Curiosities Curiosity
Did you know that snow is not actually white?
A snowflake is made of ice, and ice is transparent. So why is snow white and glaciers blue? The answer lies in how light bounces and is absorbed.
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#snow
Everything about snow on Altavia: 7 articles including news, guides, routes and features.
7 articles
Latest articles
News Explainer
The 2026 El Niño shapes up as one of the strongest on record: what it could mean for snow and the mountains
The equatorial Pacific is much warmer than normal and forecast centres point to a very strong, perhaps historic, El Niño. We explain what it is, what is expected and what it could mean for the snow season.
News Feature
Longyearbyen, the Arctic town where melting ice is already polluting the water and cracking homes
At 78° north, Svalbard's main town is living Arctic warming first-hand: tap water unfit to drink, homes made uninhabitable by thawing permafrost, avalanches and tour guides changing their routes.
News News
Swiss glaciers lose 5.5% of their volume in 2026: almost a fifth of the ice gone in five years
Little winter snow, heatwaves from May to September and the 0 °C isotherm above 4,000 metres for 76 days: the result is the second-worst year for Swiss glaciers since measurements began.
News Explainer
2024, the first year above 1.5 °C: what it does and does not mean for the Paris Agreement
The European Copernicus service ranked 2024 as the warmest year on record and the first to exceed the 1.5 °C threshold. Have we already broken the Paris Agreement? Not exactly. Here is why.
Environment Analysis
What would happen if snow disappeared from the great mountains
Snow is not just scenery: it is a natural reservoir that releases water when it is needed most. When it snows less or melts earlier, rivers, forests, wildlife and the economy of entire valleys change.
Curiosities Curiosity
Red snow: the algae that tint the mountains and speed up melting
In summer, some snowfields in the Alps, the Pyrenees or the Arctic turn pink. It is not dust or pollution: it is microscopic algae with their own 'sunscreen'. And their colour has consequences.
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