Climate change

Study: 3,000 Glaciers to Vanish Yearly by 2040s

Is glacier retreat a natural cycle that has repeated throughout history, or an accelerating crisis threatening billions?

Published DEC 16 2025

Study: 3,000 Glaciers to Vanish Yearly by 2040s

Story

Above: Morteratsch Glacier, Switzerland. Image credit: Unsplash

The Facts

According to a study published in Nature Climate Change on Monday, current climate policies will lead to 2.7°C warming above baseline, approximately 3,000 glaciers would disappear annually between 2040 and 2060, and only about 20% of today's glaciers would remain by 2100.
Nature
Politico
The Times of India
Researchers from ETH Zurich and Vrije Universiteit Brussel introduced the concept of peak glacier extinction, the period when the annual number of glaciers disappearing reaches its maximum, projected to occur around 2041 under 1.5°C of warming, with roughly 2,000 glaciers disappearing per year.
CNN
Eurasia Review
EurekAlert!
The European Alps face particularly severe losses, as projections show that under 2.7°C of warming, only 110 of the region's approximately 3,200 glaciers would survive to 2100 — just 3% of current totals.
Daily Mail
Politico
PHYS
Under a 4°C warming scenario, peak glacier extinction would shift to approximately 2055, with approximately 4,000 glaciers disappearing annually, leaving only about 18,000 glaciers worldwide by 2100, compared to over 200,000 today.
Al Jazeera
Fox 28 Spokane
ScienceAlert
Regions with predominantly smaller glaciers at lower elevations — including the Alps, Caucasus and Rocky Mountains — are expected to lose more than half of all glaciers within the next 10 to 20 years. The Rocky Mountains alone are projected to lose 75% under 1.5°C warming.
Daily Mail
Eurasia Review
SciTech Daily
According to researchers, the complete disappearance of individual glaciers could affect tourism economies, water resources for downstream communities and cultural heritage, as demonstrated by the 2019 funeral ceremony held for Switzerland's Pizol glacier.
CNN
guardian
New York Post

Sources Split

LEFT

CENTER

RIGHT

ESTAB
CRIT

CENTER

PRO
ESTAB

The Spin

Climate-skeptic narrative

Alpine glacier retreat is a natural cycle that has occurred throughout history, with the Alps being completely ice-free 6,000 years ago when CO2 levels were pre-industrial. These glaciers expanded only during the Little Ice Age and have been retreating naturally since 1850, driven primarily by increased sunshine due to cleaner air rather than alleged climate change or global warming.

Steve Milloy on X

Climate-concerned narrative

Glacier loss is accelerating at an alarming rate, with 1,000 glaciers disappearing annually now and potentially 3,000 by 2040. Current climate policies will result in 79% of the world's glaciers vanishing by 2100, threatening water supplies for 2 billion people, raising sea levels by 25 centimeters and increasing deadly glacial lake floods unless strong emission cuts are made.

New Scientist