Why Snow in New Zealand’s Alps Turned an Alarming Shade of Red

During the summer of the southern hemisphere of 2019-2020, the mountains in New Zealand became red. The new research finally explains the reason.

The researchers revealed that the southern Alps in New Zealand turned red after a huge dust storm in southeast Australia sent clouds of red dust across the sea, threatening about 4,500 tons on snow. Their work, which was detailed in a study published in December of last year in the journal of geophysical research letters, corrects the wide assumptions that pollution is caused by ashes of bush fires in Australia – and warns that such events may become more frequent in the future.

“In 2020, the media reports in 2020 assumed that the red blanket on the mountains was caused by the ashes across the sea from the destructive new burial fires in Australia,” explained by Holly Winton, the main author of the study and an environmental scientist in T -Hernega Waka – University of Victoria Wellington, in a university statement. “But the red dust that has changed dramatic colors has already arrived before New Year.”

Winton and her colleagues analyzed red pollution by referring to time break cameras, tracing the movement of air blocks in time, conducting courageous snowy geochi analyzes, and relying on remote sensors. Their results indicate that the red dust came from southeast Australia and reached the southern Alps in New Zealand in late November 2019.

“Fresh snowfall was buried quickly dust, but this surface snow melted in early 2020, coinciding with an amazing sky on New Zealand associated with Australian bush fires,” Witon explained in the statement. “It is not surprising that the red mountains and fires are linked to media reports.”

However, “the main engine for ice change”, researchers in the study wrote, “an earthy storm in southeast Australia, which was created by the same type of meteorological conditions such as forest fires for the year 2020.”

Dust layers may have a great impact on the mountains, as they reduced the ability of ice to the opposite of sunlight. Instead, dust absorbs light, which increases surface temperatures, and as a result, snow and ice melted, adding Winton.

Moreover, “Climate change is expected to increase deserts and dry conditions in many areas, so these storms-as well as forest fires that can be paid by similar weather styles-is likely to occur in many cases,” explained by Phil Noufs, a participant author of the study and a doctor in Manaki. “At least the event 2019/2020 is at least the ninth event recorded in Usia New Zealand since 1902 and certainly one of the most dramatic event.”

The study sheds light on the event that greatly changed the New Zealand scene, we hope it is a red mark, and urges leaders at the expense of the less clear environmental effects of climate change.