Images
November 16, 2024 - Dust over the Mediterranean Sea
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In mid-November 2024, a strong storm system brought rain to the Iberian Peninsula and whipping winds that carried extreme loads of Saharan dust over the Mediterranean Sea.
The Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) on NASA’s Aqua satellite captured a true-color image of a wind-borne river of dust moving northward from Africa. The dust completely obscures part of the blue waters of the Mediterranean Sea, the Balearic Islands, and some of the coast of Algeria and Tunisia.
At the time the image was acquired, the center of the storm was located over the Atlantic Ocean west of Portugal while heavy rains drenched Portugal and parts of Spain. Media reported flooding in parts of Portugal from the intense downpour.
This type of storm is known as a cut-off low or locally by the Spanish acronym DANA. They can develop when cold fronts encounter warm, humid air masses and become isolated from the jet stream, creating heavy rain and strong wind that may last for days. This is the second DANA to affect the Iberian Peninsula this autumn and follows an October storm that caused extreme flooding and more than 200 deaths in Spain’s Valencia region.
Image Facts
Satellite:
Aqua
Date Acquired: 11/14/2024
Resolutions:
1km (1.9 MB), 500m (5 MB), 250m (3.4 MB)
Bands Used: 1,4,3
Image Credit:
MODIS Land Rapid Response Team, NASA GSFC
In mid-November 2024, a strong storm system brought rain to the Iberian Peninsula and whipping winds that carried extreme loads of Saharan dust over the Mediterranean Sea.
The Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) on NASA’s Aqua satellite captured a true-color image of a wind-borne river of dust moving northward from Africa. The dust completely obscures part of the blue waters of the Mediterranean Sea, the Balearic Islands, and some of the coast of Algeria and Tunisia.
At the time the image was acquired, the center of the storm was located over the Atlantic Ocean west of Portugal while heavy rains drenched Portugal and parts of Spain. Media reported flooding in parts of Portugal from the intense downpour.
This type of storm is known as a cut-off low or locally by the Spanish acronym DANA. They can develop when cold fronts encounter warm, humid air masses and become isolated from the jet stream, creating heavy rain and strong wind that may last for days. This is the second DANA to affect the Iberian Peninsula this autumn and follows an October storm that caused extreme flooding and more than 200 deaths in Spain’s Valencia region.
Image Facts
Satellite:
Aqua
Date Acquired: 11/14/2024
Resolutions:
1km (1.9 MB), 500m (5 MB), 250m (3.4 MB)
Bands Used: 1,4,3
Image Credit:
MODIS Land Rapid Response Team, NASA GSFC
