This dataset contains low-pressure vortex detections from seven years (2012 and 2014-2019) of recordings from multiple infrasound barometers deployed at the Nevada National Security Site. Vortices that become visible after sweeping up material from the ground are called dust devils.

Each year of observation provided has two data files associated with it - a "summary_yyyy.csv" and a "data_yyyy.csv" file. The Summary CSV file provides summary statistics for all detections that year. Summary statistics include date, time, and location of dust devil detections, in addition to background weather data and fit statistics. The Data CSV file contains pressure time series for each dust devil detection for a given year, sampled at 10 Hz, and decimated to their nearest milliPascal value to reduce file size. Each dust devil detection is associated with a unique dust devil ID (ddID) in the summary file. The dust devil ID can be used to isolate a specific dust devil time series within the data file.

Dust devil detections are generated using the algorithm in Berg et. al. (2024). Once the dust devils are detected, a "Lorentzian" profile is fit across the detection, whereby the pressure change due to a dust devil is parametrized by a dip value in Pascal and a Full-Width at Half-Maximum (FWHM) in seconds (see Equation 1 in Jackson and Lorenz, 2015). Fit statistics within the summary file (described in the associated xml file) are with respect to the Lorentzian functional form.

Users may conduct statistical analysis of detections using the Summary file or examine individual dust devil pressure time series using the Data file. A more complete guide to the dataset and its usage is provided in the user guide.


Berg, E. M., L. J. Urtecho, S. Krishnamoorthy, E. A. Silber, A. Sparks, and D. C. Bowman, 2024: An Accurate and Automated Convective Vortex Detection Method for Long-Duration Infrasound Microbarometer Data. J. Atmos. Oceanic Technol., 41, 341–354, https://doi.org/10.1175/JTECH-D-23-0037.1. 

Jackson, B., and R. Lorenz (2015), A multiyear dust devil vortex survey using an automated search of pressure time series. J. Geophys. Res. Planets, 120, 401–412. doi: 10.1002/2014JE004712.