Images
March 5, 2026 - Dust Over the Iberian Peninsula
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Hot, dry winds carried a massive cloud of dust from the Sahara Desert to Portugal and Spain in early March 2026. The Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) on NASA’s Terra satellite captured this true-color image of the intrusion on March 4.
As can be seen in the image, the thick dust entirely obscured the Iberian Peninsula from satellite view. Meanwhile, people in Spain and Portugal reported an orange-tinted haze in the skies and gritty dust covering almost everything. Such fine, airborne dust can cause serious health problems, especially for those with respiratory illness. Several national weather services, including AEMET in Spain, IPMA in Portugal, and Météo-France, issued warnings due to degraded air quality.
The cloud of Saharan Dust also affected parts of Ireland, the United Kingdom, and France on March 4 and was expected to reach as far north as Switzerland. The Canary Islands and Balearic Islands were also being impacted. Before reaching mainland Europe, the dust travelled across the Cape Verde Islands, in the Atlantic Ocean off the coast of Africa.
Image Facts
Satellite:
Terra
Date Acquired: 3/4/2026
Resolutions:
1km (352.7 KB), 500m (1.1 MB), 250m (3.2 MB)
Bands Used: 1,4,3
Image Credit:
MODIS Land Rapid Response Team, NASA GSFC
Hot, dry winds carried a massive cloud of dust from the Sahara Desert to Portugal and Spain in early March 2026. The Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) on NASA’s Terra satellite captured this true-color image of the intrusion on March 4.
As can be seen in the image, the thick dust entirely obscured the Iberian Peninsula from satellite view. Meanwhile, people in Spain and Portugal reported an orange-tinted haze in the skies and gritty dust covering almost everything. Such fine, airborne dust can cause serious health problems, especially for those with respiratory illness. Several national weather services, including AEMET in Spain, IPMA in Portugal, and Météo-France, issued warnings due to degraded air quality.
The cloud of Saharan Dust also affected parts of Ireland, the United Kingdom, and France on March 4 and was expected to reach as far north as Switzerland. The Canary Islands and Balearic Islands were also being impacted. Before reaching mainland Europe, the dust travelled across the Cape Verde Islands, in the Atlantic Ocean off the coast of Africa.
Image Facts
Satellite:
Terra
Date Acquired: 3/4/2026
Resolutions:
1km (352.7 KB), 500m (1.1 MB), 250m (3.2 MB)
Bands Used: 1,4,3
Image Credit:
MODIS Land Rapid Response Team, NASA GSFC
