Ice Retreat in Switzerland Due to High Temperatures

The Swiss Academy of Sciences in Bern announced today, Thursday, that after two years of hot summers and decreased snowfall, the permanent ice layer continues to retreat in many areas of Switzerland. The academy noted that since October 2022, the weather has been exceptionally warm in Switzerland, with air temperatures rising between 1.5 and 1.9 degrees Celsius above the long-term average from 1991 to 2010. Furthermore, winter started late in the highlands and snowfall was below average. These observations apply to what is known as the water year, which runs from October to September of the following year to draw conclusions about precipitation. The current water year continues until September, but it is already clear that in the summer of 2023, the active layer, which is the part of the ground that melts during the warmer months, in the Swiss permafrost areas has reached or closely approached the record levels of the previous year.