Devastating year for Switzerland's glaciers after extreme heat and low snow

What happened

Switzerland's glaciers lost more than 5% of their ice volume in 2026. Although melt rates did not quite reach the record levels of 2022, glacier thickness decreased by an average of 2.5 to 4 meters (8 to 13 feet) this year, and some glacier tongues lost up to 10 meters (33 feet) of ice. The research is published in the journal GLAMOS—Glacier Monitoring Switzerland.