Image of the week: Saharan dust from space

Watching our Earth from space

This week’s image of the week is of Saharan dust moving west out over the Atlantic Ocean from Mauritania, as seen from the Meteosat-12 geostationary weather satellite 36,000km above the Earth.

Last Updated

12 February 2025

Published on

11 February 2025

Saharan dust particles are lifted into the atmosphere by gusts of surface wind and can be transported and deposited thousands of kilometres away. Over the oceans, dust can act as a fertiliser, stimulating blooms of tiny marine plants (phytoplankton) that are the basis for the marine food chain.

When dust travels over populated areas, it can reduce air quality and impact health by causing respiratory problems and cause flight delays.

Imagery from the FCI can be accessed on EUMETview.

Dust image

This image was captured by the FCI instrument onboard Meteosat-12 at 16:20 UTC on 6 February 2025.

The Meteosat weather satellites provide imagery for the early detection of fast-developing severe weather, weather forecasting and climate monitoring.