Athens, a city in Southern Greece, witnessed an extraordinary phenomenon on Tuesday as strong winds transported dust clouds from the Sahara Desert, shrouding the city, including iconic landmarks like the Acropolis, in an eerie orange haze. This spectacle, occurring during the last hours of daylight, offered a glimpse into what a Martian city might resemble, according to the New York Post. Kostas Lagouvardos, weather research director at the Athens Observatory, described it as one of the most significant episodes of dust and sand concentrations from the Sahara since 2018, when the island of Crete was particularly affected by similar clouds. The thick yellow-orange haze significantly reduced visibility and prompted health authorities to issue warnings about potential breathing risks. However, the Greek weather service anticipates that the skies will start clearing by Wednesday. Earlier in the year, Greece had already encountered Sahara dust clouds that also affected regions of Switzerland and southern France. The persistent strong southerly winds have also fueled unseasonable early wildfires in the country’s south, with the fire service reporting a total of 25 wildfires across the country in the past 24 hours on Tuesday.
Athens Sky Turns Orange as Sahara Dust Blankets City
