African dust crosses the Atlantic

A beautiful sunset over the Atlantic off the Florida coast, or an orangey glow in the Texas sky at dusk may be caused by dust from West Africa.

The professor of meteorology and atmospheric science, geography and African studies at Penn State is looking at how much dust is being transported into West Africa in the winter and across the Atlantic in the summer. Dust has an impact on health.

The University of SIne Saloum El-Hȃdj Ibrahima NIASS has modeled annual particulates less than 10 microns from 1960.

There is a downward trend in surface PM10 concentrations in Cabo Verde after the 1980s, which is similar to earlier findings, according to a report in Atmospheric Environment. The data for summers suggests that there was an increase in dust over the Western Sahara that was transported to Cabo Verde suggesting that the Eastern Atlantic dust continued on toward the U.S. and the Caribbean.

There are plenty of meteorological and other measurement stations in the Western Atlantic, but in West Africa and places like Cabo Verde, there are few ground-based measurement facilities to measure the dust reaching.

Satellite-based measurements can't provide measurement at night. The data collected by ground-based and satellite instruments is used as the basis for models that estimate the paths and amounts of dust hitting West Africa in the winter and the Atlantic and Caribbean in the summer. The models are incomplete because the stations require electricity, cell phones, internet and someone to maintain them.

The model timing is correct, but we don't know how many stations we have.

In Nigeria, the best system is 25% less expensive, but still needs reliable electricity and internet. He wants to put particulate matter stations on each of the islands because Cabo Verde has reliable wi-fi.

The model simulations reproduce the trends seen in the past, however, none of the models are correct in their simulation of the dust. Knowledge of where the dust is going and how much dust there is at the ground level is important. Estimates show that West Africa will have a billion people by 2070. Knowing when to stay out of the dust is important because it can cause respiratory problems.

The impact of the dust will be felt in West Africa. There is good reason to think there will be more dust in the future.

There are enough data to build a particulate matter system across Africa. The system would be able to warn people with asthma when to stay inside.

The researchers are concerned that the Saharan dust transport may change because of climate change.

More information: Gregory Jenkins et al, Annual and early summer variability in WRF-CHEM simulated West African PM10 during 1960–2016, Atmospheric Environment (2022). DOI: 10.1016/j.atmosenv.2022.118957 Journal information: Atmospheric Environment Citation: African dust crosses the Atlantic (2022, April 20) retrieved 20 April 2022 from https://phys.org/news/2022-04-african-atlantic.html This document is subject to copyright. Apart from any fair dealing for the purpose of private study or research, no part may be reproduced without the written permission. The content is provided for information purposes only.