Swiss Alps Glaciers Lose 5.5% of Ice Volume as Record 2026 Heat Strips Snow
Updated
Updated · SBS News · Oct 1
Swiss Alps Glaciers Lose 5.5% of Ice Volume as Record 2026 Heat Strips Snow
3 articles · Updated · SBS News · Oct 1
Summary
Swiss Alps glaciers lost 5.5% of their ice volume in 2026, the second-biggest percentage drop on record, after an exceptionally hot summer and warm autumn.
MeteoSwiss said Switzerland logged its hottest summer on record, while low winter snowfall left glaciers exposed and unable to rebuild ice at higher elevations.
2.2 trillion litres of ice vanished from July to September alone—about four times Switzerland's annual water consumption—and some glacier tongues shrank by up to 10 metres.
Nearly 20% of Switzerland's glacier volume has disappeared in the past five years, and scientists said Alpine glaciers cannot survive long term under current conditions.
The losses matter beyond Switzerland because Alpine melt feeds major European rivers including the Rhine, Rhone, Danube and Po, underscoring warming across Europe's fastest-heating continent.