Swiss glaciers have suffered a near-record loss of ice in 2026, new data shows, as intense summer heatwaves take their toll on Alpine peaks. More than 5% of the country's remaining glacier ice has disappeared in the last 12 months, which scientists say is "extraordinary". They warn that such rapid melting is no longer a surprise given the pace of climate change, but it could threaten water supplies for farming, hydropower and transport in the decades ahead.
The loss of glacier ice can also destabilise mountain slopes and increase the risk of landslides in some places - which can lead to flash flooding in extreme cases, as seen in Nepal in August. There were multiple factors involved in that event, which was triggered when a large area of bedrock and glacier ice collapsed. But scientists say long-term glacier thinning and the thawing of frozen ground likely raised the risks.
The notable finding from this latest report is not so much that Swiss glaciers are shrinking - which is to be expected in our warming climate, driven primarily by fossil fuel emissions - but the sheer pace of melting. Until recently, glaciologists in the Alps considered 2% of ice lost in a single year to be "extreme". This year has seen an estimated 5.5% disappear.
"It's really just disastrous," said Dr Matthias Huss, director of Glacier Monitoring Switzerland, which produced the report. Swiss glaciers started the summer in an already difficult place, covered by less snow than usual after a mild winter. And much of that snow disappeared quickly in the early and intense heatwaves of May and June, exposing the glacier ice below.
Bare ice is darker and less reflective than fresh snow, so absorbs more of the Sun's energy. That left glaciers vulnerable to melting even faster in subsequent heatwaves. "Ten years ago, I wouldn't have thought that it's possible to lose glaciers so quickly," said Dr Fabien Maussion, a glaciologist at the University of Bristol, who was not involved in the Swiss report.
"What's happened over the summer now is extremely distressing… but at the same time it was to be expected from a climate scientist's perspective," he added. Meltwater from glaciers can be an important source of water for irrigation, hydropower and even shipping traffic during hot, dry conditions. Scientists estimate that Swiss glaciers released 2.2 trillion litres of meltwater between July and September.
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