Fact Check: Has Machapuchare mountain lost its snow cover? Know the truth

In 2019, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) Special Report addressed the impacts of climate change on high mountain areas and also warned that up to two-thirds of the region’s glaciers would disappear by the end of the century if carbon emissions were not cut drastically.

Recently, India’s Central Water Commission (CWC) revealed in it’s report that the Himalayan region is facing a heightened risk of glacial lake outburst floods (GLOFs) as its glacial lakes and other water bodies have recorded a 10.81 percent increase in area from 2011 to 2024 due to climate change

Machhapuchhare, 22,943 feet), nicknamed “Fishtail Mountain”, is one of the peaks of Himalayan mountain range in Nepal which is forbidden for trekking as the locals considered it to be a revered place. Decades ago, the King of Nepal had given a conditional permission to the team of British climbers to scale the mountain. The mountaineers reached 500 feet below the summit peak and returned.

As December is synonymous with winter and snow in the Himalayan region, social media is abuzz with the pics of “Machapuchare” mountain claiming the mountain range is losing its snow cover due to the climate change.

Sharing the pic of barren “Machapuchare” mountain, an X user posted that, “have you noticed how climate change is changing our world? The majestic Himalayas are losing their snow! 🏔️❄️ where has all the snow gone?”

The claim link here and the archived link here.

Here’s the screenshot of the viral post.

A similar claim on Instagram can be found here.

Fact Check:

During the investigation, the Telugu Post fact check team found this claim to be misleading.

When we searched with the relevant keywords, we found a UNDP’s report titled “Confronting Climate Change to Save the Third Pole” and was published in 2021.

In this policy brief, the UNDP has examined the main drivers of the melting Third Pole and their broader impacts, including increases in atmospheric concentrations of long-lived greenhouse gases and short-lived climate pollutants, due to human activities.

“Since the mid1800s, atmospheric CO2 levels have increased by almost 50 percent due to two human activities: the burning of fossil fuels, which transfers to the atmosphere carbon that was stored underground for millions of years; and large-scale deforestation, which transfers to the atmosphere carbon that was stored in the biosphere (Hawken, 2017). With an atmospheric lifetime of 100+ years, CO2 is well-mixed16 around the globe,” the report noted.

“The melting of the Third Pole is closely connected to the same human activities and drivers that are also polluting the region's air, driving global climate change and raising sea levels.”

We then searched for the latest photos of Machapuchare mountain on social media. We found this recent photo which was uploaded by Threads user user (ragammos) on December 20, 2024. We can see that the mountain is majorly covered with snow.

You can see the Machapuchare mountain in its full glory here -

A similar pic was found on an Instagram account (martina_fio.na.ture_) and it was posted on December 12.

You can find a few recent posts in which the mountain is shown with the snow cover here and here.

There is denying the fact that climate change is significantly impacting the Himalaya region, leading to shrinking snow cover. However, the viral photos of Machapuchare mountain without any snow do not reflect the ground truth. Hence, the claim is misleading.