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May 14, 2026 - Dust over the Mediterranean
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A blistering heatwave baked Egypt in mid-May 2026, drawing almost all moisture out of the fine, loose soils of the already arid to semi-arid region. Temperatures in Cairo reached a sweltering 40°C (104°F) on May 12. On that same day, Egypt Today reported that Egypt’s Head of the Climate Information Center “confirmed that the country has entered a completely different climatic phase, characterized by record-breaking high temperatures and increased solar intensity.” Temperatures were expected to rise to 40-41°C (106-107.6°F) in Upper Egypt.
At the same time, brisk winds of 30-40 kilometers per hour (18.6 to 25 mph) picked up loose sand and dust that abounds in the region. The winds were strong enough to create local dust storms as well as to carry dust across the Mediterranean Sea.
The Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) on NASA’s Terra satellite acquired this true-color image of the region on May 12. In this image, it can be seen that dust across Egypt blurred the skies over the green Nile Delta as well as covered portions of Lebanon and Israel (east). Rivers of dust obscured the blue waters of the Mediterranean Sea as they reached Türkiye, (north).
Image Facts
Satellite:
Terra
Date Acquired: 5/12/2026
Resolutions:
1km (891.3 KB), 500m (2.5 MB), 250m (3.5 MB)
Bands Used: 1,4,3
Image Credit:
MODIS Land Rapid Response Team, NASA GSFC
A blistering heatwave baked Egypt in mid-May 2026, drawing almost all moisture out of the fine, loose soils of the already arid to semi-arid region. Temperatures in Cairo reached a sweltering 40°C (104°F) on May 12. On that same day, Egypt Today reported that Egypt’s Head of the Climate Information Center “confirmed that the country has entered a completely different climatic phase, characterized by record-breaking high temperatures and increased solar intensity.” Temperatures were expected to rise to 40-41°C (106-107.6°F) in Upper Egypt.
At the same time, brisk winds of 30-40 kilometers per hour (18.6 to 25 mph) picked up loose sand and dust that abounds in the region. The winds were strong enough to create local dust storms as well as to carry dust across the Mediterranean Sea.
The Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) on NASA’s Terra satellite acquired this true-color image of the region on May 12. In this image, it can be seen that dust across Egypt blurred the skies over the green Nile Delta as well as covered portions of Lebanon and Israel (east). Rivers of dust obscured the blue waters of the Mediterranean Sea as they reached Türkiye, (north).
Image Facts
Satellite:
Terra
Date Acquired: 5/12/2026
Resolutions:
1km (891.3 KB), 500m (2.5 MB), 250m (3.5 MB)
Bands Used: 1,4,3
Image Credit:
MODIS Land Rapid Response Team, NASA GSFC
