As Markíza TV pointed out, in 2013 the ice rose above the level of the pavement and large ice stalactites could be seen in the cave. However, the ice melted due to the warm weather and today there is only about ten cubic meters of ice in the cave.
At the same time, experts tried to reduce the flow of warm air into the cave with various barriers. There have also been considerations to cool the cave using technology, but this process would be unnatural and also quite expensive. Guide Tomáš Tereštík says that two or three cold winters would be enough and the ice would reappear in the cave.
However, the cave currently boasts new lighting that reveals its majesty and beauty even without ice. “Behind the ice loss is the increasing average annual temperature. Already in 1950, in terms of long-term average annual temperatures in Slovakia, we were one degree higher than in 1880,” explains Pavel Herich from the Slovak Caves Administration.
They are considering a name change
The name Demänovská ice cave began to be used in 1898, but it has been officially called that since 1957. Now it is being considered whether to change its name. The guides have to constantly explain to visitors why the cave is called ice, when there is no ice in it. “There is no reason to change the name of the cave because of this episode, which from a geological point of view represents a tiny period of time,” says Ján Zuskin, director of the Slovak Caves Administration.
Slovakia also has the Dobšina Ice Cave, which has such a large volume of ice that the ice still holds here.
The unique Warhol museum in Slovakia is in a state of disrepair
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