deep
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And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
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here is an example of it, in a forecast related to current weather
"Le conflit des masses d'air est impressionnant et la situation en question est exceptionnelle depuis plus de vingt ans, en effet rares sont les talwegs aussi bien alimenté en air froid"
must be jolly deep troughs then
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"The conflict of the masses of air is impressive and the situation in question has been exceptional for more than twenty years, indeed rare are the thalwegs as well fed in cold air"
Is that for twenty years, or in twenty years? What's it a forecast for?
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You know it makes sense.
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Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
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Dunno then. Can't tell from that my French isn't good enough. It seems to me to be more appropriate for a trough, but as it's probably idiomatic, it could mean a depression.
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Poster: A snowHead
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Actually, yesterday evening a trough moved in from the west overnight and it pretty much stretched from the Uk to Spain, so that may well have been what that report was referring to.
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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You are all barking up the wrong tree. I am sure that a Talweg is the new VW 4x4. Simply cant understand all this weather speculation on Snowheads. My skiing is over for the season for goodness sake.
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Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
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Reading all this it's difficult to know if the tal wegs the dog, or the dog wegs the tal.
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You need to Login to know who's really who.
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| Quote: |
| a Talweg is the new VW 4x4 |
Uh-huh, obviously one that can't climb hills.
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brian
brian
Guest
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| skanky wrote: |
"The conflict of the masses of air is impressive and the situation in question has been exceptional for more than twenty years, indeed rare are the thalwegs as well fed in cold air"
Is that for twenty years, or in twenty years? What's it a forecast for? |
depuis is usually more like since. I think the above translates as an exceptional situation like this hasn't happened for more than 20 years.
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brian
brian
Guest
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brian, thanks. The problems with automatic translations.
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FAQ
The crests or ridges (Kammwegs) are in red and the talwegs are blue
Loads more esoteric stuff 
But in physical geography it's not equal points of height - just the lowest points in a series of sections across a valley. Next question, 
