Rising temperatures and retreating glaciers
Western Europe – and also the contiguous United States- experienced their warmest summer on record in 2026. Heat – combined with drought – had a punishing impact on Alpine glaciers and the snowpack.
The years 2015-2025 have been the warmest on record for the globe. There has been widespread glacier loss across all regions for four consecutive years, according to WMO’s State of the Global Climate and State of Global Water Resources reports for 2025.
According to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Changesnow cover duration has declined in nearly all regions, especially at lower elevations – averaging five days per decade.
Research published in Nature Climate Change found that, without snowmaking, 53% of 2,234 ski resorts across 28 European countries are projected to face very high risk for snow supply if temperatures increase to 2 °C above the pre-industrial average. They risk becoming economically unviable, highlighting the growing need for adaptation investments.
The Swiss Alps illustrate the concrete implications of these trends.
A winter season with very little snow and long-lasting and intense heatwaves between May and September 2026 pushed Swiss glacier mass balance to the second-lowest value on record after 2022, according to the Glacier Monitoring Switzerland (GLAMOS). From 2022 to 2026, melt rates were more than twice as high as in any previously monitored five-year period, resulting in an ice volume loss of almost 20% since 2021.
Switzerland’s National Centre for Climate Services says that, at altitudes below 800 m, snowfall days have halved since 1970. The zero-degree level in winter – an important indicator of conditions for natural snow accumulation – has risen from approximately 600 m above sea level fifty years ago to approximately 850 m today and is projected to increase further.
Ski infrastructure viability
The upward migration of reliable snow conditions directly affects the viability of lower-elevation ski infrastructure. Beyond immediate operational disruptions, these changes can require substantial increases in adaptation investments.
Snowmaking infrastructure has become essential for maintaining reliable ski seasons at many resorts, but its effectiveness depends on suitable temperature and humidity conditions, which become less frequent as the climate warms. Water availability for snowmaking can be an additional constraint in regions where summer precipitation decreases and glacier-fed streams diminish. Energy costs for snowmaking can increase due to both reduced efficiency at warmer temperatures and higher electricity prices.
Daily, seasonal and long-term planning
Following the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding between FIS and WMO in October 2024, a webinars for race and ski area managers was held in November 2024 to provide an introduction to the array of decision-support tools available for climate risk management. A joint glacier visit in October 2025 highlighted the need for a more focused guidance on what decision-support tools, products and expertise is available to the winter sports and tourism industry, which was developed during the course of 2026.
The guide is organized around three types of decisions:
- For day-to-day operations, real-time observations, nowcasting, short-range forecasts, hazard warnings and avalanche bulletins can support lift safety, grooming, snowmaking, visitor communications and event-day decisions.
- For seasonal planning, extended-range, sub-seasonal and seasonal outlooks can inform decisions on opening and closing dates, staffing, budgets, snowmaking strategy, water and energy planning, marketing and event scheduling.
- For long-term planning and adaptation, climate monitoring, historical records and climate projections can support decisions on infrastructure, snowmaking capacity, diversification, insurance and other investments.
The guide is written primarily for ski facility operators, mountain destination managers and organizers of ski events and winter festivals. It is also intended to support National Meteorological and Hydrological Services (NMHSs) and other providers in developing and delivering relevant services.
Source: wmo.int
