The Sahara Dust Cloud is fascinating, confusing and inspiring

I am fascinated by the Sahara Dust Cloud that is supposed to be over the United States this weekend.

It is hard to believe that the dust from another part of the world could be here and making so much of a difference, and it raises plenty of questions. I thought I would share a few of them with you here.

Why was I not told about this earlier? This apparently happens every year, but it has received much more attention this year. Do we also receive dust and sand from other deserts during the year?

How can dust cause all of this? Dust is so small. It’s amazing to me that dust could make such a difference. Just think about how much dust it must be!

Can I use this to explain why my desk and windows look dusty? I just cleaned them, really. It’s this crazy Sahara Dust. That’s why my stuff is so dirty! I think it brought Chex Mix crumbs, too, and that’s why those are on my keyboard.

I read that Sahara Dust also hampers the development of hurricanes due to the dry air. That must be true, as I don’t remember seeing many hurricanes in deserts before.

I read a lot about how the Sahara Dust affects the air quality index, but does anyone really understand what the air quality index is? Part of the U.S. had an air quality index value of 114 this week! Wow! That seems to me like it would be a good thing, but I think it is a bad thing. What is a good number and what is a bad number for this?

Don’t you think meteorologists just kind of keep making up terms to make them sound important? What am I supposed to do with Dew Point, Barometric Pressure, Air Quality, Pollen Count, Heat Index and Hair Quality Index in the weather forecasts? I don’t know what numbers are good or bad, or what most of those terms even mean. Just tell me if it will be raining, hot or snowing.

Hair Quality Index actually would be a pretty helpful item for the news. How will my hair look with the weather outside? Will it be sweaty? Will it look dry? This is what I want to know!

The Sahara Dust somehow fertilizes soils in the Amazon and helps to build beaches in California. How does this happen? This seems a little hard to believe. Why doesn’t it fertilize the beaches and add dust to the Amazon? Why not add to beaches in other locations?

I have seen Teenage Room Dust spread around the house in the past. It was difficult to overcome at times.

If it makes everything hazy and grey during the day, why will it make the sunsets and sunrises so spectacular? It seems like it would just make them cloudy. I am going to watch for the sunset tonight, though, and I hope it does look amazing. Ideally, my hair will also look amazing.

Does dust from Ohio travel anywhere around the world? I apologize if the hair from my cat is now in England or Greece. She has a lot of hair, and I imagine that it has spread around the globe by now. It certainly gets all over the house.

Does the Sahara receive dust from other parts of the world? What do they call it there?

Are the sunsets and sunrises in the Sahara Desert always spectacular? It would make sense since they have the dust there every day.

Is anyone else nervous whenever you type the word desert? Is it one “s” or two? I am always nervous about mixing it up with dessert.

If Dessert Dust is in my house, it’s usually cinnamon or powdered sugar in the air. I enjoy those dust clouds.

Doesn’t Sahara Dust sound like a fancy cologne? If it’s not sold already, I bet it will be soon. Sahara Dust will keep you feeling cool and dry, while you look and smell spectacular!

Wherever you are, I hope you enjoy the Sahara Dust this weekend, and I hope you take a few moments to think about how all of this is just being caused by dust. I hope it does not cause problems with your allergies, and instead you appreciate the colorful sunsets, grey skies, and slightly different weather. I hope you also appreciate just how small the world can be at times, and how cool it is that we are all so connected.

If dust from one part of the world can have so much of an impact on other parts of the globe, imagine what people can do if we work together.