Alps Are Crumbling Down

The Crumbling Crown: How Climate Change is Shattering the Alps

The mountains are falling. In the heart of Europe, the iconic Alps are undergoing a violent, accelerated transformation. A recent series of powerful rockfalls in the Italian Dolomites, which prompted the evacuation of hundreds of people, is not an isolated event. It is the latest, loudest alarm bell from a mountain range being actively unmade by a warming world. Experts across the continent confirm that the permafrost, the frozen glue that has held these peaks together for millennia, is thawing. As it disappears, the very rockfaces of the Alps are beginning to crumble, sending a stark and urgent warning about a planet heating up at an unprecedented rate.

Alarm on Cima Falkner

The immediate crisis took place around Cima Falkner, a peak within the Brenta Dolomites. People enjoying the northern Italian range reported hearing a "tremendous boom," a sound that echoed through the valleys with terrifying force. This was the sound of the mountain breaking apart. Multiple rockfalls followed the initial event, generating huge plumes of grit that billowed from the rockface. With incidents happening on both the mountain's western and eastern faces, it pointed to a widespread instability that sent shockwaves through the local community and among visitors. The dramatic events turned a popular hiking destination into a hazardous zone in an instant.

An Urgent Evacuation

Authorities responded swiftly to the clear and present danger. They immediately shut down dozens of pathways used for climbing and trekking that weave around Cima Falkner's base and slopes, cutting off access to the directly impacted zone. In a significant operation, they brought approximately 100 outdoor enthusiasts off the mountain to prevent any injuries or fatalities from subsequent collapses. Officials in the Trentino-Alto Adige region issued a strong public warning, advising everyone to show the greatest caution and to adhere strictly to the new safety rules. Their statement underscored the gravity of the situation, confirming every person in the vicinity had been safely removed.

The Geologists' Verdict

To understand the scope of the instability, the local geological service sent out a helicopter and drones for a technical survey of Cima Falkner. The aerial reconnaissance confirmed scientists' worst fears. Their official assessment concluded that an ongoing geomorphological change is affecting the whole summit, a process they believe is connected to the degradation of permafrost. The investigation revealed that many cracks in the rock, once filled with solid ice, now seemed to be empty. This loss of ice removes the critical binding agent that lends stability to high-altitude rock walls, leaving them vulnerable to failure under the simple force of gravity.

The Science of Collapse

The process destabilising the Alps is a direct consequence of rising temperatures. Permafrost, the permanently frozen ground found at high altitudes, acts like a natural cement, holding together rocks and soil. As global warming heats the planet, this ancient adhesive is melting. Volker Mair, a local geologist, explains that the problem is worsened by frequent temperature swings around freezing point. Water gets into fissures in the rock, freezes, and expands by nine percent, exerting a massive force of about 200 kilograms per square centimetre. This continuous freeze-thaw cycle acts like a wedge, relentlessly forcing the rocks apart.

Echoes in the Val di Zoldo

The instability around Cima Falkner was not the only sign of the mountains' distress. In the days before the main collapse, visitors near Monte Pelmo gave reports of similar, deeply unsettling events from the Val di Zoldo. Loud booms echoed through the valley when stony spires detached from the mountain and crashed below. The collapses, which occurred inside the Selva di Cadore municipality within Italy's Belluno province, threw great volumes of debris into the air. These incidents highlight that the problem is not confined to a single peak but is a regional phenomenon.

An Unprecedented Acceleration

While rockfalls are a standard feature of mountain life, shaping the landscape through a slow wearing-away over geological time, experts now see a startling increase in their frequency and intensity. Piero Carlesi is the president of the Italian Alpine Club's (CAI) scientific committee. He conveyed to a reporter that such a remarkable surge in rockfall incidents has never been witnessed before. Carlesi expressed his certainty that landslides are becoming more common, attributing the trend directly to the climate crisis. The slow, predictable changes of the past are being replaced by a rapid and dangerous acceleration.

The Alps Weep

This crisis extends far beyond the Italian Dolomites, affecting the entire Alpine range. In late June 2025, the Mont Blanc massif experienced a record-breaking heatwave, with temperatures remaining above zero for an extended period even at its highest altitudes. This sustained warmth is speeding up permafrost thaw across the French Alps. Bernard Vion, a 66-year-old mountain guide with a lifetime of experience in the Pralognan-la-Vanoise region, confirms the changes. He says that rockfalls of such intensity and regularity have never happened before. The permafrost that once secured the stone is melting, leaving it without cohesion.

A Continent-Wide Crisis

The story is the same in Switzerland and Austria. Swiss authorities warn that thawing permafrost is making mountain slopes unstable, endangering hiking trails and mountain huts. The Swiss Alpine Club has identified that one-third of its huts are at risk because they sit in areas where the ground is thawing. In Austria, a long-term monitoring project at Kitzsteinhorn in the Hohe Tauern range provides stark data. During a 12-year window between 2011 and 2023, researchers documented 799 rockfall events, with the activity in freshly deglaciated rockwalls increasing by an order of magnitude.

The Ghost of Marmolada

Perhaps the most tragic illustration of this new reality was the deadly failure of the Marmolada glacier in 2022. A huge section of the glacier, made unstable by meltwater and high temperatures, broke away, sending an avalanche of ice, snow, and rock hurtling down the slope. The disaster claimed eleven lives and injured eight others, serving as a catastrophic reminder of the human cost of glacial retreat. The event was not a freak accident but a direct outcome of a warming planet, a symptom of a glacier that scientists say is dying before their eyes. That tragedy has since cast a long shadow over mountaineering activities in the area.

