Below«Fortezza» at 3225 m.a.s.l.: When this panorama was taken, the snowline had reached about 3000 m.a.s.l., roughly the highest level in that year. Therefore it marks also the equilibrium line. Above the equilibrium line, some snow still remains at the end of the summer. Higher up in the accumulation area [1], fresh layers of snow are deposited year after year. Old snow first gets compressed to firn, and later - under increasing pressure - to glacier ice. At this altitude only steep or wind exposed locations (such as where we are standing) remain ice free. From the accumulation area, the ice slowly flows down into the ablation area [2], where it will melt.

In the north face of Piz Palü there are several hanging glaciers [3] that occasionally produce ice avalanches which descend onto the glacier below.