Up next for 2020: Giant ‘Godzilla’ Saharan Dust Cloud Reaches U.S.

Giant Saharan Dust Cloud Reaches U.S., 2020 ‘Godzilla’ Version Bigger Than Before



As Covid-19 coronavirus cases continue to surge in Florida, Texas, and other Southern States, what would be terrific thing to have right now? How about a “Godzilla” dust cloud?

Yep, 2020 is bringing to the Southeastern U.S. a massive dust cloud. This isn’t just the type of dust cloud that puffs up when you reach under your bed or open your copy of the book The Secret. It’s an unusually large cloud, nicknamed Godzilla because it’s potentially the largest such cloud in the last 50 years.

What’s unusually large? How about around 3,500 miles or 5,600 km long? That’s longer than a trip from Miami to Seattle, which is about 3,300 miles and a lot of vacuum cleaner bags placed end-to-end. Consider that the next time that you claim that something is unusually large.

Godzilla is not the cloud’s official name. It’s technically called the Saharan Air Layer because it’s a traveling layer of air and the Saharan Desert that’s where it originated. Winds whipped up particulate matter from the Desert in North Africa, depositing it into the cloud, so to speak. This dust in the wind is a relatively regular yearly occurrence but as indicated earlier, this time it’s hella big. This tweet from the International Space Station may give you a better idea of the size:



The cloud has now traveled about 5,000 miles across the Atlantic Ocean, already reaching the Caribbean and Mexico as this ABC 7 report showed:



As you can see, Godzilla is scheduled to reach the U.S. by this weekend.

Expect this ginormous cloud to do a right hook over a region stretching from Florida to Texas and up north into North Carolina through the middle of next week. If you’re in this region and still not wearing face coverings to protect others from the Covid-19 coronavirus, maybe a humungo dust cloud will change your mind?

Clearly, if given the choice of breathing in dust versus not breathing in dust, most people would choose the latter. Inhaling such particulate matter could end up irritating your nose, throat, and respiratory tract. In fact, such small-sized particulate matter could readily get all the way down to you lungs, causing coughing, wheezing, and difficulty breathing. If you already have respiratory problems like asthma or emphysema, this could make things even worse. For example, those with asthma could be more likely to suffer asthma attacks. And those already with respiratory disease from Covid-19? Well, that may not be a good combo.

Plus, it could be a bit difficult distinguishing what’s going on should you develop respiratory symptoms this coming week. Could a new onset shortness of breath be due to a new Covid-19 coronavirus infection or breathing in the massive dust cloud that’s hanging above you? As you can imagine, things could get kind of confusing.

This stuff could get in your eyes too. so try to protect your eyes. After all, dust and eyeballs ain’t a great combination. Excessive tearing could be a sign that you are either being exposed to dust or watching the movie The Notebook.

So, if you’re in a location that will be having a dust up, this may be yet another reason to stay at home as much as you can. Keep your windows and doors closed to prevent the particulate matter from entering. Otherwise, you’d be kind of defeating part of the purpose of staying at home. Running an air cleaner that has High-Efficiency Particulate Air (HEPA) filters and ElectroStatic Precipitators (ESPs) could help filter out the particles if you have such a machine.

When you do go outside, beware of bringing dust back in with you. Covered in particulate matter is not a good look as the Peanuts character Pigpen has shown. Plus, it could eventually get in your eyes or respiratory system. So consider removing your clothes and taking a shower as soon as you get back inside. It’s usually a good idea to do it in that order.

Although “good news” and “dust cloud” are two sets of words that you rarely see together, the news is not all bad. As Jane Beitler described on the NASA Earth Data website, such a dust storm could actually suppress hurricanes. The dust storm contains super-dry air, which ain’t good for hurricane formation. It also brings a mid-level easterly jet of air that can tear apart a developing storm. The dust itself can prevent clouds from forming, acting like a big blanky that blocks moisture from rising to higher levels of the atmosphere.


A cloud of dust from the Sahara covers the lighthouse of Havana, Cuba, at sunrise. (Photo by ... [+]
The dust in the sky can scatter light too. This could lead to some colorful sunrises and sunsets. So you could be seeing some extra large orange things in the coming days.

You may not have had Godzilla dust cloud on your 2020 Bingo Card. But here we are. The massive traveling dust cloud could affect air quality, similar to way air pollution would, but it’s not going to a disaster. No need to start chanting, “Imhotep, Imhotep,” like they did in the movie The Mummy. So take a deep breath. Although while inhaling, make sure that you do what you can to not breath in this dust.

 

Let me tell you about Sahara. They’ve been ripping us off for a long time, Sahara has. A long time. People always talk about China but believe me, Sahara is almost as bad. Almost. We’re putting a tariff on the Sahara as we speak. #OANN

 

Spoiler teaser! August 2020: