The Sirocco Winds of the Mediterranean Sea

Over the central Mediterranean Sea, the strong south to southeast winds are known locally as Sirocco. These winds can significantly impact outdoor events, offshore operations, passenger ships, and local population centers. A Sirocco develops in response to low pressure moving east across the northern Mediterranean. The onset of this event typically occurs when a surface low and associated cold front move either offshore Tunisia or over the Tyrrhenian Sea. Strong to gale-force southerly winds develop ahead of the front and can persist for several days.

Sirocco winds originate in hot, dry air over the Saharan desert. They pick up dust as they blow northward over North Africa. This dust is then carried offshore and over the southern Mediterranean Sea causing reductions in visibility. In many cases, these strong, persistent winds will move dust northward toward the Balkans and cover far south Italy and portions of Greece in a thick, dusty haze.

Meteorologists can locate areas of dust from satellite imagery. For example, the MODIS instrument aboard NASA’s Aqua satellite captured a concentrated dust plume carried by Sirocco winds moving offshore of Libya on March 22, 2018.

Infrared satellite data from EUMETSAT’s Meteosat Second Generation satellite shows a similar dust plume pushing north across the Mediterranean Sea toward Greece. The magenta color in the RGB-dust product below represents dust.

Areas of dust generated by Siroccos and other local winds can often be predicted days in advance. The Barcelona Dust Forecast Center specializes in sand and dust forecasts for Northern Africa, the Middle East, and Europe. Their latest forecast shows a significant dust event for Greece and Turkey through March 24, 2018. Thick dust and very low visibilities correlate to higher aerosol optical depths as shown by the brown colors in the below image.

WeatherOps has several forecast products to help minimize risks during these events including:

● Daily Planners with six hourly visibility

● Weather Checks with two hourly visibility

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