A large mud storm often known as a haboob hit Phoenix : NPR

[ad_1] <img src="https://npr.brightspotcdn.com/dims3/default/strip/false/crop/7551x5034+0+0/resize/1100/quality/50/format/jpeg/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fnpr-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2F31%2Fd5%2F7925a1b448c698a76fc9277339e0%2Fap25238058969137.jpg" data-template="https://npr.brightspotcdn.com/dims3/default/strip/false/crop/7551x5034+0+0/resize/{width}/quality/{quality}/format/{format}/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fnpr-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2F31%2Fd5%2F7925a1b448c698a76fc9277339e0%2Fap25238058969137.jpg" class="img" alt="A giant dust storm approaches the Phoenix metro area as a monsoon storm pushes the dust into the air on Aug. 25 in Phoenix, Az." fetchpriority="high"/> A large mud storm approaches the Phoenix metro space as a monsoon storm pushes the mud into the air on Aug. 25 in Phoenix, Az. Ross D. Franklin/AP disguise caption

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Ross D. Franklin/AP Elements of central Arizona had been engulfed by a towering wall of mud on Monday night — producing dramatic scenes that despatched shockwaves far past the Grand Canyon state.

" It was bigger and it went via a metropolitan space so it gained a whole lot of consideration," mentioned Mark O'Malley, a meteorologist with the Nationwide Climate Service in Phoenix.

In line with O'Malley, the mud storm — often known as a haboob — originated in southern Arizona round 3:30 p.m. native time and reached town of Phoenix about two hours later.

The storm steadily weakened because it moved via north-central Arizona and in complete, lasted about an hour, O'Malley added.

The haboob was accompanied by intense thunderstorms. On Monday night, greater than 39,000 households in Arizona had been with out energy and the majority of outages had been in Maricopa County, which incorporates Phoenix, in accordance with NPR member station KJZZ.

The mud storm additionally diminished visibility to a quarter-mile throughout town. The state's Division of Transportation urged drivers to remain off the highway and flights on the Phoenix Sky Harbor Worldwide Airport had been quickly grounded, KJZZ reported.

Though photos from the haboob could look apocalyptic, dozens of mud storms happen annually in southwestern U.S., in accordance with the Nationwide Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA).

Here is what to know.

How do haboobs type? These mud storms are the results of highly effective winds from a thunderstorm. Because the storm cell strikes, it forces air down and ahead, selecting up mud and particles alongside the way in which, in accordance with NOAA.

The latest haboob that swept via Phoenix additionally got here after a sequence of extreme thunderstorms within the space.

" That is how these outflows type is behind thunderstorms and it pushes throughout the desert and on this case, picked up a whole lot of dust and transported it into the Phoenix metro space," O'Malley mentioned.

The phrase "haboob" comes from the Arabic phrase "haab" which means "wind" or "blow,' in accordance with NOAA. Haboobs are frequent in sizzling and dry areas just like the Sahara desert and the Arabian Peninsula.

How harmful are haboobs? Wind speeds reaching 60 miles per hour could cause a wall of mud as excessive as 10,000 toes, NOAA mentioned. However these storms are sometimes transient, lasting between 10 to half-hour.

Nonetheless, mud storms have been the reason for dozens of site visitors fatalities within the U.S. over time. In 2023, researchers from NOAA's Air Assets Laboratory estimated that between 2007 and 2017, there have been at the very least 232 deaths from mud storm-related site visitors occasions.

"We discovered that mud occasions brought on life losses akin to occasions like hurricanes and wildfires in some years," Daniel Tong, one of many authors of the analysis paper, mentioned in 2023. "Larger consciousness may scale back crashes and probably save lives."