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Canary Islands

Position of center of photo (Lat/Long): [28.06090/-14.51703]

Canary Islands

Map: Canary IslandsA thick pall of sand and dust blew out from the Sahara Desert over the Atlantic Ocean yesterday (January 6, 2002), engulfing the Canary Islands (Spain) in what has become one of the worst sand storms ever recorded there.

In this scene, notice how the dust appears particularly thick in the downwind wake of Tenerife (see also photo album at left), the largest of the Canary Islands. Perhaps the turbulence generated by the air currents flowing past the island’s volcanic peaks is churning the dust back up into the atmosphere, rather than allowing it to settle toward the surface.

Source of material: NASA           PhotoGlobe Pictures: Tenerife

Further information: WikiPedia article on Canary Islands

Last Update: 2011-03-30