Severe thunderstorms on the way. Does that mean protective Saharan dust has departed?
What’s that on our plants this morning?
Water!
So that’s why our bedside phone buzzed early this morning, jarring us awake. There were severe weather alerts issued for South Florida thanks to a line of strong thunderstorms that moved into the area.
How strong?
Robert Garcia, senior meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Miami, said there was a wind gust of 57 mph reported early Wednesday morning on Virginia Key near the Seaquarium.
“We can’t rule out some isolated strong to severe wind gusts this morning to the afternoon hours here,” Garcia said.
What about Saharan dust?
So does that mean the protective layer of Saharan dust that can keep hurricanes at bay has dissipated or washed away from these rains?
Not really.
“Expect more of the same Wednesday into Thursday,” Garcia said of our storm chances. “We do have Saharan dust around the region and we do expect that to continue. However, there is a mid level disturbance that’s moving from the Bahamas across us today and tonight, exiting into the Gulf at some point tomorrow. And so even with that Saharan dust, that mid-level disturbance is enough to make our weather unsettled into today and tomorrow.”
CBS4 meteorologist Craig Setzer explains that the dust “originates from halfway around the globe in the Saharan Desert, where seasonal thunderstorm squall lines with very strong winds loft the dust into the air. That dusty air is then carried across the Atlantic on easterly trade winds, often reaching the Caribbean and North America.”
In addition to inhibiting tropical storm development, the Saharan dust has pros and cons. On the pro side, aside from the effect on hurricanes, the dust spreads iron and other beneficial minerals over the ocean and land, Setzer wrote. But for those with respiratory issues, the fine mist can make going outside uncomfortable or problematic.
Watching the tropics
“We will have to keep an eye on it but the general idea is we may have some continued dust around that may help suppress some activity but we’ll have to keep a watch on the tropics as we head into the next couple weeks here,” Garcia said.
Or sooner.
The weather service is monitoring a line of some strong thunderstorms that were moving across the Bahamas before 9 a.m. and approaching Bimini. “This is something we think will be knocking our doors around here come lunch time or earlier,” Garcia said.
As for later in the week, the weather service’s hazardous weather outlook says hazardous marine and beach conditions will continue through at least Thursday because of the strong easterly winds. There is also a high risk for rip currents along South Florida beaches.
Miami, Key West rain chances
Rain chances are 60% Wednesday night and Thursday and hovers around the 50% range through Sunday in South Florida. The Keys also could see isolated thunderstorms with gusty winds. Rain chances are just a shade less, matching the 60% chance Wednesday night but dipping to 30% and 40% for the rest of the week.
But, hey, bet you haven’t seen 79 degrees on your watch’s face when the sun has been out for a while in Miami. After the cooler start, temperatures will rise to the upper 80s for the week when it’s not raining.
