The dust that blew out of the Gobi Desert on May 11 continued its eastward journey the following day. By the time the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) on NASA’s Terra satellite took this picture on May 12, 2011, Gobi dust hovered over northeastern China.
A massive dust plume hundreds of kilometers across hides much of northeastern China from the satellite sensor in this true-color image. Along the plume’s northern margin, dust mingles with clouds.
Dust affected the provinces of Heilongjiang, Jilin, and Liaoning, CRI English reported. In some places, visibility was reduced to 1,000 meters (3,000 feet), and many residents wore masks when venturing outside. Forecasters said that winds and possible rains might disperse the dust overnight.
NASA image courtesy MODIS Rapid Response Team at NASA GSFC. Caption by Michon Scott.
