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The GLIMS Glacier Database: Summary Statistics

Basic statistics of the GLIMS Glacier Database

Note: These numbers include some double-counting of glaciers in cases where multiple outlines exist for the same glacier but don't share the same glacier ID. The result is that the totals for glacier number and glacier area are too high for the current state of glaciers. We expect this to be fixed soon. A good working number for the number of glaciers and ice caps on Earth is 200,000, and the area is approximately 750,000 km2 (not including the ice sheets of Greenland and Antarctica).

Number of glacier analyses (snapshots)725985
Earliest analysis1450-01-01
Most recent analysis2021-08-19
Number of glaciers437555
Area of glacier coverage (latest snapshot), km21.18057e+06
Number of glaciers with multi-temporal coverage177625

The GLIMS Glacier Database: Summary Statistics by GTN-G Region

The Global Terrestrial Network for Glaciers (GTN-G) coordinates global satellite observations of glaciers.

GTN-G regionRegion NameNumber of outlinesGlacier area, km2
1 Alaska 38887 94366.9
2 Western Canada and USA 20564 14379.1
3 Arctic Canada, North 7542 125709
4 Arctic Canada, South 13635 52261.3
5 Greenland Periphery 22680 196293
6 Iceland 618 21999.7
7 Svalbard and Jan Mayen 1895 35029.8
8 Scandinavia 7742 2782.45
9 Russian Arctic 2998 59041.6
10 Asia, North 10853 3635.33
11 Central Europe 14754 2772.86
12 Caucasus and Middle East 4863 1462.21
13 Asia, Central 117072 77081.4
14 Asia, South West 54842 34586.5
15 Asia, South East 29249 23486.6
16 Low Latitudes 6316 2946.15
17 Southern Andes 70172 44526.4
18 New Zealand 6157 933.636
19 Antarctic and Subantarctic 6296 387670

Contributions by Regional Center (RC)

Stewards, which report to RCs, have RC IDs above 500.

RC ID Primary Geographic Area Number of glacier outlines Sum of glacier area, km2
1 Greenland 715 3232.98
2 Norway 17583 11306.8
3 Canada 6685 133995
4 Alaska 3793 22278.8
5 Conterminous USA 8012 1172.11
7 Sweden 284 279.505
8 China 70393 307997
9 New Zealand 6489 3292.49
10 Southwestern Asia (Pakistan + Afghanistan) 407 708.68
11 S. European Alps 948 912.667
12 Himalaya (India, Nepal, Bhutan) 42217 44704.2
13 Tropical glaciers 909 968.55
15 West Antarctica 1 165079
16 Russian Glaciers (exact boundaries of RC to be defined) 6972 21262.5
17 Russian and former Soviet Union glaciers 91 500.256
18 Antarctic Peninsula 659 26449.8
19 Svalbard, Jan Mayen, and Bouvet 1583 33841
20 Chilean glaciers, between -18 and -56 degrees latitude 25033 27646.6
22 Iceland 263 11058.2
23 Iran 484 40.2522
26 Kerguelen Island and other Antarctic Periphery 1372 36526.3
27 Argentina 19104 8304.93
28 Turkey 51 11.5312
29 Mongolia 2729 1634.21
30 European Alps 13029 7600.86
32 Italian Alps 30 5.60736
33 French Alps 2155 1288
34 Austrian Alps 4747 2821.99
35 Pyrenees 47 4.20039
36 Asia 134766 100709
37 Central Asia 650 131.81
38 Caucausus Region 11050 6814.81
39 Japan 5 0.475495
501 South Shetland Islands 191 2985.93
502 Siberian Mountains 6800 29465.9
505 Antarctic Peninsula 1547 95272.5
507 Olympic Peninsula 985 25.787
508 Kamchatka Glaciers 732 683.136
511 Italy 904 368.32
520 Chile 199 490.249
526 East Central Greenland 259 55008.2
536 Northern Cordillera 17549 27038
545 Northern Siberia 72 12.0289
547 Irian Jaya 15 4.47097
550 Northeast Greenland 46 1060.36
556 Khumbu Area 3444 6132.5
561 Various (GlobGlacier) 91755 182718
562 Chilean Norte Chico (25 to 32 degrees south latitude) 152 20.8401
565 Antarctic Peninsula 2536 100845
571 Swiss Alps 9542 3030.85
572 Mainland Norway 1069 51591.5
573 Svalbard 2594 47108.4
574 Irian Jaya 93 27.3459
575 Coropuna, Peru 22 1764.31
576 Bolivia 16 6.34029
577 Prince William Sound 245 18423.5
578 Kamchatka Peninsula 575 764.506
579 Alaska 87 28.7532
580 Chugach 1818 6579.46
581 Juneau area 8504 31327.6
582 Dry Valleys 662 4209.38
583 Kenai Peninsula 6329 16508.8
584 NE Greenland 202 10228.3
585 European Alps 10359 5601.58
586 Greenland 5429 78986.3
587 Andes 5980 33771.7
588 LIA outlines 14801 27612
589 Conterminous US 143 53.3447
590 Novaya Zemlya 579 161055
602 Various (NSIDC) 255 33209.6
761 Randolph Glacier Inventory; Umbrella RC for merging the RGI into GLIMS 146239 353206