History and Applications of Dust Devil Studies

Abstract

Studies of dust devils, and their impact on society, are reviewed. Dust devils have been noted since antiquity, and have been documented in many countries, as well as on the planet Mars. As time-variable vortex entities, they have become a cultural motif. Three major stimuli of dust devil research are identified, nuclear testing, terrestrial climate studies, and perhaps most significantly, Mars research. Dust devils present an occasional safety hazard to light structures and have caused several deaths.

A study of daytime convective vortices and turbulence in the martian Planetary Boundary Layer based on half-a-year of InSight atmospheric measurements and Large-Eddy Simulations

“…This could be considered as a counter-intuitive result since large ambient wind speed enhances horizontal vorticity known to be a precursor of convective vortex formation (Toigo and Richardson, 2003;Rafkin et al, 2016). Yet, as is mentioned above in the text, this robust conclusion that less vortices form in larger-ambient-wind LES runs could be explained by shearing effects: strong ambient wind is deforming the convective cells and adversely affecting the formation of vortices; in terrestrial field studies, windy days are well-known to be met with far fewer, if any, dust-devil vortex encounters (Balme et al, 2012;Kurgansky et al, 2011;Lorenz et al, 2016). Another potential line of explanation is a possible lower longevity of convective vortices in the high-wind case -since vortices would be more short-lived in the highwind case, fewer of them would be detected in the horizontal LES pressure field.…”

Research in dynamic meteorology in Russia in 2015–2018

“…Исследования пыльных вихрей (dust devils) и их влияние на общество рассмотрены в обзорной статье [29]. Пыльные вихри были замечены с древних времен и были задокументированы во многих странах, включая Россию, а также на планете Марс.…”

“…Статья завершается обзором влияния поднятой пыли на структуру потоков в пыльных вихрях и обсуждением открытых вопросов. Обзоры [29,30] переизданы в книге [31].…”

Dust Devils on Titan

“…Dust devils occur throughout arid regions on Earth, where they contribute to poor air quality (Gillette & Sinclair, ), and ubiquitously on Mars, where they may pose a hazard for human exploration (Balme & Greeley, ). While dust devils observations go back millennia (Lorenz et al, ), our understanding of their operation and how they lift dust remains poor. If dust devils do exist on Titan, the unique aerodynamic environment may provide an unparalleled window into dust devil physics.…”