Bushfires raging in Australia have taken their toll on New Zealand’s glaciers. Both Franz Josef Glacier and Fox Glacier are no longer accessible by foot due to their retreat. New Zealand contains over 3,000 glaciers, most of which are in the Southern Alps on the South Island.

Franz Josef Glacier Guides are proud to offer a range of world-class experiences designed to show you the very best of New Zealand's West Coast glaciers. Ash covering glaciers in New Zealand are visible in photos published to Twitter. The differences between 1990 (Landsat image from December 30) and 2017 (ASTER image from January 29) can be seen in the pair of images, that include the Mueller, Hooker and Tasman Glaciers. Indeed, Franz Josef Glacier advanced nearly continuously during those years. Recent reports show that New Zealand’s glaciers have shrunk by nearly a third since the 1970s and could disappear entirely by the end of the century. This short helicopter tour offers the unique opportunity to get close to two of New Zealand’s iconic glaciers, the Franz Josef and Fox Glaciers. Many glaciers we survey now will simply vanish in … The Tasman Glacier can’t be reached from the West Coast glaciers (the Southern Alps stand in your way), but it has a scale and stillness that neither Franz Josef nor Fox can rival. Most New Zealand glaciers have been rapidly declining since 2011. The frozen tears of New Zealand's melting glaciers Once, there was a goddess called Hine Hukatere who loved to climb the high peaks of New Zealand's Southern Alps. The disappearance of snow and ice for some of New Zealand’s glaciers is clear and irreversible, at least within our lifetimes. The biggest of New Zealand’s glaciers lies a three-hour drive away from Wanaka. Fly by some of the region’s many natural wonders, including Mount Tasman, Aoraki Mount Cook and Tasman Glacier, and make the … New Zealand was shaped by ice over thousands of years, yet its mountain glaciers are now vanishing at an alarming rate. New Zealand contains over 3,000 glaciers, most of which are in the Southern Alps on the South Island. Franz Josef Glacier / Kā Roimata o Hine Hukatere is a 12 km (7.5 mi) long temperate maritime glacier located in Westland Tai Poutini National Park on the West Coast of New Zealand's South Island.Together with the Fox Glacier 20 km (12 mi) to the south, and a third glacier, it descends from the Southern Alps to less than 300 metres (980 ft) above sea level. New Zealand’s glaciers are fed by snow carried on the moisture-laden winds in the stormy latitudes known as the roaring forties. Since 1890, the glaciers have been retreating, with short periods of small advances. East of the main divide in the Southern Alps, up to 20 metres of fresh snow may be added each year to the upper Tasman and Hooker glaciers. In the images, the snow and ice appear to be a pinkish color. Smoke and dust from the fires drifted across the Tasman Sea and settled on glaciers in New Zealand more than 1,300 miles away. Contrary to all of the hype about melting glaciers, at least 58 New Zealand glaciers advanced between 1983 and 2008. Thanks to our detailed knowledge of the glacier region, you'll come away with a whole new appreciation for Kā Roimata o Hine Hukatere (Franz Josef Glacier).