Published 26 September 2024 at 10.37
Domestic. The summit glacier on Kebnekaise's south peak continues to shrink. The annual height measurement at the end of summer shows that Sydtoppen – Sweden's former highest point – is now 3.3 meters lower than last year and also 6.9 meters lower than Kebnekaise's north peak.
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On September 15, staff at Stockholm University's research station in Tarfala carried out the annual measurement of Kebnekaise's south peak. The height was measured at 2089.9 meters above sea level. This represents a decrease of 3.3 meters since September 2023, when the height was set at 2093.2 meters.
— This year's melting of 3.3 meters is the strongest in three decades. At the same time, the month of August with an average temperature of 9.1 °C measured at the Tarfala research station was also significantly warmer than usual – in the last 10 years the temperature was on average 6.5 °C during August. That may explain why the melt on the South Peak this year is more than double the melt observed there in the past decade. Then it usually stayed between one and two meters. There were also a few years with little growth, says Nina Kirchner, professor of glaciology and director of the Tarfala research station.
The measurements also mean that the Nordtoppen is Sweden's highest point for the sixth year in a row — it is now 6, 9 meters higher than the Sydtoppen – having overtaken the Sydtoppen for the first time in 2019 by 1.2 meters in height difference.
– The Nordtoppen, which is an ice-free rock mountain peak, has a fixed height of 2096.8 meters while the height of Sydtoppen, which is covered by a summit glacier, varies from year to year. It can also vary between seasons, depending on how much snow has accumulated on the summit glacier during the winter, and how much melting of snow and ice has occurred during the summer. Sydtoppen is still Sweden's second highest peak, but if the melting trend continues, Sarektjåkko big peak will become number two in a short time, says Johanna Dahlkvist, technical and field operations manager at Tarfala research station, in a dispatch.