Sand Storm - from thousand miles away

A few days ago, Beijing was hit by the sand storm blown from the desert area of the North Western part of China. Last night when I looked out of the window and noticed the sky being unusually orange red, I chatted with my friend "it looks like the sand storm is here", and got queried "what? sand storm?". I guessed it's from the light reflection of the sands. Last night the news reported the sand storm reached Taiwan and the air pollution index was just up to 150 (normally 50). This morning for the first time I saw this scene. The smog was unlike the other air pollution. You would see it's slightly brown orange. Something from thousand miles away. The first time the pollution index reached to the highest index point 500.

Many people complained but on the nature scene, sand and dust from desert bring a lot of minerals and natural nutrients to the soil. That means in the coming year, our agricultural products (i.e. rice/veggie) would have a richer harvest. Still doubt about it. The recent study about how Sahara desert in Africa is the essential source of the soil nutrients for the whole North America. It's due to the trade wind blowing the sands and dusts from Sahara to North America. So when we think desert is nothing, it is not. When it meets water, it's the best natural nutrients. Sahara was once a big land of green with lakes and lots of living things a long long time ago. Why Sahara green and water disappeared was an 1 degree shifting of the axle of the Earth. That changed the trade wind direction. The change however benefits the whole continent of North America. Some small changes in our mother nature would make our living whole lot different.