Uluru is an inselberg, meaning “island mountain”. An inselberg is a prominent isolated residual knob or hill that rises abruptly from and is surrounded by extensive and relatively flat erosion lowlands in a hot, dry region. These characteristics led to its survival, while the surrounding rocks were eroded.

An inselberg or monadnock (/məˈnædnɒk/) is an isolated rock hill, knob, ridge, or small mountain that rises abruptly from a gently sloping or virtually level surrounding plain. If the inselberg is dome-shaped and formed from granite or gneiss, it can also be called a bornhardt, though not all bornhardts are inselbergs.

Inselberg, (from German Insel, “island,” and Berg, “mountain”), isolated hill that stands above well-developed plains and appears not unlike an island rising from the sea.

Inselbergs arise from rocks which erode at a slower rate than that of the surrounding rocks. The landform consists of an erosion-resistant rock which protects a softer rock such as limestone. The resistant rock remains isolated as ongoing erosion erodes the less resistant rock around it.

A yardang is a streamlined protuberance carved from bedrock or any consolidated or semiconsolidated material by the dual action of wind abrasion by dust and sand, and deflation which is the removal of loose material by wind turbulence.

Yardangs are formed by deflation while zeugen by abrasion. There is no difference. The two names describes the same landform. Yardangs are formed on vertical hard/soft layers of rock, while zeugen (this is its plural form) are formed on horizontal bands of hard/soft rocks giving it a more mushroom-like shape.

Yardang (also sometimes: jardang): An elongated erosional landform, commonly found in deserts, resembling the hull of an inverted boat. Similar to sand dunes, yardangs typically have a tall, steep side facing the prevailing wind direction and slope gently down away from the wind.

What factor limits the depth of blowouts? The factor that controls the depths of these basins, that is, acts as base level, is the local water table. when blowouts are lowered to the water table, damp ground and vegetation prevent further deflation.

Yardang, large area of soft, poorly consolidated rock and bedrock surfaces that have been extensively grooved, fluted, and pitted by wind erosion. The rock is eroded into alternating ridges and furrows essentially parallel to the dominant wind direction.

Typically most dust (clay and silt) becomes suspended in the wind and is carried away from the region by prevailing winds, particularly during wind storms when high dust concentrations in the air can create near “white-out” conditions. In contrast, wind moves sand along the surface as a saltating bedload.

Particles are sand-sized, because larger particles are too heavy for the wind to transport by suspension. As the wind moves up and over the obstacle, it increases in speed. It carries the sand grains up the gently sloping, upwind side of the dune by saltation. As the wind passes over the dune, its speed decreases.

Dust is potentially a far more serious issue than blowing sand. Dust particles (or silt and clay as many geologists would term them) are those smaller grains, which would feel silky to the touch, and don’t scratch the skin. Crucially, these smaller, lighter grains may travel much, much further.

Besides macrophages, the lungs have another system for the removal of dust. The lungs can react to the presence of germ-bearing particles by producing certain proteins. These proteins attach to particles to neutralize them. Dusts are tiny solid particles scattered or suspended in the air.

Larger particles such as sand may become trapped in the nose and throat but can be expelled by coughing or sneezing. Very small, fine particles (particulates) may cause more serious health problems because they can be inhaled deep into the lungs and airways.

Black Sunday

More than eight decades later, the summer of 1936 remains the hottest summer on record in the U.S. However, new research finds that the heat waves that powered the Dust Bowl are now 2.5 times more likely to happen again in our modern climate due to another type of manmade crisis — climate change.

Dust and sand storms are among nature’s most violent and unpredictable phenomena. High winds lift dirt or sand particles into the air, unleashing a turbulent, suffocating cloud that can reduce visibility to almost nothing in a matter of seconds and cause property damage, injuries, and deaths.

Sandstorms can happen anywhere it is very dry and when sand combines with the right wind conditions. Some places that sandstorms frequently occur are Iraq, India, Africa, Afghanistan, and Egypt. Anywhere mostly where it gets really dry and windy, sandstorms can happen easily.

Sandstorms can do significant damage to sensitive tissues, especially your eyes and nose. Being caught in one with no protection will feel like getting rubbed down with sandpaper on every exposed surface of your body.

Dust devils are related to tornadoes, but do not form the same way. Dust devils form when hot air near the surface rises quickly through a small pocket of cooler, low-pressure air above it. If conditions are just right, the air will begin to rotate. They can be powerful, but not as powerful as tornadoes.

This is a very rare phenomenon that occurs when surface wind shear acts to generate a vortex over snow cover, resulting in a whirling column of snow particles being raised from the ground. It is sometimes referred to as a “snownado”.

The United States

Dust devils are usually harmless, but can on rare occasions grow large enough to pose a threat to both people and property. They are comparable to tornadoes in that both are a weather phenomenon involving a vertically oriented rotating column of wind.