All but Two of Austria's 96 Glaciers Have Retreated in Two Years as Alpine Ice Loss Accelerates
Austrian Alpine Club reports 94 of 96 monitored glaciers retreated during 2024-2025, with average losses exceeding 20 metres and the largest glacier showing progressive disintegration.
Overview
Nearly every glacier in Austria is shrinking. The Austrian Alpine Club reported on March 13 that 94 of the country’s 96 monitored glaciers retreated during the 2024-2025 observation period, with an average loss exceeding 20 metres, according to Euronews. The club described the findings as a “dramatic development” that underscores the accelerating impact of climate change on one of Europe’s most iconic mountain ranges.
What We Know
The annual glacier report, which draws on 135 years of continuous measurements, ranks the 2024-2025 retreat as the eighth largest on record. Two glaciers in particular suffered the most severe losses: the Alpeiner Ferner in western Tyrol and the Stubacher Sonnblickkees in Salzburg each retreated by more than 100 metres, according to ABC News.
The Pasterze, Austria’s largest glacier, is experiencing ongoing tongue disintegration. The Alpine Club warned that the glacier’s progressive breakup is making the consequences of climate change visible on a dramatic scale.
Low snowfall and abnormally warm temperatures drove the losses. June 2025 was particularly destructive, with temperatures running nearly 5 degrees Celsius above the long-term average. The combination of insufficient winter snowpack and intense summer heat left glaciers with minimal protective cover during their most vulnerable season.
Nicole Slupetzky, vice president of the Austrian Alpine Club, said the focus has shifted from preservation to damage control: “It’s no longer a question of whether we can still save the glaciers in their old form; it’s about mitigating the consequences for ourselves.”
Regional Context
Austria’s glacier retreat is part of a broader pattern across the European Alps. Switzerland’s glaciers lost approximately one quarter of their total volume between 2015 and 2025, according to France 24. More than 1,100 Swiss glaciers have disappeared entirely since the early 1970s, and scientists have warned that without rapid emissions reductions, nearly all of Switzerland’s remaining glaciers could vanish by the end of the century.
The implications extend well beyond alpine landscapes. Glaciers in the Alps serve as natural water reservoirs, feeding rivers during summer months when rainfall is low. Their continued retreat threatens drinking water supplies, hydroelectric power generation, and agricultural irrigation across multiple countries. Infrastructure built on or near permafrost is increasingly at risk of instability, and the tourism and recreation industries that depend on glaciated terrain face long-term disruption.
What We Don’t Know
The identities of the two glaciers that did not retreat during the observation period have not been widely reported, nor the specific factors that may have protected them from losses. It also remains unclear how rapidly the Pasterze’s tongue disintegration is likely to proceed, though the Alpine Club has noted the glacier has been fragmenting for several consecutive reporting periods.
Whether the current pace of retreat will continue to accelerate or stabilize depends on future emissions trajectories and interannual weather variability. Scientists studying Swiss glaciers have estimated that roughly one third of that country’s glacial ice could be preserved if global carbon dioxide emissions reach net zero within 30 years, but no equivalent projection has been published specifically for Austria’s glaciers.