Dust-Storm Source Areas Determined by the Total Ozone Monitoring Spectrometer and Surface Observations

Abstract Dust storms are recognized as having a very wide range of environmental impacts. Their geomorphological interest lies in the amount of deflation and wind erosion they indicate and their role in loess formation. Atmospheric mineral-dust loading is one of the largest uncertainties in global climate-change modeling and is known to have an important impact on the radiation budget and atmospheric instability. Major gaps remain in our understanding of the geomorphological context of terrestrial sources and the transport mechanisms responsible for the production and distribution of atmospheric dust, all of which are important in reducing uncertainties in the modeling of past and future climate. Using…