Swiss glaciers experienced a dramatic decline in 2026, shedding more than 5% of their ice volume and bringing the five-year loss to nearly 20%, according to new data released Thursday. The Glacier Monitoring in Switzerland (GLAMOS) network reported that 2026 recorded the second-largest drop in glacier mass since monitoring began, driven by unprecedented heat waves across Europe.
Matthias Huss, head of GLAMOS, described 2026 as a “catastrophic year” due to a combination of insufficient winter snowfall and record-breaking summer temperatures. He warned that Alpine glaciers face an uncertain long-term future under current conditions.
“Alpine glaciers have no chance of surviving in the long term under such conditions,” Huss stated. “The glaciers this year have lost enormous quantities of ice.” He added that there may be no ice remaining in Swiss glaciers within the next 10 to 15 years.
Beyond the immediate loss of ice, the report highlighted growing concerns about the impact of global warming on water supplies. Huss emphasized that the warming trend is directly linked to human activity. “The warming that we are experiencing now can be attributed 100% to anthropogenic climate change. It’s as simple as that,” he said, noting that without fossil fuel emissions, current warming would not be occurring.
Europe remains the fastest-warming continent globally, and experts warn that the continued retreat of these ice fields could have significant consequences for regional ecosystems and water resources.
Water supplies will be the real crisis. How are we still debating emissions when the ice is literally vanishing?
100% anthropogenic. Huss isn’t mincing words anymore. This is the new baseline, not an anomaly.
Does anyone else find it strange that Europe is warming fastest yet climate denial persists so strongly here?
I remember hiking these glaciers twenty years ago. The retreat is visible even to the naked eye. Heartbreaking.
Ten to fifteen years until they’re gone? That’s not a warning, that’s a death sentence. We need action now.