Ethiopia

Have you ever seen, or heard of dust devils, desert jinns, or willy-willies coming up from sandy grounds?

Well-formed whirlwinds carrying dust and sand high up in the air are regularly seen in the dry Ethiopian landscape. Unlike tornadoes, they form under calm conditions and from the ground up. With increasing wind sand grains start to vibrate, then to saltate or leap, which loosens more sand and breaks off particles suspended up in the air.

Dust devils a.k.a. sand pillars, sand augers, desert jinns, and willy-willies are part of many myths and they form in warm barren areas worldwide, as on Mars.