Check out the Dust Storm in Sydney, Australia

[malaise]

http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2009/09/23/2694487.htm
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Sydney breathes again as dust covers Brisbane

The weather bureau says it expects a massive dust storm will continue to move into Queensland's far north, leaving Sydney and Brisbane with clean air but coated in a film of dust.

Sydney awoke to an eerie red dawn after strong north-westerly overnight winds dumped thousands of tonnes of dust on the Harbour City, the Hunter Valley, Wollongong and the state's west.

Hours later the dust cleared from Sydney and arrived in Brisbane, hampering firefighting efforts in southern Queensland by temporarily grounding water bombing helicopters.

Senior forecaster Tony Auden says the dusty conditions should ease overnight in Queensland's south-east.

"We've seen gusts up to 50 or 60 kilometres an hour around the south-east," he said.

"We expect them to ease slightly and with them the fire danger should start to drop too.

"And for the next couple of days at least, expect hopefully those clearer skies and cooler temperatures and lighter winds, so we will be out of those extreme fire dangers at least for a few days."

But Mr Auden says the dust haze that has blanketed Sydney and Brisbane will also be experienced in the far north.

"It should make its way up into the Sunshine Coast and into those Capricornia and central coast areas soon," he said.

"Much of western Queensland is still experiencing dust haze too and I think we will see dust all the way up to the tropics.

http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2009/09/23/2694487.htm

[MrModerate]

1. Yeah, it looked like a low budget movie shot in Marsport all day long here in Brisbane . . .

Apparently the farmers in the interior are prepping their fields for planting and generally expect enough moisture to hold the topsoil after it's been disturbed. It's been so dry though, that the wind has carried the soil away and dropped it all over Queensland (and NSW as well).

[malaise]

2. Wow!

What's the role of drought in all this - the pics are surreal.

[AusDem]

3. The role of drought is pretty key

http://www.theage.com.au/opinion/society-and-culture/global-warning-sydney-dust-storm-just-the-beginning-20090923-g1fi.html

and the drought is being affected by changing global climate conditions.

major issue for down here.

its why melbourne is building a massive desalination plant. The price we're paying for water security.

[malaise]

4. Thanks for that link

:hi: