Switzerland’s glaciers have lost more than half of their size in less than 100 years. The long, hot summer this year has made the situation worse. The Tsanfleuron and Scex Rouge glaciers have separated, revealing land hidden for thousands of years. Every year in the spring, Mauro Fischer of the University of Bern installs ice measuring rods. He then checks them throughout the summer and fall. The rods had melted through the ice and were now lying on the floor. Glaciers are known as the water towers of Europe. They store the winter snow and then release it in the summer. The melted snow cools power stations and delivers water to Europe’s rivers and farms. The water level is too low for boats carrying heavy loads. This has caused transportation delays along the Rhine in Germany this summer. Dead fish are quickly removed from warm, shallow streams in Switzerland. Meanwhile, power plants in France and Switzerland had to reduce their production due to a lack of water to cool them.