Northern Utah has been pelted by several "dirty" rain and snowstorms during the past month, and another storm forecast for this weekend could include more of the same.
Those who hoped the recent storms would wash their vehicles may have been surprised to find a layer of grit put down by the rain or snow.
"I think we can blame some of it on the West Desert dust," said Dan Pope, a KSL meteorologist.
When these storms blow into Utah, Pope explained, they also pass over vast areas of desert in Nevada, Oregon and even the Snake River in Idaho.
"Often in the past month, these storms have been really strong, and they pick up this dust hundreds of miles away from Utah," he said. "And when it mixes with the precipitation, it does fall as dirty rain and dirty snow."
Bowen Call, with Utah Division of Air Quality, said such dust is composed of big, coarse particles. Call said he's not aware of any general health risks "dirty rain" poses to the public.
Pope believes the storm front will move through Salt Lake sometime Friday and ahead of it, gusty winds will pick up desert dust and play havoc with clean cars and windows. By Saturday, he believes all the dust should finally be settled.
Friday's forecast calls for a 70 percent chance of rain and a high of about 61 degrees. Friday likely will feature more rain and a low of about 40 degrees.
The National Weather Service in Salt Lake City also predicts at least a slight chance of showers every day through next Wednesday, as the weather will remain unsettled.
Pope said the Wasatch Front and northern Utah mountains have been especially wet since March 22.
The western desert has not been quite as wet and has on several occasions dried out enough that he could see the blowing dust preceding a storm, he said.
"I think the reason these storms have been especially dirty is that this dust has originated from drier areas of desert in eastern Oregon, eastern Washington, northern Nevada and southern Idaho," Pope said. "Areas outside of Utah have been a lot drier than we have been."
California's snowpack has been running 60 percent or less than normal, and that state is in its worst drought since the 1970s.
E-MAIL: lynn@desnews.com