Predicting Dust Storms With Infrared Satellites
Researchers based at the University of Pittsburgh have developed a method for predicting dust and sandstorms that uses infrared satellite images to determine when conditions are ripe for the destructive phenomena, a technique that could be implemented globally and that the research team used to forecast a 2008 New Mexico dust storm-the area's largest in decades-two days beforehand.
By studying thermal infrared images of moisture content and albedo-or sunlight reflected by the ground-at White Sands, the team found that the sand became drier and more reflective until it was a mass of loose sediment susceptible to strong winds.
The researchers plan to build on their work at White Sands by observing arid and semi-arid areas with different soil characteristics, particularly albedo, which is uniquely high at White Sands. They also suggested that monitoring desert areas via ASTER can be further validated with field measurements of soil density, moisture, and composition.