MELTING POINT.
A typographic report on the mass balance of Swiss glaciers in hydrological year 2026, based on data from GLAMOS, Glacier Monitoring in Switzerland. Data as of 26 September 2026.
Snow in,meltwater out.
Mass balance is the difference between the snow a glacier gains in winter and the snow and ice it loses in summer. It is given in metres of water equivalent (m w.e.), averaged over the glacier’s area. A value below zero means the glacier has become thinner.
The hydrological year runs from 1 October to 30 September.
−2.4 m
About 2.7 metres of ice in one year.
By 26 September, Swiss glaciers had lost an area-weighted average of about 2.4 metres of water equivalent, roughly 2.7 metres of ice thickness. On the same date, the 2010–2020 average stood at about 0.8 metres.
Read from the vector data of the GLAMOS chart; preliminary. Ice thickness at a density of 900 kg/m³.
2022
Only 2022 was worse.
GLAMOS compares the current year with every year since 2010. 2026 ranks second to last: behind 2022, but ahead of 2023.
Least loss by 26 September
- 012014
- 022013
- 032021
- 042016
- 052024
- 062010
- 072020
- 082012
- 092018
- 102019
- 112015
- 122011
- 132017
- 142025
- 152023
- 162026
- 172022
Most loss
404
Strongly below average.
GLAMOS’ national estimate covers 404 glaciers, area-weighted and modelled. Since early June it has sat in the “strongly below average” category. On 26 September it lay below the entire 2010–2020 range of variation (±2σ).
4 seas
Four seas, one curve.
Water from the Swiss Alps flows into four seas. In all four basins, 2026 is the second-worst year since 2010, and all four curves end below the range of variation.
Rhine · North Sea
174glaciers
−2.41 m w.e.
Below average from late December, strongly below average from June.
Rhone · Mediterranean
182glaciers
−2.38 m w.e.
Mixed until late April, strongly below average from mid-June.
Po · Adriatic
22glaciers
−2.38 m w.e.
Below average already in winter, strongly below average from mid-April.
Danube (via the Inn) · Black Sea
26glaciers
−2.41 m w.e.
Below average all winter, strongly below average from mid-April.
33 days
A thin winter, a hard summer.
- 01
Winter had already brought less snow than usual: on 18 May the balance peaked at about +1.0 instead of +1.3 m w.e.
- 02
Then the melt began. On 4 July the balance turned negative, 33 days earlier than average.
- 03
From the peak to 26 September, about 3.4 m w.e. were lost, against about 2.1 in an average year.
| Date | 2026 (m w.e.) | 2010–2020 average (m w.e.) | −2σ | +2σ |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 01.10.2025 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.00 |
| 01.11.2025 | 0.14 | 0.08 | −0.10 | 0.26 |
| 01.12.2025 | 0.30 | 0.31 | 0.01 | 0.61 |
| 01.01.2026 | 0.34 | 0.55 | 0.13 | 0.98 |
| 01.02.2026 | 0.45 | 0.77 | 0.23 | 1.31 |
| 01.03.2026 | 0.71 | 0.92 | 0.37 | 1.47 |
| 01.04.2026 | 0.91 | 1.09 | 0.52 | 1.65 |
| 01.05.2026 | 0.91 | 1.23 | 0.62 | 1.84 |
| 01.06.2026 | 0.74 | 1.31 | 0.59 | 2.03 |
| 01.07.2026 | 0.07 | 0.92 | 0.04 | 1.79 |
| 01.08.2026 | −0.97 | 0.16 | −0.78 | 1.09 |
| 01.09.2026 | −1.99 | −0.58 | −1.76 | 0.59 |
| 26.09.2026 | −2.39 | −0.80 | −1.97 | 0.37 |
−4.8σ
Beyond standard deviation.
At all 13 main monitoring sites, 2026 sits more than two standard deviations below each glacier’s 2010–2020 average. Furthest out are Findelen (−4.8σ), Murtèl (−4.6σ) and the Rhone Glacier (−4.5σ). The Great Aletsch Glacier, at −2.3σ, is closest to its average. Standard deviation measures distance from each glacier’s normal range, not metres lost.
- Findelen−4.8σ
- Murtèl−4.6σ
- Rhone−4.5σ
- Clariden−4.3σ
- Basodino−4.2σ
- Gries−3.9σ
- Pers−3.8σ
- Silvretta−3.1σ
- Allalin−2.9σ
- Giétro−2.7σ
- Plaine Morte−2.5σ
- Tsanfleuron−2.5σ
- Great Aletsch−2.3σ
0.00
On 1 October the count starts again at zero. The lost ice does not.
The hydrological year ends on 30 September. GLAMOS will publish the measured values in the coming months. This page shows the preliminary status as of 26 September 2026.