2022. Kilimanjaro / Tanzania

August 2022

On the African continent, the emblematic glaciers of Kilimanjaro are the only ones to still offer quality ice, essential for paleoclimatic and environmental studies which make it possible to identify and understand past climatic events to better anticipate future changes and their impacts.

However, for more than a century, the glaciers of Kilimanjaro have been retreating and 85% of the ice cover has disappeared since the first observations in 1912 [Cullen et al., 2013]. This is why glaciologists had listed Kilimanjaro as a priority on the Ice Memory roadmap. The mission planned in 2022 has not  been achieved due to diplomatic and administrative reasons.This drilling is not rescheduled so far despite the disappearance of the glacier expected by 2040.

Replay the BBC interview of Doug Hardy on Unesco's report glaciers and focus on the Kilimanjaro:

Updated on  October 30, 2023