ZURICH, SWITZERLAND / RankWire.AI / – In 2026, glaciers across Switzerland shed 5.5% of their ice volume, ranking as the second-largest decline ever recorded. The significant loss was driven by a winter with minimal snowfall and a summer characterized by intense heat. Glacier Monitoring Switzerland, known as GLAMOS, tracked these changes throughout the Swiss Alps. The Swiss Academy of Sciences also confirmed the national findings. Over the past five years, nearly 20% of Switzerland’s glacier volume has vanished.
The winter of 2025 to 2026 was among Switzerland’s 10 least snowy since measurements started, followed by persistent hot and dry conditions from May through September. During the warm season, the freezing level rose above 4,000 metres on 76 days—more than double the average—setting a Swiss record. By September, researchers found no snow left at around 3,500 metres elevation, exposing glacier ice across high Alpine regions.
Average glacier thickness decreased between 2.5 and 4 metres in 2026, with some glacier tongues losing as much as 10 metres of ice. Several major glaciers, including the Allalin, Clariden, Great Aletsch and Rhône, recorded their highest melt since records began. These losses made 2026 the second most severe year for glacier melt in Switzerland, just behind 2022.
Decline of Smaller Swiss Glaciers Accelerates as Ice Losses Grow
During this latest monitoring period, several smaller glaciers completely disappeared, such as Bella Tola in Valais and Griessfirn in Glarus. Their vanishing marks part of a long-term decline across Switzerland’s Alpine ice fields. Data indicates glacier volume has decreased by nearly 20% since 2021, driven by multiple years of low snowfall and extensive summer melting across much of the Swiss Alps.
Meltwater from Swiss glaciers during the dry summer months was substantial, totaling about 2.2 trillion litres of water from July to September. This volume surpasses four times the annual drinking-water needs of all Swiss households. The meltwater fed rivers and water systems across the Alps amid widespread summer drought, illustrating how much glacier ice entered Switzerland’s water cycle in just three months of 2026.
Climate Factors Drive 2026 Glacier Melting, but Not Record Levels
Although the glacier loss in 2026 did not reach the record set in 2022, the season’s conditions contributed to the extent of melting. Many glaciers entered summer with marginally more snow than in 2022, and less Saharan dust settled on the snow this year. Cleaner snow reflected more sunlight, while dust-darkened surfaces absorbed more solar energy, potentially increasing melting under similar conditions.
Nonetheless, the 2026 season saw significant reductions across both high elevations and lower glacier tongues, continuing a long-term trend documented by field measurements, snow surveys, and glacier mass-balance observations through September. The results confirm widespread ice loss, the disappearance of smaller glaciers, and notable decreases in glacier thickness, placing 2026 among Switzerland’s most severe years for glacier melt on record.