The global challenges

Watermelon snow in Utah. Rick Bowmer/AP  

 

The global challenges  

The phenomenon of "watermelon snow" is puzzling in Utah 

 

In the mountain pass between the US states of Utah and Idaho, areas of pink snow spread out. The phenomenon is called "watermelon snow" and occurs at high altitudes when sunlight, water levels, temperatures and nutrients interact in such a way that they "wake up" a single-celled green alga. Once the algae has reached the surface of the snow, it changes color. 

 

- It almost looks like someone has been here and sprinkled Himalayan salt, says hiker Jana Brough to AP.  

 

However, the phenomenon causes the snow to melt faster, which raises concerns that ecosystems and species will be damaged.  

Road users in Mumbai try to escape from torrential rains. Rafiq Maqbool / AP

 

The monsoon rains in South Asia  

Less rain than usual worries – El Niño can affect  

 

The annual monsoon rains covered all of India on Sunday - six days earlier than expected, Reuters reports. But the national weather agency states that the amount of rain that has fallen during the first weeks of the season is below average.  

 

Locally, the reduction amounts to 60 percent, which is feared to cause major problems, not least for the country's many farmers.  

 

There are still three months left before the monsoon season is officially over, but based on previous El Niño years, the experience is that there may be less rain than usual in these years.