Saharan dust registers highest levels in a decade

The Athens Observatory said on Friday that one of the largest ever transfers of desert sand to Greece from the Sahara in North Africa took place on Thursday. 

According to satellite images, dust levels in the atmosphere were especially high in the southern part of the country. 

The African dust covered the entire country and concentrations were the highest in the last 10 years, according to the observatory's meteorological service. 

PM10 levels exceeded 500 micrograms per cubic meter and blocked the sun's rays, limiting the amount of solar radiation reaching the ground. 

According to the observatory, the desert dust directly impacts the climate due to its interaction with solar radiation but also indirectly due to its interaction with the clouds.