Articles tagged with Glaciers
Switzerland's glaciers experienced their greatest melt on record in 2026, with average glacier thickness decreasing by 2.5-4m, and several smaller glaciers disappearing completely. The findings, presented in the Swiss Academy of Sciences annual report, highlight the rapid change in Switzerland's glacier landscape.
A new interactive website allows anyone to explore the projected future of individual glaciers around the world, revealing when they'll disappear under different levels of global warming. The website provides a tangible example of the rapid disappearance of small Alpine glaciers, with some projected to disappear within the next few years.
Glacial lakes in the Alaknanda Basin are multiplying and expanding, posing a significant risk of devastating floods. The study highlights the need for continued monitoring and assessment to mitigate the impacts of climate change on the region.
Canada's last epishelf lake, a millennia-old ecosystem, has been confirmed to be gone for good. The loss of the lake shows that even the Arctic's projected last ice refuge is vulnerable to rapid change, and that once this ecosystem is lost, it cannot be restored.
Researchers at ETH Zurich have created a 3D-printed model of a rock avalanche to study the movement of mixtures of water, ice, and rock. The model, which is 1:577 in scale, was used to test various scenarios and measure parameters such as depth of runoff and impact dynamics.
A recent GEOMAR study found that climate change can trigger cascading natural hazards in the Arctic. The research team investigated an earthquake that triggered a rock avalanche on Jan Mayen island, revealing the devastating impact of permafrost degradation on the region's slopes and glaciers.
Researchers combined narwhal measurements with historical oceanographic data to build a robust model showing how temperature, salinity, and depth are related. The study found that warm Atlantic Intermediate Water has become thicker, accelerating glacier melting and influencing ocean circulation and climate patterns.
Researchers have created a 3D map of a hidden 'rock glacier' in the Wasatch Mountains, one of over 800 in Utah, and found it contains enough frozen water to fill 600 Olympic swimming pools. The study uses a novel technique to image the 3D ice body within a large rock glacier, revealing the scale of ice storage in Utah's mountains.
A study reveals that glacier retreat and changing vegetation may increase the overlap in resource use among bee species, potentially leading to pathogen transmission. This could have significant consequences for pollinator health and ecosystem services.
A new SwRI study provides the first evidence of recent liquid flows to Pluto's surface, suggesting that liquid nitrogen is rising from beneath the Sputnik Planitia glacier. This finding, based on data from NASA's New Horizons spacecraft, indicates a new kind of time-variable feature on Pluto.
Researchers at the University of Lausanne developed a groundbreaking simulation that reconstructs the journeys of giant rocks carried by ice across the Alpine region. The model provides a tangible visualization of the processes that shaped today's landscapes.
A new study led by King's College London finds that human-driven climate change has intensified the retreat of Pine Island Glacier, one of the single biggest contributors to global sea level rise. The glacier retreated by around 18-20% since the 1940s, adding several kilometers to its landward withdrawal.
A new study reveals that Antarctic glaciers are speeding up and moving towards the ocean due to meltwater draining from their surface to their base. This process, known as hydrofracturing, reduces friction and accelerates glacier movement.
A new study reveals that the Antarctic ice sheet responded sharply to climate change following a major shift in Earth's ice age cycles. The simulation found that below a critical atmospheric CO2 level, the amplitude of Antarctic ice variations increases in response to changes in temperatures.
Central Asian glaciers experienced record-breaking ice loss in 2025 due to exceptionally warm spring and summer temperatures and reduced snowfall frequency. The study shows that 64% of glaciers lost their most negative mass balance since at least 1991, highlighting increasing vulnerability to climate warming.
Researchers at the University of Arizona used drones equipped with ground-penetrating radar to map the thickness of rocky debris covering glaciers on Earth. The technology could help future astronauts locate accessible water locked in buried ice on Mars.
Researchers used a novel technique to analyze millions of individual particles in Antarctic ice cores, revealing common dust sources during the last Ice Age. The study highlights the importance of atmospheric circulation changes and provides insights into ancient climate systems and potential future environmental shifts.
Researchers use global seismic networks and satellite observations to detect calving tidewater glaciers in Greenland. Large ice loss events are becoming more frequent, making it essential to understand their frequency, location, and factors leading to calving.
Researchers predict that glaciers in High Mountain Asia may threaten future water security due to rapid melting caused by warming temperatures. The study found significant losses in glacier mass between 2002 and 2023, which could intensify short-term flood risks and reduce long-term meltwater availability.
A team of researchers has created a map of 33 subglacial lakes in the Canadian Arctic, revealing unprecedented detail about these bodies of water. The discovery helps scientists better understand the rapidly melting region and its implications for glacier loss and climate change.
