| Section S | S index | 31-39 of 1376 terms |
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sand snow—Snow that has fallen at very cold temperatures (of the order of −25°C). A surface cover of this snow has the consistency of dust or light, dry sand. See wild snow.
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sandstorm—A strong wind carrying sand through the air. The diameter of most of the particles ranges from 0.08 to 1 mm. In contrast to a duststorm, the sand particles are mostly confined to the lowest 3.5 m (10 ft), rarely rise more than 15 m (50 ft) above the ground, and proceed mainly in a series of leaps (saltation). Sandstorms are best developed in desert regions where there is loose sand, often in dunes, without much admixture of dust. Sandstorms are due to strong winds caused or enhanced by surface heating and tend to form during the day and die out at night.
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sansar—(Also called sarsar, shamsir.) “Icy wind of death”; a northwest wind of Iran.
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Santa Ana—In the United States, a dry, foehnlike desert wind in southern California, generally blowing from the northeast or east, especially in the pass and river valley of Santa Ana, California, and other nearby passes, where it is further modified as a mountain-gap wind. It is driven by strong pressure gradients from an anticyclone over the Great Basin of the western United States. It blows, often hot and sometimes with great force, from the deserts to the east of the Sierra Nevada Mountains and may carry a large amount of dust. The combination of heat, dryness, and strong winds make it an especially hazardous fire weather condition. It most frequently occurs in late fall and winter (October–March); when it comes in spring, however, it can do great damage to fruit trees.
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Santa Rosa storm—In Argentina, an “annual” storm near the end of August.
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