Saharan Dust over the Canary Islands

Credit: Image credit: Jeff Schmaltz; MODIS team; NASA, Posted on: Thursday, 2 September 2004, 06:00 CDT Download full size image

Dust from the Sahara Desert sweeps out over the Atlantic Ocean and Canary Islands in this true-color Terra MODIS image from August 25, 2004. The dust blows north from Africa's northwestern coast, across the islands, then angles to the northwest across the open, cloud-covered ocean. The Canary Islands are named not for birds, but rather after the word canaria, which comes from the Latin word for dog, canis. Canary birds were named after the islands. Easternmost is El Hierro, the smallest of the islands. Due north is La Palma, while to the southeast is the round La Gomera island. Due east is Tenerife; this is the largest island of Santa Cruz Provice, of which the previous three islands are a part. The other three islands make up Las Palmas province: large and round Gran Canaria, oblong Fuerteventura, and northernmost Lanzarote.

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