Media advisory: Expert available to discuss huge Saharan dust plume impacting US

LAWRENCE — This June, air quality in the United States has been degraded by a dust plume originating in Africa and traveling across the tropical North Atlantic and the Caribbean Basin.

Bing Pu, assistant professor of geography & atmospheric science at the University of Kansas, is an expert in the emission, transport and impact of dust plumes. For instance, she researched the “Godzilla” dust plume that swept across the Atlantic in 2020.

Pu is available to discuss the current dust plume with reporters. Her email is bpu@ku.edu.

“It’s long been noticed that African dust particles can be transported westward toward the Americas via the easterly trade winds,” she said. "Their transport paths vary throughout the year, following the seasonal north-south migration of the Intertropical Convergence Zone — generally toward North America in summer and toward South America in winter to early spring. These include an intensified African easterly jet along with African easterly waves, which can carry the elevated Saharan Air Layer from the African west coast into the tropical Atlantic toward the Caribbean Basin, and a westward extension of the North Atlantic Subtropical High, often accompanied by a stronger Caribbean low-level jet, which can further steer the dust plume across the Caribbean Sea and northward to the U.S.”

Pu said dust plumes originating in Africa affect transportation and human health, as high dust concentrations reduce visibility and degrade air quality.

“They can also impact the radiation balance, as dust particles in the atmosphere absorb and scatter both shortwave sunlight and longwave radiation, and influence cloud formation and tropical cyclone development,” she said. “These impacts depend on the size and intensity of the dust plume as well as local meteorological conditions. For instance, if it rains over the Gulf States, as forecast later this week, the air quality impact may be reduced compared to dry conditions.”

Luckily, the KU researcher said current data like satellite imagery from NASA’s Worldview suggest the 2025 dust plume is milder than the “Godzilla” dust plume of five years ago.

“Our previous study also found that if the Caribbean low-level jet is extremely strong, it may divert part of the dust plume toward the tropical Pacific, reducing its air quality impacts over the U.S.,” Pu said. “While it may still dim the sky slightly and produce colorful sunrises and sunsets, its overall impact on air quality will likely be smaller.”