Permanent snow and glaciers — Area from MODIS in Africa

Africa: Permanent snow and glaciers — Area from MODIS was 0.59 1000 ha in 2024. ◆ Volatile

Latest (2024)
0.59 1000 ha
Change on year
up 43.9%
Rank
18th
of 26 groups
All-time high
2.64 1000 ha
in 2019
All-time low
0.13 1000 ha
in 2001
Years of data
24
2001–2024

Permanent snow and glaciers — Area from MODIS in Africa, 2001–2024

01232001201220242001: 0.13 1000 ha2002: 0.13 1000 ha2003: 0.46 1000 ha2004: 0.62 1000 ha2005: 0.68 1000 ha2006: 0.76 1000 ha2007: 0.93 1000 ha2008: 2.2 1000 ha2009: 0.28 1000 ha2010: 1.3 1000 ha2011: 0.92 1000 ha2012: 0.75 1000 ha2013: 0.67 1000 ha2014: 0.39 1000 ha2015: 2.6 1000 ha2016: 1.1 1000 ha2017: 0.23 1000 ha2018: 1.4 1000 ha2019: 2.6 1000 ha2020: 1.2 1000 ha2021: 0.98 1000 ha2022: 0.34 1000 ha2023: 0.41 1000 ha2024: 0.59 1000 ha

Source: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. Measured in 1000 ha.

Analysis

In 2024, permanent snow and glaciers — area from modis in Africa stood at 0.59 1000 ha.

Compared with earlier readings it is up 43.9% on the previous year and up 51.3% over ten years.

Over the whole period, permanent snow and glaciers — area from modis in Africa peaked at 2.64 1000 ha in 2019 and was at its lowest, 0.13 1000 ha, in 2001.

Africa ranks 18th of 26 groups on this measure, in the middle of the range.

The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.

Permanent snow and glaciers — Area from MODIS in Africa, year by year

Annual values for Permanent snow and glaciers — Area from MODIS in Africa, 2001 to 2024.
Year 1000 ha Change
2001 0.13 1000 ha —
2002 0.13 1000 ha +0.0%
2003 0.46 1000 ha +253.8%
2004 0.62 1000 ha +34.8%
2005 0.68 1000 ha +9.7%
2006 0.76 1000 ha +11.8%
2007 0.93 1000 ha +22.4%
2008 2.21 1000 ha +137.6%
2009 0.28 1000 ha -87.3%
2010 1.31 1000 ha +367.9%
2011 0.92 1000 ha -29.8%
2012 0.75 1000 ha -18.5%
2013 0.67 1000 ha -10.7%
2014 0.39 1000 ha -41.8%
2015 2.57 1000 ha +559.0%
2016 1.05 1000 ha -59.1%
2017 0.23 1000 ha -78.1%
2018 1.4 1000 ha +508.7%
2019 2.64 1000 ha +88.6%
2020 1.2 1000 ha -54.5%
2021 0.98 1000 ha -18.3%
2022 0.34 1000 ha -65.3%
2023 0.41 1000 ha +20.6%
2024 0.59 1000 ha +43.9%

Biggest year-on-year movements

Years where Permanent snow and glaciers — Area from MODIS in Africa changed far more than this series normally does. A large move can be a real event or a change in how the figure was measured — the source note below says who published it.

YearChange FromTo
2015 +559.0% 0.39 1000 ha 2.57 1000 ha
2018 +508.7% 0.23 1000 ha 1.4 1000 ha

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
2000s 0.6889 1000 ha 0.13 1000 ha 2.21 1000 ha 9
2010s 1.19 1000 ha 0.23 1000 ha 2.64 1000 ha 10
2020s 0.704 1000 ha 0.34 1000 ha 1.2 1000 ha 5

Countries ranked near Africa

  1. 15 Kazakhstan 254.5 1000 ha compare
  2. 16 Nepal 209.99 1000 ha compare
  3. 17 Pakistan 166.47 1000 ha compare
  4. 18 Australia and New Zealand 106.54 1000 ha compare
  5. 19 New Zealand 76.35 1000 ha compare
  6. 20 Peru 51.17 1000 ha compare
  7. 21 Switzerland 45.04 1000 ha compare

See the full ranking of 269 places →

More environment data for Africa

All data for Africa →

Frequently asked questions

What is permanent snow and glaciers — area from modis in Africa?
Permanent snow and glaciers — area from modis in Africa was 0.59 1000 ha in 2024, according to Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations.
What is the highest permanent snow and glaciers — area from modis recorded in Africa?
The highest recorded value was 2.64 1000 ha in 2019.
What is the lowest permanent snow and glaciers — area from modis recorded in Africa?
The lowest recorded value was 0.13 1000 ha in 2001.
How does Africa rank for permanent snow and glaciers — area from modis?
Africa ranks 18th out of 26 groups with data for 2024.
Is permanent snow and glaciers — area from modis rising or falling in Africa?
Over the last ten years it is up 51.3%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
Where does this Africa data come from?
The figures come from Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, published as part of Permanent snow and glaciers — Area from MODIS. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

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Permanent snow and glaciers — Area from MODIS in Africa. Statizoid, drawing on Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. Retrieved 27 September 2026, from https://environment.statizoid.com/stat/permanent-snow-and-glaciers-area-from-modis/africa/

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About this data

Indicator
Permanent snow and glaciers — Area from MODIS
Unit
1000 ha
Source
Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations
Licence
CC BY-NC-SA 3.0 IGO (FAO)
Coverage
269 places, 6,390 data points, 2001–2024
Last refreshed

The FAOSTAT domain on Land Cover data under the Agri-Environmental Indicators section contains land cover information organized by the land cover classes of the international standard system for Environmental and Economic Accounting Central Framework (SEEA CF). The land cover information is compiled from publicly available Global Land Cover (GLC) maps: a) MODIS land cover types based on the Land Cover Classification System, LCCS; b) The European Spatial Agency (ESA) Climate Change Initiative (CCI) annual land cover maps produced by the Université catholique de Louvain (UCL)-Geomatics and now under the European Copernicus Program; c) The annual land cover maps which were produced under the European Copernicus Global Land Service (CGLS) (CGLS land cover, containing discrete land cover categorization), with spatial resolution 100m; and d) the WorldCover maps of the European Space Agency, produced at 10m resolution.