Swiss glaciers lose nearly a fifth of their size in five years, report says

Between 2022 and 2026, the rate at which Swiss glaciers melted was more than twice as high as in any other measured five-year period, according to the report.

In ten years, the glaciers have lost 27 percent of their ice mass, almost 20 percent of that in the last five years alone. This year alone, 5.5 percent of the volume of the country's glaciers has melted, the second-highest figure ever measured.

The glaciers have lost enormous amounts of ice this year, says glaciologist Matthias Huss, who leads Glamos, and describes 2026 as a “catastrophic” year.

This year's summer months were the warmest recorded in Switzerland since 1864, while there was little snow during the past winter.