The Queen in a Coma

Marmolada, known as the "Queen of the Dolomites," is the largest glacier in the range and a UNESCO World Heritage site. It is now in a state that scientists describe as an "irreversible coma." Researchers monitoring its decline have issued a dire forecast: the glacier could disappear entirely by the year 2040. This is not a distant possibility but a near-term certainty based on its current rate of retreat. The campaign group Legambiente, which has been tracking the glacier's health, describes it as a "suffering glacier," a symbol of the profound and fragile state of the Alps.

Measuring the Decline

The numbers behind Marmolada's decay are staggering. Scientists have found the glacier is losing between seven and ten centimetres of depth every single day. This relentless melting has had a dramatic effect on its size. In the last five years, its surface has shrunk by 70 hectares, an area equivalent to 98 football pitches. Since scientific measurements first began, with records starting in 1888, the glacier has pulled back by a total of 1,200 metres. This retreat has accelerated alarmingly in recent decades. The melting ice is leaving behind a barren desert of white, flat rock.

A Dying Glacier's Legacy

The vanishing of the Marmolada glacier represents more than just the loss of a famous natural landmark. It signifies a fundamental and irreversible shift in the Alpine environment. Vanda Bonardo, the national Alpine Coordinator for Legambiente, states that the melting process has quickened to a rate that demands urgent responses. The glacier's demise is a powerful, visible indicator of the climate emergency. For people who make their living in the mountains, and for the scientists who study it, Marmolada's deathbed is a testament to the profound impact of global warming.

Not the Only Casualty

Marmolada is the most famous, but it is far from the only Italian glacier facing extinction. The Forni Glacier, one of the country's largest valley glaciers, is retreating at a comparable rate, having pulled back by 800 metres in the last 30 years. The Adamello glacier, another giant among Italy's alpine formations, is also in steep decline. Long-term measurements there indicate its current surface is composed mainly of snowfall from the 1980s. Since the end of the 19th century, the Adamello has retreated by approximately 2.7 kilometres, further evidence that this is a widespread crisis.

The Global Context

The crisis unfolding in the Alps is a microcosm of a global catastrophe. A 2023 study revealed that, at the current rate of global warming, 68% of the world's glaciers are set to disappear. At least half of this loss is projected to happen within the next 30 years. Glaciers in central Europe, western Canada, and the United States are predicted to vanish entirely by the year 2100. Even under the most optimistic scenario of limiting global warming to 1.5°C, as outlined in the Paris Agreement, scientists predict that 49% of the planet's glaciers would still melt completely. This fact puts the recent rockfalls into a sobering global perspective.

Monitoring from Above

Scientists and authorities are not standing by idly. They are deploying advanced technology to monitor the growing instability. Helicopter units and drones provided the crucial first images of the fractures visible on the Cima Falkner rockface, allowing for a rapid assessment of the risk. Elsewhere in the Alps, researchers use sophisticated techniques like terrestrial laser scanning to track changes in rock walls with millimetre precision. This technology allows them to create detailed 3D models of rockfaces and identify the source and volume of rockfalls over time.

The Data Doesn't Lie

The long-term monitoring study at Kitzsteinhorn, Austria, offers a chilling glimpse into the future. The project, which has run for more than a decade, has methodically documented the mountain's response to warming. The data shows a clear warming pattern of +0.8°C per decade for the previous 15 years in that specific location. This has driven a 67% decrease in the surface of the local Schmiedingerkees glacier since 1953. The 799 rockfalls detected between 2011 and 2023, totalling over 3,300 cubic metres of rock, provide undeniable, quantitative proof of the link between a warming climate and the physical collapse of the mountains.

The Economic Tremors

The disintegration of the Alps carries a significant economic price. Mountain regions in Italy, Switzerland, Austria, and France are heavily dependent on tourism, which is now under direct threat. Unstable slopes, closed hiking trails, and the ever-present risk of landslides disrupt the very activities that draw millions of visitors each year. In Italy alone, the cost of damages from landslides and floods during the last 60 years has exceeded 52 billion euros. The increasing frequency of these events threatens to cripple local economies that are built around skiing, hiking, and mountaineering.

A Perilous Paradise

There is a dark irony in the mountains' decline. The visible decay of glaciers is driving a phenomenon known as "last-chance tourism," where travellers flock to see these natural wonders before they disappear forever. This influx of visitors, however, brings more people into environments that are becoming increasingly unstable and dangerous. Tourists' perceptions of safety are critical for destination appeal, and a single major event can deter visitors for years. The challenge for these regions is immense: how to manage tourism when the main attractions are themselves becoming hazards.

Rethinking Mountain Life

Communities in the Alps must now adapt to a new and more dangerous reality. The threat from thawing permafrost and collapsing rock requires a complete re-evaluation of safety and infrastructure. This includes potentially rerouting historic hiking trails, reinforcing or even relocating mountain huts, and investing in expensive early-warning systems. Land-use planning must change to prevent construction in newly high-risk zones. The very way of life in these mountain towns, developed over centuries, is being challenged. Adaptation is no longer a choice but a necessity for survival.

The Future of the Alps

The chorus of warnings from the Alps is unanimous and clear. The rockfalls near Cima Falkner, the retreat of the Marmolada, and the instability across the entire range are not separate incidents but connected symptoms of a single, overarching crisis. The mountains are sending an unambiguous signal about the profound and accelerating impacts of global warming. Experts like Volker Mair are blunt in their assessment, stating that at this point, nothing can be done to stop the glacial melting already in motion. The Alps of the future will be a different, more volatile landscape. They stand today as a crumbling monument to the urgent need for global action.