In 2007, the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) took the lead in working with international partners to implement a Sand and Dust Storm Warning Advisory and Assessment System (SDS-WAS). This initiative addressed the need for international coordination of the many countries that are impacted by sand and dust storms. The mission of SDS-WAS is to enhance the ability of countries to deliver timely and high-quality sand and dust storm forecasts, observations, information and knowledge to users through an international partnership of research and operational communities.

SDS-WAS operates as an international hub of researchers, operational centers and end-users and is organized through regional nodes. Three nodes are currently in operation- Regional Node for Asia, coordinated by a Regional Center in Beijing, China, hosted by the China Meteorological Administration; Regional Node for Northern Africa, Middle East and Europe coordinated by a Regional Center in Barcelona, Spain, hosted by the State Meteorological Agency of Spain (AEMET) and the Barcelona Supercomputing Center (BSC); and Regional Node for Pan-America, coordinated by a Regional Center in Bridgetown, Barbados, hosted by the Caribbean Institute for Meteorology and Hydrology.

This session seeks to increase the visibility and highlight the work of the Regional Node for Pan-America which is the youngest of the three SDS-WAS Nodes. Additionally, the Pan-American region is the home of the oldest dust observation station located at Ragged Point on the east coast of Barbados, the most easterly island in the Caribbean. This station, the Barbados Atmospheric Chemistry Observatory (BACO) is operated by the University of Miami, partnered with the Max Planck Institute for Chemistry, Mainz, Germany.

Bringing together scientists from this vast geographical region unified by a common initiative is strongly aligned with the overarching theme of the 2020 Annual Meeting, specifically because of (i) the holistic and interdisciplinary nature of the sand and dust storm studies in this region, (ii) the utilization of new technology and computational methods to carry out the mission and goals of SDS-WAS, (iii) the ethnic and cultural diversity of the region’s scientists, (iv) the unique global collaboration that is the SDS-WAS and (v) the opportunities for synergy among scientists, stakeholders and policy makers presented by SDS-WAS. The scope of interests includes the impact of dust transported from Africa to the Americas and the effects of dust emitted in arid regions and from disturbed soils of the United States and South America.

Submissions will be encouraged from North America, South America, Central America and the Caribbean that are aligned with and address the mission of the SDS-WAS. The Pan-American region has numerous scientists and institutions that work in several diverse, but complementary, areas of investigating Sand and Dust Storms. These areas encompass observations, modelling, operational forecasting, basic and applied research, instrumentation, impacts (especially on public health, air quality, solar energy generation, marine and terrestrial ecosystems) and mitigation.

- Indicates paper has been withdrawn from meeting

- Indicates an Award Winner