Alps

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Climber Charged After Partner Dies in Winter Ascent

Austrian prosecutors allege Thomas Plamberger's gross negligence led to death on Grossglockner

(Newser) - A mountain tragedy in Austria has taken a legal turn as climber Thomas Plamberger now faces grossly negligent homicide charges following the death of his partner, 33-year-old Kerstin Gurtner, on Grossglockner, the country's highest peak. Per Climbing.com , their winter ascent of the 12,461-foot mountain began on Jan....

Avalanche in the Alps Claims 5 Mountaineers

German victims were climbing in Italy

(Newser) - Five German mountaineers died after being hit by an avalanche in South Tyrol, in northern Italy, rescuers said on Sunday. Three victims—two men and a woman—had already been recovered dead on Saturday, while the bodies of two other missing people, a man and his 17-year-old daughter, were found...

Why Are More People Dying in Italy's Alps?

Summer surge in crowds, inexperience, and tech blamed for spike

(Newser) - Italy's mountains have always lured hikers, but this summer the peaks have turned particularly perilous. More than 100 people have died in the country's mountains since June 1—with 83 of those deaths occurring between June 21 and July 23, per ExplorersWeb —according to the national...

AI Helps Rapidly Crack Yearlong Mystery in Alps

AI scans drone images to find missing hiker on Monviso

(Newser) - The search for the body of a hiker who vanished in Italy's Alps last September ended up being a remarkably quick one, thanks to artificial intelligence. The National Alpine and Speleological Rescue Corps tapped into drone technology and AI image analysis to locate the body of Nicola Ivaldo,...

Tipping Point Arrives Early for Switzerland's Glaciers

Winter ice is gone, and they will be shrinking from now until October

(Newser) - Switzerland's glaciers have hit their annual "glacier loss day"—when winter's snow and ice are gone—weeks earlier than usual, according to Glacier Monitoring in Switzerland. The 2024 tipping point arrived on July 4, the second-earliest date on record, raising concerns among scientists about the...

Searchers Find 5 Bodies on Glacier Above Resort
Bodies of 5 Skiers
Found on Glacier
May 25, 2025 11:02 AM CDT

Bodies of 5 Skiers Found on Glacier

Climbers in Alps had reported coming across skis

(Newser) - Swiss rescue teams found the bodies of five skiers on a glacier above the resort town of Zermatt, police said Sunday, in a search begun after climbers reported coming across several pairs of skis near the 13,000-foot Rimpfischhorn peak in the Valais Alps. The bodies were found in avalanche...

Hiker's Find Leads to Trove of Fossils Predating Dinosaurs

Hundreds of imprints of plants, animals, even raindrops discovered in northern Italian Alps

(Newser) - Claudia Steffensen was hiking in the Italian Alps last summer when she stepped on a rock that caught her eye. "It seemed more like a slab of cement" with "these strange circular designs with wavy lines," Steffensen tells the Guardian. "I took a closer look and...

Switzerland, Italy Redo Their Border Due to Ice Melt

The nations are redrawing shared boundary, thanks to climate change, melting glaciers

(Newser) - There are the expected repercussions of climate change, and then there are the more surprising ones—like two nations having to redraw their shared border due to ice melt. That's what's currently happening in Europe, where Switzerland and Italy are remapping in the Alps, because "large sections"...

World Cup Skier, Girlfriend Plummet 2.3K Feet in Alps

Jean Daniel Pession, 28, and girlfriend Elisa Arlian die on Mount Zerbion in Italy

(Newser) - "A terrible tragedy strikes the world of winter sports," a release from the Italian Winter Sports Federation, or FISI, declared over the weekend, announcing the death of a young World Cup skier and his girlfriend in the Italian Alps. Per NBC News , local media report that Jean Daniel...

Sad End for Toddler Who Vanished Last Summer in Alps

Remains of little Emile Soleil have been found, identified in France

(Newser) - Sad news out of France, where the remains of a toddler who went missing in the Alps last summer have been found. AFP calls it the "first major breakthrough" in the case of little Emile Soleil, who was last seen on July 8 by locals in the village of...

Receding Glacier Reveals Long-Dead Man and His Pack
Receding Glacier Relinquishes
a 2-Decade-Old Body, With ID
in case you missed it
Aug 26, 2023 4:30 PM CDT

Receding Glacier Relinquishes a 2-Decade-Old Body, With ID

Body of man thought to have died in 2001 found alongside bag carrying ID

(Newser) - The body of a man thought to have died more than two decades ago has been found amidst a melting glacier in the Austrian Alps. A mountain guide discovered the remains Friday on Schlatenkees glacier in Tyrol province at an altitude of about 9,500 feet. Lienz Alpine Police later...

Mudslide Barrels Through Town as Festival Was in Full Swing

Mudslide causes 'very significant' damage in Bardonecchia, Italy, but so far, no major injuries

(Newser) - Officials in a popular vacation town in the Italian Alps are now organizing a major cleanup job and searching for any possible missing people after a mountain mudslide came barreling through over the weekend. The AP reports that the streets of Bardonecchia are now coated in mud and debris after...

As Glacier Ice Melted, Another Grisly Find

Cops say body found near Matterhorn is German mountaineer who went missing 37 years ago

(Newser) - DNA tests have confirmed that the body recently found on a glacier southeast of the famed Matterhorn peak is that of a German mountaineer who disappeared 37 years ago, police in southwestern Switzerland said Thursday. Increasing glacier melt, which many scientists blame on global warming, has spurred a recent increase...

Swiss Alps Are Melting Faster Than Ever: Study

Ice volume has decreased 6% in 2022, experts say

(Newser) - Switzerland's glaciers are melting like never before, an academic study released Wednesday found, with their ice volume declining by 6% this year, which included a summer heat wave that swept across Europe. The Swiss Academy of Sciences reported that the shrinkage of ice in the country's glaciers topped...

No One Knows for Sure What Country This Is
No One Knows for Sure
What Country This Is
in case you missed it
Jul 31, 2022 7:06 AM CDT

No One Knows for Sure What Country This Is

Melting glacier leaves Alps lodge at center of border dispute between Italy and Switzerland

(Newser) - In 1984, a lodge was built high up in the Pennine Alps in what was then Italy. Now most of it is technically part of Switzerland, though its manager—at the center of an international border dispute—will refute that. The alpine border between the two countries has been traditionally...

Melting Glacier Splits, Killing Hikers in Alps

At least 6 people died in the avalanche, and more are injured or missing

(Newser) - A large chunk of an Alpine glacier broke loose Sunday afternoon and roared down a mountainside in Italy, sending ice, snow, and rock slamming into hikers on a popular trail on the peak and killing at least six people and injuring eight, authorities said. There could be about 10 people...

'Unprecedented' Avalanche Onslaught Leaves 9 Dead

Austrian authorities warn of continued 'considerable' risk in the Alps

(Newser) - Nine people are dead in the Austrian Alps after what's being described as an "unprecedented" spate of avalanche activity. On Saturday, officials there continued to warn of "considerable" risk of avalanches, due to heavy snowfall followed by warmer weather conditions, reports the AP . The Guardian details four...

YouTuber Plummets Off Mountain: 'We Are in Great Grief'

Albert Dyrlund, 22, was filming a video when he fell to his death in Italian Alps

(Newser) - Kids in Denmark grew up watching him. Now, a young YouTube star is dead, following a tragic accident in the Italian Alps, where he was filming a new video for his channel . Italian broadcaster Rai reports that 22-year-old Albert Dyrlund was shooting footage on Mount Seceda in Val Gardena on...

After Friend Falls to His Death, Man Gets COVID Fine

Runners had breached Italian restrictions

(Newser) - An Italian man's run in the Alps with a friend ended in tragedy—and a fine of around $500 for breaching coronavirus restrictions. Simone Massetti, 34, fell around 650 feet to his death during the run on Mt. Palino Saturday, the BBC reports. After Castello Dell'Acqua called for...

Ancient Ice Tells of a Murderous King's Struggles
Ancient Ice Tells
of a Murderous
King's Struggles
in case you missed it
Apr 4, 2020 11:15 AM CDT

Ancient Ice Tells of a Murderous King's Struggles

Lead pollution sheds light on British turmoil in 12th century

(Newser) - Scientists say they've found evidence of key moments in British medieval history, including the assassination of an archbishop, nearly 1,000 miles away in the Swiss Alps. There was no sword buried in the snow. Rather, scientists analyzed lead pollution in laser-carved slivers of ice, each representing a period...

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