New Zealand Glacier Melt Increases

14th July 2026

Last summer New Zealand saw its second-warmest year on record and this accelerated the melting of the country’s glaciers.

The World Meteorological Society’s  State of the Climate report found that the average air temperature for the region in 2025 was 0.37 °C above the 1991-2020 average.

Last year’s marine heatwave, which affected waters around New Zealand, was the most extensive ever recorded in a year without an El Niño event, the organisation said.

“This is a worrisome sign for 2026, with a potentially strong El Niño event now developing.”

New Zealand is home to nearly all of the south-west Pacific’s glaciers and the glacier volume fell by 42%, or nearly half, between 2005 and 2023.

There was a 6.5% decrease between April 2022 and March 2023 alone, the report said.

University of Canterbury associate professor Heather Purdie has monitored glaciers in New Zealand’s mountains for more than 20 years “watching and recording our ice volume shrinking away”.

“We have already lost around 300 glaciers and more will follow,” she said.

Franz Josef glacier, New Zealand. Image © PlanetSKI