--- title: "Switzerland Covers Glacier With Giant Blankets to Keep It From Melting" description: "Officials from a local Swiss skiing resort are now trying to slow the melting by throwing giant fleece blankets over the glacier" date: "2021-09-07" modified: "2021-09-07" authors: - name: "Victor Tangermann" job_title: "Senior Editor" link: "https://futurism.com/authors/victor" url: "https://futurism.com/the-byte/switzerland-covers-glacier-giant-blanket-melting" categories: - "Science & Energy" tags: - "glacial melt" - "glaciers" - "global warming" - "ski" - "Switzerland" - "the digest" --- # Switzerland Covers Glacier With Giant Blankets to Keep It From Melting ![Officials from a local Swiss skiing resort are now trying to slow the melting by throwing giant fleece blankets over the glacier]() *\Image: Getty / Futurism\* ## Glacier Blanket A giant glacier on Mount Titlis in Switzerland has shrunk drastically in recent decades, thanks to global warming. Officials from a local skiing resort are now trying to slow the melting by throwing giant fleece blankets over the glacier, covering a cumulative area just over a million square feet, or around 14 soccer fields, [according to *Reuters*](). The goal is to insulate the vulnerable glacier's ice and snow deposits by reflecting much of the Sun's energy back into the atmosphere using the white material. It's a desperate situation — and yet another instance of global warming rearing its ugly head — that poses an existential threat to local industries. According to the Swiss government, 90 percent of Mount Titlis' remaining 1,500 glaciers will disappear by 2100 if greenhouses gas emissions aren't cut, *Reuters* reported. ## Keeping Cold According to local officials, the size of the fleece blankets had to be steadily increased over the last couple of years to have enough of an effect. Workers had to meticulously sew blankets together and cover the glacier over five to six weeks this summer to slow its melting. The effects of global warming are being felt across the world right now, with monster storms drenching much of North America and [devastating wildfires]() lighting up the Pacific Northwest. So it doesn't come as a surprise that ski enthusiasts will soon have to travel further to find slopes with the right conditions — if, that is, there's any left at all. **READ MORE:** [Wrap up cool: Blankets help stave off glacier melt on Swiss ski pistes]() \[*Reuters*\] **More on global warming:** [Scientists Warn Gulf Stream May Collapse, Freezing North America]() ## Author I've been at Futurism since 2017, where my role has evolved to encompass design, writing, and increasingly editing. I've always been fascinated by space exploration and advanced transportation, which I've leaned into by interviewing luminaries in those fields while closely following the dimensions of policy and regulation that allow next-generation projects to succeed -- or, sometimes, to fail. I'm also keenly interested in the effects of generative AI on society, policies, and democratic institutions, as well as clean energy, physics and biology, and the vagaries of tech leadership. My work for Futurism has been cited by publications including Ars Technica, Gizmodo, PC Magazine, Jalopnik, Fox News, and the New York Post. I spent my childhood living in locations including Manila, the Philippines, and Geneva, Switzerland, attended McGill University, and now live in Toronto, Canada. Before Futurism I worked at AskMen and a small photography studio. In my free time, I'm an avid gardener, foodie, and craft beer lover, as well as a maker of artisanal hot pepper sauces. I have a magnificent dog named Freida. ### Author social links [Bluesky]()