Swiss glaciers shrank 3% this year, the fourth-biggest retreat on record, experts say

More than 1,000 small glaciers in Switzerland have already disappeared, the experts said. (AP Photo/Matthias Schrader, File)FILE – The sun shines over the melting Rhone Glacier near Goms, Switzerland, on June 10, 2025. (AP Photo/Matthias Schrader, File)FILE – Water drips from a melting chunk of ice that originated from the Rhone Glacier near Goms, Switzerland, on June 10, 2025. (AP Photo/Matthias Schrader, File) ExpandThe teams reported that a winter with little snow was followed by heat waves in June — the second-warmest June on record — which left the snow reserves depleted by early July. The retreat and loss of glaciers is also having an impact on Switzerland’s landscape, causing mountains to shift and ground to become unstable.