Satellite Images Capture Massive Dust Storm From Space

A series of satellite images captured a massive dust storm moving across Africa.

The images come from the Suomi NPP satellite and were taken from March 22 through Mach 25, according to NASA.

“Scientists estimate that winds and storms pick up roughly 180 million tons of dust from the Sahara Desert each year and deposit it in the Atlantic Ocean and on the Americas. In the past week, active weather systems made a big deposit toward the 2018 total, as relentless storms lofted vast plumes of dust for days,” the space agency stated.

Dust storms bring problems, such as poor visibility, but when spread over long distances, the dust can provide a natural fertilizer for plants and forests.

“In late March 2018, winds associated with a series of low-pressure weather systems appeared to fuel the flow of dust across Africa. Dust storms are common in the Sahara in the springtime, as the weather changes with the seasons. However, multiple observers in the region described this week’s storms as particularly intense,” NASA said.


Video Credit: GeoBeats