Adamello...the largest glacier in Italy is threatened with disappearance due to climate change

ArabiaWeather - Christian Ferrari, head of the committee specialized in studying glaciers at the Tridentine Alpinestis Society, warned of the loss of the Adamello Glacier, which is the largest river of its kind in the Italian Alps. Pointing out that the river has lost about 2.7 kilometers of its length since the end of the nineteenth century until today.

Experts indicate that the Adamello Glacier is gradually deteriorating due to the effects of climate change, and is expected to disappear completely in less than a hundred years.

Ferrari explained, "In the last five years, the average river area has been lost at a rate of 15 meters per year. But last year alone (2022), 139 meters of its area was lost," according to an Agence France-Presse report.

With a thinner snow cover, the largest glacier in Italy is threatened with disappearance

The Italian environmental association Legambiente has organized trips through the Alps each summer for the past four years to explore the effects of climate change on glaciers. It was found that the Adamello River was similar to other glaciers in the Alps, as it suffered a decrease in snowfall amounts of up to 50 percent in the previous year. Due to the thinner snow cover, longer summer season, and higher temperatures, the river faces a decrease in the freezing period of its waters.

The disintegration of the Adamillo Glacier evokes a history of wars and battles

Adamillo Glacier is breaking up, exposing additional areas of the glacier to the hot sun. The river also showed traces of the history of the mountain range, which witnessed violent battles between Italian, Austrian, and Hungarian fighters during World War I. Because of the receding ice, the rifles and bullet boxes that were used in those wars appeared more frequently.

The annual trek through the mountains organized by the Legambiente association brings together scientists and environmental activists, and has included the exploration of several glaciers over the past four years.

Marco Giardino, vice president of the Italian Glacier Authority and professor at the University of Turin, points out the importance of exploring traces of the past and paying attention to those of the present, stressing that the current trend is not positive. The ice masses we are witnessing today are expected to turn the glacier into a river full of debris, which will destabilize it.

Glaciers provide a visualization of the acceleration of climate change

“Last year, we wanted to revisit the glaciers we saw two years ago, and we noticed a very big change,” says Vanda Bonariu, Alpine official. She explains that the previous year had witnessed drought and heat waves, but they noticed completely unexpected situations.

She adds: "For example, the Forni Glacier in Lombardy has lost more than 100 metres. Glaciers provide us with a terrible illustration of the acceleration of climate change and the complexity of the phenomena, and show the idea that everything is changing rapidly."

The future of glaciers in light of continuing climate change

It is worth noting that the United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change has indicated that temperatures in this part of the Alps will rise by between one and three degrees Celsius by 2050, and between three and six degrees Celsius by the end of this century.

This would increase the damage to the glaciers and the speed of their gradual melting and retreat.