European Alps

Swiss glaciers have shrunk by a fifth in just five years, with scientists describing an explosion in melt rates driven by fossil fuel pollution trapping heat in the Alpine region. The findings point to an accelerating glacier collapse across the European Alps, raising alarm over water supplies and mountain ecosystems as climate warming intensifies.

Switzerland's glaciers have lost ice at what scientists describe as a disastrous rate over the past year, according to BBC News reporting. The melt threatens long-term water supplies for communities and agriculture that depend on glacial runoff. Observers are linking the losses to ongoing warming in the Alps, where repeated hot years have left little time for ice to recover between melt seasons.