It's this weak layer that's at the root of most avalanches. The bonds between the large cup-shaped snow crystals in this layer are only weak and they break easily.

这种疏松层便是大多数雪崩形成的根源，该层中大的杯状雪晶之间的键合很弱，非常容易断裂。

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The main disease of the dike include: Seepage, crack, slip, cave, weak layer, collapse, pipe breach.

堤坝的主要病害有：渗漏、裂缝、滑坡、孔洞、软弱层、坍塌崩岸、涵管破裂。

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And if such a weak layer sits in the middle of the snow pack, it becomes an avalanche waiting to happen.

如果这种疏松层位于积雪的中部，雪崩便很容易被触发。

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The report says that underground, just outside the canal in people's backyards, there lurked a weak layer of clay.

NPR: Panel's Report Assigns No Blame in Levee Failures

They said the design did not take that weak layer into account.

NPR: Panel's Report Assigns No Blame in Levee Failures

Two teams of engineers, one funded by the state of Louisiana and one based at the University of California, Berkley, have previously put the blame on the Army Corps of Engineers and on a weak layer of ground below the canal walls.

NPR: Panel's Report Assigns No Blame in Levee Failures