Spatiotemporal Variability in Aerosol Loading and Precipitation During Severe Dust Storm Events: A Multi-Event Assessment Across Saudi Arabia

Dust storms frequently affect Saudi Arabia, disrupting transportation and agriculture, threatening public health, and incurring high economic costs. This study assessed whether elevated aerosol loading during dust storms was accompanied by consistent changes in precipitation. Data sources included Terra MODIS Deep Blue aerosol optical depth (AOD), GPM IMERG precipitation, METAR observations, and ERA5 mean sea-level pressure and wind data. AOD and precipitation were analyzed across Before, During, and After phases within the event footprints and nationwide, with the phase changes compared to earlier and later low-dust control periods. AOD consistently increased from the Before to During phase, exceeding the corresponding changes in the control periods. Precipitation responses varied across events and spatial scales, frequently occurring outside regions of enhanced aerosol loading, and pressure and wind patterns also differed. Therefore, elevated AOD was not accompanied by consistent precipitation enhancement or suppression. These findings suggest that precipitation responses to dust storms are event-specific and spatially varying.