Chile’s Atacama Desert known as the driest non polar desert on Earth has been transformed into a vast carpet of colourful wildflowers after unusually heavy rainfall earlier this year.
The rare “Desierto Florido”, or “flowering desert”, has brought millions of dormant seeds, bulbs and tubers to life across parts of the desert. Some of the plant material is believed to have remained dormant for decades.
The flowering event follows record rainfall recorded across several regions of Chile between July and August. According to Chile’s National Forest Corporation (CONAF), some locations received between 160 and 190 millimetres of rain levels that had not been recorded since measurements began in the 1950s.
Biologists have attributed the unusual rainfall to a strong El Niño weather pattern. While the storms caused flooding and disruption in parts of Chile, the rain also provided the moisture needed to activate dormant biological material in the Atacama.
CONAF estimates that flowers and vegetation have covered around 17,000 square kilometres of the desert this year. The agency expects the 2026 flowering event to be the most intense and extensive since 1997.
More than 200 plant species have appeared across the landscape including red and yellow ñañucas, purple rock purslane, white suspiros, orange terciopelos and the native garra de león. Hills, plains and ravines that had remained largely barren for decades are now covered with vegetation and flowers.
The sudden bloom is possible because the Atacama’s ecosystem has adapted to extremely dry conditions. Seeds, bulbs and tubers can remain dormant for many years until sufficient rainfall triggers their growth.
The phenomenon has also attracted tourists from Chile and abroad. Authorities expect the Atacama region to record nearly 300,000 overnight trips by the time the flowering season ends in November, making the natural spectacle one of the region’s major tourist attractions.
The blooming desert offers a striking contrast to the Atacama normally rocky and barren landscape, demonstrating how dormant ecosystems can respond rapidly when rare climatic conditions provide enough water.