Even to the huge bummer that is glacial melting, there are bright sides: The radiant colors of Vinicunca (aka Rainbow Mountain) might have gone unseen had rising temps not melted the peak"s glacial caps beginning in the 1990s. Rainbow Mountain"s streaky sediment layers, multicolored like a wildflower bloom, were revealed by the 2010s. Since then, it"s become the most visited natural attraction in the lofty Peruvian Andes of the Cusco region. At more than 17,000 feet above sea level, Rainbow Mountain isn’t the tallest peak in the area—towering Ausangate is nearly 21,000 feet in elevation—but most visitors will need time to acclimatize before attempting the trek to the summit.
Rainbow Mountain
Today in History
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Traveling warblers
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Cross this bridge if you dare
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The perfect canvas for an ancient text
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The party’s just starting
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Atlanta Botanical Garden
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A fortress in the sky
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Springtime in the Mediterranean
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Morocco in bloom
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An impactful day
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Honoring the fallen
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A universe underground
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Jaguar in the Pantanal wetlands
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Fiddlehead fern fronds
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Getting to the bottom of the underwater waterfall
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’Chess on ice’
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Happy birthday to the Peak!
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Mossy Grotto Falls, Oregon
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International Day for Biodiversity
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Love blossoms
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A center of antiquity on the Mediterranean
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It’s Weihnachtsmarkt time!
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Happy Holi!
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Celebrating Native American Heritage Month
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The first ascent
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Back on the rise
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Preservation Hall in New Orleans, Louisiana
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Look to the north sky tonight for the Perseids
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Installation art turns heads
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Illuminated Uluru
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Chapel on the rock