The Sahara Desert, one of the driest places on Earth, is experiencing a dramatic turn of events and southeastern Morocco has seen serious flooding after two days of torrential rain, according to reports. AP,
The village of Tagounite, located 450 km south of the capital Rabat, received more than 100 mm of rain in just 24 hours in September, according to Morocco’s meteorological agency.
The weather agency also noted that only two days of September rainfall exceeded the annual average of 250 mm, including most dry areas.
September’s storms have left stunning images of water flowing through Saharan sand amid castles and desert vegetation, the report said.
On September 10, MODIS (Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer) on NASA’s Terra satellite captured a false-color image of the resulting runoff and flood waters.
Two weeks ago, NASA Earth Observatory satellite images revealed a stunning explosion of greenery in the region, where water is rising rapidly to fill Lake Iriki, a famous lake bed between Zagora and Tata. And has been dry for 50 years. The same area photographed on August 14 was dry and parched.
On 7 and 8 September, the cyclone drenched parts of north-western Sahara, particularly large, treeless areas of the region.
Tourists riding in 4×4 motorized vehicles observed the scene with awe.
“It has been 30 to 50 years since there has been so much rain in such a short period of time,” AP Houssin Youabbe of Morocco’s Directorate General of Meteorology is quoted as saying.
What do meteorologists say?
According to meteorologists, these rains—plus tropical storms—could change the direction of the region’s weather in the coming months and years. The air retains more moisture, which leads to evaporation, which leads to more storms, Uebbe said.
For the past six years, drought has created challenges for much of Morocco, forcing farmers to leave fields fallow. They also forced them to leave cities and villages to ration water.
This rainfall is expected to help replenish the large groundwater aquifers beneath the desert that desert communities depend on to supply water.
Throughout September, the region’s depleted reservoirs reported refilling at record rates, although it is still unclear how much the September rains will help alleviate the drought.
