The mighty Aletsch — the largest glacier in the Alps — could completely disappear by the end of this century if nothing is done to rein in climate change, a study showed Thursday.
A team of researchers in Switzerland has used a cutting-edge simulation to show how the Aletsch Glacier will change as the planet continues to warm, the ETH technical university in Zurich said in a statement.
The glacier, which covers 86 square kilometres (33 square miles) in the Swiss Alps, and is estimated to hold around 11 billion tonnes of ice, has already seen its tongue recede by about one kilometre (0.6 miles) since the turn of the century.
Scientists are predicting that trend will continue even if the world is able to meet the 2015 Paris Agreement target of capping global warming at “well below” 2 degrees Celsius.
The ETH research team said that even in the best case scenario the glacier would lose 50 percent of its volume and length by year 2100, while in the worst-case scenario, “a couple patches of ice will be all that’s left.”
Aletsch is one of more than 4,000 glaciers — vast, ancient reserves of ice — dotted throughout the Alps, providing seasonal water to millions and forming some of Europe’s most stunning landscapes.
In a study earlier this year, ETH researchers determined that more than 90 percent of those glaciers will disappear by 2100 if greenhouse gas emissions are left unchecked.
Thursday’s study meanwhile focused specifically on the impact on the biggest glacier of them all.
