Satellite picture of a wall of dust crossing the Korean Peninsula. Caught on April 25, 2024, by the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer sensor on NASAs Aqua satellite.Every spring, satellites observe massive plumes of dust streaming from the Gobi Desert over East Asia. These thick dust storms negatively affect millions by getting worse air quality and increasing health risks.In East Asia, the arrival of spring suggests warming temperatures, greening plant life, and blooming flowers. March and April likewise bring another guest: huge plumes of dust that stream east from the Gobi and Taklamakan deserts and across parts of eastern China, the Korean Peninsula, and southern Japan.Satellite Observations of Dust MovementThe MODIS (Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer) sensing unit on NASAs Aqua satellite caught this image of a wall of dust moving throughout the Korean Peninsula on April 25, 2024. Images collected on April 24 from South Koreas GEO-KOMPSAT-2A satellite and from NASAs Terra and Aqua satellites reveal the source of much of the dust to be the Gobi Desert of Inner Mongolia. A phytoplankton flower, partially obscured by dust, is also visible east of the Korean Peninsula.Dust Impact on Air Quality and HealthWinds often loft the regions dust high in the environment, at times above the clouds, allowing dust particles to cross the Pacific Ocean and settle over North America. Other times, the lofted particles remain near the surface area and deteriorate air quality for countless people in East Asia, one of the most densely populated areas in the world.Breathing significant amounts of dust can intensify cardiovascular and breathing illness. One team of NASA researchers based at NASAs Goddard Space Flight Center has actually approximated that exposure to high levels of fine particle matter (PM2.5) adds to nearly 3 million early deaths each year globally, with about a fifth of those deaths linked particularly to dust.Changes in Dust ActivityNASA scientists have selected up on some modifications in dust activity in the Gobi and Taklamakan deserts. A previous analysis of nearly twenty years of data from the Terra and Aqua satellites discovered that this was the only region on the planet where levels of climatic dust have declined considering that the start of the research study duration in 2003. The reasons for this decrease are unclear, but it is most likely associated to the weakening of surface winds considering that 2001, according to one analysis. Other research has highlighted land management and greening of the landscape as being important factors.NASA Earth Observatory image by Michala Garrison, using MODIS data from NASA EOSDIS LANCE and GIBS/Worldview.