Scientists extracted thousands of years' worth of air pollution from a 9.5-meter ice core, recording medieval mining, fires, and volcanoes. However, global warming is destroying this frozen archive, and researchers warn that it's a race against time to capture critical climate information.
Research shows glacial lakes in Alaska expanding 50% faster than previously recorded, posing significant hazards and altering ecosystems. The study identifies areas where lakes may form and grow, helping with infrastructure planning and predicting changes to ecosystems, hazards, and recreation.
A recent study found that seals near glacier fronts have fuller stomachs, indicating intense feeding activity. This discovery has implications for Arctic marine ecosystems as glaciers retreat and habitats disappear.
The surge in glacier tourism poses significant pressure on vulnerable ecosystems and local communities. Experts highlight the need for balancing tourism with conservation, awareness, and social equity to prevent maladaptation strategies from spreading.
Researchers found a surprising correlation between West Antarctic Ice Sheet retreat and marine algae growth over the past 500,000 years. The study suggests that global warming may lead to reduced CO2 uptake if the ice sheet continues to shrink.
The United Nations University reports that many regions are living beyond their hydrological means, with critical water systems already bankrupt. The study defines 'water bankruptcy' as persistent over-withdrawal from surface and groundwater relative to renewable inflows and safe levels of depletion. This has resulted in a growing list...
A University of Houston scientist teams with international partners to map Antarctica's glaciers, revealing tidal movements and retreat rates up to 700 meters per year. The dataset provides the most detailed view yet of how glaciers interact with the ocean, enabling better understanding and modeling of sea-level rise.
Researchers project that Chile's glaciers will only be able to contribute half of today's runoff meltwater during extreme dry summer months. They call for effective water management strategies and coordinated global climate policies to mitigate future megadroughts.
A landmark study by Swansea University reveals the Hektoria Glacier lost nearly half its length in two months during 2023, a pace similar to the end of the last ice age. The rapid retreat was boosted by the shape of the land beneath it, leading scientists to identify vulnerable glaciers and prioritize their monitoring.
Researchers used airborne radar to map an unexplored region in East Antarctica, discovering a subglacial sedimentary basin. The basal unit, a layer of ice, carried small amounts of material from a mountain range and left behind sediment, forming a novel kind of basin.
A new study finds that glaciers will likely reach their peak of self-cooling power in the 2020s-2040s before near-surface temperatures spike up and melting accelerates. The research, led by Thomas Shaw, used an unprecedented dataset of on-glacier observations worldwide to demonstrate this trend.
The Swiss Alps have experienced its fourth greatest shrinkage of glacier ice since 2003, with over 1,000 small glaciers disappearing since 2015. The rapid melting was driven by low snowfall and record-breaking heatwaves in June 2025.
A new study has found that Andean glaciers in Peru grew during the Younger Dryas period due to increased snowfall linked to seasonal shifts in the Intertropical Convergence Zone. This challenges previous theories and provides valuable insights into historical climate conditions.
Researchers found that northerly winds exacerbate ice loss in Antarctica by capping off polynyas, reducing ocean heat loss. This mechanism could be connected to human-induced climate change and potentially mitigated by reducing greenhouse gas emissions.
Researchers studying Tajikistan's Kyzylsu Glacier found that the glacier likely reached its tipping point in 2018, with decreasing snowfall causing it to melt. The study uses computational models driven by new local observations and demonstrates the importance of densifying observational data in understanding anomalous glacier behavior.
Research from the University of Utah and Virginia Tech reveals that seasonal shifts in rainfall and snowfall patterns are exacerbating glacier melting across the region. Glaciers in Central Himalaya, Western Himalaya, and Eastern Himalaya are especially vulnerable to accelerated ice loss and water availability threats.
Glacier-caused flooding is an annual threat in Juneau, with record-breaking floods over the past two years impacting hundreds of homes. The USGS provides real-time monitoring data to help emergency managers make informed decisions about evacuations and road closures.
A lake formed in 1995 and has repeatedly drained through channels and cracks, causing massive amounts of fresh water to reach the glacier tongue. Researchers found extensive triangular fracture fields with cracks that are shaped differently from all previous lake drainages.
An international team of researchers has tracked changes in over 114,000 rivers in High-mountain Asia, finding nearly 10% of them saw an increase in flow from glacial ice melt. This shift poses a challenge for the region's energy future, particularly hydroelectricity generation, due to increased sediment and reduced reservoir capacity.
Rapidly melting glaciers in High Mountain Asia are causing water volume to increase by 10% or more in at least 10% of rivers, including the Yangtze, Amu Darya, and Syr Darya. This surge can bring short-term benefits like increased hydropower and agriculture, but also poses risks such as sediment increases and glacier loss.
