Score contribution per author:
α: calibrated so average coauthorship-adjusted count equals average raw count
Dust storms, a significant source of air pollution, are increasing in frequency around the globe. However, there is limited understanding of their impacts to infant health. I address this gap by investigating US birth outcome effects of within-pregnancy dust storms between 2010 and 2017 using a complete record of documented US dust storm episodes from the National Weather Service. Results suggest that experiencing a dust storm during pregnancy increases the probability of low birth weight and prematurity by 1.4 and 1.8 percentage points, respectively, resulting in average costs of $2.6 million per affected county per year. I find that impacts are largest in magnitude when exposure occurs during the third trimester of pregnancy. PM2.5 is shown to be a potential causal mechanism. Many robustness and falsification tests are performed.