Uploaded September 2026 | Updated September 2026, 2 hours ago
Every three to four years, the massive ice wall of the Perito Moreno glacier advances and blocks a branch of Lake Argentino. Water builds up on one side of the ice wall. The immense pressure eventually forces a dramatic and loud collapse of the ice bridge. Famous spectacular ruptures happened in 2004, 2006, 2008, 2016, and 2018.
We visited Perito Moreno in 2016. Perito Moreno collapsed one day after our visit.
Perito Moreno was long considered one of Patagonia's only stable or growing glaciers. Years of reduced snowfall and warmer summers have caused significant thinning. The glacier's retreat accelerated rapidly in early 2026 after it lost connection to the bedrock and became buoyant in the lake.
We visited Argentina on our overland trip by car (a Toyota LandCruiser 4WD campervan) from the Netherlands to South Africa and South America; see our channel youtube.com/user/JanvanBekkum for hundreds of clips. More clips of Argentina can be found here: youtube.com/playlist?list=PLMYlw_C7EP8JAgjI6SxsWW1deo31tHrm9.
Music and/or sound effects:
- 'Sleep and then' by Kevin MacLeod. Link: www.incompetech.com. License: creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/;
- 'Infinite Ocean' by Purple Planet Music (purple-planet.com/);
- 'Calm inspiring technology logo short version' created by Alex Zavesa, distributed by Pixabay (pixabay.com/sound-effects/film-special-effects-calm-inspiring-technology-logo-short-version-518993/).
Every three to four years, the massive ice wall of the Perito Moreno glacier advances and blocks a branch of Lake Argentino. Water builds up on one side of the ice wall. The immense pressure eventually forces a dramatic and loud collapse of the ice bridge. Famous spectacular ruptures happened in 2004, 2006, 2008, 2016, and 2018.
We visited Perito Moreno in 2016. Perito Moreno collapsed one day after our visit.
Perito Moreno was long considered one of Patagonia's only stable or growing glaciers. Years of reduced snowfall and warmer summers have caused significant thinning. The glacier's retreat accelerated rapidly in early 2026 after it lost connection to the bedrock and became buoyant in the lake.
We visited Argentina on our overland trip by car (a Toyota LandCruiser 4WD campervan) from the Netherlands to South Africa and South America; see our channel youtube.com/user/JanvanBekkum for hundreds of clips. More clips of Argentina can be found here: youtube.com/playlist?list=PLMYlw_C7EP8JAgjI6SxsWW1deo31tHrm9.
Music and/or sound effects:
- 'Sleep and then' by Kevin MacLeod. Link: www.incompetech.com. License: creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/;
- 'Infinite Ocean' by Purple Planet Music (purple-planet.com/);
- 'Calm inspiring technology logo short version' created by Alex Zavesa, distributed by Pixabay (pixabay.com/sound-effects/film-special-effects-calm-inspiring-technology-logo-short-version-518993/).