Researchers used fiber-optic technology to measure how falling ice drives glacial retreat in Greenland. The impact of warming seawater on glacier melting and erosion was found to amplify calving and mass loss.
A global analysis using machine learning predicts glacial erosion rates for 180,000 glaciers worldwide, with most experiencing erosion between 0.02-2.68 millimeters per year. The study identifies complex factors influencing erosion, including temperature, water under the glacier and rock type.
The Perito Moreno Glacier has retreated by up to 800 meters since 2019, with a 16-fold increase in thinning rate, posing a risk of collapse and significant retreat in the near future. Scientists are unsure why this rapid acceleration is occurring, but a large ridge beneath the glacier may have contributed to its pre-2019 stability.
A recent study in Nature Geoscience offers important new insights into the hidden role of ancient groundwater beneath the ocean floor. Researchers found that fossil groundwater changed its composition after the retreat of the Fennoscandian ice sheet, becoming vulnerable to mixing with seawater.
Researchers discovered an 85m-deep crater and 90 million cubic metres of water flooded out of a subglacial lake, fracturing the ice above and creating a massive flood. The study highlights the need to better understand how often subglacial lakes drain and their impact on the surrounding ice sheet.
Researchers have found extensive, previously unmapped flat surfaces beneath a 3,500 km stretch of the East Antarctic coastline, which were formed by large rivers after East Antarctica and Australia broke apart. These surfaces may currently be regulating the rate of ice loss from the East Antarctic Ice Sheet.
A new study found that chemical reactions in newly uncovered glacial sediments initially suppress greenhouse gas emissions, but as soil matures, it produces more methane, contributing to warming. The research provides insights into the role of soil and water in the climate change cycle.
Researchers found that thick ice cover suppressed volcanic eruptions, but as glacial ice melts, pressure builds and magma is released, leading to more frequent and explosive eruptions. This phenomenon could occur worldwide, including Antarctica, and may have global climate impacts, including long-term warming.
Researchers at the University of Copenhagen analyzed old aerial photos to better understand mechanisms behind Antarctic ice shelf collapse. The study reveals that rising sea temperatures are a primary driver of collapse, contradicting previous assumptions.
A new study predicts that limiting warming to 1.5°C could preserve over half of the world's glacier mass, but even at this level, 39% of glacier mass would still disappear due to delayed climate change reactions.
The study found that Earth's glaciers will lose 76% of their 2020 mass under current climate policy pledges, with Alaska losing 69%. Limiting warming to 2.7 degrees Fahrenheit could reduce global mass loss to 47%, and Alaska's loss to 41%.
A new study published in Science finds that strong climate policy can preserve twice as much ice as current warming trajectories, even if temperatures stabilized today. At a 1.5°C temperature increase, 53% of global glacier mass could be preserved, alleviating hazards like flooding and freshwater deficiency.
A recent study found that warming to 2.7°C would preserve only 24% of present-day glacier mass, while limiting warming to 1.5°C would conserve 54%. Glacier loss poses significant consequences for sea levels, freshwater availability, and tourism.
A new study suggests that limiting global temperature increase to 1.5°C may not be enough to save the world's ice sheets, which could lead to significant losses and extensive displacement of coastal populations. The researchers argue that a target of around 1°C would be more effective in preventing rapid sea level rise.
Research reveals mountain glaciers worldwide will not recover for centuries under 'overshoot' scenarios, where the planet exceeds the 1.5°C limit before cooling back down. Glaciers could lose up to 16% of their mass, leading to increased sea-level rise and disrupting downstream communities.
A team of researchers developed the first global machine learning model to calculate the volume of all glaciers on Earth. The model shows errors up to 30-40% lower than traditional global models, particularly at polar latitudes and along the peripheries of ice sheets.
A new study found that climate change may undermine the capacity of Arctic fjords to serve as effective carbon sinks, leading to a decline in sequestration carbon. Rapid changes are transforming fjord ecosystems, with phytoplankton communities shifting due to melting ice and warmer waters.
Researchers estimate that Patagonian glaciers have lost over a quarter of their total ice volume since the 1940s, raising global sea level by 3.7 mm. A new study links this mass loss to a poleward shift of subtropical high-pressure systems, which brings more warm air to Patagonia, accelerating glacier melt.
Researchers deployed fiber optics to detect seismic signals of crevasses opening on a Swiss glacier, confirming the technology's potential in monitoring glacier stability. The team detected 951 icequakes with strong oscillations after the arrival of seismic surface waves.
Researchers at Schmidt Ocean Institute have discovered vibrant communities of ancient sponges and corals in the wake of recently detached iceberg A-84. This observation sheds new light on the resilience and adaptability of Antarctic ecosystems.