This handout picture released by the ALMA Observatory in the Atacama Desert shows snowfall at dawn, a phenomenon that had not occurred in 10 years at this altitude in the driest desert in the world.
© M. AGUIRRE / ALMAThis handout picture released by the ALMA Observatory in the Atacama Desert shows snowfall at dawn, a phenomenon that had not occurred in 10 years at this altitude in the driest desert in the world.
In a rare and stunning weather event, residents of northern Chile's Atacama Desert — the driest desert on Earth — woke up Thursday to find their arid surroundings covered in snow.

"INCREDIBLE! The Atacama Desert, the world's most arid, is COVERED IN SNOW," the ALMA observatory, situated 2,900 meters (9,500 feet) above sea level, wrote on X, alongside a video of vast expanses covered in a dusting of white, News.Az reports, citing foreign media.

The observatory added that while snow is common on the nearby Chajnanator Plateau, situated at over 5,000 meters and where its gigantic telescope is situated, it had not had snow at its main facility in a decade.