A terrible dust storm raged through Iraq in the first week of July 2009. According to news reports, many Iraqis considered the storm to be the worst in living memory. Hundreds of people reported to the hospital for respiratory distress, and the blowing dust interfered with air and land travel for nearly a week.
This natural-color (photo-like) image from the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) on NASA’s Aqua satellite shows the area at the height of the storm, on July 5. In places the dust is only a veil, and the landscape below is recognizable. Parts of the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers are visible. In other places, however, the dust is a thick blanket, completely blocking the ground from view. The city of Baghdad is hidden. An animation of images from July 1–6 shows the spread of the dust.
