On 3 September 2026, a calima—warm, dust-laden air from North African deserts—swept across the eastern Canary Islands, impacting visibility and air quality in Fuerteventura and Lanzarote. In response, the regional government declared a pre-alert for Gran Canaria, Fuerteventura, Lanzarote, and La Graciosa.
An image captured by the Copernicus Sentinel-2 satellites on the same day reveals Fuerteventura and Lanzarote cloaked in a beige-grey haze over the surrounding Atlantic. The arid, ochre land of Fuerteventura is still visible despite the dust, while Lanzarote is mostly obscured due to denser dust and clouds to the east.
The Copernicus Atmosphere Monitoring Service offers forecasts that detail the air quality effects of such dust transport episodes.
