Scientists in Sweden have revealed that Kebnekaise is becoming increasingly hot and changing due to unrelenting global warming.
Further evidence that climate change can move mountains and bring their greatness down, researchers have found that Kebnekaise, the southern peak of Sweden that is most well-known for being the highest in Sweden, is shrinking at levels not seen in decades if not in recent times.
Sydtoppen, the southern glaciated peak, was at 2,120m (6,955 feet) above sea level when semi-annual measurements were made in 1968.
The height of the icy peak fluctuated over time due to weather conditions and precipitation factors. However, it became evident that the data showed a downward trend since the late 1990s.
The southern peak was 2,118m in 1996. It fell to 2,110m in 1998. It fell to 2,100m in 2011, hitting 2,099.7 in 1998. The trend has continued since.
The title of Sweden's highest point was lost to the southern peak in 2018.
(Erik Schytt Mannerfelt)
Above: Annika Granebeck, Tarfala station manager, measures the height at Kebnekaise's top on 14 August 2021.
Researchers at Stockholm University have shared new measurements that Sydtoppen now stands at 2,094.6 metres above sea level. The researchers are not in any doubt about why this is happening.
Per Holmlund, a glaciologist at Stockholm University's Tarfala Station, says that the height variation is a good indicator of how glaciers respond to a warming climate.
Researchers have released a study that details the history of Kebnekaise's elevation observations and glacier change. They say that the data show a "complex restructuring of mass at the summit" and that the record lows seen are "the beginning of an unexpected problem for tourists," not to mention the implications for the future of the glaciers in Sweden.
These findings are published in Geografiska Annaler Series A, Physical Geography.
