New Scientist Environment: Melting of mountain glaciers is accelerating and European glaciers are among those shrinking fastest - by Catherine Brahic

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Melting of mountain glaciers is accelerating and European Alps glaciers are among those shrinking fastest - by Catherine Brahic

Mountain glaciers are retreating three times faster than they were in the 1980s, says the World Glacier Monitoring Service. On average, they lost about 66 centimetres in depth in 2005, according to the latest report from the UN-affiliated body, released on 30 January. This loss rate is 1.6 times more than the annual average for the 1990s and three times the 1980s average.

The data indicate that glaciers in the European Alps are among those shrinking fastest. Since 2000, they have been losing an average of 1 metre every year and have lost 19 metres since 1980. They are now only about 30 metres deep on average.