Sand, Salt, and Smoke Make This Mesmerizing Visualization That Shows Our Turbulent Weather

The 2017 hurricane season was particularly bad, and this electric visualization captures it in a unique way that shows the mesmerizing ways large-scale atmospheric currents interact with each other to help create the weather we all experience. 

Science is the coolest, as this neat visualization from NASA confirms yet again. Using data collected from satellites on the density of three aerosols (smoke, sea salt, and dust), NASA programmed the Discover supercomputer at the Center for Climate Simulation using the Goddard Earth Observing System mathematical models to simulate Earth's atmospheric currents, creating the visualization you see above, which ranges from July 31 to November 1 of this year. Scientists note the importance of understanding the transport of aerosols to better ascertain their impact, as the video shows dust from the Sahara falling in the Gulf of Mexico and smoke from fires in the Pacific Northwest eventually making its way as far as Europe. Hurricanes are visible because of the sea salt that their surface winds pick up and distribute through the storm with some secondary help from the Saharan dust they draw in. Altogether, it's a very neat way to see the larger processes of our atmosphere.

[via NASA Goddard Space Flight Center]