Sahara sandstorm causes skies over Basingstoke to turn orange

Some took to social media to say they had found orange dust on outside surfaces and cars.

Deposits of orange coloured dust found in a garden in Basingstoke this morning

We can see the #SaharanDust that has pushed across Spain and France, into southeast England

Whilst this #dust is mostly about 2km above ground level, some deposits may fall to the ground, especially during today's rain in southern parts of the UK pic.twitter.com/9mxfcnk8cv

— Met Office (@metoffice) March 16, 2022

According to the Met Office, the orange sky was caused by a sandstorm in the Sahara which has moved north through Europe to the south of England.

Read more: Basingstoke bar lighting up yellow and blue in support of Ukraine 

It affected parts of Spain and France yesterday, with the Met Office saying: “We can see the Saharan dust that has pushed across Spain and France, into southeast England. While this dust is mostly about 2km above ground level, some deposits may fall to the ground, especially during today’s rain in southern parts of the UK.”

#SaharanDust giving some of us orange, hazy skies this morning. Thanks to our Weather Watchers for these photos.
More info on the #dust here https://t.co/eMBMlqVAsZ pic.twitter.com/x2XkSOF3fD

— BBC Weather (@bbcweather) March 16, 2022

Did you notice the orange sky this morning? Send us your pictures to Emily.roberts@newsquest.co.uk.

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