Slovenia's Triglav glacier has fully melted, with the final ice patch vanishing after Europe's scorching summer. The glacier lost 93% of its surface area between 1983 and 2003, shrinking to less than a hectare. It persisted for two more decades before accelerating decline in the last five years, which included three of Europe's hottest years on record.
Matija Zorn, director of the Anton Melik Geographical Institute, said Mount Triglav "holds a central place in Slovenian national identity" and the glacier's disappearance represents loss of an important climate indicator. Zorn has measured the glacier since 2001. He noted the rate of melting surprised him each year. In 2022, a core sample measured 5 metres deep at one location. The following year, standing on the same spot, he found rock instead of ice.
Historical records show the glacier covered about 40 hectares in the mid-1800s. By 1946, when scientists conducted first formal measurements, it had shrunk to 14 hectares.
Fierce heatwaves driven by carbon pollution have devastated Alpine glaciers. Swiss glaciologists found that nearly a fifth of Switzerland's ice disappeared in the last five years, with a 5.5% drop in volume in 2026.
Glaciologist and mountain guide Miha Pavšek said "nature is changing in front of our eyes" but people were not yet taking it seriously. Scientists have found ice in caves beneath Triglav exposed by the glacier's retreat. A second glacier on Skuta mountain has also shrunk but remains better shaded and is expected to persist a few more years.