this is what a sandstorm here looks like

[MSG Hall]

This picture is part of the screen savers they put on our computers. This is here; it shows how we live and a sandstorm coming in. We have had maybe 8 of these in the year I have been here.

[del]

MSG Hall that reminds me of one of the scariest days of my life Maay 18, 1980 when Mt. St. Helens erupted. Eight times a year I could not deal, you are a better man than me.

Come home safe. del

[doug hodder]

Wow!!! pretty intense stuff...what kind of ground speed do they have? It appears that one would have been on base in a matter of minutes. Doug

[cs_whypt2]

Yeah...I'll stick with my bad weather. You can keep that.

Dianne

[edlfrey]

No 8 times a year, but I'd say that I saw at least one sandstorm per year come through Phoenix, Az during the years 1968 -1982. Almost always from the west because of prevailing winds and the large land area that was under cultivation. Looked just as it has been captured in your picture and would be dense enough that you would have to pull off the road - like heavy fog but replaced with heavy dirt.

[emiller]

We get those here in Arizona a few times a year called Haboobs.
http://www.azdot.gov/CCPartnerships/Haboob/index.asp
http://www.phoenixhomes.com/image-galle ... tos/haboob

[Miriam C.]

not me! Looks like a wall cloud that scared the stuffing out of me one day. Kinda green

[Ma3tt]

I had to do some dusting around the house today ..... yeah you win (again)

[Mike C.]

And I thought tornadoes were bad.

[Miriam C.]

oh yeah and you guys over there have a wonderfully safe Memorial day.

On this weekend we honor those who didn't make it I would like to also say:

[Laredo]

One like that rolled through West Texas on July 4, 1976. I remember it extremely well because unlike an outflow boundary, it could be smelled coming on the wind.

A thunderstorm smells wet and cold; you can smell the ice if there will be hail. A sandstorm smells dry and hot -- and of static electricity.

[mikeschn]

Here's some more reading...

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dust_storm

[Laredo]

Mike, this was this spring -- about 30 minutes down the road from my house. That day at work we had the streetlights on all day.


This was a NWS emergency message that day:
BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
FIRE WARNING
TEXAS EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT AGENCY LUBBOCK TEXAS
RELAYED BY NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LUBBOCK TX
402 PM CST MON JAN 28 2008

THE FOLLOWING MESSAGE IS TRANSMITTED AT THE REQUEST OF THE
MULESHOE TEXAS EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT AGENCY.

THE MULESHOE EMERGENCY MANAGER IS REQUESTING ASSISTANCE IN
EVACUATION OF BUILDINGS NEAR AND NORTH OF A GROWING WILD FIRE
LOCATED SOUTH OF MULESHOE...OVER NORTHEAST BAILEY COUNTY...NEAR
THE INTERSECTION OF HIGHWAYS 214 AND 746. THE FIRE APPEARS TO BE
SPREADING QUICKLY TO THE NORTHEAST AND HAS ALREADY GROWN QUITE
LARGE. CITIZENS IN THIS AREA ARE REQUESTED TO MOVE TO SAFE
LOCATIONS IMMEDIATELY.


That sandstorm photograph was taken in Lamesa, Texas.
Yesterday, this picture was taken by the same photographer (David is a storm chaser based in Dawson County whose blog is called "In the Vortex" http://wx5tvs.com/blog/ .)

[Hinermad]

A thunderstorm smells wet and cold; you can smell the ice if there will be hail. A sandstorm smells dry and hot -- and of static electricity.

That static electricity can ruin radio equipment, too. During the first Gulf War they had to hurry and replace a bunch of brand new solid-state radios with old tube gear because the static blew the transistors in the new stuff.

Real radios glow in the dark!

Dave