According to SRF Meteo, the weather service of the national broadcaster, the particles originated in regions of northwest Africa, including Mauritania, Mali, and Algeria.
Weather and wind conditions in those countries forced the sand two to five kilometres up into the sky before it was blown towards Europe via southerly winds, the weather service said.
The result in various parts of Switzerland on Saturday were misty yellow-orange skies, also seen across much of southern and eastern France.
Levels of fine particles in the air also increased due to the sand, especially in the mountains. At the Jungfraujoch (3,463 metres), a value of 744 micrograms per cubic metre was recorded; this compares to the national average throughout the year of 10 micrograms per cubic metre.
The sand and orange skies are set to disappear on Sunday as a cold front arrives to force down temperatures that in some parts of the country on Saturday rose to 15 or 16 degrees Celsius.
Veysonnaz, canton Valais.
Jochen Roch, via SRF
Anzère, canton Valais.
Keystone / Laurent Gillieron
A bus stop in Geneva, southwestern Switzerland.
Keystone / Martial Trezzini
Val Ferret, canton Valais.
Keystone / Salvatore Di Nolfi
How is your country dealing with the return of stolen artifacts?
Western nations like Switzerland often have to deal with the process of recovering or returning looted artifacts which have been illegally imported. What’s the situation like in your country?
What do you think Switzerland’s Alain Berset can bring to the Council of Europe?
The former interior minister is to become the first Swiss Secretary General of the Council of Europe – which issues should his five-year term focus on?
Sylvain Saudan, ‘skier of the impossible’, dies aged 87
This content was published on
The Swiss father of extreme skiing pioneered descents from the Alps to the Himalayas – and became the sport’s first star.
Hayek family buys additional Swatch shares for nearly CHF11 million
This content was published on
Following the acquisition of registered shares worth over CHF20.6 million on Monday, the Hayek family made another purchase on Tuesday.
Suicide capsule to be used in Switzerland this year, says euthanasia organisation
This content was published on
The organisation “The Last Resort” has confirmed that the suicide capsule Sarco is to be used in Switzerland. This should happen this year, it said.
Ukrainian children flown to Switzerland for cancer treatment
This content was published on
The Swiss air rescue service Rega flew two Ukrainian children with cancer to Switzerland from a hospital in Kyiv hit by Russian missiles.
Swiss Solidarity raises over CHF10 million for victims of extreme weather
This content was published on
The money raised will be used to help those affected by the recent storms and flooding in the cantons of Ticino, Graubünden, and Valais.
Swiss giant Roche given green light for lung cancer drug in Canada
This content was published on
According to a recent study, Roche’s Alecensaro reduced the risk of recurrence or death by 76% compared to chemotherapy alone.
Swiss luxury watch market hit hard by China-led slump
This content was published on
Sales of Swiss-made luxury watches are in sharp retreat as nervous consumers reconsider splashing out on expensive timepieces and demand slumps.
If you want to start a conversation about a topic raised in this article or want to report factual errors, email us at english@swissinfo.ch.
Read more
More
The art of weather forecasting – from high tech to ants
This content was published on
Where once people relied on local folklore and observation, now satellites and supercomputers are used to analyse and predict the weather.
You can find an overview of ongoing debates with our journalists here . Please join us!
If you want to start a conversation about a topic raised in this article or want to report factual errors, email us at english@swissinfo.ch.