Dust Over Mongolia and Eastern Asia
April 24, 2001
Provided by: NASA/GSFC
Summary authors & editors: Jim Foster
In early and mid April, dust from Mongolia and eastern Asia, resulting from prolonged drought, was lifted into the atmosphere by strong winds. This aerosol event was large enough and intense enough to be transported across the Pacific Ocean and all the way to North America. The map above shows the Earth Probe TOMS (Total Ozone Mapping Spectrometer) Aerosol Index during the peak of the event. Poor air quality was observed by many residents in the western US when the airborne dust fell toward the surface. It can also be seen that a much less intensive dust event, originating in the Sahara Desert, is moving westward into the Atlantic Ocean.
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