Sahara desert dust paints European landscapes reddish-brown

European landscapes turned into a shade of reddish-brown after a massive plume of the Sahara Desert dust painted the region in a colour similar to that of planet Mars. Air-quality dropped as did solar-power production as a result of the phenomenon.The orange tint was caused due to strong winds in Africa that led to sand sweeping across Europe before it hit the mountain ranges and settled onto the snow."We saw air quality values in the affected regions drop significantly. The impact of the Saharan dust clouds is clearly visible for affected cities, such as, for example, Barcelona or Marseille," Mark Parrington, a scientist at the Copernicus Atmosphere Monitoring Service, told Bloomberg. World Meteorological Organization shared pictures in a post on Twitter on February 6 and said, "When snow becomes sand. #Saharan dust has transformed the landscape in parts of Europe. CameraJura mountains on border between Switzerland and France from WMO's Lu Ren."

When snow becomes sand#Saharan dust has transformed the landscape in parts of Europe.

????Jura mountains on border between Switzerland and France from WMO's Lu Ren

Details of WMO's work to improve warnings of this major environmental and health hazardhttps://t.co/LKpsn1w2LJ pic.twitter.com/AdqJPHC4fr

— World Meteorological Organization (@WMO) February 6, 2021

An orange hue was also seen in the Chamonix Mont-Blanc Valley since the air was filled with sand dust from the Sahara.

A Grandvalira #sablesaharien #pols #andorra ???? @montpackers pic.twitter.com/cqa763zlWk

— Météo Pyrénées (@Meteo_Pyrenees) February 6, 2021