The Last Glacier: A Journey to the Edge of Climate Change

Deep in the Peruvian Andes, the Quelccaya ice cap tells a story 1,800 years in the making — and its final chapter is being written now. At 5,670 meters above sea level, this tropical glacier has served as both a climate archive and a water source for communities stretching back to the Inca Empire. Standing at its edge in January 2026, the retreat is visible to the naked eye. Stakes placed by glac...

d as both a climate archive and a water source for communities stretching back to the Inca Empire. Standing at its edge in January 2026, the retreat is visible to the naked eye. Stakes placed by glaciologists just two years ago now sit ten meters from the ice margin. The sound of meltwater is const...