The Mer de Glace Glacier in the Alps

The Alpine Arc is among the regions most threatened by climate change. Over the past two decades, the glaciers of this iconic mountain range in the heart of Europe have lost about a third of their ice volume, receding by an average of 30 metres per year and thinning by 1 to 1.5 metres annually across their entire surface.

One of the most dramatic examples of this decline is the Mer de Glace, visible in this image acquired by one of the Copernicus Sentinel-2 satellites on 18 August 2024. The Mer de Glace, one of the largest and most famous glaciers in the Alps, is located on the French side of Mont Blanc. A long-standing symbol of the region's natural beauty, it has changed significantly in recent decades, receding by around a kilometre and losing 160 metres of thickness in the last 35 years.

The latest European State of the Climate Report, published by the Copernicus Climate Change Service, provides an analysis of the state of Europe's glaciers in 2023. More information is available here.