Haboob

A haboob (Arabic: هَبوب, romanized: habūb, lit. 'blasting/drifting') is an intense dust storm generated by strong winds from weather fronts or the downdrafts of thunderstorms. These storms occur in arid and semi-arid regions worldwide, including the Middle East, North Africa, Australia, and North America, and have also been observed on Mars and Titan. A haboob typically forms when cold air from a thunderstorm rushes downward, causing high winds at the surface which lift dust into the air. Haboobs can be up to 2,000 m (7,000 ft) high, advancing up to 70 km/h (45 mph), and can last as long as 6 hours. Haboobs can occasionally span distances as long as 1,000 km (600 mi).

This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is available under Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 unless otherwise noted. Additional terms may apply for the media files.