The Saharan Dust Cloud Is Coming To Tampa & Bringing Gorgeous Sunsets

Florida sunsets already feel like walking into a dreamy painting crafted by some master artist, especially when The Sunshine State's skies change along with unpredictable Florida weather. Sunsets from a massive Saharan dust cloud could bring even more gorgeousness in the coming week to The Gulf and Central Florida, as well as a pause in hurricane season.

While the weather occurrence sounds like a rare phenomenon, these types of strong winds aren’t actually that uncommon during this time of year, as east-bound winds push towards Florida and the Caribbean.

Tampa Bay 10 explains that the SAL, or Saharan Air Layer, is about 50% drier than normal air, and associated with winds of up to 55 mph.

With less moisture in the air and low wind shear, the dust clouds do a good job of keeping tropical storms and cyclones at bay. The air particles also reflect light to give the sky a deep red or orange hue, which is most noticeable in the evenings.

As long as the evenings stay dry, we might be in for a treat.

If it rains, however, the dust will be washed away. For now, the Weather Channel predicts a 20% chance of rain for the Tampa area through the weekend, so given the right conditions, you should be able to catch those breathtaking sunsets as we push into the week.

National Weather Service meteorologist Rick Davis was quoted in a Tampa Bay report adding that the dust cloud will also bring warmer-than-normal temps.

The Weather Channel forecasts the rest of this week and next to be up in the 90s — hotter than the Amazon Rainforest.

Davis added that this particular storm is larger than what they normally see this time of year and it's currently making its way across the Caribbean before moving through south Florida up through the central areas of the state, and then blowing across through Texas and Mexico.

While this dust cloud could be a welcome reprieve to the early months of hurricane season, Floridians are no strangers to weather changing on a dime. It’s always a good idea to be prepared in advance for any potential inclement weather.

*Cover photo for illustrative purposes only.