Analysis of Dust Storm Concentration Levels in the United Arab Emirates using the second Modem-Era Retrospective analysis for Research and Applications (MERRA-2)

Dust storms have long been considered one of the most visible signs of soil erosion, and popularity in the trend has grown in recent years. PM2.5, a critical element of environmental pollution, has been attributed to negative health impacts in humans, including premature death after extended exposure. However, analyses of air quality and its effect on numerous societally important problems are hampered by restricted surface assessment and a lack of surveillance with sufficient spatial resolution. The use of satellite imagery for dust storm detection is vital for the identification of emission approximations and bio-conservatives studies. In this paper, data of the second Modern-Era Retrospective analysis for Research and Applications (MERRA-2) has been employed to look into the dust storm patterns in the UAE for the last 10 years (2010–2020). This is further supported with the images retrieved from the database and the annual developments are compared.