Glacier's ice melt is slowed down with giant blankets in the Alps

The nature conservation action implemented on the oldest glacier of the Alps for many years recall Christo’s land installations. Even though they do their best, the Rhône Glacier may not be long for this world.

For 150 years tourists have been traveling to the Rhône Glacier located above the village of Gletch in the Furka Pass region of Switzerland, after a local family carved a 100 meter long tunnel into the side of the glacier. However, the ice keeps melting due to the climate change, and the tunnel needs to be carved anew at the beginning of every summer tourist season.

Between 2011 and 2016, the glacier retreated by about 150 meters. This is why the family managing the grotto decided to use white fleece blankets: by covering the glaciers with this material, they can slow down the rate of melting with up to 50-70%, but most probably their efforts still won’t be enough to preserve them. However, the icy land covered with blankets looks almost as spectacular as the glacier itself.

Source: wired

• alps
• glacier
• switzerland