05/27/2025

Sahara Desert Dust Sweeping towards the United States

The dust is moving across the Atlantic Ocean

The Sahara Desert is the world's largest hot desert and third-largest desert overall behind Antarctica and the Arctic. 

The Sahara spans over 3.5 million square miles across North Africa and is a large source for mineral dust that gets picked up by winds across the desert. Sometimes, this dust can actually reach us here in the United States.

So, what are the implications of this dust? Well, it can actually have major impacts on tropical development across the Atlantic Ocean through the summer months.  The dust limits overall moisture in the region and will greatly suppress the development of tropical systems. When a developed tropical system moves into an area where there is dust or generally dry air, it's likely to encounter some level of weakening, depending on how dry the air is.

Please select this link to read the complete article from WBNS-10TV.