From the air, the mesmerizing tapestry of sandy dunes and lagoons you see here gives Lençóis Maranhenses National Park an otherworldly, desert-like appearance. Located in the sparsely populated northeast corner of Brazil, this park gets far too much annual rainfall—nearly 50 inches—to be considered a desert. In fact, heavy rain is part of what makes this place unique: Nearly 70% of its annual rainfall comes between January and May, filling the park"s nearly 40,000 lagoons to the brim with fresh rainwater. Why doesn"t the water sink into the sand? A layer of impermeable bedrock beneath the dunes prevents that from happening.
White dunes, blue lagoons
Today in History
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Seven Magic Mountains art installation, Jean Dry Lake, Nevada
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Books for children of all ages
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Pascua Florida Day
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Whangārei Falls in New Zealand
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Bromo Tengger Semeru National Park, East Java, Indonesia
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Beech trees and wild anemones, Jutland, Denmark
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Sandstone formations in the badlands near Caineville, Utah
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Wildflower bloom, Central Valley, California
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World Bee Day
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Plains zebra foal in Etosha National Park, Namibia
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Arromanches-les-Bains for the 81st anniversary of D-Day
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Sea Slug Day
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National Take the Stairs Day
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World-class art comes to Arkansas
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Welcome to California
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A notorious advocate for women
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There once was a lighthouse from...
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Smithsonian Secretary Lonnie Bunch on the institution s 175th anniversary
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Dragon dance performed in Chenzhou, Hunan Province, China
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Can you see the family resemblance?
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Red-leaf hunting in Japan
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World Space Week begins
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Smith Rock State Park, Oregon
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Opt outside today
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Dreaming of the Tyrrhenian Sea
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The birthplace of a classic Christmas carol
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Butchart Gardens in Brentwood Bay, British Columbia, Canada
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Why do elephants hide in trees?
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A day of death and rebirth
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Prague, Czech Republic
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Speed skaters in the Gangneung Oval, Pyeongchang, South Korea
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Native American Heritage Day
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Black History Month
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Great Barrier Reef from above, Queensland, Australia
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On the lookout for Sheep-Cote Clod
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Surströmming Day
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International Polar Bear Day
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Islands that turned the tide
Bing Wallpaper Gallery

