Switzerland - October 09, 2025 Swiss Alps, Switzerland - A new study from the Institute of Science and Technology Austria (ISTA) reveals that glaciers around the world are rapidly approaching the end of their ability to cool their surroundings, a process once thought to shield them from the full impact of climate change. The Pellicciotti research group at ISTA compiled and re-analyzed a global dataset of glacier observations. Their findings, published in Nature Climate Change, show that this natural self-cooling will likely peak within the next decade before glaciers begin heating faster and melting accelerates. Postdoctoral researcher Thomas Shaw recalled collecting data in August 2022 on the Glacier de Corbassière in the Swiss Alps. At 2,600 meters, under a clear blue sky and 17°C temperature, he measured how the glacier was struggling to maintain its cooling effect. While global air temperatures continue to rise, glacier surfaces remain slightly cooler. Massive Himalayan glaciers are even pushing cold winds down their slopes, but researchers warn this will not last. Shaw explained that glaciers are creating their own local cooling environments, but “this effect will not last long, and a trend shift will ensue before the middle of the century.” Shaw and his colleagues gathered hourly data from 350 weather stations across 62 glaciers worldwide. Their analysis found that near-surface glacier temperatures increase by 0.83°C for every 1°C of ambient warming. The team predicts that between the 2020s and 2040s, glaciers will lose their “decoupling” ability and recouple to the warming atmosphere. The study concludes that glaciers’ retreat is inevitable. “We must accept the committed ice loss and put our full efforts into limiting further climatic warming rather than into ineffective geo-engineering strategies,” Shaw said.