File:Dust storm over Sudan and the Red Sea (MODIS 2017-06-26).jpg

English: A rolling wall of sand and dust blew across Sudan and the Red Sea in late June 2017. The Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) aboard NASA’s Aqua satellite captured a true-color image of the stunning event on June 20.

A thick blanket of dust, so thick that it obscures the land underneath, forms an arc across the Sudan. In the east, the blanket thins and a broad finger crosses the Red Sea. To the north the skies are clear, but to the south and west, behind the strong frontal line, the skies are laden with reddish dust and sand. Clouds also appear in the south, indicating a storm system that kicked up strong winds and pushed the line of dust forward.

This storm is an example of a haboob – a strong sand storm or dust storm that is common along the edges of the Sahara Desert in Sudan. The storm front may appear as a dense wall of sand and dust which has been lifted by the wind; this wall of dust can reach about 3,000 feet (1,000 meters) high. The city of Khartoum, Sudan, is said to experience approximately 24 haboobs annually. They may occur almost any time of the year, but are especially common in the summer.