The Aral Sea, once the world’s largest inland sea, is now world famous for its disappearance. Having turned into an inhospitable desert area, it is the starting point for an expedition to Fedchenko, the earth’s longest glacier outside the polar regions. Cédric Gras and Matthieu Tordeur follow the Amudaria river – which once fed the great lake and now seeps into the desert – upstream into Tajikistan’s wild Pamir Mountains. From there, they set off with a Tajik team to the 77 km-long glacier that has served as a source of life for Central Asia for centuries.