A Historic Downfall
Sahara Desert Experiences Rainfall for the First Time in Decades
Recently, parts of the Sahara Desert, mainly in Southeast Morocco, have been filled with almost 8 inches of rain over two days. The Sahara Desert hasn’t flooded like this in nearly half of a century.
“It’s been 30 to 50 years since we’ve had this much rain in such a short space of time,” Houssine Youabeb, a meteorologist at Morocco’s General Directorate of Meteorology said.
Located in Africa, the Sahara is the largest non-polar desert. It is one of the driest places in the world, a barren landscape normally receiving just a few inches of rain in a whole year.
“I am very surprised that the [Sahara] desert is getting almost 8 inches of rain,” freshman Connor Woodward said.
This is caused by rising global temperatures, which are accelerating water cycles and causing extreme weather patterns. A cyclone formed and went over northern Africa, creating huge amounts of rainfall. Many researchers expect more extreme storms in the Sahara soon.
The rain filled many normally dry lakes, including one in Morocco's Iriqui National Park and a salt flat, Sebkha el Melah, in Algeria. Sebkha el Melah could stay filled for more than a year. On Oct. 16, the lake was about one-third full, with water covering a surface area of about 74 square miles.
“If we don’t get any more rain events, the lake would take about a year to evaporate completely,” Moshe Armon, a researcher at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem said.
A lot of rain fell onto small villages and towns, killing 18 people and damaging crops, roads and utilities.
“The floods could be particularly harmful because they could destroy vital resources that are essential,” Woodward said.
The water created stunning satellite images of water running through the Sahara sand, surrounding plants and castles, captured by NASA Landsat 9.
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