I’m tracking weather in Sevilla because we are planning a trip there next year at this same time (March, 2025). My weather app says the air quality is very unhealthy today. What exactly does this mean and what is causing it? It also looks like rain is forecast for today so I don’t think it is a wildfire. Any thoughts?
Posted by
Bilbao
644 posts
It´s a temporary atmospheric phenomenon that happens occassionally: red dust coming all the way from the Sahara desert. It does not happen every year, it does not last long, but it happens once in a while and it does reduce the air quality. It´s called "calima", if you want to find more info about it.
Posted by
Colorado
341 posts
Wow MikelBasqueGuide, thanks for educating us! I'm not going to Sevilla, but this post caught my eye and I am thrilled to learn something new. That's a fascinating fact!
Posted by
OP
Last Frontier aka Alaska 🏔️
3227 posts
Wow, thank you Mike, that explains it all right.
Posted by
Bilbao
644 posts
It´s not only affecting Sevilla, but also other areas of Spain and it may get as far as the northern coast (as in 2022).
Posted by
L'Occitanie, France
10194 posts
Sometimes it comes all the way up to France.
Posted by
Guernsey
734 posts
We get the Sahara dust here too in the English Channel. But by the time it reaches us it just seems to cover the cars and flat roofs and not obviously effect the air quality
Posted by
Portsmouth
5264 posts
And when it hits the UK and mixes with rain the hysterical press dramatically refer to it as "blood rain".