Upper Theodul Glacier | Zermatt's glaciers show climate change (original) (raw)

A cirque glacier perched on a sloping mountain plateau near the Matterhorn.

Lost 984 feet in 25 years from 1990-2015.

Recent retreat rate of 51 feet/year.

Zermatt's summer skiing location with three ski lifts anchored in the glacier including Europe's longest glacier chair lift (6,560 feet). Offers the largest and highest altitude ski area in Europe. The Upper Theodul Glacier is one of the most visited glaciers in the world.

Retreat of the glacier has resulted in the need for artificial snowmaking to connect the glacier and the lift area during the summer ski season.

The Furgg Glacier is adjacent to the Upper Theodul Glacier and is closer to the Matterhorn. Empty valleys are shown later in this guide and photographs from 1904 show that the glacier filled these valleys.

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The photograph above shows the new 3S tri-cable gondola called the “Matterhorn glacier ride” that opened in late 2018. Each of its 25 gondolas has 28 seats and four of them have clear floors to allow unusual views of the glacier 650 feet below. This 3S gondola is the highest in the world.