Saharan dust is a natural phenomenon and appears when a cyclone or a whipping-movement raises sand into the upper layer of the atmosphere. This occurrence is frequent during the months of spring. In our country, the biggest concentration of desert sand happens in April and Ma, published Vistinomer.mk.
A post on the social network Facebook claims that the Saharan dust that occurred in Europe a few days ago, was a clear signal that someone was deliberately poisoning us. This is not true – Saharan dust is a natural phenomenon.
Sandy Sahara over Kyiv… They will poison us all.. Devil’s bastards…, says the post
In the last few days, most of Europe was under the influence of a strong anti-cyclone that did not allow for the clouds and rain to come to us. The powerful Southern current brought about desert sand from Africa. The Facebook post that is subject of this fact-check shares a video recorded in the capital city of Ukraine, Kyiv, showing the sky brown from desert sand and falsely claiming that someone wanted to poison us in such a manner.
This, however, has nothing to do with poisoning, nor is it possible to poison people this way. This phenomenon appears when a cyclone or a whipping movement raises the sand into the upper layer of the atmosphere. The occurrence is frequent during the months of Spring. In our country, the biggest concentration of desert sand happens in April and May. According to the website Met Office, Saharan dust is a mixture of sand and dust from Sahara, an enormous desert area covering the biggest part of North Africa. Strong winds raise sand and dust high up to the sky, and once it is lifted from the ground, clouds of dust can reach high altitudes and be transported worldwide.
In order for the dust to get from up in the sky down to the ground, you need something to wash it out of the sky – rain. As raindrops fall, they collect particles of dust on the way down. Then when the raindrops land on something and eventually evaporate, they leave behind a layer of dust. This means that Saharan dust arrives on the European grounds due to the wind and that it is a natural, not an artificial occurrence.
This phenomenon has happened for hundreds, perhaps thousands of years, said Jason Dunion, a University of Miami hurricane researcher working with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Atlantic Oceanographic and Meteorological Laboratory
The laboratory uses satellites to track what it calls the Saharan Air Layer. It describes that as ”a mass of very dry, dusty air that forms over Sahara Desert during the late spring, summer and early fall”.
The warm, dry air and winds associated with the Saharan Air Layer can suppress hurricane formation and slow oceanic warming. Because the dust clouds can suppress thunderstorms, land below may see warmer temperatures. The dust can also affect air quality, which can be a danger to people with asthma or other respiratory conditions.
Although Saharan dust may have negative effects, there is no evidence supporting the fact that someone is deliberately “poisoning us” with dust from the desert, nor is it clear whether such an endeavour would be possible to plan and implement.
Claiming that deliberate poisoning of the population by air is part of the conspiracy theory whose popularity has not decreased throughout decades. The citations that “we are sprayed on everyday” are part of the decade-long conspiracy theory about the so-called chemtrails (short from “chemical trails”), which has been shared in our region for years, and have become especially frequent during the pandemic. Truthmeter has debunked the claims that someone is poisoning us from the sky on many occasions.
According to the fact, claiming that someone is “poisoning us with desert sand” is assessed as untrue and a conspiracy theory.
