News

Martin Ruggli is a mountain guide and SLF observer. He explains why it's crucial for people to stay alert whenever they're outdoors in the snow.

Paulon Massy has been an observer for the SLF for an incredible 47 years. He was once buried by an avalanche while working as a ranger.

Filippo Genucchi is an SLF observer and a safety officer for the Lukmanier Pass. He trusts in the quality of the avalanche warnings.

Jon-Andri Bisaz reports observations to the SLF from the Upper Engadine region. He also benefits from the role in his work as an avalanche consultant.

Ruth Moor-Huber from Gadmen is one of only a few women working as observers for the SLF. She tells us what she likes about the role.

Nearly 200 observers throughout Switzerland send snow and avalanche reports to the SLF. This week we are introducing you to six of them.

Heavy snowfall is predicted for the southern flank of the Alps and the Engadine. The avalanche bulletin appears again with the interactive hazard map.

We celebrate the anniversary in December with a series of news items. Find out here, for example, how the avalanche bulletin is produced.

Why do we investigate extreme events? In order to find ways of dealing with what in future may be normal. Find out more in a DIAGONAL interview.

Thanks to research, monitoring and warning systems, people are better protected from rock falls today. Read more about it in a new DIAGONAL article.

The new DIAGONAL is anything but normal! Read about our research on huge landslides, bone-dry summers and plants as survival artists.

The "Polarstern" is back from the Arctic. Ruzica Dadic reports on the challenges the team faced until the very end.

Data from Glacier Monitoring in Switzerland (GLAMOS) shows: the volume of Swiss glaciers has continued to decline in summer 2020.

The initial results of an Innosuisse project are now available as a WSL report.

The SLF is recognised for its mountain services with an Albert Mountain Award.

Like trees, dead wood helps to prevent rockfall, initial SLF research results suggest.

Amy Macfarlane, post-graduate student at SLF, postponed her scheduled return and experienced by the skin of her teeth how “her” ice floe transformed back to water. More in the blog.

SLF researchers have assessed how natural hazards in the Alps are likely to change in the future and what this will mean for hikers and hiking trails.

Broad-leaved trees could help to reduce some of the adverse local impacts of climate change better than needle-leaved trees. This shows a new study.

The current situation of all natural hazards in Switzerland is shown on the newly revised federal portal www.natural-hazards.ch.