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Dust Storm Sweeps Over Mali
Developing
In Short: A powerful dust storm, driven by strong convective winds, has blanketed parts of Mali and its neighbors, despite the season typically seeing a decrease in such activity.
According to Tianle Yuan, an atmospheric scientist at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center, these storms, known as haboobs, are common in the region, particularly during late spring and summer when the Saharan Air Layer carries dust thousands of miles westward.
The phenomenon can affect dust over the Sahel and Mali by shifting the Intertropical Convergence Zone and altering convection patterns, though the influence is bidirectional, as noted by Yuan.
While dust storm activity typically winds down as summer progresses, a plume of dust covered parts of Mali and neighboring countries in early September 2026, highlighting the variability of these events.
Drier conditions can leave more loose sediment available for winds to lift, but less convective activity means fewer intense storms, according to NASA's reports.
The National Hurricane Center issued a tropical storm warning for Kauai and Niihau, predicting rainfall ranging from six to ten inches, with some spots possibly seeing more than a foot.
Hurricane-force winds stretched 50 miles from the center of the storm, and were still blowing at tropical storm strength 175 miles from the heart of the storm, as it moves west of the islands.
The storm surge and tides are expected to combine to cause normally dry areas of Kauai to be covered by three feet of floodwater, as the storm sweeps west late Monday and into Tuesday.
What's still developing
- The Pacific was buzzing with storms while the Atlantic was notably quiet.
- The Kauai Emergency Management Agency has urged people to fill their gas tanks, charge their devices, refill any prescriptions, and have enough food and water to weather the storm.
- The major Category 3 cyclone could bring heavy rains, flooding, and mudslides, as it cuts a path west of the state, the National Hurricane Center stated while issuing a tropical storm warning for two islands.
Sources
- Livenowfoxlink