Unexpected emergence of flowering bulbs prompts move to designate Chile’s Atacama desert a protected national park
Unusual winter rainfall has produced a floral bloom and explosion of colour on the barren plains of the Atacama desert, prompting Chile’s government to move to protect the area.
This month, the new president, Gabriel Boric, announced that the area would be made into a national park – the highest protected status the country bestows – to safeguard the flowering desert, a rare phenomenon which occurs every few years.
