How Switzerland lost 20 percent of its ice in five years

What the report says

Switzerland’s glaciers have undergone a sharp retreat, with researchers saying the country has lost nearly one-fifth of its glacial ice since 2021. In a report released on Thursday by the Swiss Glacier Monitoring Network (GLAMOS) and the Swiss Commission for Cryosphere Observation of the Swiss Academy of Sciences, scientists said glaciers lost 5.5 percent of their ice volume in the hydrologic year ending September 30, 2026. Al Jazeera reported that the losses were driven by a combination of low winter snowfall and an exceptionally hot summer across Europe.

GLAMOS researchers surveyed 23 glaciers in September and found pronounced melting at both smaller and larger sites. Chief Matthias Huss said measurements at the Scex Rouge glacier in the western Swiss Alps showed around three metres of ice loss in late summer alone, after a stake drilled into the ice in July was exposed by the time the team returned. The report also said average glacier thickness fell by roughly 2.5 to 4 metres in 2026, with some glacier tongues thinning by as much as 10 metres.

The article said the scientists linked the retreat to human-caused climate change and warned that about 2.2 trillion litres of water were lost between July and September, a volume they compared with more than four times the annual drinking water use of Swiss households. That matters for Switzerland’s hydropower, water supply and Alpine tourism, all of which depend on glacier-fed meltwater.

Glaciologists quoted by Al Jazeera said the trend has broader implications beyond Switzerland, including reduced summer water availability and increased natural hazards. They also said future emissions will be decisive: rapid warming cuts could preserve part of the ice, while continued warming could leave Swiss glaciers with only a small fraction of their current mass by 2100.