Swiss glaciers start the summer with little snow cover

Swiss glaciers start the summer with little snow cover Keystone-SDA

Swiss glaciers are starting the summer season this year with a record-low snow pack in some places. The glacier monitoring network measured below-average amounts of snow in all regions towards the end of the winter.

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Extrapolated to all Swiss glaciers, this results in a deficit of 13% winter snow compared to the reference period from 2010 to 2020. The snow volumes on the 21 glaciers surveyed were between 0-52% below the reference value, as can be seen in the report published on Monday by the Swiss Glacier Monitoring Network (Glamos).

According to the evaluation, a weather-related north-south trend was recognisable. On the glaciers in north-east Switzerland in particular, the amount of snow was well below average at the time of measurement in April and May. The Silvretta glacier in Graubunden reached a new low with a deficit of 52%.

In Ticino and southern Valais, on the other hand, the values were close to or slightly below the reference value, according to the report. The glacier monitoring network attributes this to the exceptional snowfall in mid-April.

As a result, the total snowfall was higher than after the exceptionally dry winters of 2022 and 2023. Nevertheless, Glamos assumes that this year’s value will be similar “in the coming summer due to an earlier disappearance of the protective snow cover”.

The Swiss Glacier Monitoring Network has been measuring the amount of snow on a number of glaciers every spring for several years. These measurements make it possible to estimate the upcoming melting season. This year, the Glamos team took measurements on the Giétroz Glacier in canton Valais for the first time.

Translated from German by DeepL/jdp

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