{"id":392915,"date":"2026-03-19T08:55:12","date_gmt":"2026-03-19T08:55:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/392915\/"},"modified":"2026-03-19T08:55:12","modified_gmt":"2026-03-19T08:55:12","slug":"australias-red-centre-turns-green","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/392915\/","title":{"rendered":"Australia\u2019s \u201cRed Centre\u201d Turns Green"},"content":{"rendered":"

The town of Alice Springs lies near Australia\u2019s geographic center, in a region often called the \u201cRed Centre<\/a>\u201d for the rusty hue of its desert landscape. After weeks of heavy rainfall in February and March 2026, however, vast areas of desert and surrounding mountains turned lush and green.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The\u00a0MODIS<\/a>\u00a0(Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer) on NASA\u2019s\u00a0Terra<\/a> satellite captured this image (right) of the southern part of Australia\u2019s Northern Territory on March 10, 2026. For comparison, the left image shows the same area in January 2026, before the onset of heavy rains.<\/p>\n

The area\u2019s landscape typically appears red due to the oxidation of iron-rich rock<\/a>. During periods of sufficient rainfall, water begins to flow in previously dry riverbeds, and dormant vegetation springs to life. February 2026 brought more than enough water to the Northern Territory for the transformation to occur\u2014an area average of 239 millimeters (9 inches)\u2014marking the territory\u2019s third-wettest February on a record that dates back to 1900, according to the Bureau of Meteorology<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Beyond the transformation visible from above, the rainfall also caused disruptions on the ground. Thunderstorms earlier in the month produced enough rain to cause water levels on the Todd River and other area rivers to quickly rise, while flash flooding in Alice Springs uprooted trees and left some people stranded, according to news reports<\/a>. Later in the month, heavy rains returned as another tropical low stalled over central Australia<\/a> for nearly a week, causing flooding that prompted officials to declare a natural disaster.<\/p>\n

As of late March, more extreme weather was on the way for Australia with the approach of Tropical Cyclone Narelle. Bureau of Meteorology forecasts<\/a> called for severe storm impacts to reach northern Queensland by late on March 19 or March 20. Flooding watches and warnings<\/a> also extended inland, including to Alice Springs, where past storms have already saturated river catchments. \u00a0<\/p>\n

NASA Earth Observatory image by Lauren Dauphin, using MODIS data from NASA\u00a0EOSDIS LANCE<\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0GIBS\/Worldview<\/a>. Story by Kathryn Hansen.<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\"Central\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\"Central\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n