The World Meteorological Organization (WMO) has warned that sand and dust storms continued to severely impact health, transportation agriculture and ecosystems in 2025, even though global average dust concentrations remained similar to the previous year.
In its 2026 Airborne Dust Bulletin WMO highlighted major dust storm hotspots, reviewed advances in forecasting technologies and stressed the growing role of artificial intelligence (AI) and satellite observations in improving early warning systems.
According to the report, nearly 2 billion tonnes of dust enter the atmosphere every year, travelling across countries, continents and oceans. While dust storms are natural phenomena common in arid and semi arid regions such as the Sahara, Gobi and Arabian deserts, WMO said poor land management, drought and environmental degradation are increasingly contributing to the problem.
WMO Secretary General Celeste Saulo said sand and dust storms affect air quality, public health, agriculture, transport, water and energy systems, while damaging ecosystems. She stressed that because dust storms cross national borders, international cooperation, data sharing and stronger regional forecasting systems are essential to protect vulnerable communities.
The report noted that North Africa and the Middle East experienced repeated major dust intrusions during 2025, leading to poor air quality and reduced visibility. The world’s highest average dust concentrations remained centred over the Bodélé Depression in Chad, one of the planet’s most active dust source regions.
China experienced its most severe sand and dust storm in a decade in April 2025 after dust from Mongolia swept across northern regions. Hourly PM10 concentrations exceeded 1,000 micrograms per cubic metre in many areas and reached between 3,000 and 4,000 micrograms per cubic metre in some locations, far above World Health Organization air quality guidelines.
The report also highlighted record-breaking dust activity along the US-Mexico border. El Paso, Texas, recorded 50 dust weather days during 2025, more than twice its annual average and the highest since the Dust Bowl era of 1935. On March 18, continuous dust storm conditions lasted for more than six hours, with hourly PM10 levels reaching 8,142 micrograms per cubic metre the highest recorded in Texas since monitoring began nearly three decades ago. The storm forced the closure of schools, highways and airports and contributed to multiple fatal traffic accidents.
WMO said forecasting dust storms remains challenging because of the complex interaction between atmospheric conditions and dust movement. However, recent advances in artificial intelligence are offering new ways to improve predictions by analysing decades of satellite observations and atmospheric data while requiring significantly less computing power than traditional weather models.
The report said different AI systems perform better under different conditions, with some better suited to forecasting short-lived local dust storms and others more effective at tracking large scale dust events.
Advances in satellite remote sensing, combined with machine learning and ground observations, are also improving the identification of active dust source regions, allowing authorities to better target mitigation efforts.
WMO coordinates global dust forecasting through its Sand and Dust Storm Warning Advisory and Assessment System, which operates regional centres in Saudi Arabia, Spain, China and Barbados. The organisation is also part of the UN Coalition on Combating Sand and Dust Storms.
The United Nations has designated July 12 as the International Day of Combating Sand and Dust Storms and declared 2025–2034 as the Decade on Combating Sand and Dust Storms, with this year’s theme focusing on protecting land and life from the growing impacts of dust storms.