Photo credit: Mario Ruiz / EFE via Bored Panda
The 41,000-square-mile Atacama Desert in Chile may be the world’s driest, but it is also known as the flowering desert. This climatic phenomenon consists of the blossoming of a wide variety of flowers between the months of September and November in years when rainfall is unusually high. Normally the region receives less than 0.47-inches of rain per year. Continue reading for more pictures, another video and additional information.
The blossoming occurs when the unusual level of rainfall reach the seeds and bulbs that have been in a latent or dormant state and causes them to germinate and flower in early spring. It is accompanied by the proliferation of insects, birds and small species of lizard. At its height, the phenomenon can be seen from just south of the city of Vallenar to just north of the city of Copiapo throughout the coastal valleys and Chilean Coast Range from September to November.
