‘Martian haze’ could turn into ‘blood rain’ in Spain

‘Martian haze’ could turn into ‘blood rain’ in Spain. Skies across Spain’s Almeria, Valencia and Alicante were turned orange on Monday, March 14.

Skies in many areas are still orange and hazy on Tuesday, March 15. Monday’s event was caused by Sahara Desert dust which was held in suspension in the air. This is called calima in Spain. A haze of this type has not been seen in Spain for several decades. Social media was awash with images of orange “Martian haze” skies on Monday.

According to the State Meteorological Agency (Aemet), calima is when extremely small particles that are invisible to the human eye get suspended in the atmosphere. When mixed with rain the phenomenon of “blood rain” or “mud rain” occurs.

It has been predicted that this could happen on Tuesday. Calima can cause negative health issues such as respiratory problems and itching eyes.

Speaking to Efe, the president of the Association of Spanish Geographers (AGE), Professor Jorge Olcina of the University of Alicante explained that the “Martian haze” was caused by: “an arrival of Saharan dust such as had not been recorded in Spain for decades.”

He went on to add: “The Saharan dust takes advantage of the eastern side of the DANA that has formed in the Gulf of Cadiz to ascend from the Sahara desert to western Europe.”

He labelled the event as “really exceptional.”

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