When Matthias Huss first visited Rhône Glacier in Switzerland 35 years ago, the ice was just a short walk from where his parents would park the car. 'When I first stepped onto the ice... there [was] a special feeling of eternity,' recalls Huss, now director of Glacier Monitoring in Switzerland (GLAMOS). Today, the glacier is half an hour's hike from that same parking spot, highlighting the dramatic glacier retreat.
This story is not isolated; similar patterns are observed globally as glaciers experience unprecedented melting. A recent World Meteorological Organization report stated that in 2024, glaciers outside Greenland and Antarctica lost 450 billion tonnes of ice—equating to a colossal volume sufficient to fill 180 million Olympic swimming pools.
'Glaciers are melting everywhere in the world,' warns Prof Ben Marzeion from the University of Bremen, underscoring the hostile climate conditions exacerbated by global warming. Particularly distressed are Switzerland's glaciers, which have lost 25% of their mass in the last decade alone.
Surveillance from space and on the ground captures the reality of this issue. Some glaciers display alarming contractions; for instance, satellite images depict the Rhône Glacier's retreat since 1990, where a new lake now occupies the space once held by solid ice.
It was once considered extreme for glaciers to lose 2% of ice in a year, yet 2022 shattered that threshold with a nearly 6% loss recorded in Switzerland. Continued losses throughout 2023 and 2024 further cement concerns surrounding glacier stability.
Historic imagery tells an even grimmer story—an analysis of the Gries Glacier illustrates a retreat of 2.2 km over a century and the Pers Glacier no longer connects with the Morteratsch Glacier in southeast Switzerland, which has significant ecological repercussions.
Though glaciers have undergone natural fluctuations for millions of years, the rapid losses in the past 40 years cannot be attributed solely to natural changes. This drastic decline is closely intertwined with human activities, notably fossil fuel combustion leading to elevated CO2 levels in the atmosphere.
To mitigate the significant losses, research indicates that limiting global warming to 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels could preserve half of the remaining ice in mountain glaciers. However, current trajectories project a rise of approximately 2.7°C by century's end, which could result in three-quarters of glacial ice disappearing.
As the glaciers diminish, the downstream effects will challenge mountain communities and regions reliant on this critical water resource for agriculture and hydropower. Glaciers serve as vital reservoirs that provide meltwater essential for stabilizing river flows in hotter months.
Despite the dire outlook, experts remain hopeful, urging efforts to decarbonize and reduce our carbon footprint to preserve glacier integrity. As Prof Regine Hock notes, 'It's sad... but if you decarbonize and reduce your footprint, you can preserve glaciers. We have it in our hands.'
This story is not isolated; similar patterns are observed globally as glaciers experience unprecedented melting. A recent World Meteorological Organization report stated that in 2024, glaciers outside Greenland and Antarctica lost 450 billion tonnes of ice—equating to a colossal volume sufficient to fill 180 million Olympic swimming pools.
'Glaciers are melting everywhere in the world,' warns Prof Ben Marzeion from the University of Bremen, underscoring the hostile climate conditions exacerbated by global warming. Particularly distressed are Switzerland's glaciers, which have lost 25% of their mass in the last decade alone.
Surveillance from space and on the ground captures the reality of this issue. Some glaciers display alarming contractions; for instance, satellite images depict the Rhône Glacier's retreat since 1990, where a new lake now occupies the space once held by solid ice.
It was once considered extreme for glaciers to lose 2% of ice in a year, yet 2022 shattered that threshold with a nearly 6% loss recorded in Switzerland. Continued losses throughout 2023 and 2024 further cement concerns surrounding glacier stability.
Historic imagery tells an even grimmer story—an analysis of the Gries Glacier illustrates a retreat of 2.2 km over a century and the Pers Glacier no longer connects with the Morteratsch Glacier in southeast Switzerland, which has significant ecological repercussions.
Though glaciers have undergone natural fluctuations for millions of years, the rapid losses in the past 40 years cannot be attributed solely to natural changes. This drastic decline is closely intertwined with human activities, notably fossil fuel combustion leading to elevated CO2 levels in the atmosphere.
To mitigate the significant losses, research indicates that limiting global warming to 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels could preserve half of the remaining ice in mountain glaciers. However, current trajectories project a rise of approximately 2.7°C by century's end, which could result in three-quarters of glacial ice disappearing.
As the glaciers diminish, the downstream effects will challenge mountain communities and regions reliant on this critical water resource for agriculture and hydropower. Glaciers serve as vital reservoirs that provide meltwater essential for stabilizing river flows in hotter months.
Despite the dire outlook, experts remain hopeful, urging efforts to decarbonize and reduce our carbon footprint to preserve glacier integrity. As Prof Regine Hock notes, 'It's sad... but if you decarbonize and reduce your footprint, you can preserve glaciers. We have it in our hands.'
