American Journalist Reported Missing by His Wife After Failing to Board Flight Home

Red Cross launches massive search as award-winning reporter fails to board flight home

A high-stakes international search is underway after Alec Luhn, an acclaimed American journalist with a passion for glaciers and climate change, vanished during a solo hiking trip in the icy wilderness of Norway’s Folgefonna National Park.

The Wisconsin native, now based in the United Kingdom, was last heard from on Thursday, July 31, while hiking alone near Odda — a scenic town surrounded by towering peaks and melting glaciers. Days later, when he didn’t board his return flight, his wife, Veronika Silchenko, knew something was terribly wrong.

“I started to worry slightly on Sunday,” she told CNN. “But then I thought — it’s Norway. It’s not unusual to lose signal in the mountains. I told myself I’d act if he wasn’t back online by Monday. And then he wasn’t.”

Luhn, who’s written for The Atlantic, National Geographic, TIME, and The New York Times, was on a four-day backpacking expedition to witness the rapid retreat of Norway’s storied glaciers — a journey that aligns with his lifelong fascination with cold places and climate science.

“Alec is basically obsessed with the Arctic,” Silchenko told CBS News. “He loves glaciers and snow, and he loves explorers. And he’s a climate journalist. So for him, it’s always about telling the story — that these places are vanishing because of climate change.”

But now, Alec is the story.

After he missed his return flight to the U.K. on Monday, August 4, Silchenko and other family members contacted Norwegian authorities and posted urgent pleas online. “@alecluhn_ is missing in Norway,” she shared on Instagram. “Please help us with any information.”

Rescue teams swiftly launched a large-scale operation in Folgefonna National Park, which spans vast alpine terrain and houses the country’s third-largest glacier. Ingeborg Thorsland of the Norwegian Red Cross confirmed that more than 30 local volunteers — including search dogs and helicopters — are combing the rugged terrain.

“The conditions are extremely difficult,” Thorsland said. “The weather has been demanding, and the landscape in that area is challenging even for experienced hikers.”

Luhn, an adventurer as much as a reporter, had prepared for the journey. He had shared a photo and a few texts with his wife just before his disappearance. “He looked fine, the weather was fine,” Silchenko recalled. But it would be their last contact.

Folgefonna, known for its dramatic ice fields, crevasses, and sudden storms, has long drawn climate journalists and glaciologists. But it also poses real dangers. Even experienced trekkers can find themselves in life-threatening situations with little warning.

This isn’t the first time an environmental journalist has gone missing on assignment. In 2022, British reporter Dom Phillips disappeared in the Amazon rainforest with Indigenous expert Bruno Pereira — a tragedy that sparked global headlines and scrutiny over the risks journalists face while documenting Earth’s most fragile ecosystems.

For now, Silchenko is clinging to hope. “I know Alec,” she said. “He’s smart, he’s strong, and he’s always careful. I just want him home.”

Authorities are urging anyone with information to come forward as the search intensifies.

Alec Luhn has contributed to some of the world’s most prestigious media outlets, including VICE News, CBS News Radio, and Scientific American. His reporting has often focused on environmental crises, Russia, and Eastern Europe. He was previously based in Moscow and is known for braving dangerous regions to cover underreported stories.

The Red Cross continues to coordinate with local agencies as rescue teams battle time and terrain in hopes of finding the missing journalist alive.