Germany loses 1 of its 5 glaciers to scalding summer

Scientists in Germany have stripped the Southern Schneeferner in the Alps of its status as glacier after extreme heat this summer hastened its demise. The announcement Monday by the Bavarian Academy of Sciences means Germany now has only four glaciers left. Researchers said that measurements in mid-September showed it has shrunk by half in the last four years. “The remaining ice will melt away completely in the coming one to two years,” the scientists said.