Recent waning snowpack in the Alps is unprecedented in the last six centuries

Snow cover in high-latitude and high-altitude regions significantly impacts Earth's climate, environmental processes, and socio-economic activities. The Alps have seen a 5.6% per decade reduction in snow cover duration over the last 50 years. This study uses 572 ring-width series from *Juniperus communis* shrubs in the Val Ventina, Italy, to reconstruct snowpack duration over the last six centuries. The results show current snowpack cover is 36 days shorter than the long-term mean, an unprecedented decline. This highlights the urgent need for adaptation strategies in this sensitive region.

Marco Carrer, Raffaella Dibona, Angela Luisa Prendin, Michele Brunetti