2009 Spring Dust Storms
Utah and other parts of the Colorado Plateau have experienced large dust storms during the spring of 2009, including a massive dust storm that occurred on April 15, 2009. Local residents have expressed interest in the causes and effects of recent dust events. U.S. Geological Survey scientists and their cooperators share below videos, photographs, news stories, and scientific reports related to recent dust events.
For more information: Jayne Belnap, jayne_belnap@usgs.gov, (435) 719-2333
Videos
- Satellite video of thermal images of dust storm -- .mov format (5.1 MB) (April 15, 2009) (Rian Bogle, USGS). Thermal satellite images show significant airborne dust emanating from the northeast corner of Arizona in the early morning hours of April 15, 2009.
- Satellite video of dust storm -- .mov format (3.6 MB) (April 15, 2009) (Rian Bogle, USGS). Satellite images confirm significant dust storm plumes blowing north by northeast emanating from the northeast corner of Arizona in the early morning hours of April 15, 2009.
Photographs
- Satellite photograph of dust storm (April 15, 2009) (Rian Bogle, USGS)
- Satellite photograph of dust storm (April 15, 2009) (Rian Bogle, USGS)
- Weather map (April 15, 2009) (Courtesy of National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration)
- Wind flow map (April 15, 2009) (Courtesy of National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration)
- NASA Earth Observatory Image (April , 2009)—Dust storm in northeastern Arizona
- NASA Earth Observatory Image (March 4, 2009)—Utah dust storm
- U.S. Geological Survey photo of a dust storm along Indian Creek, near Canyonlands National Park, on March 22, 2009 (Credit: Mark Miller, USGS)
- Images of a March 2009 dust storm that engulfed the town of Fillmore, Utah
News Stories
- Crested Butte News (April 8, 2009) – Layer of red dust could lead to early snowpack melt
- The Aspen Times (March 23, 2009) – Dust storm turns Aspen slopes brown
- National Public Radio (May 31, 2006) -- Stirring up dust in the desert
- National Public Radio (May 30, 2006) – Dust storms threaten snow packs
Scientific articles and reports
- Biogeochemical and ecological impacts of livestock grazing in semi-arid southeastern Utah, USA (Journal of Arid Environments 2008)
- Compositional trends in Aeolian dust along a transect across the southwestern United States (Journal of Geophysical Research, 2008)
- Increasing eolian dust deposition in the western United States linked to human activity (Nature Publishing Group 2008)
- Late Quaternary eolian dust in surficial deposits of a Colorado Plateau grassland: Controls on distribution and ecologic effects (Catena 2006)
- Composition of aeolian dust in natural traps on isolated surfaces of the central Mojave Desert-Insights to mixing, sources, and nutrient inputs (Journal of Arid Environments 2006)
- Multi-decadal impacts of grazing on soil physical and biogeochemical properties in Southeast Utah (Ecological Applications 2005)