Pasterze loses status as Austria's largest glacier – Gepatschferner moves up

What the horseshoe fracture means

How deep the ice-filled trench beneath the sensitive area at the transition to the tongue actually is, remains unclear according to Fischer. The scientist, who works at the Institute for Interdisciplinary Mountain Research of the Austrian Academy of Sciences (ÖAW) in Innsbruck, had already discovered isolated holes in the firn field of the Pasterze in 2025. „Diese rasche Änderung ist etwas, was man zum Beispiel mit Kindern gesehen haben sollte“, said Fischer to the APA.

Even around the year 2023, according to reports, it was quite close as to whether the Pasterze or the Gepatschferner located in the Kaunertal would be ahead in terms of area. Now everything suggests that the Tyrolean glacier will overtake the Pasterze. „Um also die Pasterze zu überholen, reicht es quasi, an dem lahmenden Gaul vorbeizupreschen“, said Fischer.

At first glance, the outcome appears surprising: Although the Gepatschferner reaches "only" up to around 3,500 meters above sea level, it is expected to be granted a longer life than the Pasterze, which reaches up to almost 3,800 meters. The reason is the shape of the glacier and its location, which make it less vulnerable to current climate warming.

Pasterze and Gepatschferner in comparison

The Pasterze is not only scientifically significant, but also a piece of Austrian identity. „Anhand dieser beiden Gletscher kann man die Klimageschichte Österreichs für die letzten 10.000 Jahre rekonstruieren“, emphasized Fischer. Fischer expects for the area around the Großglockner with its striking High Alpine Road a certain „Katastrophentourismus, weil es ja wirklich etwas ist, was man als Österreicherin und Österreicher, und alle, die hier wohnen und urlauben, gesehen haben sollte – die letzten Tage unserer nationalen Ikone“. The loss touches people; again and again, people get in touch with their stories about the area.

„Das ist die ganz große Botschaft dieses Vorgangs“, said the glaciologist with regard to the horseshoe fracture. Seeing how far the ice has already been decimated makes it clear how far we are currently already „den bisher wärmsten Temperaturen annähern und wie wir dabei sind, die zu überschreiten“. The Pasterze has become a visible symbol of climate change in the Alps in recent decades. Footage meanwhile shows the glacier as a dirty-grey mass, covered by rock debris and moraine material, flowing into the glacier lake Sandersee.

Symbol of climate warming

The Alpine Club (ÖAV) has been accompanying the development with measurements and reports for years. Alpine Club Vice President Nicole Slupetzky and glaciologist Andreas Kellerer-Pirklbauer also belong to those experts documenting the transformation of Austria's glacier landscape. They see the process at the Pasterze as confirmation of previous climate scenarios.

Fischer expects that the final detachment of the horseshoe fracture will occur within a few years – possibly still within this summer decade. As soon as the connection is finally missing, the remaining tongue area will no longer be mapped as part of the Pasterze. The Gepatschferner would then officially be Austria's largest glacier – and the Pasterze merely a fragment of itself.