Some parts of the nation have been afflicted by smoke from the Canadian wildfires. But now, it looks like Texans could be breathing not smoke but dust from the Sahara Desert.
This is not exactly unheard of. Almost every year, we see clouds of African dust floating over the Atlantic heading toward the Texas coast -- and it's that time of year again.
Right now, a moderate to high concentration surge of Saharan Dust is forecast to move across Trinidad and Tobago along the north coast of South America by late Tuesday night. Its path takes it straight into the Gulf of Mexico and then, next stop -- Texas by, perhaps, Wednesday or the end of the week.
The big impact for Texans will be the noticeable haziness caused by suspended dust. We could also see negative impacts on our air quality. Those with chronic lung conditions might want to consider limiting their time outdoors.
On the other hand, dust in the air actually has some benefits to our weather pattern. For example, dust lowers moisture in the air over the tropics, which is a crucial ingredient for the formation of tropical storm systems. Therefore, we should see a lull in activity throughout the tropics at least as long as the dust lingers.
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