ELI5: Explain Like I'm 5

Saharan Air Layer

Do you know what a desert is? It is a place that does not have much water or plants. The Sahara desert is one of the biggest deserts in the world and it is very very hot!

Now, when the air in the Sahara desert gets very hot, it rises up into the sky. As it goes up, it cools down and becomes very dry. This dry and dusty air travels across the ocean and reaches places like the Caribbean, Gulf of Mexico, and even the southern United States.

This layer of air is called the Saharan Air Layer (SAL). It is like a big blanket of hot and dry air that covers a lot of the sky. It can make the sky look hazy and can even affect the weather.

Sometimes, this layer of air can bring sand and dust from the Sahara desert with it. This can make the air very dirty and hard to breathe.

But don’t worry! Scientists and meteorologists keep an eye on the SAL to make sure it does not cause any harm. They use special instruments to track it and predict how it will move.

So, the Saharan Air Layer is like a big blanket of hot, dry and dusty air that comes from the Sahara desert and travels across the ocean to other parts of the world.