Sahara dust enveloped Ukraine and Greece, creating “Martian” landscapes: “dirty” rains are expected
On April 24, Ukraine and Greece experienced an unusual weather phenomenon, when dust from the Sahara desert enveloped their territories. This cloud of dust, traveling long distances by the wind, has caused the sun to be obscured, air quality to deteriorate and the creation of spectacular “Martian” landscapes. The most unusual natural anomaly was visible in Zhytomyr.
Nataliya Zinovchuk, an employee of the Scientific Research Institute of Agroecology and Nature Management of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine (Kyiv), told Yulia Bozhok, a journalist of “FACT” IA, that dust from the Sahara covered Ukraine today.
“Yes, today the residents of Ukraine could see the yellow sky, it is dust from the Sahara. In Zhytomyr, the yellow sky was very visible. Dust was also very visible in Greece. An active cyclone from southwestern Europe brought dust and sand with high-altitude flows, which left a mark on the surfaces of objects and plants when torrential rain fell “, Nataliya Zinovchuk said.
In Zhytomyr, residents woke up in the morning to see the city covered in yellow-brown dust. The sunlight dimly broke through the cloud, giving the city a muted, otherworldly look.
“It was amazing”, – residents of Zhytomyr shared. with their impressions. – “Never seen anything like it. It felt like we were on another planet.”
In Greece, the dust cloud also caused significant problems. In the coastal areas of Kalamata and Arcadia, the dust mixed with the sea water, creating spectacular beaches with dark brown sand.
Specialists from meteorology warn that a cloud of dust may remain over Ukraine and Greece for several days. They recommend that people stay indoors if possible and use respirators if they must go outside.
It is worth noting that dust from the Sahara can lead to “dirty” rain. Since in most of the territory of Ukraine, the weather is determined by the cyclone and moist air masses, this will contribute to the interception of dust particles by water droplets in clouds and precipitation. Therefore, the dust will be washed out of the atmosphere faster, however, in some areas this phenomenon can give the clouds a yellowish tint, and the raindrops that will fall will contain this dust and will not be crystal clear.
Dust will remain in the atmosphere over Ukraine until Friday, April 26, and from Friday to Saturday, April 27-28, it will retreat to the east and the atmosphere will clear.
