New Zealand’s Glaciers Turned Red (PHOTO)

Photographer Liz Carlson has shot coloured glaciers at Mount Aspiring National Park on New Zealand's South Island, Science Alert reported.

“Our glaciers don’t need any more battles as they are already truly endangered,” Carlson wrote on her blog. “It puts the impact of climate change into even more stark reality we can’t ignore.”

For now, it is unknown what caused the red colour of the glaciers. According to meteorologist Chris Brandolino, it could be soot or a carbon material from burnt wood. However, it could also just be red dust blown over from Australia, a phenomenon that's been observed before. Australian topsoil is rich in iron oxides, giving it its characteristic red hue. 

In addition to the catastrophic fires on Australia's east coast, has also seen strong dust storms. Last month in Mildura, Victoria, a storm turned the sky red and the temperatures reached 40 degrees Celsius.

Whether the red cover of the pristine New Zealand mountains is dust, soot or anything else, Brandolino explained that several factors need to be combined to allow it to cross the Tasmanian Sea.

"You need to have smoke or dust in the air to begin with, and you have to have the right wind direction, and I think, having two happening at the same time, that's what's led [to this]”, he said.

"The fact that Australia had ... numerous fires out there, I think that's certainly been a part of it."

The photos also show how interconnected the ecosystems of our planet are. Pollution can even reach the most remote places.

"The ice was coated in a way that gave it a pinkish-red tinge."

New Zealand's glaciers are turning red - and it's because of Australia's bushfires https://t.co/fsAGN8kvcx pic.twitter.com/LGHvh6ziBh

— CNN International (@cnni) December 5, 2019

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