What is a sandstorm?

Have you ever wondered what happens when the desert decides to take flight? Imagine standing on the hot, dry ground and looking up to see a towering wall of dust zooming right at you! In this exciting episode, Mira and Finn uncover the wild science behind massive sandstorms, also known as haboobs! Discover how falling rain from hot thunderstorms creates powerful winds that sweep up loose sand, building dust walls up to 5,000 feet tall! We explore the terrifying "Black Sunday" storm from 1935, and share the clever safety tricks people use to stay safe today. Plus, you will be totally amazed by the camel's super-cool survival superpowers, like a clear third eyelid that acts as built-in desert goggles, and the ability to squeeze its own nose shut without using hands! Finally, prepare to have your mind blown as we trace how millions of tons of African sand blow all the way across the ocean to feed the Amazon Rainforest! Get ready to explore how amazing and connected our wild Earth truly is!

Transcript

SPEAKER_02 0:42

Welcome to Science Is Not Boring by kidopoly.com. I'm Mira. And I'm Finn. Before we start today, we have a huge shout-out. A big hello to Harper, who is seven, and her little brother Banks, who is four, all the way in Tennessee.

SPEAKER_01 1:00

We hear you two listen to our show together in the car. And you specifically asked us to talk all about sandstorms. That is right.

SPEAKER_02 1:09

Hold on to your hats, because this one is for you both.

SPEAKER_01 1:13

I am already holding on to mine. Sandstorms sound super intense.

SPEAKER_02 1:18

Oh, they really are. Imagine standing in the middle of a hot desert and you look up to see a solid wall of dust racing towards you.

SPEAKER_01 1:26

Wait, how big of a wall are we talking about?

SPEAKER_02 1:30

Try 5,000 feet tall. That is almost a mile straight up into the sky.

SPEAKER_01 1:36

No way! That is like stacking three and a half empire state buildings on top of each other.

SPEAKER_02 1:42

Exactly! Today we are diving into how the desert literally takes flight, turning into a towering monster of sand.

SPEAKER_01 1:49

Let's find out how they form. And more importantly, how humans and animals survive inside one. To understand a sandstorm, you actually have to look up at the clouds, not down at the sand. Wait, really? But the sand is on the ground.

SPEAKER_02 2:05

True, but the most intense dust storms actually start with thunderstorms.

SPEAKER_01 2:11

Oh, I know thunderstorms. Lots of rain and lightning.

SPEAKER_02 2:14

Right, but in super dry places like the Sahara Desert in Africa, or Arizona in the United States, something weird happens.

SPEAKER_01 2:24

What happens? Does the rain turn to mud?

SPEAKER_02 2:26

Not quite. The rain often evaporates before it even hits the ground, because the air is so incredibly hot.

SPEAKER_01 2:34

Wow, the air just eats the rain.

SPEAKER_02 2:36

Yes, and as that rain evaporates, it cools the air around it really fast.

SPEAKER_01 2:42

Cold air is heavy, so it plummets toward the earth. Like a giant invisible water balloon dropping from the sky.

SPEAKER_02 2:49

That is a perfect way to picture it. Scientists call this a downdraft. This freezing cold air smashes into the ground at speeds of 50 to 80 miles per hour.

SPEAKER_01 3:01

Whoa that is as fast as a car driving on the highway.

SPEAKER_02 3:05

Exactly. When that heavy air hits the dry desert floor, it splats outward in all directions.

SPEAKER_01 3:12

And since the ground is covered in loose sand, it just acts like a giant broom.

SPEAKER_02 3:17

You nailed it! It sweeps up all that loose silt, clay and sand, lifting it thousands of feet into the air. Meteorologists call these massive dust walls a haboob.

SPEAKER_01 3:29

Haha, a haboob? That is a funny word.

SPEAKER_02 3:33

It comes from the Arabic word hab, which means wind or blow. And they are huge. A haboob can be up to 62 miles wide.

SPEAKER_01 3:43

62 miles? That is wide enough to swallow entire cities in seconds.

SPEAKER_02 3:49

People who have seen a haboob say it looks like a giant land-based tsunami. The sky turns a rusty orange and then completely black.

SPEAKER_01 3:59

Completely black? Like nighttime in the middle of the day. Yes.

SPEAKER_02 4:05

In fact, one of the most famous dust storms in history happened on April 14th, 1935, during a time called the Dust Bowl in America. Was that the one they called Black Sunday? Exactly. A mountain of black dust swept across Oklahoma and Texas. The winds hit 60 miles per hour.

SPEAKER_01 4:28

That must have been so terrifying for the people living there.

SPEAKER_02 4:31

It was. The blackness was so complete that people reported they could not even see their own hand if they held it right in front of their face.

SPEAKER_01 4:40

I would be so panicked. What do you even do if you get caught in something like that today?

SPEAKER_02 4:46

Well, the great news is, today we have advanced weather radars and satellites that track Kaboob's forming.

SPEAKER_01 4:53

Oh, so scientists can warn people before the storm arrives?

SPEAKER_02 4:58

Exactly. Meteorologists send out emergency alerts to phones and radios. The main rule for drivers is to pull safely off the road, turn off all their lights and wait. Why turn the lights off? Wouldn't you want to be seen? If other drivers see your tail lights in the thick dust, they might think you are moving on the road and accidentally follow you right off the shoulder.

SPEAKER_01 5:22

Wow, that is such a clever safety trick. I never would have thought of that.

SPEAKER_02 5:27

By pulling over and hunkering down inside, humans can stay perfectly safe while the desert flies past outside.

SPEAKER_01 5:35

But wait a minute! Humans have cars and houses to hide in. What about the animals out in the desert? That is one of the coolest parts of science.

