MADRID – Experts have already warned about the arrival of possibly more episodes of Calima. Dust and sand in suspension in the air from the Sahara that, in combination with a new Atlantic front, could descend on land as mud rain on Monday and Tuesday.
The Spanish weather institute Aemet estimates that mud showers are most likely to occur in the eastern and southern thirds of the peninsula and the Balearic Islands.
Aemet expects the new Atlantic front, with storm Evelyn, to cross the peninsula from west to east from Monday to Tuesday. It will rain with storms here and there, especially around the Strait of Gibraltar.
Precipitation will be more intense in the western third of Spain and can be very persistent locally west of the central system.
Decreasing temperatures
When this front arrives on the peninsula and in the centre of the Canary Islands, daytime temperatures will drop.
Wind
Winds from the south and southeast will prevail, turning to the southwest. There will be very strong gusts in the mountains in the centre and north of the country. And western Galicia and the Basque coast should expect strong intervals of wind.
In the Mediterranean region, the east wind prevails at strong intervals. Further west in the Strait of Gibraltar and the Alborán Sea, the wind shifts to the west. The Canary Islands mainly have a north-westerly wind.
Calima phenomena similar to March
José Damián Ruiz Sinoga, professor of Physical Geography at the University of Malaga, states in the Malaga Hoy newspaper that storm Evelyn, which is said to cause the new mud showers, could in turn create an isolated depression in Morocco and the Canary Islands that will push southerly winds. the peninsula would generate.
In this way, the suspended dust from the Sahara can land in Andalusia. Together with the precipitation, this again produces clay rain. “According to Aemet’s numerical models, it is very likely that we will have Calima phenomena similar to those seen earlier this month,” Sinoga said.
Not an abnormal phenomenon
The expert reiterates that the dust in the air in southern Spain is still not an abnormal phenomenon. However, the short intervals and the period of the year in which the phenomenon occurs are somewhat extraordinary. Sahara dust is more often in the air in the summer, but then it doesn’t rain.
Also read: How can you protect yourself from the Sahara dust
