May 26, 2016 - Dust storm off Libya

Dust storm off Libya

Stormy weather kicked up an intense dust storm in Libya in late May 2016, driving a thick river of sand over the coast and across the Mediterranean Sea. Only about 1 percent of Libya's land is arable, and inland sand seas provide copious material for dust storms.

The Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) aboard NASA's Aqua satellite captured this true-color image on May 20. The tan-colored plume of dust and sand is so thick that it blocks the blue waters of the Mediterranean from view. Bright white clouds in the east likely are part of the windy system responsible for driving the dust storm.

Image Facts
Satellite: Aqua
Date Acquired: 5/20/2016
Resolutions: 1km (70 KB), 500m (230.5 KB), 250m (570.2 KB)
Bands Used: 1,4,3
Image Credit: Jeff Schmaltz, MODIS Land Rapid Response Team, NASA GSFC