04-04-2025
Africa's last glaciers: an expedition to map ice loss in the Rwenzori mountains
Mount Speke topped with ice in 2012. The Rwenzori mountains are one of the world's most remote and dramatic landscapes, thought to be the legendary Mountains of the Moon mentioned by ancient Greek geographers such as Ptolemy.
By 2024, ice remained on Speke, but not enough to be defined as a glacier. The three highest peaks in the Rwenzori mountains – Speke, Baker and Stanley – have been so eroded by the climate crisis that only Stanley's glacier remains.
Alfred Masereka, of the Uganda Wildlife Authority (UWA), assembles the team before the expedition to map Mount Stanley's glaciers. The expedition was led by the climate charity Project Pressure, together with Unesco and the UWA, to record what was left of the ice, create a 3D model of the glaciers and install equipment to allow local people to monitor change
The local Bakonzo community's intimate knowledge of the terrain proved invaluable for the expedition. They have long lived at the base of the mountain range and consider the glaciers sacred. The ice is where the Bakonzo god Kithasamba lives. For centuries, this spiritual connection has influenced how the Bakonzo interact with the environment, reinforcing conservation and sustainable use of natural resources
The path to ascend the Rwenzori runs past Lake Bujuku, one of several lakes partly formed and replenished by glacial meltwater. The mountain range is the highest and most permanent source of the River Nile, with a water catchment relied upon by 5 million people, including the Bakonzo
A ranger from the Uganda Wildlife Authority waits to start the ascent, which begins in tropical forest
Several camping huts dot the mountain ascent. In the distance, Mount Stanley emerges from the clouds. At 5,109 metres, it is the third-highest mountain in Africa. Rwenzori Mountains national park was designated a Unesco world heritage site in 1994 for its beauty, rare species and abundance of flora and fauna
The team stop to camp during the trek, which takes 14 days
The team makes the rocky approach to Mount Stanley. Project Pressure is using data collected over more than a decade of expeditions to understand how much glacial ice is left on the range, and is now training and equipping local teams to collect data independently
Muhindo Rogers, a guide from the Uganda Wildlife Authority, stands in front of Mount Baker, which lost its glacier several years ago
Project Pressure's Klaus Thymann, left, with local guides Muhindo Rogers and Kule Jocknus Bwabu Solomon, and Heïdi Sevestre, a glaciologist, on the plateau of Mount Stanley. Thymann devised a process to track glacier retreat using high-resolution drone photogrammetry and comparative analysis from past expeditions. Trimble geospatial technology was used to capture data points, while Sevestre used ground-penetrating radar to capture data on depth
Thymann operates the drone with support from Solomon, left, and Rogers. The team combined the drone survey with a survey Project Pressure carried out in 2020 to create a 3D model of the glacial retreat on Mt. Stanley. In four years the surface area has reduced by almost 30%.
Rogers observes cloud movement while the drone is flown
Mount Stanley holds the last glacial ice in Rwenzori, but the glaciers are fragmenting. This image was taken by Klaus Thymann in 2022
By 2024 the glacier on Mount Stanley has retreated. Project Pressure's data revealed a loss in surface area of 29.5% between 2020 and 2024
Mumbere Johnson, of the Uganda Wildlife Authority, guides Sevestre
Solomon first joined a Project Pressure expedition in 2012 and has been on every expedition since – most recently in January 2025 to install and train on time-lapse cameras
Solomon walks past a channel carrying water to communities in the foothills of the Rwenzori. Glaciers act as a buffer – feeding rivers during dry seasons and regulating water flow. Their loss increases droughts, floods and even wildfires. Solomon's home was damaged by a mudslide this year
The next generation of Bakonzo people will be profoundly impacted by the loss of glaciers. Masereka says: 'I will tell my son it was very beautiful to have snow on the Rwenzori for our livelihood … it will be unfortunate, but I will encourage him to involve himself in conservation-related activities as an alternative to the snow, which was our resource in our time'
