A U.S. flag measuring nearly two acres was trucked to Spaceport America and unfurled for cleaning. The effort required a crane and dozens of volunteers.

Then a sand storm welcomed them to New Mexico.

https://www.abqjournal.com/news/spaceport-america-hosts-cleaning-of-mammoth-us-flag/3003687

#NewMexico #duststorms #SpaceportAmerica #flags

Great American Flag cleaned at Spaceport America ahead of nation’s 250th anniversary

Volunteers at Spaceport America in southern New Mexico helped hand-scrub the 86,000-square-foot Great American Flag, a nearly two-acre U.S. banner brought from Pittsburgh for a rare cleaning before the country’s 250th anniversary.

abqjournal

NASA Earth Observatory image of the day: Dust Outbreak Reaches Europe

https://science.nasa.gov/earth/earth-observatory/dust-outbreak-reaches-europe/

Animation by Lauren Dauphin, using GEOS-FP data from the Global Modeling and Assimilation Office at NASA GSFC.

#Earth #NASA #NASAEarthObservatory #science #news #atmosphere #dust #duststorms #Sahara #desert #SaharaDesert #Europe

Deadly #Colorado, #Kansas pileups, fast-moving Plains #wildfires fueled by #DangerousWinds

#BlowingDust created near-zero visibility on I-25 near Pueblo, killing 4 people, while the same powerful #windstorm fueled fast-moving wildfires and triggered additional crashes across the Plains.

By Emilee Speck, AccuWeather staff writer & Brian Lada, AccuWeather meteorologist
Published Feb 17, 2026

"Powerful winds kicking up dust across the Plains contributed to multiple fatal crashes and sparked rapidly spreading wildfires on Tuesday as dry grasses fueled fast-moving flames.

"Heavy winds created dangerous 'brown out' conditions along Interstate 25 near Pueblo, Colorado, on the morning of Feb. 17, with a massive multi-vehicle crash happening amid low to near-zero visibility. The Colorado State Patrol responded around 10:02 a.m. MST to the crash on southbound I-25 at milepost 92, just south of Pueblo Boulevard. Preliminary findings indicate more than 30 vehicles were involved, including six semis.

"Authorities have confirmed four fatalities, and 29 people were transported to hospitals, though the extent of their injuries remains unknown."

[...]

"[W]est of Oakley, #Kansas, another multi-vehicle pileup occurred on I-70 during low visibility caused by blowing dust, underscoring the widespread travel hazards created by the powerful windstorm. Winds in the area were gusting around 60 mph at the time the crash was reported.

"In #Oklahoma, a fast-growing wildfire in the Oklahoma panhandle, east of Beaver, quickly spread into Kansas."

Read more:
https://www.accuweather.com/en/weather-news/deadly-colorado-kansas-pileups-fast-moving-plains-wildfires-fueled-by-dangerous-winds/1864790

#USWx #ExtremeWx #ClimateChange #ClimateCrisis #Duststorms #ExtremeWeather #ClimateChangeIsReal #ClimateChangeWeatherWheel

Haboob (Storm 🌪️)

A haboob 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, cau...

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Haboob

#Haboob #Storm #DustStorms #WeatherHazards #ArabicWordsAndPhrases

Haboob - Wikipedia

Scientists capture the crackling sounds of what they believe is lightning on Mars

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (AP) — Scientists have detected what they believe to be lightning on Mars by eavesdropping…
#NewsBeep #News #Headlines #BaptisteChide #DanielMitchard #dustdevils #duststorms #electricalarcs #electricaldischarges #Latvia #Lightning #LV #Mars #Marsscience #Martianrocks #Perseverance(Rover)
https://www.newsbeep.com/274148/

Saxaul plantations in the Aralkum Desert are failing to curb toxic dust storms as locals face worsening health impacts https://ow.ly/Ngao50XyhZ5 #AralCrisis #Kazakhstan #PublicHealth #DesertEcology #SaxaulTrees #DustStorms

Planting Trees to Heal Old Wou...
Planting Trees to Heal Old Wounds: Can a Desert Forest Save the Aral’s Last Residents? - The Times Of Central Asia

In the Aralkum Desert, afforestation campaigns have multiplied since the early 2000s. They are meant to slow the sandstorms, temper a rapidly warming climate,

The Times Of Central Asia
Saxaul plantations in the Aralkum Desert are failing to curb toxic dust storms as locals face worsening health impacts https://timesca.com/planting-trees-to-heal-old-wounds-can-a-desert-forest-save-the-arals-last-residents/ #AralCrisis #Kazakhstan #PublicHealth #DesertEcology #SaxaulTrees #DustStorms

Surviving the Storm: How The Martian Could Foreshadow Interstellar’s Dust-Choked Earth

When we watch The Martian (2015), it’s easy to see Mark Watney’s story as a thrilling tale of survival on a distant planet. He battles isolation, resource scarcity, and, most pressingly, Mars’ massive dust storms. Meanwhile, Interstellar (2014) portrays a dying Earth, ravaged by relentless dust storms and agricultural collapse. On the surface, the films seem unrelated — different worlds, different crises, different stakes. But a fascinating fan theory suggests that the Mars mission in […]

https://jaimedavid.blog/2025/10/04/17/49/42/analysis/jaimedavid27/7336/surviving-the-storm-how-the-martian-could-foreshadow-interstellars-dust-choked-earth/

Sistan faces a severe environmental crisis due to drought, the drying of the Hamoun Wetland, and relentless dust storms, threatening livelihoods and biodiversity. #Sistan #Drought #HamounWetland #DustStorms #EnvironmentalCrisis #Iran 🇮🇷🌍💨

https://kokcha.news/8548/?utm_source=mastodon&utm_medium=jetpack_social

Sistan Under Siege: Drought and Dust Storms Threaten the Region

Sistan faces a severe environmental crisis due to drought, the drying of the Hamoun Wetland, and relentless dust storms, threatening livelihoods and biodiversity. #Sistan #Drought #HamounWetland #D…

Kokcha News

Burning Man attendees face wild weather

LAS VEGAS — Mother Nature has not been a friend to this year’s Burning Man festivalgoers so far.…
#NewsBeep #News #Topstories #blackrockdesert #burningman #duststorms #Headlines #nationalweatherservice #TopStories
https://www.newsbeep.com/83476/