A recent Italian report has warned of the disappearance of the so-called “flying rivers,” a vital natural system that sustains rainfall and life across much of Latin America, as severe drought continues to devastate the Amazon rainforest.
According to Il Messaggero newspaper, citing a report by the Sapereambiente Foundation, extreme drought has struck the heart of the Amazon, causing the collapse of this unique phenomenon.
The “flying rivers” are not physical waterways, but massive flows of water vapor released by billions of trees in the Amazon rainforest.
These airborne moisture currents travel across the continent, delivering rainfall from Brazil to Argentina.
The report warns that this essential lifeline now appears to have stopped flowing, as prolonged drought has caused the moisture-laden clouds to evaporate before they can release rain, triggering what experts describe as an unprecedented environmental disaster.
The consequences on the ground have been immediate and alarming. Water levels in the Rio Negro, one of the Amazon’s largest tributaries, have fallen to historic lows.
In some areas, the river depth has dropped to just 70 centimeters, transforming vast stretches of the once-mighty waterway into muddy pools littered with dead fish and pink river dolphins.
Experts warn that the disappearance of the flying rivers could effectively dismantle South America’s rainfall system.
The impact goes far beyond drying rivers, extending to severe threats to agriculture, hydroelectric power generation, and drinking water supplies for millions of people across the continent.
The report stresses that what is unfolding in the Amazon is not merely a temporary weather anomaly, but a “silent dying” of the world’s largest natural irrigation system.
It concludes with a stark warning, raising a troubling question for the global community: if the rivers in the sky have dried up, where will the next cascade of life come from?
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