Dust plumes blew out from Argentina on November 3, 2016. This natural-color image was acquired that day by the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) on NASA’s Aqua satellite.
South America is no stranger to dust storms. In Argentina, an abundance of fine sediment has caused many events in the last few years large enough to be recorded by satellites. Here, the dust blows east toward the Atlantic Ocean.
Though a frequent occurrence, this November’s dust comes after a particularly dry year in parts of South America. Nearby Paraguay faced severe drought along its Pilcomayo River. Meanwhile, neighboring Brazil is in the midst of its most severe drought in 35 years, according to Relief Web.
References & Resources
- Carter-Stiglitz, et al. (2006). A multi-proxy study of Argentina loess: Marine oxygen isotope stage 4 and 5 environmental record from pedogenic hematite. Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology, 239, 45–62.
- NASA Earth Observatory. (2011, May 23) Dust Plumes off Argentina.
- NASA Earth Observatory. (2012, July 29) Dust Storm in Argentina.
- NASA Earth Observatory. (2016, October 26) Dust Over the Arabian Sea.
NASA image by Jeff Schmaltz, LANCE/EOSDIS Rapid Response . Caption by Pola Lem.
