an electronic locating device ... which consists of a 5 oz. beacon, 3- 1/2" long by 2" diameter, and a 4 oz. receiver with earpiece and 65' of search wire. The beacon transmits very low frequency signals, which when covered by an avalanche are capacitively coupled into the snow. The electrostatic field thus produced is detected by the receiver and converted into an audible tone. The intensity of the tone is used to locate the victim., a portable transceiver, carried by hikers and backcountry skiers into avalanche-prone areas, that reflects a signal from an aboveground transceiver, making known the exact location of the device in case the carrier is buried in an avalanche. Searchers using traditional beacons form a sweep line and cover the avalanche slope until someone's transceiver emits a sound indicating that it has picked up a signal. Searchers identify the location of the loudest signal, then sweep out in a perpendicular line to find the strongest signal on that line. Newer transceivers pinpoint the victim's distance and direct line immediately, allowing rescue to begin much more quickly than before.