Overview
- CONAF says the bloom is peaking in October and that flowers should remain visible through the end of November.
- Officials report the flowering covers about 17,000 square kilometers and includes roughly 200 plant species across coastal Atacama sites.
- CONAF and the WMO link the event to El Niño conditions, which weaken Pacific trade winds and bring warmer ocean waters and higher coastal rainfall.
- The forestry agency expects up to around one million visitors to parks such as Desierto Florido, Llanos de Cháyes and Pan de Azúcar, creating significant management and conservation challenges.
- While the rain has produced a rare ecological spectacle in the hyper‑arid desert, the WMO warns that the same El Niño pattern typically increases heavy rain and flood risks in other regions over the coming months.