The Swiss summer was very hot, and the dust flying from the Sahara accelerated the melting of the glaciers.
13:34•Updated 13:36
Switzerland’s glaciers have melted 2.5 percent over the past year, according to those who monitor the state of the glaciers GLAMOS organization.
The 2.5 percent contraction is more than the average in recent years.
Director of the GLAMOS organization Matthias Huss is worried about the development because, according to him, the winter was even perfect for the glaciers. It was hoped that the melting would stop and that the glaciers might even grow. There was plenty of snow in the winter, and the spring was cool and rainy.
However, the summer was very hot. The melting was further increased by the dust spread from the Sahara desert, which darkened the surfaces of the glaciers, so the sun heated them effectively.
Most of the glacier in the Swiss Alps belongs to an area where the climate is warming twice as fast as the rest of the world.
Source: Reuters