Hormuz Island, Iran – A video filmed by X user @baba_jaann captures a striking natural display on the famous Red Beach of Hormuz Island during rainfall in autumn 2025.

The footage shows towering cliffs of vivid red soil, rich in iron oxide and locally called ochre, overlooking a beach where the sand and shallow seawater have turned a deep crimson. Rainwater runoff flows down the cliffs, creating streaming patterns of red across the wet sand and around scattered rocks, tinting the waves a dramatic blood-red against the blue waters of the Persian Gulf.

A single person standing silhouetted on top of the cliffs highlights the scale of the landscape beneath an overcast gray sky. The video was posted with the caption “May your place be green,” referencing the autumn 2025 season.

This geological phenomenon is harmless, occurring periodically when rain erodes the island’s iron-rich soil. It temporarily intensifies the beach’s red hue, creating a surreal, almost otherworldly scene that often goes viral. The red ochre from the island is also used locally in food, art, cosmetics, and is traditionally exported in small amounts.

Hormuz Island, known as “Rainbow Island” for its multicolored soils, is a popular tourist destination in the Strait of Hormuz. The spectacle showcases nature’s dramatic and colorful beauty with no danger to visitors.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download