Furtwangler Glacier – the main Kilimanjaro glacier

The Furtwängler Glacier is the most iconic glacier on Africa’s Mount Kilimanjaro. Located near the main peak, Uhuru, it draws many adventurers eager to climb Kilimanjaro and experience the glacier’s breathtaking beauty before it vanishes.

Today, the Furtwängler Glacier is a fragment of what was once a massive ice cap covering nearly half of Kilimanjaro’s central crater. Kilimanjaro, a mountain massif with three volcanic cones (Shira, Mawenzi, and Kibo), hosts all of its tropical glaciers as well as icefieldsThe icefields on Mount Kilimanjaro, notably the northern icefield and southern icefield, are large remnants of the mountain's once extensive ice cap located on the slopes of Kibo. on Kibo.

Initially, Kilimanjaro's glaciers formed around 11,700 years ago, creating a giant ice cap that draped the summit, cascading down the crater's sides in colossal ice flows. Over millennia, these glaciers melted and fragmented. It is thought that the Furtwängler Glacier has existed as a distinct formation since the mid-17th century.

Walter Eugen Georg Furtwängler lived in what is now Tanzania from 1909 to 1913, working as a plantation owner. Among other things, he participated in an expedition to Tendaguru, during which scientists discovered skeletons of new dinosaur species. In Tendaguru, archaeologists found the bones of the Giraffatitan, whose 13-meter (43-foot) skeleton became the tallest in the world.

In December 1912, Walter Furtwängler organized an expedition to the summit of Kilimanjaro for traveler Siegfried König. It made history as the first ascent done on snowshoes. At that time, there was still more snow than ice on the mountain. Furtwängler and König became members of the third groupThe first two groups to reach Kilimanjaro's summit were Hans Meyer and Ludwig Purtscheller in 1889, and Max Lange and the topographer Weigele in 1909. to successfully reach Kilimanjaro's highest point. The expedition is remembered because the two Germans descended from the summit on skis. Alpine skiing in Africa near the equator — no one had done that before. Later, in honor of this event, the glacier was named after Furtwängler.

Walter Furtwängler hit the headlines in the German media once again in 2015, when ten of his descendants, including the well-known German actress Maria Furtwängler, set out on his trail to Kilimanjaro and climbed to the summit. 

Is there still a glacier on top of Kilimanjaro?

Yes, the Furtwängler Glacier on Mount Kilimanjaro still exists, although it is rapidly decreasing in size.

Altezza Travel's ascent to the summit of Kilimanjaro and visit to the Kilimanjaro glaciers

The first accurate calculations we can trust were made using old photographs. For example, in a 1929 photo, the Furtwängler Glacier had an approximate area of 120,000 square meters (about 30 acres).

Subsequent ice loss occurred rapidly due to sublimationSublimation is a chemical process where ice transitions directly into vapor, skipping the liquid phase of turning into water., weathering, and melting. This applies not only to the Furtwängler Glacier but to all other Kilimanjaro glaciers. Some of them have already disappeared.

Moreover, this isn't unique to Mount Kilimanjaro — other tropical glaciers are retreating on all the highest peaks of East Africa. Kilimanjaro, however, retains the largest volume of ice cover. If in 1912 the area of all Kilimanjaro's glaciers was 11.4 square kilometers (4.4 square miles), by the end of 2021, it had shrunk to 0.98 square kilometers (0.38 square miles). In other words, over 100 years, the glaciers have decreased by 11 times.

This also applies to Mount Kenya in Kenya and the Rwenzori Mountains in Uganda and the Democratic Republic of Congo. Comparing the amount of ice formations in 1900 to today, Kilimanjaro retains 8.6% of its glacier coverage, Rwenzori 5.8%, and Mount Kenya only 4.2%.

Speaking of the Furtwängler Glacier, by 1979, its area had only slightly decreased, shrinking to 113,000 square meters (27.9 acres). However, in the following years, the rate of decline accelerated significantly: by 2000, the glacier’s area had nearly halved to 60,000 square meters (14.8 acres).

Between 2000 and 2009, the glacier lost an additional 50% of its thickness. These measurements were made possible through annual sampling. Since 2000, glaciologist Douglas Hardy has been continuously monitoring the tropical glaciers on Kilimanjaro. His data provides critical insight into how much longer this glacier may endure.

We measured the glacier's area using satellite images. In 2023, it was approximately 10,400 square meters (2.57 acres).

When will the Furtwangler Glacier disappear?

After the accelerated reduction of the Kilimanjaro glacier observed in the 2000s, many calculations emerged. The authors calculated the average annual rate of ice retreat and, knowing the total area of the glacier, tried to estimate when it would completely disappear.

The glacier melted faster at times, then a bit slower. Various years were suggested: first 2020, then 2022, and now it's often said that the Furtwängler Glacier will disappear in 2025. However, it's still visible on Kilimanjaro's summit — both from satellite images and up close by those who see it during climbs. It seems no one can pinpoint the glacier's final year. Therefore, any predictions should be made cautiously.

Those wishing to see the Furtwängler Glacier have less and less time. If you want to witness it, join one of our climbing groups. We'll organize a Kilimanjaro tour that includes a visit to the glacier. Please inform your travel manager in advance that you'd like this included in your program, as climbing groups don't typically visit the glaciers by default.

An expedition with an overnight stay in the crater is the best way to ensure you see Mount Kilimanjaro's glaciers.

Why is the Furtwangler Glacier shrinking, and can this be stopped?

The main factor influencing the reduction of the Furtwängler Glacier, all other glaciers on Kilimanjaro, including the western, northern and southern icefields, is the increase in global temperatures or global warming. The higher the altitude, the more pronounced the temperature changes.

For Kilimanjaro's glaciers, precipitation is critically important: its frequency and volume. In recent decades, although snow still falls on Kilimanjaro, it is insufficient to reliably cover the ice formations from the impact of solar radiation. There is no question of naturally replenishing the tropical glaciers. You can see the stunning rate at which Kilimanjaro's glaciers melted on the map above. The decreased number of clouds coming with the monsoons, capable of covering the ice from the sun, as well as rarer and weaker snowfalls, are associated with changes in conditions in the Indian Ocean. This is a consequence of global warming and general climate change on Earth.

In summary, the disappearance of the Furtwängler Glacier cannot be stopped. Along with all other glaciers on Kilimanjaro, as well as those on Mount Kenya and Rwenzori, it will vanish by the middle of this century. People have observed this process since the late 19th century. Unfortunately, the same is happening not only in East Africa but in all other parts of the world.

Does hope remain for the Kilimanjaro glaciers? Surprisingly, the answer is "maybe" rather than a definitive "no." Paradoxically, global warming linked to climate change could, under certain conditions, lead to increased ice cover on Kilimanjaro. Higher evaporation over the Indian Ocean, combined with favorable winds, could bring more precipitation to the mountain, resulting in additional snow and ice in the summit region. While the accuracy of such predictions is uncertain, and most of those glaciers are likely to disappear in the near future, a sliver of hope persists for these equatorial ice giants.

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