Mineral dust sources in the surroundings of the north Indian Ocean

Abstract

We have used one year (1999) of Meteosat observations to monitor the dust activity in the arid and semi‐arid areas surrounding the North Indian Ocean. The method is based on the IDDI product derived from the infrared channel of the satellite. Dust sources are located according to a threshold on the IDDI and another on the surface wind speed. The global features of the dust activity in this area are in a good agreement with previous studies. Main dust sources are located in the Nubian desert, the Arabian peninsula, Iran, Pakistan and Afghanistan, and North West India. It is found that Somalia is also an area of dust emission with a maximum of activity from May to October.