SAHARAN DUST ON FUERTEVENTURA ISLAND (CANARIES): CHEMICAL AND MINERALOGICAL CHARACTERISTICS, AIR MASS TRAJECTORIES, AND PROBABLE SOURCES

International audienceFrom April 12 to 19, 1984, dust was [Windom, 1975; Chester et al., 1979; Sarnthein et collected by cascade impactor on Fuerteventura al., 1982] and, probably, to the mineral feeding Island, 100 km from the Saharan coast. The sam-of marine plankton. The dust outbreaks from ples were analyzed by X ray fluorescence spectro-northwestern Africa to the middle Atlantic and metry (elemental composition), by X ray diffrac-Western Europe have been much less studied. The tion (mineral constituents), and by scanning only samplings were carried out during oceanic electron microscope (SEM) and energy dispersive X cruises [Chester and Johnson, 1971; Parkin et ray analyzer (EDXA) examination (shape, surface al., 1972] and the results were compared to the features, and mineralogy of particles), with the marine sedimentation [Tetzlaff and Wolter, 198