SPEAKER_02 5:45

Animals have evolved incredible ways to survive sunstorms.

SPEAKER_01 5:49

Okay, tell me about camels. They live in the Sahara and the Gobi Deserts, right?

SPEAKER_02 5:54

They sure do. And the Bactrian camels in the Gobi Desert face extreme weather. They can survive freezing winters down to negative 22 degrees Fahrenheit, and scorching summers up to 122 degrees.

SPEAKER_01 6:10

That is wild! But a sandstorm must be a camel's worst nightmare, because sand is super scratchy. How do they protect their eyes without goggles?

SPEAKER_02 6:20

Actually, they basically have built-in desert goggles. Camels have three eyelids.

SPEAKER_01 6:26

Three eyelids? Humans only have two.

SPEAKER_02 6:30

Right, but a camel's third eyelid sweeps across the eye from side to side, like a windshield wiper on a car.

SPEAKER_01 6:37

That is so weird. But doesn't closing their eyes mean they can't see where they are going? Here is the mind-blowing part.

SPEAKER_02 6:44

That third eyelid is translucent, meaning it is thin and clear enough to see through.

SPEAKER_01 6:50

No way. So they just close their clear eyelid and keep walking while the sand bounces right off.

SPEAKER_02 6:55

Exactly. Plus, they have two rows of super thick, long eyelashes that lock together like combs to block the dust.

SPEAKER_01 7:04

That is a serious superpower. But what about breathing? Wouldn't their noses get full of sand?

SPEAKER_02 7:09

Mother Nature thought of that too. Camels have special muscles in their noses that allow them to squeeze their nostrils completely shut.

unknown 7:18

Ha!

SPEAKER_01 7:19

They can pinch their own nose closed without using hands. I wish I could do that when we drive past a stinky garbage truck.

SPEAKER_02 7:26

It is an amazing trick. Even their ears are lined with thick hair on the inside and outside to keep the dirt out.

SPEAKER_01 7:33

So a sandstorm is just another Tuesday for a camel. They just zip up their nose, drop their see-through eyelids, and wait it out.

SPEAKER_02 7:41

So, the sand blows around the desert and then it settles back down. End of story, right?

SPEAKER_01 7:47

I feel like you're about to tell me the answer is no.

SPEAKER_02 7:50

Not even close. Dust storms have a massive impact on the entire planet. The wind can lift the finest, lightest dust high into the atmosphere, where jet streams carry it across the world.

SPEAKER_01 8:04

Are you saying Sahara Desert Sand travels across the ocean?

SPEAKER_02 8:08

Yes. NASA uses a satellite called Calypso to measure it. Every single year, over 132 million tonnes of Saharan dust blows all the way across the Atlantic Ocean.

SPEAKER_01 8:22

Over 132 million tonnes? That sounds like the weight of 22 million elephants. It is an unbelievable amount.

SPEAKER_02 8:32

And guess where exactly 27.7 million tonnes of that African dust lands?

SPEAKER_01 8:38

I have no idea. Europe? Antarctica? It lands in South America, right on top of the Amazon rainforest. The biggest desert in the world sends its dust to the biggest rainforest in the world. Why? Because the Amazon needs it.

SPEAKER_02 8:54

Rainforest soil actually lacks certain nutrients because the heavy rains constantly wash them away.

SPEAKER_01 9:01

Oh, so the plants get hungry.

SPEAKER_02 9:03

Exactly. But that Saharan dust is packed with a mineral called phosphorus.

SPEAKER_01 9:08

So the dust acts like a giant cloud of fertiliser falling from the sky.

SPEAKER_02 9:13

You got it! Without the massive sandstorms thousands of miles away in Africa, the lush green Amazon rainforest would not have enough food to survive.

SPEAKER_01 9:23

That is the most incredible thing I have ever heard. Everything on Earth is truly connected.

SPEAKER_02 9:28

It really is. A violent storm in a dry sandy wasteland brings life to a jungle on the exact opposite side of the planet. Speaking of looking closely at how everything connects, let's see how closely you were listening. It is quiz time!

SPEAKER_01 9:46

I am ready. Hit me with your best questions.

SPEAKER_02 9:50

First question, what is the scientific name for a massive dust storm that comes from the Arabic word for wind? Next one. How many eyelids does a camel have to protect its eyes from the sand? Question three. How tall can a haboob grow in feet? Here's number four. What year did the famous Black Sunday dust storm happen in America? Last question. The Sahara Desert sends millions of tons of dust across the ocean to feed which famous rainforests? Great job! Let's see how you did. The first answer is it is called a haboob. For question two, a camel has three eyelids, including that awesome see-through one. Number three, the answer is a haboob can grow up to 5,000 feet tall. Question 4. Black Sunday took place in the year 1935 during the Dust Bowl. And the final answer is, the dust fertilises the Amazon rainforest.

SPEAKER_01 11:14

I definitely would not want to get caught in a 5,000-foot wall of dust. But I have a whole new respect for her boobs.

SPEAKER_02 11:22

Right? And I will never look at a camel the same way again. Nature is just full of brilliant surprises.

SPEAKER_01 11:31

If you were blown away by today's episode, please leave us a five-star review.

SPEAKER_02 11:36

Yes. Just scroll down on your podcast app and tap the stars. Tell us what your favourite fact about camels or haboobs was.

SPEAKER_01 11:45

Oh, and don't forget to check out our site kidopoly.com. We've got tons of fun learning games and activities there.

SPEAKER_02 11:52

Definitely. And if you want to shout out on the show or just want to say hi, email us at hello at kidopoly.com. We love hearing from you. See you next time on Science Is Not Boring. Bye, everyone!